Our Organisation
Mayor and Ceo Overview
Councillors
Councillor attendance at council meetings
Election of mayor and deputy mayor
Councillors’ Code of conduct
Councillors’ remuneration and support
Councillor expenses
Councillor membership of committees
The Executive
Organisational structure
Discrimination and equal employment opportunity program
In 2016–17, Council achieved 83 out of the 103 actions in the Glen Eira Community Plan 2013–2017.
Public open space
Public open space continues to be a priority for Council. We acquired a property at 6 Aileen Avenue, Caulfield South, which we hope to convert to a pocket park following community consultation; we completed the redevelopment of the disused Reservoir site in Glen Huntly — Booran Reserve — which provides residents with 1.6 hectares of fantastic open space and parkland; Hopetoun Gardens, Elsternwick underwent significant enhancement to its entrance to complement the planting of four mature palm trees. Landscaping works along the façade of the Gardens include a new entrance wall, new garden beds, seating, signage and new pavers along the Glenhuntly Road walkway.
We consulted the community on two landscape concepts for an area of Joyce Park in Ormond. The new open space will be created by the inclusion of the eastern bowling green — previously part of the Glen Eira McKinnon Bowls Club.
See Booran Reserve — an open space for all.
See Hopetoun Gardens makeover honours historic cannons.
Works to remove three of Victoria’s worst level crossings — Centre Road, Bentleigh; McKinnon Road, McKinnon; and North Road, Ormond were completed in November 2016.
We were delighted that our advocacy for interim building height controls on commercially zoned land in the Bentleigh and Carnegie shopping strips was approved by the Minister for Planning in May.
We went through a comprehensive engagement process with the community to set the long-term vision for Bentleigh, Carnegie, Elsternwick, East Village and our other activity centres. This has been outlined in our newly created Activity Centre Housing and Local Economy Strategy. We continue to improve our service delivery with planning information requests; pre-application advice; extension of time requests; and search and copy requests all now available online.
See Council advocates during major level crossing works.
Governance
Glen Eira’s 2016–2020 Council was officially sworn in at a Special Council Meeting on Tuesday 8 November 2016, following the October Council elections. Five new councillors were elected and four former councillors re-elected to represent the Glen Eira community for the next four years. We underwent an organisational restructure to ensure Council is sustainable for the future. The Glen Eira Council and Community Plan 2017–2021 was adopted by Council, following extensive community consultation. Our engagement process was diverse and co-ordinated through a range of interactions, including face-to-face, online, hard copy, email and telephone.
See Councillors.
The City of Glen Eira is made up of three wards with three Councillors elected to represent each ward. The following Councillors were elected for a four-year term on Saturday 22 October 2016 and took their Oath of Office at a Special Council Meeting held on Tuesday 8 November 2016.
The Councillors elect a Mayor and Deputy Mayor annually.
The elected Councillors are listed below.
Cr Delahunty was first elected to Glen Eira City Council in 2012. She is serving her second term as a Councillor and is Mayor of Glen Eira for 2017.
Cr Delahunty lives with her young family in Elsternwick. Cr Delahunty is an active member of many local sporting and community groups. She likes to keep fit at the gym and plays and umpires netball. She is a General Manager of an industry super fund and is an authority member of the Emergency Services Telecommunication Authority. Cr Delahunty is a 2015 Churchill Fellow.
Cr Silver lives in Elsternwick, having been a lifelong resident of Glen Eira. For most of that time, his family have been traders on Glen Eira Road. Cr Silver was called to the Victorian Bar in May 2014 and practices predominately in commercial law (focusing on building and construction disputes). Cr Silver has used these skills in several community organisations including Peninsula Community Legal Centre in Bentleigh where he worked as a volunteer lawyer, and the Law Institute of Victoria where he served as Young Lawyers President.
Cr Sztrajt and his young family live in Caulfield where he has been a resident for more than 30 years.
Since the age of 16, Cr Sztrajt has been volunteering in Glen Eira across a wide range of roles. These include five years with a locally-based youth movement, seven years with the Jewish Community Council of Victoria and continuous involvement with countless charities and educational initiatives.
