By Mikayla van Loon
Having always had an interest in politics but never seeing it as a path for herself, Billanook Ward candidate Wendy Wright said all that changed in the last year.
“I became aware of growing community dissatisfaction with the general direction of council and government in general, with growing rates and charges, growing government involvement in our lives, and a sense of powerlessness about council decisions,” she said.
“My resolve to make a difference was crystalised by two main things – seeing residents making submissions to council, in tears of frustration from not being heard and seeing residents blindsided by the process council followed in closing the Kilsyth pool.”
Born in the eastern suburbs and growing up as a teenager in the Yarra Ranges, Ms Wright has since called Billanook home for the last 30 years with her husband and family.
Having previously worked in accounting and IT, Ms Wright now works in administration and bookkeeping with a small family-owned business.
Turning her attention to running as a councillor, Ms Wright said her focus and premise is grounded in the basic responsibilities of a council.
Understanding that “there’s no magic money tree” to fund every project, Ms Wright said “my goal is to work with the community to ensure that what is done is what matters most to all of us”.
Seeing the role of the council as “a set of core services” including the maintenance of council assets such as roads, rubbish collection, parks and gardens and facilitating services to those in need, Ms Wright said “there is a sense in the community that we are not getting what we paid for”.
“Going ‘back to basics’ is about the community having a say in what makes up the ‘basics’, and council reviewing these to ensure they are managed well,” she said.
“It’s about taking a hard look at the discretionary spending that falls outside these priorities and making decisions around their necessity.
“Particularly in the current economic environment, I don’t think it’s fair that those who are doing it tough are paying for things that are nice- to-have rather than must-haves.”
Ms Wright’s vision for the future of the council, she said, was weighted in improving the satisfaction of residents by ensuring community consultation practices were up to standard.
“Look no further than the 2024 Community Satisfaction Survey for the Yarra Ranges. This showed a steep decline in community perceptions of the Yarra Ranges Council, continuing an overall decline over many years,” she said.
“Residents do not see themselves as part of their own council, and we need to work harder to make sure that council is not just surveying residents but hearing and acting on their feedback.”
Ms Wright said in her opinion there shouldn’t be any scenario where a constituent has to “beg to receive the services you paid for”.
In her candidate statement, Ms Wright said the values she believes a council should be based on were “value for money, transparency, accountability” with a focus on giving residents a voice that is heard.
With a finance and administrative background, as well as her decades of living in the Yarra Ranges, Ms Wright said she wants to ensure the future of the shire is positive and sustainable.
“I am eager to give back to this beautiful community, I believe I have the skills to understand the complexity of council activities, to identify opportunities for improvement and work with other councillors to make a difference,” she said.
“As far as I’m concerned there’s no better place to live and, if elected, I want to work with other elected councillors to create a shire that current and future generations can be proud of.”
