The following candidates have nominated. Existing Councillors seeking re-election are marked with an asterisk before their name, ordered alphabetically based on Last name. Political affiliation is in brackets.

• Voula Allimonos (Independent)
• Felix Dance (Socialist Alliance) Instagram
• Liz Irvin (Greens) Instagram
• Tom Nash (ALP) Instagram
• Kosta Rologas (Victorian Socialists)

Candidates Forum | Climate Survey | Stop Burning Plastic | Streets People Love | Waterways

Candidates Forum by Brunswick Residents Network

When: THURSDAY 3 OCTOBER, in the east
Where: Scout Hall, 213A Weston Street, East Brunswick
Warrk Warrk Ward 6.00–7.15PM
Randazzo Ward 7.30-8.45PM
Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/377982108686390/377982115353056/
This is a free Forum, but any donations are welcome and support BRN community venues.

Our regular Candidates Forums are a great chance to meet and hear from your candidates, understand their policies, and find out what they know about our local communities.

Candidates attending:
Felix Dance (Socialist Alliance)
Liz Irvin (Greens)
Apologies from:
Thomas Nash (ALP)
Voula Allimonos (IND)
No Response from Kosta Rologas (Victorian Socialists)

Chapters:
0:30 Intro by Brunswick Residents Network, Apologies, Introduction of candidates
2:24 Liz Irvin (Greens) Background, why standing
5:28 Felix Dance (Socialist Alliance) Background, why standing
8:43 Question 1: Where in Brunswick would you roll out a 30km/hr speed limit trial?
11:14 Question 2: How would you fix Sydney Road and Lygon Street?
14:15 Question 3: In the narrow streets of Brunswick, need for parking restrictions
18:08 Question 4: Do you have a How to Vote card and who is your second preference?
18:48 Question 5: The issue of need to reduce 50km/hr to 40km/hr on residential collector roads for safety
21:42 Question 6: What will you do regarding flood mitigation with increasing intense rainfall events?
24:14 Question 7: With growing population density what will you do regarding updating and refresh Merribek Nature Plan?
28:25 Question 8: What is the role of social and affordable policy by Council?
34:40 Question 9: Disenfranchisement of voters
38:23 Question 10: What finance expended on park opposite Brunswick Town Hall? (taken as a comment)
39:00 Question 11: Pruning of street trees; absence of street sweeping; difficulty dealing with Council development approvals
44:44 Question 12: Changes to the Planning scvheme to remove visual bulk and setback standards. Does your party support that?
47:43 Question 13: What does being a Greens candidate for Council mean?
50:07 Question 14: Will you support expanding Merri Creek corridor parklands?
53:17 Question 15; where do you stand on cutting residents out of development consultation?
54:44 Question 16: How will you deal with pollution, especially from development, of Merri Creek from further north?
58:13 Question 17: Randazzo has least amount of open space of all Merri-bek wards. How will you ensure we get a bit more of the pie in open space?
1:00:48 Question 18: Is the Merri Creek Management Committee (MCMC) still looking after Merri Creek?
1:01:24 Chair – acknowledgements
1:02:33 Liz Irvin final summary
1:04:00 Felix Dance final Summary

Climate and Sustainability surveys and Pledges

Climate Action Merribek conducted a local tailored survey sent to all 55 candidates in all wards. Vote Climate also issued a survey on the Climate Emergency to all candidates across all Councils in Victoria. Stop Burning Plastic issued a pledge survey to all candidates across all Councils in Victoria. We undertook to compile results for Merri-bek of all 3 surveys. We followed our initial email up with a reminder to complete all 3 surveys.

One key assessment point is whether candidates respond, which provides one indicator how they may engage with constituents. If a candidate doesn’t respond, whether positive or negative, maybe you should not put them high on your preferences.

Name	Local Climate Survey	Climate Emergency Survey	Stop Burning Plastics Pledge
Felix Dance (Socialist Alliance)	Yes Full Response	Yes	Yes
Liz Irvin (Greens)	Yes Full Response	Yes	Yes
Tom Nash (ALP)	No response	No response	No response
Kosta Rologas (Victorian Socialists)	No response	No response	No response
Voula Allimonos (Independent)	No response	No response	No response

Merri-bek Climate Survey

Q4. Connections to Merri-bek Wards. Outline your connection to Merri-bek, do you live in the ward you are contesting, do you work in that ward? What are your other connections to the Merri-bek community?

Felix Dance: I live in Merri-bek in the Brunswick area just to the west of Randazzo Ward. I’m a Barkly Square shopper, a patron of the pubs and shops along Sydney Rd and Nicholson St and spend time with my friends and relatives whom I live amongst here. I’m a part of the Sydney Rd accessible tram campaign and have fought for greater amenities and access for the residents and users of Randazzo.