Cr Margaret Esakoff
Cr Esakoff is a long-time resident of Glen Eira. She was educated in Rosstown Ward and has lived there almost all of her adult life. She is married with two children and three grandchildren.
Cr Esakoff has experience in business administration — having run a small business with her husband — as well as working in the publishing, advertising and radio/television industries.
Cr Clare Davey
Her desire to play a larger role in her local community was one of the reasons why Glen Huntly resident, Clare Davey decided to run for Council.
One of the five new faces on the elected Council, Cr Davey has worked in Local Government as a traffic and transport engineer for more than five years.
Cr Davey grew up just across the border in Bayside and has spent six of the last eight years living in the City of Glen Eira.
Cr Tony Athanasopoulos
Cr Athanasopoulos was born of two migrant parents from Greece and Italy. They both worked hard to give their three boys the life they envied, and always taught the importance of service. Cr Athanasopoulos now resides and runs a family business in Carnegie with the drive instilled by his parents. He has a partner Katherine who is also his business partner and they both share a position on the Chrisalis Foundation board, a not-for-profit foundation supporting young people with disabilities.
A long-time resident of Glen Eira with a keen interest in sport and recreation, Cr Hyams is serving his fourth term on Council and was Mayor in 2012 and 2013 and Deputy Mayor in 2011. Formerly a solicitor and executive director of a community sporting body, he is now a senior policy analyst at a not-for-profit public affairs organisation.
Until 2011, Cr Hyams was President of the City of Moorabbin Historical Society, having served an eight-year term.
Cr Magee emigrated from Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1970. He is married with two boys and has lived in Bentleigh East since 1988. Cr Magee’s weekdays involve work and Council commitments and on weekends he is a keen bowler with the Coatesville Bowls Club. Cr Magee served as Mayor in 2015.
Cr Taylor is trilingual, a lawyer and works for a not-for-profit organisation as part of a long-term commitment to meaningful community engagement.
Cr Taylor’s charitable activities have included providing phone-line legal advice at the Women’s Legal Service to members of the community experiencing domestic violence.
Cr Taylor also has extensive private industry experience involving the promotion of treatment options for chronic disease (diabetes) to medical and allied healthcare professionals working in rural and urban hospitals/clinics and community healthcare centres.
| Councillor | Ordinary meetings | Special Meetings | Term of Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cr Tony Athanasopoulos | 10 (10) | 3 (4) | 22 October 2016–30 June 2017 |
| Cr Clare Davey | 9 (10) | 4 (4) | 22 October 2016–30 June 2017 |
| Cr Mary Delahunty | 15 (15) | 4 (5) | 1 July 2016–30 June 2017 |
| Cr Margaret Esakoff | 15 (15) | 5 (5) | 1 July 2016–30 June 2017 |
| Cr Jamie Hyams | 15 (15) | 5 (5) | 1 July 2016–30 June 2017 |
| Cr Joel Silver | 9 (10) | 4 (4) | 22 October 2016–30 June 2017 |
| Cr Dan Sztrajt | 8 (10) | 4 (4) | 22 October 2016–30 June 2017 |
| Cr Jim Magee | 13 (15) | 5 (5) | 1 July 2016–30 June 2017 |
| Cr Nina Taylor | 9 (10) | 4 (4) | 22 October 2016–30 June 2017 |
| Cr Kelvin Ho | 5 (5) | 1 (1) | 1 July 2016–22 October 2016 |
| Cr Michael Lipshutz | 5 (5) | 1 (1) | 1 July 2016–22 October 2016 |
| Cr Oscar Lobo | 4 (5) | 0 (1) | 1 July 2016–22 October 2016 |
| Cr Neil Pilling | 5 (5) | 1 (1) | 1 July 2016–22 October 2016 |
| Cr Thomas Souness | 5 (5) | 1 (1) | 1 July 2016–22 October 2016 |
Glen Eira’s Mayor and Deputy Mayor are elected for a one-year term. Councillor Mary Delahunty was elected Mayor and Councillor Jim Magee was elected Deputy Mayor on 8 November 2016 at a Special Meeting of Council.
