Councillor Vanessa Keenan | Politician

Councillor Vanessa Keenan

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25.01.2022 COUNCILLOR COLUMN In today's paper, I wrote about the importance of our Annual Grants Program and flagged another community grant program from Riverina Water opening up soon.

25.01.2022 I’ve been working with operators, Council staff and residents over the last few months on getting the number of food van permits increased across the city. Proud to see Councillors unanimously support an increase from 10 to 15 permits at this week’s Council meeting.

22.01.2022 Proud of Wagga tonight and the wonderful, powerful Welcome To Country for Artstate NSW delegates from Aunty Isobel Reid and hearing from Uncle Stan Grant on the true meaning of Wagga Wagga, to dance and celebrate. Artstate Wagga Wagga is on until Sunday. Check out the program at www.artstate.com.au

21.01.2022 Here’s Dan’s overview for tomorrow night’s Council meeting.

21.01.2022 Here's my overview of Monday night's Council Meeting. On the agenda: - Stage 2 Active Travel Plan Funding - Draft PlanningProposal - Estella - Planning Proposal - Collingullie... - Planning Proposal Minor Amendments - Eunony Bridge To view the full agenda, business papers and watch the livestream from 6pm click here https://wagga.nsw.gov.au//counc/council-meeting-livestream

19.01.2022 NOTICE OF MOTION On Monday night Council will debate my notice of motion to ask staff to investigate a rebate system for reusable nappies and menstrual products. Each day there are 3.75 million disposable nappies used across Australia and New Zealand, with about one cup of crude oil used to make each nappy. Whilst cloth nappies require detergents and water to wash, they are a better alternative for the environment and provide savings for both residents and Council. Be...fore a child is properly toilet trained, an estimated 6,000 nappies will be used and disposed of during that timeframe. Averaging the cost of a single disposable nappy at 50c, a family spends approximately $3,000 on nappies alone. When disposable nappies end up in landfill, it takes up to 300 years for them to break down. It is also estimated that an average of 150kg of sanitary products are sent to landfill during a woman’s lifetime. Using reusable nappies and menstrual products only requires a thorough wash and they’re ready to be used again. By introducing the fortnightly FOGO system (food organics and garden organics), Council provided a platform for residents to significantly reduce the amount of waste entering landfill. Disposable nappies and absorbent menstrual products are still a major contribution to household garbage waste. For many families, depositing disposable nappies in the bin for up to a fortnight is a common frustration due to potential odour issues and the amount of space taken up in the bin. Reusable cloth nappies and menstrual products are a significant upfront investment that for some residents cannot afford. A large amount of household waste can be diverted from landfill, saving the community and Council money. Reusable products can also save households up to $1,000 a year. A number of Councils across Australia are implementing rebate systems in recognition of the benefits of waste diversion. By offering a rebate for these costs, residents considering making the switch have an added incentive to do so. Council’s Solid Waste Reserve of over $13M provides a potential funding source for the rebate. Photo: The Daily Advertiser

19.01.2022 It was great to dial in to this important Zoom meeting this morning and talk about the issues and anomalies that are occurring for communities such as Wagga that are just outside of the ‘Border Bubble’. With many Wagga people working in and with communities along the border, the advice to date from the State Government is far from clear. We need a map identifying who’s in and who’s out ASAP.

18.01.2022 Show our hardworking staff some love this Local Government Week with a ! Congratulations to the teams who were recognised with two (!) Local Government NSW Awards today. These prestigious awards recognise the innovative and excellence our staff practice in their work. I was privileged to be a judge for this year's RH Dougherty Awards for Excellence in Communication and can attest to the quality of applications from across the State.... Wagga Council won for our recently adopted Cultural Plan and last year's hugely successful Lost Lanes Festival. Congratulations everyone!

18.01.2022 What a great photo. With the roll out of bike paths across Wagga as a part of Council’s Active Travel Plan hopefully it won’t be too long before we see more bikes in the CBD again.

18.01.2022 So great to spend the evening talking about Wagga and bring local community voices and local government to the decision making table with the State and Federal Governments.

17.01.2022 Wagga Wagga - To dance, to celebrate.

16.01.2022 LIVE MUSIC! Amazing to be back in an audience tonight at the Civic Theatre enjoying a live show from the awesome Fanny Lumsden and band.

16.01.2022 155 years ago today, one of Australia’s greatest poets and writers, Dame Mary Gilmore was born. Dame Mary grew up in the Wagga area and began her teaching career here. Her contributions to Australian culture through her writing and activism, particularly in support of the disadvantaged was known across the country. Read Dame Mary’s poem The Wollundry Lagoon in the attached image and check out more about one of Wagga’s greatest exports here https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Gilmore

16.01.2022 Just appalling behaviour from Government MPs. This really saddens me. We’re working on a major primary prevention campaign to reduce incidents of family and domestic violence here in Wagga that starts and ends with respecting women. How can we expect community attitudes to change when our Liberal/National Government MPs refuse to even allow it to be spoken about.

16.01.2022 Following my Notice of Motion requesting Council develop an Advocacy Plan, it was so pleasing to see Councillors unanimously adopt the city's first Advocacy Plan on Monday night. This Advocacy Plan lays out in high level the projects and policy changes that the Wagga community need support from State and Federal Governments to be realised in order to benefit everyone. Take a look at the plan here: https://meetings.wagga.nsw.gov.au//OC_27072020_AGN_3741_AT

14.01.2022 We need the confusion cleared up. When even our local health service is unclear on what the rules are, it’s time for clarity. We need a map ASAP showing what communities are in and which are out of the Border Bubble. We need to know how residents, businesses and services in nearby places such as Wagga can interact with those communities inside the Bubble, for everyone’s sake. Lives are depending on it.