Liz Irvin: I have lived in Brunswick East for nearly four years. In that time I have developed many connections with the community. I have been a member of the Sustainable Transport Advisory Committee for council, and I’m a member of the Friends of Merri Creek and Merri-bek BUG. I shop on Sydney Road, I swim at the Brunswick Baths, and I regularly walk, run or ride along the Merri Creek trail. I’m also a volunteer and board member at the Brunswick Tool Library.

Q5. Climate Emergency. Merri-bek Council declared a Climate Emergency in September 2018. Do you accept the research evidence from climate scientists and the UN Secretary General that:
(a) the earth is already too hot and we are outside the safe climate zone?
(b) we face a climate emergency?
(c) local cooling is required to prevent runaway warming?

Felix Dance: Yes, Yes, Unsure
Comment: Tree cover and green urban planning help to reduce local heat effects of runaway warming, but real change comes from a full transition away from fossil fuels.

Liz Irvin: Yes, Yes, Yes.

Q6. Governance and Triple bottom line accounting brings to account three domains that we need for a good life. They are economic, social and environmental sustainability. In the past projects have been delivered based on organisational silos often not considering other aspects outside the silo. Will you endeavour as a Councillor for Council to use triple bottom line accounting on all Council infrastructure decisions to ensure that climate emergency priorities are embedded in Council decisions? Note that triple bottom line is already encapsulated in the Local Government Act 2020 Section 9, 2b and 2c for good Council governance.

Felix Dance: Yes

Liz Irvin: Yes

Q7: Transport: Upfield Rail Upgrade – Problems with parking and traffic congestion, capacity issues of public transport need solutions for upgrading the Upfield Line. According to Infrastructure Australia, the northern region Transport Corridor will reach and exceed capacity in the next decade. Do you support the Northern Councils Alliance campaign to Connect Melbourne’s North for duplication and extension of the Upfield rail line to Craigieburn and Wallan for provision of a more reliable and frequent rail service catering for the growing population in Merri-bek and residents in new growth suburbs further north?

Felix Dance: Strongly Agree

Liz Irvin: Strongly Agree

Q8: Transport: Mode shift – What actions will you be pushing for to facilitate a mode shift to more sustainable modes of transport in Merri-bek as part of, or beyond, Moving Around Merri-bek Strategy (PDF), including increasing safety for walking and cycling and increasing public transport advocacy?

Felix Dance: Accessible tram stops is a campaign I’ve been a part of for many years, helping everyone access public transport not just the abled. Extra bike lanes and paths are also essential, as well as traffic calming devices and pedestrian crossins. The duplication of the Upfield line is also a campaign I’ve been involved in from the start. Finally, campaigning for more frequent and reliable bun services.

Liz Irvin: As a transport planner, I have experience in delivering projects that enable mode shift across Melbourne. I support the Moving Around Merri-bek Strategy and support the actions within it. If elected, I would push for treatments that reduce traffic volumes on local streets and bring speeds down to safer levels. I would support increased investment in footpath maintenance. I would also support advocacy efforts to improve frequency on the Upfield Line, and improve bus services across Merri-bek (including Sunday services for our current six-day routes).

Q9. Heat Vulnerability: Large sections of Merri-bek’s north are at the extreme end of the Heat Vulnerability Index, meaning residents are very susceptible to global warming extreme heat events. What will you do to address this beyond exisiting policies, including Merri-bek Urban Heat Island Effect Action Plan (PDF), Merri-bek Urban Forest Strategy 2017-2017 (PDF), Cooling the Upfield Corridor Action Plan 2018-2028 (PDF)?

Felix Dance: Greater tree cover is the most important part of this strategy, which is also popular for residences as I’ve spoken to them. Greater parkland with more shade, particularly at playgrounds. Less bare concrete and asphalt and more natural landscapes, shade and greenery.

Liz Irvin: Merri-bek Council’s existing strategies to combat extreme heat are incredibly valuable tools and resources. We need to fully fund them to ensure maximum benefit for communities most at risk. There is potential for further work to help homeowners and renters to keep their homes cool by expanding programs like solar savers (assisting low income households to install solar panels and insulation) and workshops on making rentals climate friendly. Increasing tree canopy and introducing more green and blue infrastructure is also important for reducing the urban heat island effect.

Q10. Waste Management. Merri-bek aims to be a leading council in sustainable waste management. What will you do to help Merri-bek in educating citizens on waste streams , to achieve Merri-bek’s 2030 zero waste to landfill target as part of Zero Carbon in the Planning Scheme – ESD Policy v2.0?