Although the Mayor has no more authority than other Councillors, the position is a significant one as a community leader and Council spokesperson. The Mayor also performs an important leadership, social and ceremonial function and is Chair of all Council Meetings.
On 14 February 2017, Council adopted a revised Code of Conduct.
The purpose of the Code is to assist Councillors in meeting their responsibilities by setting standards of conduct to ensure the conduct of Councillors is legal, ethical and appropriate at all times.
The Code specifies that, as the performance of the Council and the wellbeing of the Glen Eira community are directly affected by the conduct of the City’s elected representatives, the community is entitled to expect that:
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- The business of the Council is conducted with efficiency, impartiality and integrity.
- Councillors obey the spirit and letter of the law in particular, the provisions of relevant statutes, regulations, local laws and instruments.
- Responsibility to the community is always to be given absolute priority over the private interests of Councillors.
All Councillors sign a written agreement to abide by the Code of Conduct when they take the oath of office at the start of their term and each time a review of the Code of Conduct is undertaken.
AND SUPPORT
Following a review by the Minister, Glen Eira became a ‘Category 3’ Council in November 2008. Councillor allowances have been reviewed in accordance with the Act and the current allowances are $29,630 plus 9.5 per cent superannuation contribution for Councillors and $94,641 plus 9.5 per cent superannuation contribution for the Mayor. Allowances are fully taxable.
The Mayor and Councillors are supported by a secretariat, which processes requests and correspondence from members of the community, co-ordinates Council meetings and supports Mayoral and other civic functions.
All Councillors are provided with a mobile phone, a photocopier, printer and a desktop computer, tablet or iPad.
They can also make use of the Councillors’ office facilities at Glen Eira Town Hall, which contains office equipment and a basic library, holding a range of Council and related publications. The Mayor also receives use of an office, computer and telephone at Town Hall. Use of facilities is governed by Council’s Civic Support and Expenses Policy.
Councillor Expenses
In accordance with Section 75 of the Local Government Act 1989, Council is required to reimburse a Councillor for expenses incurred while performing their duties as a Councillor. Council is also required to adopt and maintain a policy in relation to the reimbursement of expenses for Councillors. The policy is to provide guidance for the types of reasonable expenses that must be reimbursed, in addition to the provision of resources and support available to the Mayor and Councillors to enable them to fulfil their duties.
Council also publishes in its Annual Report the details of the expenses, including reimbursement of expenses for each Councillor and member of a Council committee, paid by the Council. See table below.
| Councillor | Councillor Allowances | Conferences, Functions and Training | Travel — Local | Communication | Functions External to Town Hall | Carer Expenses | Total Expenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category Total | $344,032 | $936 | $772 | $16,352 | $412 | $3,659 | $366,163 |
| Cr Tony Athanaspoulos | $20,948 | $158 | - | $1,659 | $45 | - | $22,810 |
| Cr Clare Davey | $20,948 | - | - | $1,594 | - | - | $22,542 |
| Cr Mayor Delahunty Mayor 2017 | $76,697 | - | - | $1,933 | $109 | $3,659 | $82,398 |
| Cr Margaret Esakoff | $30,733 | - | $86 | $894 | $45 | - | $31,758 |
| Cr Jamie Hyams | $30,733 | - | - | $952 | $45 | - | $31,730 |
| Cr Joel Silver | $20,948 | - | - | $2,555 | - | - | $23,503 |
| Cr Dan Sztrajt | $20,948 | - | - | $1,606 | - | - | $22,554 |
| Cr Jim Magee Deputy Mayor 2017 | $30,733 | - | - | $2,236 | - | - | $32,969 |
| Cr Nina Taylor | $20,948 | $458 | - | $1,471 | $45 | - | $22,922 |
| Cr Kelvin Ho | $9,785 | - | - | $202 | - | - | $9,987 |
| Cr Michael Lipshutz | $9,785 | - | - | $262 | - | - | $10,047 |
| Cr Oscar Lobo | $9,785 | $70 | $40 | $700 | - | - | $10,595 |
| Cr Neil Pilling Mayor 2016 | $31,256 | - | $646 | $116 | $123 | - | $32,141 |
| Cr Thomas Souness Deputy Mayor 2016 | $9,785 | $250 | - | $172 | - | - | $10,207 |
Council operates several committees that either make decisions under delegation from Council (special committees) or provide advice and make recommendations to Council on specific issues (advisory committees). Council is also represented on numerous external bodies that serve the Glen Eira community. Councillor membership on committees is reviewed regularly. In 2016–17, the following committees and representations were in place:
Role: to provide recommendations to Council for Arts and Culture programs.
