Final stage

We have listened to the Yarra Ranges community and based on your recommendations have developed the Council Plan 2021-25 including the updated Community Vision 2036 and the Financial Plan 21/22 to 30-31.

The Council Plan is Council’s key planning document for the four-year electoral term. It describes the goals and objectives that guide the work we do to deliver on the Community Vision for the municipality. It contains the strategies that guide our work, the priority activities we will undertake, the services we provide and how our performance will be measured.

The Community Vision describes the community’s aspirations for the future of the municipality in 2036. The vision represents the values, needs, aspirations and guides the priorities for Yarra Ranges.

The Financial Plan is our long-term commitment to providing responsible financial management. It outlines our financial position, our key risk, issues and how we will address them. It also contains a ten year financial projection based on various assumptions and helps set the annual budgets to ensure aspirations in the Council plan can be adequately funded.

See some of the community feedback below. The final documents were adopted by Council on 26 October 2021.

Feedback has closed.

After reading the draft documents, feel free to leave us a post-it now with any of your ideas, suggestions or comments. If your suggestion is specific to a particular document, don't forget to add a category from the drop-down menu. You can also support or disagree with someone elses's idea using the thumbs up or down.

12 October, 2021

Juicy Lover says:

Facilitating more traffic at this critical hour for humanity is insane By-pass reserve must be best used for comm orchards &nature emmersion

12 October, 2021

Love Bug says:

Higher density housing decreasing garden space per person & less contact with nature betrays health science education & love False economics

12 October, 2021

LoveGardener says:

Protecting forest is the most efficient way to reduce emissions & sequester carbon. Council petitioned for the industry certainty/lost lives

12 October, 2021

LoveGardener says:

Critical time to avert human extinction not acknowledged Drainage emphasized not max soil rehydration/storage for max shade/food growth/life

30 September, 2021

Frances Bremner says:

I would like to know what happens to properties with so many overlays on it that has lost all it's value. Do owners get compensated?

24 September, 2021

John Phillips says:

Council's doing a fair job considering the 'State 'Rate Capping. Not so long ago a 7-12% household increase was a household's accepted norm

20 September, 2021

ThinkingOfFuture says:

Regarding to Mental Health, Job Tafes & Entertaining Hubs for Youth 13+ are Needed Also Prep Water Stored in Ship Crates for Fires/Climate.

20 September, 2021

Thoughtful says:

Eco-tourism is an oxymoron. The policy of expanding tourism is gravely misjudged: tourism in Yarra Ranges needs restriction not expansion.

18 September, 2021

Jennifer Gearing says:

Can Lilydale and surrounding suburbs classified as Melbourne Metropolitan and towns on the Warburton Highway be classified as Regional Vic

18 September, 2021

andrew says:

when are you going to fix the drainage problem in godber crt that you promised 5 years ago

18 September, 2021

Hamish says:

An excellent aspirational document. However, there is confusion on page 30 of the draft Plan with the use of the 'less than or equal sign'

18 September, 2021

Dianne Savage says:

You mentioned about rate increases, you can easily apply decreases in all areas. Once applied you should then work with what you have.

Budget and Action Plan engagement

Draft Budget, Action Plan, Capital Expenditure and Rating and Revenue Plan now open for feedback

The 2021-22 Draft Budget, Council Action Plan and Capital Expenditure Program is now available for community feedback, following Council’s 11 May meeting.

This year’s Budget provides

  • $4 million for libraries,
  • $2m for pools and aquatic facilities,
  • $6.5m for services for older adults and people with a disability,
  • $4m for Maternal and Child Health nursing and
  • $6.7m for maintenance and renewal of existing public buildings.

The budget has been informed by the recent Council Plan engagement, where we heard from the community that they value the services we provide to the community, and wanted services prioritised over capital spend.

The budget includes $4m specifically for COVID-19 pandemic recovery initiatives, such as $1 million for Community Recovery Committees across the Yarra Ranges, where community members will be able to make decisions about recovery projects in their area.

Capital works highlights from this year’s budget include new footpaths and maintenance works across the region, drainage works in Upwey and Belgrave to prevent flooding, township improvement projects in Healesville, Belgrave and Lilydale and playspace renewals.

Community members can read through the documents and provide feedback on them until Tuesday, 8 June.

Submitters can nominate to speak to their submission at a public meeting set for Tuesday, 15 June.

Council’s Long Term Financial Plan will be released to the community for comment in coming months.

Community Pop Up Sessions

Only the Yarra Junction one pop up session was able to be held before Covid-19 restrictions were reintorduced. Lilydale and Monbulk sessions were cancelled.

News updates

What we've done so far

Read the lastest updates on the development of the Council Plan, Budget and Action Plan.