Message from the Mayor

Mayor's message

This is always a very exciting time of year, when Council sets its budget and agenda for the coming 12 months and tells everybody who is going to receive what. Within this document, the 2021/22 Delivery Program and Operational Plan, you will see what Hornsby Shire Council values and where it believes the money it holds – money that does not belong to us but has been entrusted to our care by the community – should best be spent. Importantly, it represents feedback from our community gathered during public consultation.

I’ve been looking through the many projects and programs that will be delivered throughout the 2021/22 financial year and have many favourites. As we are all so very aware, it has been a challenging 12 months and it is great to see the variety of work coming up, while maintaining a financially responsible approach.

A fact of life is that local governments often do not have the resources to do everything we would like to for the people we serve. That’s when we need the help of others and we are always delighted to receive it. Council’s ongoing project to plant trees throughout Hornsby Shire, to both maintain and enhance the significant tree canopy that has given us the title of the Bushland Shire, is one important example of this. Almost 30,000 trees have been planted in this term of Council alone and that could not possibly have been achieved without the selfless support of the 2,280 community volunteers who have helped us plant them.

Over the coming year, we will continue to progress plans for Hornsby Park and Westleigh Park. These long-term projects have been partially funded by NSW Government, and the ultimate visions for both sites will reflect what we can deliver now and what we can realistically achieve when more funding becomes available. The final documents will also consider the widespread feedback and submissions received during consultation.

Our thanks also to all the people who have taken part in the other consultation projects that have been undertaken over recent months. There have been a lot of them and there was some concern that people would become overwhelmed and stop participating. That has not happened. Community members have remained deeply engaged, telling us exactly what they want and how they would like it to be delivered. You will find the results of those wishes within these pages. I hope it is to your liking.

Philip Ruddock AO MAYOR