Current composition: Cr Margaret Esakoff, Cr Mary Delahunty and Cr Jamie Hyams
Number of meetings held during 2016–17: 2.
Role: to report to Council and provide appropriate advice and recommendations on matters relevant to its Charter in order to facilitate decision-making by Council in relation to the discharge of its responsibilities.
Current composition: Cr Jim Magee (November 2016–June 2017), Cr Tony Athanasopoulos (November 2016–June 2017)
Independent representatives: David Gibbs (Chair), Dr Craig Nisbet and Lisa Woolmer.
Number of meetings held during 2016–17: 4.
Municipal Association of Victoria
Delegate: Cr Margaret Esakoff
Substitute: Cr Nina Taylor
Metropolitan Transport Forum
Representative: Cr Tony Athanasopoulos
Substitute: Cr Joel Silver
Metropolitan Local Government Waste Forum
Delegate: Cr Joel Silver
Trustees: Cr Margaret Esakoff, Cr Jamie Hyams and Cr Michael Lipshutz (appointed by the Governor in Council and with the recommendation of the Minister for Crown Lands).
Cr Margaret Esakoff, Cr Jamie Hyams and Cr Michael Lipshutz resigned as trustees in October 2017.
No Councillors were nominated to the Trust following the 2016 Local Government election pending advice from the Victorian Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change and Minister for Suburban Development regarding her intention to introduce revised Trust arrangements as an outcome of the 2016 Bi-partisan working group report of the Caulfield Racecourse Reserve.
The CEO leads an Executive team which includes four Directors. The team provides organisational leadership, plans, co-ordinates and monitors the progress of Council’s goals and strategic direction and manages day-to-day business activities.
The Directors are accountable to the CEO for effective and efficient leadership of their portfolios and the collective delivery of Council’s internal transformation program and the Glen Eira Council and Community Plan.
Rebecca is an accomplished leader with a successful career at executive level across three countries and three sectors. Before joining Glen Eira City Council, Rebecca’s roles included CEO at Mitchell Shire Council in Melbourne’s north and Director of Corporate Services for Yarra Ranges Council. During an eight-year stint abroad, Rebecca held director level roles in human resource management at Swindon Borough Council in the United Kingdom (UK) and at the National University of Ireland in Dublin. Her early career was spent in various roles with the Queensland State Government. Rebecca is also President of Local Government Professionals Victoria.
Rebecca has a Bachelor of Arts (Griffith University), Graduate Certificate in Business Administration (Griffith University), Master of Science (Sheffield Hallam University UK), Graduate (Australian Institute of Company Directors).
Rebecca commenced the position in February 2016.
Peter joined Council in July 2001 as Human Resources Manager. His career has spanned human resources, education and community services. He has extensive experience in community services, in both the not-for-profit and public sector, and has held a range of human services management roles in the areas of children’s services, youth services and community development.
Peter has a Bachelor of Social Work (Hons), Master of Business Administration (Monash University).
Peter commenced the position in 2003.
Peter has more than 20 years’ experience in senior finance and company secretarial roles across a range of industries including Local Government, banking and finance and legal services. Peter has extensive experience in financial management, treasury, payroll, accounting system implementations and external financial reporting requirements. Peter was Chief Financial Officer from 2004–2016.
Peter has a Bachelor of Business (Accounting) (Monash University), CPA.
Peter commenced the position in July 2016.