Felix Dance: Information sessions for residents about separating waste, more information about where waste goes and an audit of the full flow path of all waste streams to ensure it is maximally sustainable and energy efficient.

Liz Irvin: I am committed to Merri-bek’s 2030 target of zero waste to landfill. I volunteer at the Brunswick Tool Library, an organisation that runs a monthly repair cafe to keep household items out of landfill and save residents from needing to buy replacement items. I would support investigating ways Council can support existing repair cafes and expand on these programs.

Q11. Energy Efficiency and Renewables. Merri-bek has a goal of “Efficient and 100% renewably powered energy”. How can Merri-bek “walk the talk” on renewable energy and meet the community goals set in the Zero Carbon Merri-bek – Climate Emergency Action Plan 2020/21 – 2024/25 (PDF)?

Felix Dance: I’ve been involved in the campaign to remove gas as an energy source for public pool heating in Merri-bek, along with Sue Bolton. This is the ‘low hanging fruit’ of Merri-bek’s energy transition. Ensuring that all council facilities are carbon neutral is the next step. Finally, low-income households must be supported to bring about their own transition towards sustainable energy and away from profit-gouging utility providers.

Liz Irvin: I would support continuing the existing work of Council, with an increased budget allocation to implement the transition to renewable energy. One priority will be to get all of Council’s aquatic and leisure centres off gas and onto renewable energy. Greens on Council successfully ensured that the Fawkner Leisure Centre would be gas-free in its recent upgrade, and it will be important to address Council’s other aquatic and leisure centres in the next Council term.

Q12. Supporting business and the environment. What actions will you take to help the Council promote environmentally sustainable jobs in the municipality and for businesses to reduce emissions in their operations?

Felix Dance: The council is a major employer in the community and its contracts and hiring practices will have a significant impact on how and under what conditions jobs are performed. Council must get back into the business of providing housing and care (child care, elderly care etc.) where possible, and facilities and jobs will need to be mandated to be sustainable and carbon neutral. We can’t rely on developers doing the right thing out of conscience.

Liz Irvin: I would continue to support the programs within Zero Carbon Merri-bek that support businesses with recycling, reusing, waste minimisation and energy efficiency.

Q13. Food Security. How would you build community resilience and address food security in Merri-bek beyond the existing Merri-bek Food System Strategy 2024 – 2027 (PDF)? How do you think Council could further support culturally relevant and nutritionally rich food to diverse and vulnerable communities?

Felix Dance: Food is a basic right and no-one should ever go hungry in a country that has enough food. Council, being close to the community, is in a position to guarantee this people. Community kitchens must be expanded by council and the different cultural communities within council must be engaged to make sure these are relevant and accessible to people’s needs.

Liz Irvin: The Food System Strategy is only in the first year of its current iteration and so needs time to progress. This strategy is groundbreaking for a Council and recognises the complex intersections of climate change, socio-economic status, community resilience and food security. Continuing to support local community gardens, food swaps and granting access to commercial kitchens at low or no cost are some ways that Council can support this access to culturally relevant and nutritionally rich food.

Q14. Buildings, Biodiversity and Urban cooling: What would you do as a Councillor to ensure that with new building developments, Merri-bek residents have protection from overshadowing existing solar PV systems, and that Merri-bek has sufficient vegetation cover to contribute to biodiversity outcomes, urban cooling, and water sensitive urban design beyond existing policies in the Urban Forest Strategy (PDF), Merri-bek Nature Plan, and the Achieving Zero Carbon in the Planning Scheme – ESD Policy v2.0?

Felix Dance: Ideally, council would not just rely on developers to increase the housing supply and would be a provider in its own right, with a public housing building programme that takes into account sustainability, urban planning for parks and vegetation and shading. However, permitting only those developments that meet these requirements and having strict controls on delivery is an important first step. As a civil engineer in construction I am well placed to assess plans and ensure accountability.

Liz Irvin: The policies and fundamental principles are in place – but more funding is needed to fully realise their potential. Regarding planning, many of the controls are out of Council’s hands and are subject to the approval of the state Planning Minister. This is most evident in the Elevating ESD in the Planning Scheme Amendment that has been sitting on the Minister’s desk for many months now, resulting in multiple Councils not being able to enforce higher environmental standards in new builds. As per Merri-bek Council’s existing policies and guidelines, where there is an application that overshadows existing solar panels, the applicant can be encouraged to change their design, contribute to the supply of new panels or relocate the existing panels.

Q15. What are your top four priorities for the Council Plan, to be formulated for 2025-2029.

