2024 Murrindindi Shire Council Elections
Every four years, Murrindindi Shire residents and ratepayers vote to elect Councillors to represent our community.
The next Council elections will be held on Saturday 26 October 2024.
Damien Gallagher
for Redgate Ward
Independent candidate
Redgate Ward
Independent
Candidate
Returning councillor
Served 2020-2024, most recently as Mayor 2023-2024.
ADTTA Interview Question Responses
Q.
What inspired you to run for council, and how do you see yourself making a difference for the Shire of Murrindindi?
A.
I’m driven by good governance and sound decision making. I surround myself with those who invest themselves in advancing our community and I harbour a passion for the future of our community, so after serving local groups, I was motivated to offer my passion for community along with my engineering and executive leadership expertise and experience, as a supporting custodian of the local public purse. This responsibility is the essence of the Councillor role.
I thought I had offered everything I could until taking on the role of Mayor in 2023-24. In that role I have established valuable relationships in Government at every level, and I have led successful advocacy campaigns delivering substantial financial investment and policy shifts – locally and regionally. My enduring motivation is to leverage the relationships that have been forged to deliver more great outcomes for Murrindindi
I stand for Murrindindi and I’m not encumbered by political party or ideological interests.
Q.
What do you see as the most pressing challenges facing local businesses, and how would you address them if elected?
A.
Local businesses have vast opportunities and it’s appropriate that these opportunities are the focus of our messaging to visitors and investment stakeholders. Nevertheless, Murrindindi enterprise is not immune from it’s share of challenges including:
- Access to the skilled resources necessary for businesses to grow and to thrive.
- Accommodation to home staff with the requisite skills.
- Local education options for young people to see a pathway to living, learning, and to working locally.
- A dearth of available industrial-zoned land impedes growth.
- The loss of local financial institutions exacerbates the issue of disruptions to local telecommunication and broadband Internet services.
- Achieving regional investment by State Government is an escalating challenge to support, for example, public transport options, and the maintenance of camping and hygiene facilities at Fraser National Park camping grounds.
- The changing landscape of Cultural Heritage Management Planning requirements and the shifting definition of ‘land disturbance’ is a costly impediment to development.
- Given our immersion in the forest, and our reliance upon the visitation economy, the impacts of climate change present pressing challenges.
- An opportunity and a challenge is supporting our aging population, with the proportion of residents over the age of 65 set to top 51% by 2034.
The challenges are not insurmountable. I’ll continue my advocacy campaign to draw attention to the need for government investment in Murrindindi, and I’ll continue to articulate the compelling case for growth-supporting infrastructure investment in our region. I’ll continue to support local education and vocational training streams for young Murrindindians, and I will pursue my commitment to work with the Taungurung Local Government network to advocate for a wholesale review of the unfit for purpose Aboriginal Heritage Act.
Q.
If elected, how do you plan to engage with residents and business owners to ensure their voices are heard in council decisions?
A.
“Deliberative engagement”, as exemplified by community discussions around the Eildon Reserves Development, and the Council Road Advisory Group (CRAG) forum have demonstrated that an informed community is a valuable ally, acting in harmony with Council. I’d welcome a Commercial Sector Advisory Committee with similar terms of reference to the Audit and Risk Committee, with the valued role of advising Council on economic development strategy considerations, and on policy areas such as tourism and procurement.
In terms of transparency, I have a record of demonstrating active curiosity in my engagement with Council Officers, and my commitment to publicly sharing my Council reports is unwavering.
Q.
How will you work to foster a strong sense of community and inclusivity in a region as diverse as Murrindindi?
A.
My core values continue to be inclusion, opportunity, and vision.
For families, professionals, tradies, and those between projects, I’ll foster an inclusive community leaving nobody behind. I’ll continue to uphold the Local Government Act mandate of making decisions in the best interest of all people in our municipality. The most powerful opportunity we can give to our next generation of citizens is the privilege of living, working, and thriving in this region. That extends to accessible childcare and kindergartens, home and community care, and engaging festivals and events
Ambitions demand vision. We can achieve growth and development while maintaining our rural identity and natural assets.
Q.
How would you balance the needs of urban and rural areas within the Shire, ensuring fair representation and resource allocation?
A.
Council has a history of adopting a need-analysis approach to its apportionment of resources and effort. This approach is the fairest and most equitable mechanism to assure the entire municipal community of fair representation and value realisation.
Hindsight scrutiny vindicates this approach with successive reviews revealing a fair distribution across rural and urban communities within Murrindindi Shire.
I welcome Council’s Housing and Settlement Strategy which seeks to concentrate residential and commercial development in population centres, and thus preserve valuable agricultural land and our enviable rural vistas.
Q.
Who do you admire or look up to as a political “hero”, and how has that influenced your approach to leadership?
A.
I’ve been influenced by some great local leaders in this term of Council including Melbourne City Councillor, Rohan Leppert. I’m motivated less by political leadership than I am by thought leadership and by those who have the capacity to lead people in challenging times and though necessary, albeit uncomfortable transitions. I’ve witnessed Cr. Leppert on a few occasions turn a room, turn the trajectory of discourse, and quite literally lead those in his presence to a better place, a better outcome.
In times of adversity, in times of challenges, I aspire to be a leader who is an agent for positive change, and I’m committed to leveraging conversation and listening to residents, businesses, and visitors to effect that positive change.
Candidates were provided twelve (12) questions, and invited to respond to six (6) of their choosing. As such, responses will be different from one candidate to another.
The candidate's responses have been published exactly as submitted. The Alexandra and District Traders and Tourism Association (ADTTA) has not altered or edited the content for spelling, accuracy, or tone.
NOTE: This post does not imply that ADTTA endorses any of the candidates in the upcoming elections