Environment and Leisure
Samantha commenced working in the Local Government sector in 2007 and has worked in both metropolitan and growth councils. She also has 15 years’ experience in the private sector as a professional consulting structural engineer and project manager, in Australia, South Africa and Hong Kong.
Samantha has experience in leading multi-disciplinary teams to sustainably plan and deliver community infrastructure projects and programs in Local Government. In 2015, she received the Institute of Public Works Engineers Victorian Sector Practitioner/Engineer of the Year Award.
Samantha has a Bachelor of Science (Engineering) (Hons), Graduate Diploma in Engineering.
Samantha commenced the position in May 2016.
Ron joined Council in 1996. He has more than 20 years’ experience in town planning in both inner-city and middle-ring municipalities.
He has held a range of management roles and has extensive experience in statutory and strategic town planning, VCAT and planning panels. He has also successfully delivered a range of transport planning, sustainable development, animal management and economic development programs, each with a goal of safeguarding and developing community amenity and wellbeing.
Ron has a Bachelor of Planning and Design (The University of Melbourne).
Ron commenced the position in 2015.
| Casual Female | Permanent Part-Time Female | Permanent Full-Time Female | Casual Male | Permanent Part-Time Male | Permanent Full-Time Male | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 377 | 60.41 | 369 | 206.85 | 198 | 197.05 | 195 | 38.55 | 84 | 37.52 | 210 | 209.68 | 1433 | 750.07 |
| Division | Count | E.F.T. | Count | E.F.T. | Count | E.F.T. | Count | E.F.T. | Count | E.F.T. | Count | E.F.T. | Count | E.F.T. |
| Community Wellbeing | 163 | 26.23 | 319 | 183.68 | 93 | 92.05 | 32 | 5.39 | 54 | 28.28 | 15 | 14.68 | 676 | 350.32 |
| Corporate Services | 11 | 4.78 | 10 | 6.16 | 30 | 29.00 | 11 | 5.93 | 2 | 1.38 | 24 | 24.00 | 87 | 72.25 |
| Executive | - | - | - | - | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 | 2.00 |
| Infrastructure, Environment and Leisure | 191 | 27.90 | 10 | 6.07 | 36 | 36.00 | 126 | 24.12 | 3 | 2.58 | 130 | 130.00 | 496 | 226.67 |
| Innovation and Continuous Improvement | - | - | - | - | 2 | 2.00 | - | - | - | - | 3 | 3.00 | 5 | 5.00 |
| People and Culture | - | - | 4 | 2.45 | 5 | 5.00 | - | - | 1 | 0.80 | 3 | 3.00 | 13 | 11.25 |
| Planning and Place | 12 | 1.50 | 26 | 8.49 | 30 | 30.00 | 26 | 3.11 | 24 | 4.48 | 35 | 35.00 | 153 | 82.58 |
Council values diversity and therefore does not tolerate any form of discrimination in the workplace. There are a number of equal opportunity policies and procedures in place, including anti-discrimination, which are widely communicated to all employees.
Council has a well-established Equal Employment Opportunity Program, which includes online and face-to-face training and a contact network. As part of the Program, Council delivers extensive training and resources with the aim that existing and prospective staff are not subjected to discrimination in the workplace. The Program ensures Council decisions and policies promote equal employment opportunity in the workplace and that Council complies with federal and state legislation in relation to equal opportunity employment, in particular the:
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- Equal Opportunity Act 2010 (Vic );
- Racial and Religious Tolerance Act 2001 (Vic ); and
- Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006.
We further ensure that employees receive information and either online or face-to-face training relating to equal opportunity expectations at induction and throughout their employment with Council. Specifically, these relate to harassment, discrimination, vilification, bullying, and occupational violence.
As part of its commitment to equal opportunity, Council appoints and trains designated equal employment opportunity officers to provide confidential assistance and support to staff members who believe they may be affected by discrimination or harassment in the workplace. In the event a complaint arises, we ensure that such matters are dealt with promptly and confidentially through internal investigation processes.
In 2016–17, no discrimination matters were raised by Council staff with any external bodies.