Gannawarra Shire Council

Around 30 people braved this morning's windy conditions for the annual Walk Against Family Violence, held as part of the Gannawarra Goes Orange campaign. Representatives from Council, Northern District Community Health, Kerang District Health, Rotary Club of Kerang and Victoria Police gathered for the walk from Atkinson Park to Victoria Square. Highlights included the unveiling of the Tree of Hope plaque, recognising the planting of a tree outside NDCH's Kerang office during the 2024 event to symbolise our shared commitment to a future free from family violence, and a speech from Women's Health Loddon Mallee Chief Executive Officer, Kellie Dunn. The Gannawarra Goes Orange campaign runs through to Wednesday, 10 December. For more information, including events still to occur, please visit www.gsc.vic.gov.au/orange Pictured in the main image are Council's Manager Community Health, Narelle O'Donoghue (left), Council Chief Executive Officer, Geoff Rollinson, NDCH Chief Executive Officer, Penny Wilkinson, Kerang District Health Chief Executive Officer, Kellie Byron-Gray, Women's Health Loddon Mallee Chief Executive Officer, Kellie Dunn, Deputy Mayor, Cr Ross Stanton and Council's Coordinator Community Partnerships, Katrina Thorne.

Gannawarra Shire Council meetings will be held in a new location from February 2026. Councillors adopted a recommendation at its November 2025 to move its meetings from the Kerang Senior Citizens Centre to The Glasshouse from next year. Located at Kerang’s Sir John Gorton Library, The Glasshouse will enable greater flexibility for meetings, including the capacity to cater for larger than average attendance numbers. Eleven scheduled meetings will be held on the third Wednesday of the month between February and December, with a meeting to elect the Mayor and Deputy Mayor for 2026/27 to occur at 5.30pm on Wednesday, 18 November 2026. Any changes to meeting arrangements, including the time and location of meetings, will be promoted via Council’s Facebook page, website, Gannawarra News and Gannawarra Connect publications. For more information, please visit https://lnkd.in/gDPJz3dw

Congratulations to Cr Garner Smith (right), who was re-elected as Gannawarra Shire Council Mayor at an Unscheduled Meeting of Council held last night. It is Mayor Smith’s second term in the role. Mayor Smith will be supported by Cr Ross Stanton (left), who was re-elected as Deputy Mayor. For more information, please visit https://lnkd.in/gdHv_9ZW

The Gannawarra will be uniting between Tuesday, 25 November and Wednesday, 10 December for the annual Gannawarra Goes Orange campaign. Now in its ninth year, Council, Northern District Community Health, the Rotary Club of Kerang and other agencies are uniting to call out gender-based violence and encourage a future where everyone is safe, respected, and equal. Highlights of the 16-day program include: 🚶🏼♀️The annual Walk Against Violence, beginning at Kerang's Atkinson Park on Wednesday, 26 November at 10.30am and finishing in Victoria Square. 📚 Special Gannawarra Library Service Story Time sessions, occurring at the Leitchville Library on Tuesday, 2 December at 1pm, Kerang’s Sir John Gorton Library on Wednesday, 3 December at 10.30am, and the Cohuna Library on Thursday, 4 December at 10.30am. 🔸 Lighting up key Council and community assets orange during the 16 days. ☕ Local cafes incorporating 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence messaging on their take-away coffee cups. For more information, please visit https://lnkd.in/geHChYqh

Key Regional Development Victoria (RDV) leaders gained an insight into the Gannawarra’s economic development and tourism opportunities during a tour of the municipality last week. The tour enabled RDV representatives to learn about the Gannawarra’s current economic landscape, highlighted by VHM’s Goschen Rare Earth and Mineral Sands Project, ECS Botanics’ medicinal cannabis facility, renewables and agricultural development. The tour also focused on projects that would require advocacy from RDV, including residential development, expansion of industrial estates, support for projects identified in the Koondrook Local Development Strategy, and economic support following the implementation of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan and subsequent water buybacks. For more information, please visit https://lnkd.in/gFfnFars Pictured are Regional Development Victoria Loddon Mallee Regional Director, Leanne Rosewall (left) and Chief Executive Officer, Xavier Csar with Gannawarra Shire Council Chief Executive Officer, Geoff Rollinson and Manager Economic Development, Scott Wishart.

Did you know that two levels of government are responsible for managing the roads and bridges within the Gannawarra Shire? Thanks to a recommendation from the newly formed Roads Focus Group, Council’s website now features maps identifying which roads and bridges it manages, as well as which roads the State Government is responsible for. Available at www.gsc.vic.gov.au/roads, these maps will help when you need to contact the right people regarding an issue with a local road or bridge. A link to this page is also available via Council’s online report an issue section. Available online at www.gsc.vic.gov.au/request, this page also features a link to Transport Victoria’s roads issues and enquiries page. For more information, please visit https://lnkd.in/gzdQaR9C

The 2024/25 financial year was a busy time for Council, as we continued to support our communities. During this time we: 🎆Organised or supported more than 200 events. 🐶 Reunited 59 dogs and 23 cats with their owners. 🚗 Completed three major bridge replacement projects. 🏦 Marked the completion of the Kerang CBD Redevelopment. 🏊 Welcomed nearly 40,000 people to our swimming pools. Many of these highlights feature in our 2025 Annual Report, which was presented to the October 2025 Council Meeting. For more information, please visit https://lnkd.in/gxsmTENZ

Thank you to everyone who took the time to read Council's updated Road Management Plan during the public engagement period held during August and September. Adopted at last week's Council meeting, Council will use this document to guide the inspection, maintenance and repairing of its local road network, which included more than 500 kilometres of sealed roads and over 1,900 kilometres of gravel and earthen roads. The Road Management Plan does not apply to roads that are under the Department of Transport and Planning’s control, such as state highways and arterial roads, and excludes unconstructed ‘paper’ roads that exist only on a plan. For more information about the document, please visit https://lnkd.in/gbnHE2mD

Thank you to everyone who took the time to read Council's 2025/26-2034/35 Financial Plan during the public engagement period held in late September and earlier this month. A requirement of the Local Government Act 2020, the document outlines a 10-year financial projection regarding the impact of implementing some of the actions and aspirations outlined in the Gannawarra Shire 2025-2029 Council Plan. For more information about the document, which was adopted at last week's Council meeting, please visit https://lnkd.in/gGqFD2SZ

Council would like to hear from you regarding our draft draft 2026-2029 Domestic Animal Management Plan, which outlines how Council’s animal management services will be managed during the next four years. You can download this document at www.gsc.vic.gov.au/yoursay, or view a copy at Council’s Customer Service Centres. Feedback can be provided up to 5pm Thursday, 13 November in one of the following ways: 📋 By completing a Have Your Say form, available online at www.gsc.vic.gov.au/yoursay or from Council’s Customer Service Centres at Cohuna and Kerang. 📧 By emailing council@gsc.vic.gov.au 📨 By writing to PO Box 287, Kerang VIC 3579. 📞 By phoning Council on (03) 5450 9333. For more information, please visit https://lnkd.in/gB2qFugT