Helicopter View

Rivalry is an interesting concept. In any range of contests it seems that the closer you are to your rival the more intense the rivalry. Sibling rivalry can be incredibly intense. Best friends can put everything into a contest to have bragging rights…

When Jen and I first spoke about the ‘Helicopter View’ column when I became Mayor, we decided that the concept should be for me to write about big picture issues that are relevant to Local Government and use examples specifically from Dub…

I have said it so many times now that my wife tells me I need to stop saying it – but I’ll do what any good husband does and ignore my wife’s advice. Culture is in. Dubbo has found its culture. It is now acceptable for councils in g…

As I was driving down one of the beautiful streets in Dubbo last week, with autumn leaves dropping from the trees, I noticed one house as being particularly clean and tidy. I immediately thought of the work this resident must have put in to their gen…

With lots of exciting development happening in Dubbo at the moment – both with lodged DAs and potential developments on the horizon, one of the challenges for any Council is to have a balance between concrete and grass. Sometimes I hear suggest…

I spoke last weekend to two busloads of Year 2 medical students from the University of Sydney who were considering where they might like to live during their third year of study – and Dubbo was a popular choice. In trying to convince them they …

My favourite expression at the moment with my kids, who I think live an incredibly privileged life, is ‘that sounds like a first-world problem’. I am sure you know the sort of thing I mean; problems that many people in the world would dre…

China drives on the right hand of the road. That makes it different to Australia. Not wrong, just different. And that is OK. Whenever I travel to a new location with my family – whether that be to a neighbouring town or to another country, I as…

I spent a couple of days in WA last week where I had a chance to catch up with the state’s leader of the Nationals, the Hon Brendon Grylls MLA. Brendon made his mark on WA when the National Party held the balance of power after the 2008 state e…

Of the many roles I have to undertake as Mayor, one of the really fun duties is hosting groups of students in Year 4 during the time they are studying Local Government. These students are typically nine or 10 years of age. We have the class sit in th…

I love Australia Day. We have a day to celebrate everything that is great about our nation, and let’s face it – almost everything about Australia is great. I was in Bondi earlier this week and as I walked along Campbell Parade in my thong…

Laws. What a pain. The old joke is that a camel is a horse designed by a committee and surely the same is true of laws. Laws are brought into society by ‘lawmakers’. My impression is that this is just a huge committee of politicians. Some…

I was at a forum recently where a lady approached me and made an interesting comment. The forum was held by an organisation that wanted to explain what it did in the Dubbo community. I have dealt with this particular organisation on a number of occas…

I have four children. The eldest will be eligible for her L plates next year (very scary). She has already started planning for her car, working weekends and making reasonable money but burning a hole in her pocket as soon as she gets it. Her dream c…

Running a business is tough. There are myriad variables to consider and getting them right is crucial for the ongoing success of your business. You need to ensure there is a market for your product or service and that the market is not saturated; tha…

With more than 700 people arriving in Dubbo from today for the Local Government Association (LGA) Conference, I started thinking about the value of leadership and, in particular, what leadership can do for a regional community. The concept of leaders…

Conference. For some people the word itself conjures up images of cocktails, late nights and golf. The reality is that employers expect to see a reasonable return on investment from any expenditure and conferences are no different. People attend conf…

After a short hiatus due to the Council elections it is good to be writing the ‘Helicopter View’ again. After poring over results from across the state, I found some interesting comparisons that demonstrate just how different Local Govern…

I sat down for a coffee with an acquaintance recently. Inevitably, the conversation came around to my role as Mayor and an offhand comment was made. “It is a pity you aren’t a property developer because being the Mayor you could make some…