13.01.2022 Keep safe when in and around our waterways this summer.

13.01.2022 This bill led by Trish Doyle MP, if supported by the NSW Parliament, will save countless lives and go a long way in changing a culture of domestic abuse. The women of Wagga will be looking to you Dr Joe McGirr MP and Wes Fang MLC to stand alongside women against coercive control and abuse. Wagga Women's Health Centre

11.01.2022 Yesterday, for a project I'm involved with, I had to track down one of the international interviews I did in the days after being hit by the bushfires on New Year's Eve. To be honest, watching it for the first time since, I got a bit teary. I then felt sick to my stomach. Hear we are at the beginning of the next fire season and what have our State and Federal Government's learned? In the aftermath of these unprecedented events and in the depths of a global pandemic, what hav...e they been focussing on? Themselves. The vacuum in leadership from the Liberals and their junior partners the Nationals on acknowledging, let alone dealing with climate change in our country fills me with despair. There are people this coming summer that will have to experience what we did last season with the added knowledge that their government has not done a thing to help them, despite what happened last summer. It literally makes me nauseous that while they're pointing their fingers at everyone and everything else and fighting incessantly over themselves about who is more important, homes are going to be destroyed, businesses and livelihoods - already on the brink of collapse - will be lost and people's lives put at risk unnecessarily. Real action on climate change isn't a slogan - it's about investing in cleaner energy, renewables, building jobs and cutting pollution, supporting carbon storage initiatives, setting pollution reduction targets and realising that by not taking action, lives will unnecessarily be lost and our country's economic recovery will be even slower. Now really is the time to look to a clean energy economic recovery. If 2020 has taught us anything, surely it's that this is our chance to fix it. This is the opportunity to embrace innovation, to invest in jobs for the future. When we're in the thick of this coming summer's bushfire season, remember what the Liberals and Nationals have been investing their efforts in. Spoiler alert: It's not us.

10.01.2022 An overview of tomorrow night’s Council meeting. Full the business papers and watch live from 6pm Monday night here: https://wagga.nsw.gov.au//counc/council-meeting-livestream

10.01.2022 Lovely to catch up with former Mayor of Tumbarumba Shire George Martin today in support of Kristy McBain.

08.01.2022 When it comes to talking about climate change, I’ve had enough of the lies and deceitful language from our federal MP. It’s time he put his community first and stood up for us instead of billionaire coal bosses.

06.01.2022 This is such a great initiative from Dan Hayes- Wagga Wagga City Councillor.

05.01.2022 GET TESTED I’ve been self-isolating since Tuesday morning and had my first COVID test this morning. It wasn’t bad at all. I know that once I’m (hopefully!) given the all clear in less than 48 hours I can have confidence that I’m not putting my family and friends at risk. If you’ve got any symptoms at all, isolate and get tested. It’s quick and free and as a bonus you’re helping yourself and your community.

05.01.2022 It was exciting to see Artstate NSW launched this morning at the Civic Theatre. Wagga Wagga will play host to professional artists and creatives from across NSW in November for four days of conference and festival. Check out the program at www.artstate.com.au Pictured is Artstate Artistic Director Scott Howie giving an overview of what to expect.

04.01.2022 As we approach what was supposed to be the end of our term of Council, I am so excited to see Farrer Road upgraded! Four years ago Dan and I campaigned on a platform of initiatives and priorities that I’m proud to say we have been pushing since elected and have achieved: - Farrer Road upgrade (!) - Live streaming Council meetings (One of our first achievements) - Breastfeeding friendly facilities at Council (Family Room in the Civic Centre arcade) ... - Shared use of facilities with CSU (Northern Sporting Precinct) - Better youth engagement (Youth engagement officer employed) - Connecting our footpath networks (Dan Mr Footpaths Hayes - Public private partnerships to deliver major capital projects (I’m looking at you RIFL Hub) I’m so proud we’ve been able to not only deliver on those promises we made four years ago but advocate for so much more for our community. Thanks Wagga, for giving Dan Hayes- Wagga Wagga City Councillor and myself the opportunity to represent you.

04.01.2022 COUNCIL MEETING OVERVIEW - here's my update for tomorow night's Council Meeting. Tune in from 6pm Monday and view the full business papers here https://wagga.nsw.gov.au//counc/council-meeting-livestream

03.01.2022 "We were listening for the sounds of the sprinklers every 30 seconds to a minute, when I heard that I thought the pump is still going, the house is still standing and we're okay, instead of thinking it's armageddon. "It was like checking for a heartbeat." Six months on from the fires, Anthony Bunn and James Wiltshire share my family’s story in today’s The Border Mail Weekender. ... We’re closer to the next fire season than the last and I’m scared nothing has changed. More people will be at risk and many other survivors are just at the beginning of picking up the pieces. : one of many great photos from the feature by James Wiltshire.

03.01.2022 At the end of the day Michael McCormack either didn’t even register in his head that he didn’t appoint one single woman to the Regional Australia Council or he was aware and just didn’t give a damn. #regionsmatter they keep telling us but it seems McCormack prefers #meninregionsmatter.

01.01.2022 #ourcommunities #ourstories #saveour745 Help save the 15 minute news bulletin at 7:45 am. ... The current budget cuts to the ABC mean that the platform for rural and regional news is gone. Show your support today by taking a photo with this sign and tag ABC Australia. Download it from MEAA here: https://www.meaa.org/save-our-745/

01.01.2022 75 years ago today Prime Minister Ben Chifley announced to the country the end of the Second World War. Take a listen to his radio broadcast at the link below. Lest we forget.