Boat on water with trees on shore and blue sky

End of term report

2017 - 2021

About this report

This report provides an update on how we are progressing towards achieving the social, environmental, economic, and civic leadership objectives of the community strategic plan (CSP).

It also provides information about how effective our actions have been in delivering the strategies as outlined and comments on the actions undertaken as part of our Delivery Program and Operational Plans within the Council term (years 2017 to 2021).

The report highlights what we consider to be the significant achievements, as well as any key challenges and pressures in meeting the goals throughout this term.

Fast facts

We maintain 333 parks and reserves with 13.3km of shared pathways and 684km of footpaths. 

Our 8km of coastline and foreshore has 1 ocean swimming pool and we have 2 aquatic centres. 

With 11,232 trees planted as part of greening Bayside. 

Our sporting community is well catered for with 125 playgrounds, 24 sports fields, 12 off-leash dog exercise areas and 7 golf courses. 

Children playing under water fountains in a park

Theme 1 - in 2030 Bayside will be a vibrant place

What we delivered

  • Finalised $44M in voluntary planning agreements to fund community projects in and around developments. 

  • development assessment timeframes improved by 28% since 2017 with a median assessment of 79 days in 2021. 

  • we welcomed 3,632 new Australian citizens to Bayside through 54 citizenship ceremonies over four years to 30 June 2021. 

  • 28,755 face to face customers per year over the counter, 91,000 telephone calls per year to our call centre. 

  • 1,500 children between the ages of 0-5 attend Council long day care services. 

  • 969 food shop inspections conducted (91% passed inspection). 

  • 194 beauty shop/tattoo parlour/hair dressing inspections conducted (100% passed inspection). 

  • 35,086 library memberships. 

  • 16,484 microchipped dogs in Bayside. 

  • 460 more puppy dogs were registered in Bayside during COVID-19 (March-July 2020). 

  • 3,300 registered swimming pools.

What we will continue to do

  • Revitalising our town centres in Brighton Le Sands and Rockdale. 

  • maximising the use of active and passive open space such as improvements planned at Botany Aquatic Centre, Barton Park and Sir Joseph Banks Park. 

  • establishing a Council Owned Company to manage key council facilities such as the new Arncliffe Youth Centre. 

  • establishing a Strategic Property Working Group to maximise our Property portfolio to identify outcomes and opportunities for commercial, development and rationalisation of our property investments. 

  • negotiating with State Government for further compensation to offset the impact of the M6 works in our community at West Botany Street and Marsh Street, Arncliffe. 

  • delivering a Bayside Community Safety Plan including improved safety through crime prevention measures as a result of working with Police, business, and resident groups. 

  • supporting people to have access to appropriate housing, education, healthy food and spaces for recreation and community services. 

  • fostering resilience in individuals and communities through the development of a Resilient Bayside Strategy. 

  • launching our Reconciliation Action Plan outlining the practical actions we can take to build strong relationships and enhance respect between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and other Australians. 

  • planning for our ageing population with the development of a Positive Ageing Strategy. 

  • hosting events within our community that are culturally diverse and COVID-safe. 

Theme 2 - In 2030 our people will be connected in a smart city

What we delivered

  • Facebook likes 10,000 (2021)

  • 40,000 Unique Website Visits per month (2021)

  • 250K Website page views per month (2021)

  • 20K residents downloaded the Bayside Waste App

  • measured 89% in overall community satisfaction with the new Council’s performance

  • engaged with 150,000 online customers through ‘Have Your Say’ projects (up 167%)

  • attracted $2M in grant funding for local communities and health programs.

What we will continue to do

  • supporting local traffic management planning to ensure efficient and sustainable travel to, from and within Bayside including through walking, cycling and public transport.

  • meeting current and future transport needs by adapting to new innovations and technologies such as analysing the viability, benefits and challenges of electric vehicles.

  • ensuring infrastructure investments made today by all levels of government support the liveability and prosperity of Bayside into the future.

  • creating an Arts and Culture program to support artists and creative practitioners by providing resources and spaces for production and collaboration.

  • encouraging community participation for all people to participate in the free flow of ideas through a digital engagement and consultation process.

