Community Building and Engagement Policy

Community participation in Council Meetings

• Opportunities for community engagement in Council decision-making processes will foster a vibrant, robust and confident community.  A Cairns 1st Council will ensure that the community feels engaged and respected by Council.  We will:
• take Council to the people and hold full Council meetings, four per year, in our towns and suburbs; eg, Mossman, Clifton Beach Gordonvale, Babinda
• invite deputations from local residents during these “outreach” Council meetings so that all Councillors can hear about particular divisional issues
• allow residents and ratepayers in the public gallery to have a say during Council meetings
• review the time of the day that meetings are held to increase public attendance at meetings.

Robust debate

• It is important that residents and ratepayers are engaged in vigorous discussion about the way forward.  We will:
• present topics for debate at full council meetings; for example, What is distinctive about Wonga Beach? Do we want Yorkeys Knob to become another Palm Cove? How can we go about developing distinctive neighbourhood plans for particular suburbs and communities? How does our community feel about our young people?
• hold workshops on complex issues where there are divergent opinions and solutions, and
• ensure timelines are established so that feedback is provided and the valuable time and opinions of people is not lost or wasted.

Free speech

To encourage community debate and freedom of speech, we will:

• establish Speakers’ Corners in Cairns City Place, on the Esplanade at Fogarty Park (great way to catch both locals and tourists and gauge what is going on), at the youth centre/radio shack at Mossman and possibly at the Port Douglas markets
• review the stringent conditions currently placed on speakers and activities which stifle debate
• consider revoking Local Law 7, which contravenes the Peaceful Assemblies Act.

Community engagement

To encourage and recognize community participation in Council matters, we will:

• introduce a Community Solutions Award to recognise ideas which are efficient, effective and benefit the city
• resource Council staff members to attend after hours meetings with community groups
• encourage young people to participate in Council; after all it’s their community in the long term
• find ways to let the general community know of the many good things that Council staff do.

Transparent decision making

To ensure that decision-making is accountable and transparent we will:

• minimise “closed sessions” of Council
• review the committee structure and consider incorporating some of these committees back into the full council meeting.

Communication

• Effective channels of communication are important to ensure that the flow of information goes smoothly from Council to the community and from the community to Council.  We will:
• improve the Cairns Regional Council web site and make it more user friendly with timely reports posted from committees
• leave all the council minutes on the website; not restrict this to the minutes from the four most recent meetings
• utilize the skills of the local Information Technology industry to improve communication channels
• hold “Meet your Councillor” meetings in divisions and regular forums for locals to raise their concerns
• distribute media releases equitably to all outlets and provide all media with access to all councillors for commentary.

Responsible financial management

• A Cairns 1st Council will:
• deliver sound financial management practices and keep Council debt within acceptable levels
• maintain any rate increases within the level of the Consumer Price Index
• implement “benefited rates” in new developments where levels of maintenance will become a burden on ratepayers; for example, dredging canals
• allow the option of quarterly payment of rates to enable low income earners to budget their expenditure more easily and
• explore the option of direct debit on a more frequent basis.

Triple bottom line reporting

• A Cairns 1st Council will report on more than the “hard” financial situation.  We will:
• identify, assess and present a Report Card on business activities in terms of their impact on the community and society, the environment and economic sustainability
• develop performance indicators for each of the Report Cards; for example: waiting times in the customer service centre and staff turnover (community/social), degraded areas revegetated (environment).
•  

Transparent budget reporting process

• A Cairns 1st Council will:
• produce financial reports, which are clear, user friendly and use visual techniques to make them understandable to the general public.
•  

Code of conduct

• Cairns 1st Cairns will not just talk about integrity, transparency and the public interest.  We will:
• re-consider the code of conduct for councillors to ensure it is strong enough to guide appropriate behaviour for councillors and place ethical obligations on them.

Community benefit analysis

We will:

• encourage decision-making that takes into account the long-     term benefit to the community rather than short-term material  gain. 

Tender processes

When calling for tenders we will:

• ensure that tender processes are open and accountable and that local businesses are supported whilst ensuring that Council obtains the best products for the most competitive rates.

Cairns Plan, Douglas Plan and other consultation

We believe that people are interested in local government and will engage and have input.  We will:

• ensure that Council staff develop creative presentations which attract people to have their say about important matters
• report back to the community in a timely manner re public submissions to the Cairns and Douglas plans and state what recommendations have and have not been adopted and why.

Commitment to creating flourishing local communities

• Cairns 1st acknowledges our distinctive communities and groups and their needs to grow and be respected.  We will:
• establish effective processes to listen to people and assist with resolving community issues (forums, discussion groups, advisory groups, real dialogue)
• promote our diverse and distinct cultures and lifestyle to others visiting the area.