Felix Dance:
1. Accessible public transport
2. Sustainability and a just transition from fossil fuels
3. Increased parks and community areas
4. No service sell-offs or defending – look after our community

Liz Irvin:
1. Work with the State Government to ensure the best possible outcomes for the Level Crossing Removal in Brunswick, including safe and accessible alternative public transport, walking and bike riding route during construction.
2. Invest more in footpaths and safe bike riding projects
3. Allocate street space for more tree planting and pocket parks, which will reduce traffic on local streets, reduce the urban heat island effect, and provide more green space close to where people live.
4. Install more rain gardens and permeable surfaces to reduce the impact of stormwater and intercept water (and associated litter and pollutants) before it reaches our creeks

Q16. Democracy and representation: advocacy to State Government on multi-member wards versus single member wards. The state government has imposed single-member wards on Merri-bek against the recommendation of the council, the Local Government Association of Victoria, and even the Victorian Electoral Commission. This shift in electoral structure is an imposition by the parliament, not a choice of experts.

Do you support or oppose single-member wards?

If (re)-elected will you initiate and/or support measures to pressure the state government to return to multi-member wards?

Felix Dance: Oppose single member wards, support initiatives for multi-member wards

Liz Irvin: Oppose single member wards, support initiatives for multi-member wards

Q17. Do you have any other comments on Climate Leadership and Advocacy by Council? Do you have any supplementary comments relating to the questions above, comments on other issues related to climate resilience and climate adaptation, or comments on making decisions for the whole municipality?

Felix Dance: Glad that there are members of the community out there who are fighting for climate action and sustainable practices at the local gov. level. If I’m elected, I’ll work with residents on the ground to build campaigns to support change at all levels of government for a climate-friendly world and justice for all.

Liz Irvin: Skipped

Stop Burning Plastic Pledge

The Stop Burning Plastic pledge not to burn waste. Merri-bek already has a Council policy not to use Waste to Energy Incinerators and to progress to zero waste to landfill by 2030. (see section 4.6.3 of Council Waste and Litter Strategy 2018) . Cleanaway is presently proceeding with an EPA Victoria development licence for a Waste to Energy Incinerator at Wollert. Signing this pledge commits to continuing present Council policy direction regarding sustainable circular economy waste management. Note: A week ago Minister for Climate Action and Energy Lily D’Ambrosio (Mill Park), Thomastown MP Bronwyn Halfpenny and Yan Yean MP Lauren Kathage supported the community in opposing Cleanaway’s Waste to Energy Incinerator. (Facebook Post) This is a statewide pledge:

In Randazzo ward two candidates took the pledge to stop burning plastic: Felix Dance and Liz Irvin, as of 2 October.

Streets People Love Candidate Scorecard

The Streets People Love campaign has created scorecards for candidates in the 2024 council elections in Victoria. Scorecards have been generated based on a candidate’s engagement with the Streets People Love campaign, their commitment to our pledge, their responses to a survey and input from campaign members located in the local government area in which they are running. The local community groups running this scorecard in the City of Merri-bek are Walk on Merri-bek and Merri-bek Bicycle Users Group Inc.

Streets People Love Randazzo ward candidate Scorecard .

Waterways – Vote for Merri Creek

Friends of Merri Creek have surveyed candidates in all wards. The Merri Creek corridor is iconic and questions of sustainability, pollution and biodiversity should be a municipal wide concern to all candidates. The survey is focussed on Merri Creek, Edgars Creek and Coburg Lake, and neglects Merlynston Creek and Campbellfield Creek tributaries. It also ignores the importance of Moonee Ponds Creek and tributaries such as Westbreen Creek on the western side of the municipality, which may provide a reason why candidates from western wards like Djirri-Djirri and Pascoe Vale South did not respond to the survey.

See Friends of Merri Creek 2024 election guide for six Councils in the Merri Creek Catchment.

View the Candidate responses for Merri-bek wards (PDF) for candidate comments.

Q1: Are you concerned about the protection and restoration of the Merri Creek, Edgars Creek and Coburg Lake? If so, what concerns you the most? (100 word limit)

Q2: What action do you plan to take in your role as Councillor – if any – to increase waterway protection and restoration activities along the Merri Creek, Edgars Creek and Coburg Lake? (100 word limit)

Q3: Briefly outline how as a Councillor, you will respond to three of the following threats to the health of the Merri Creek, Edgars Creek and Coburg Lake: (75 word limit per threat)

• Development encroachment
• Pollution, litter and sediments carried by stormwater drains
• Illegal dumping and littering
• Spread of problematic weeds
• Loss, degradation and reduced connectivity of habitat
• Irresponsible pet ownership

References

Brunswick Voice, 23 September 2024, These 18 candidates want your vote next month https://brunswickvoice.com.au/these-18-candidates-want-your-vote-next-month/

Brunswick Residents Network Election Update https://mailchi.mp/optusnet/brunswick-residents-news-17250733

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