Theme 3 - In 2030 Bayside will be green, leafy and sustainable

What we delivered

  • 4,638 trees planted in FY20/21 – where we removed a tree, we planted 3 more in its place.

  • 19.6% decrease in illegal dumping FY18/19.

  • 350 tonnes of collected from gross pollutant traps.

  • 268 garbage truck loads of waste and recycling collected each week.

  • 12 Keep Australia Beautiful Environmental Awards received.

  • 3.5M glass bottles were crushed and reused in our road re-sheeting program.

  • 19,066kg of litter collected from the beachfront during 2019-2020.

What we will continue to do

  • Prioritising energy efficiency and renewable energy use to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

  • working to counter rising heat temperatures and restore habitat flora and fauna by expanding our green-grid corridor and urban green spaces

  • promoting environmental sustainability by linking businesses to new initiatives, including sustainable food practices

  • conserving resources, including better managing stormwater and wastewater

  • to build interrelationships between natural and built environments so communities and species can thrive side by side

  • working closely with Traditional Owners to enable them to fully participate in the stewardship of the land

  • ensuring our communities are well equipped to respond to weather events and are resourceful in the face of climate-related challenges.

Theme 4 - In 2030 Bayside is a prosperous place

What we delivered

  • 66,000 Rates Notices Issued annually

  • 45 public facing Council meetings (2017-2021)

  • 160+ Councillor Briefing Sessions and Information forums (2017-2021)

  • 150+ Certificates of Appreciation to those who contribute to the community

  • 157 tenders called for projects over $150K

  • Ratio of Staff per 1000 Residents = 413 (FY19/20)

  • 68 staff have taken on the Fitness Passport, promoting healthy work-life balance

  • 500 internal fitness classes were provided to staff during 2019/2020.

What we will continue to do

  • Mapping our long-term financial sustainability and how we will deal with funding shortfalls

  • embedding good governance practices to ensure increased transparency and accountability

  • providing more opportunities for the community’s voice to be heard through purposeful engagement

  • reviewing our services and exploring opportunities to deliver services more efficiently

  • advocating to the State and Federal Government to ensure major rail and transport upgrades deliver an integrated and reliable network

  • supporting our community to rebuild and thrive, socially and economically

  • empowering people to participate in designing services, decision-making and problem solving in ways that are meaningful to them

  • embracing technological innovation in information sharing and engagement, delivering online systems that enable collaborative and community-driven solutions

  • building on our existing assets and support existing businesses to thrive

  • stimulating future growth and innovation through partnerships with government, business, community, and peak bodies

  • increasing capability for new and emerging businesses, and new industries

  • recruiting top talent as an ‘Employer of Choice’.

Proactive leadership - what we are looking forward to in 2021-24

Invest in infrastructure

  • $12M to upgrade roads, footpaths, stormwater drainage and improved street lighting.

  • $5M spending on our sporting fields and open space.

  • $3M spending on Town Centres.

  • $2.8M for Local Emergency Management, SES & RFS.

  • $500K for our natural environment.

  • $200K for our building improvements at Mascot, Eastgardens and Rockdale libraries.

Make good decisions

  • Making sure council decisions are recorded at council meetings in the meeting minutes.

  • delegating certain decision making to council staff or special committees of council.

Involve you

  • working parties

  • Council briefings and workshops

  • community consultation

  • contact with the community

  • links with other authorities

  • memberships of other bodies.

Any council decision taken as a result of these processes happens at a formal council meeting or is formally delegated. In this way, council decision making remains transparent and accountable to the community.

The future looks bright

Over the course of the next term (2022-2024), we will

  • proactively use technology across a range of Council services and facilities to provide more efficient online options for customers

  • ensure our service delivery through digital technology meets customer needs through sound research and seeking our community’s input and testing of potential designs

  • communicate the Bayside Community Vision and seek your input to determine our future focus

  • focus on community capacity building activities, including the provision of high quality facilities that support a range of important community services

  • continue to support our community through the COVID-19 pandemic and into the recovery phase. In particular we will work to re-establish social connections to address isolation, provide support for local businesses, tenants and community groups impacted by the predicted economic downturn and ensure continued support for vulnerable residents.

Looking into the library through the front window, seeing people sitting reading