Recognising the importance of a healthy lifestyle for all groups in the community including the vulnerable

• Cairns 1st will support and facilitate healthier lifestyles through our active involvement in addressing social equity issues that affect our community.  We will:
• develop and implement a homeless policy, collaborate with state government agencies and organizations, promote case management of the vulnerable people in our community and seek solutions rather than blame others
• work with agencies to pilot new approaches to addressing alcohol/drugs
• initiate a process to upgrade our community facilities to ensure they are accessible to people of all abilities including public art in new developments
• develop a street party kit to make it easier for neighbourhoods to connect
• work with the state government to acquire funding for youth facilities and programs in areas of need such as Edmonton and Gordonvale
• strengthen Council links with community agencies which are working with troubled youth and lobby for state and federal funding for local initiatives and programs
• work with Police and private enterprises to minimise violence on city and town streets; eg, through programs that have been demonstrated to work in other places
• work with the Cairns Consumer Advisory Group and carers to support mental health services
• support the provision of affordable housing for older people  
• develop community safety and well-being strategies for local communities that are informative, consultative, and responsive.

Community development

• A Cairns 1st Council will:
• value and champion the Community Development unit of Cairns Regional Council and see community and social development as an integral part of Council activities
• acknowledge and learn from innovative processes undertaken by the former Douglas Shire Council
• put steps in place to recognise and celebrate Douglas Shire communities’ contribution to the broader regional council
• recognise and promote social planning and community development
• provide small grants to support community initiatives in running initiatives and events.

Community gardens

• Community gardens are a way in which we can “cultivate community.”  We will:
• Identify council land that could be made available for community gardens particularly in new housing estates where the feeling of community needs to be developed
• allocate council resources, grants and staff to assist community gardeners.

Strengthening connections with and between multicultural communities

• We will strengthen and formalise our relationships with the diverse multicultural communities of the region in order to promote greater interaction and involvement in community activities and decision-making.  We acknowledge:
• cultural protocols
• the need for language services
• the need for partnerships with multicultural groups and services.

Protecting character and building sense of community

• Cairns 1st  will make it a priority to:
• protect spaces and heritage places for local people to enjoy and maintain their sense of connectedness
• improve the quality of the design of our physical environments – public and private – in order to maintain our  unique and distinct tropical ‘character’
• ask people about the best way of ensuring that we don’t lose the things that we value most about our communities
• develop neighbourhood plans that define a preferred character for particular areas.

Servicing the whole of the local government area

• We acknowledge that many suburbs and the communities to the south of Cairns feel that there has been too much focus on the Central Business Area.  Their voices have not been sufficiently heard in Council and they feel that their services are inadequate.  We also acknowledge the fears of the Douglas Shire Council residents that their needs will be overlooked.   We will:
• work  with community development groups and community associations to plan and provide the facilities that are needed
• assist community groups in the smaller towns to the south; for example, the Babinda Taskforce, to revitalize their communities and create jobs for young people
• work with the State government to fund entry/gateways to which will attract more visitors to our towns
• implement suburban enhancement, which goes beyond kerb-to-kerb bitumen and considers the character and streetscapes of distinct areas/communities.

Inclusive community spaces for local people

• We acknowledge the importance of our local community centres and will:
• work to enhance these centres
• actively partner the state government in urban and community renewal in areas such as Mooroobool
• promote the development of inclusive and vibrant multi-functional local ‘community hubs’
• match community infrastructure to desired local aims. 

Reconciliation

• We acknowledge the various traditional owners in our new amalgamated local government area and we will:
• work to develop better relationships with all Indigenous peoples
• play a role in creating good relationships between Indigenous cultures from other countries and Australian Indigenous peoples.

Indigenous people getting a voice in Council

We will:

• develop cultural communication protocols with Indigenous communities
• establish a formal mechanism/s for continual Indigenous involvement in Council decision-making.

Recognise connections that Indigenous people have with Cairns

We will:

• create everyday life connections for Indigenous people, through the naming of parks and streets, and the inclusion of Indigenous culture in street-scaping and public art
• ensure an appropriate and well-used Cultural Heritage process is developed in collaboration with elders and Indigenous interests
• work strategically with all Indigenous peoples in particular Traditional Owners, Indigenous organizations and services to address public space and community well-being issues facing Indigenous people in Cairns
• work co-operatively with state government agencies around Indigenous program areas.

Employment opportunities for Indigenous and non-Indigenous young people in Council

We will:

• build on Council’s Indigenous traineeship program and work with the Department of Employment, Training & Arts (DETA) and other job creation programs to create extra positions
• work to ensure that the Council workforce is representative of the region; for example, Council employs people who have a disability, people from non-English speaking backgrounds and at least 8% Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.