Uralla’s deputy mayor Bob Crouch seeks to go one better in the September election and lead the Uralla Shire Council as mayor for the next four years.
The Bundarra farmer’s platform is built around development and growth that is compatible with the Uralla shire lifestyle.
“I’ve got the knowledge and the skills to lead,” he said.
“I know the district well … I've worked around Uralla for the past 30 years in various capacities.”
Prior to his time in local government, Mr Crouch worked for 30 years as a soil conservationist at both a state and federal level.
He is on a number of boards, has trained with the Australian Institute of Company Directors and says his experience in community consultation gives him the necessary tools to lead Council.
“Community consultation is something we can do better and should do better,” he said.
“I don’t think that Council has done as well in the area as it could.
“My experience as a soil conservationist involved a lot of community consultation.”
Mr Crouch said tourism and the visitors information centre were unresolved issues in need of immediate attention.
“Tourism is a big thing,” he said
“We’ve stuffed up a bit with the visitors information centre.”
If re-elected, Mr Crouch said Council needed to get a group of tourism operators together to “talk it through and work it out”.
“Within the first week, I would expect to be out talking to some of the tourism operators and getting their thoughts on it,” he said.
“Within a month, I would hope we could have a group together to address it.
“Our tourism is changing, how people access tourism information is changing, and we need to change with it.”
Developing the shire’s road network is a priority according to Mr Crouch.
He also believes Council needs to capitalise on the developments at the Armidale airport.
“We need to take advantage of Armidale’s industrial development and we also need to work towards developing industrial land in Uralla - that's very important,” Mr Crouch said.
Mr Crouch and the other candidates will attend a meet and greet at the Uralla Bowling Club on Thursday from 6pm.
If we are to maintain the lifestyle, we need to keep moving forward.
- Bob Crouch
