There was the worst drought on record. We saved water, to carry in buckets for the garden. At the February Council meeting, I argued for a free monthly green waste disposal to help residents with dead and dying trees. There were months of being fobbed off, then in May, councillors were finally allowed a vote. The 6-month scheme finally started in July.

Work started on Armidale Regional Council's (ARC) unanimous Climate Emergency Declaration. Many more than the original petition's 1,800+ supporters began to understand that climate change exacerbates drought. Several offered to help write the report that was initially due in February. But instead of quickly making use of the community's enthusiasm and expertise, the CEO tried to delay matters until July, when it would be too late to influence ARC's plans for the 2020-21 financial year, and most likely delay any effective action until July 2021. Councillors voted in December 2019 to prevent this undesirable outcome by agreeing a date of April 2020. Bureaucratic delay after delay followed in setting up the working group. Its first meeting was finally held on March 30, with a request to write a report by April 2! That, of course, was impossible, but the group managed it in two weeks. Recommendations are now starting to be implemented.

Councillors fought for information. Starved of the information they needed to do their job, three councillors appealed to the Information Commissioner. The report in January 2020 listed a litany of errors council staff made in denying the request. The hope is that we'll finally get to see the information in 2021.

There was a 'Topsy-turvy Alice in Wonderland' case of ARC suing itself, as described on the Facebook page 'What Happened to Armidale Regional Council?'

Councillors were exonerated and reinstated. To quote barrister Shane Prince, SC, "they selflessly consented to a suspension of the Council to clean up a mess not of their making - and of which they themselves were victims. They were completely vindicated by the Chief Judge of the Land and Environment in their attempts to do their job as directors of the Council and now the reinstatement of the Council restores them to their rightful place. They should never have had to go through this torment for simply doing their civic public duty for the people of Armidale LGA. They always put the Council's interests ahead of their own - truly noble."

The fight for hydrotherapy continues. In October 2019, the NSW Health's hydrotherapy pool sprang a leak of about 5 kL a week. Although a tiny fraction of the 3,600 kL ARC staff agreed to supply to Costas, there was strong encouragement to close the pool for repairs. It never reopened. Many people, including those who needed the service and the volunteers who helped run it, were devastated. Prior to this, council had obtained funding for a new hydro pool, but the project was put on hold until the next financial year. Further funding was applied for and obtained, but there were concerns that council might struggle to cover the operating costs that were previously paid for by NSW Health. Councillors are still trying to solve this problem, so that residents in need of hydrotherapy don't have to travel to Tamworth.

Now, a united council wants to do what's needed, from improved consultation procedures, accountability, transparency, better operations, hydrotherapy, providing services to meet the most important needs and keeping ARC's finances on track to comply with the Minister's order.

Next year, we hope for:

A better website, a simple, transparent system for reporting issues and ideas. Allowing users to make suggestions public would improve feedback and gauge community support via a 'MeToo' button.

An improved 'YourSay' page for better community engagement, with clear simple information on closing dates and encourages community debate by allowing submissions to be made public as soon as they are submitted.

Better use of advisory committees and working groups. ARC gained considerable benefits from the many volunteers on working groups and advisory committees, including the Climate Emergency and Community Safety Working Groups. They should all be thanked heartily for freely giving their time. Some even helped with funding applications. Pending more detailed evaluation of the advisory committee structure, reinstating effective committees and working groups would allow those benefits to continue.

Wise use of resources. Let's review all assets, see how much it costs to maintain them in satisfactory condition, and understand the benefits they provide. Can required improvements in financial ratios be met by deciding to retire assets at the end of their useful life unless grant money is available for replacement?

Help from other levels of government to help us recover from the drought, Covid-19 and other problems, so we can work together to create thriving businesses, transport, improved environmental sustainability, clean air and better health!

Let's also hope for lots of useful ideas from residents that will make our region a better, more sustainable and attractive place to live!

Season's Greetings to everyone, and a happy and productive New Year.