General

The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley welcomes the use of body cameras to improve the safety of both the community and its Rangers. During the Ordinary Council Meeting held on 24 March 2020, the Council endorsed the Surveillance Device Policy, which has allowed Shire Rangers to use the body camera as part of their role.

The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley has engaged NAJA Business Consulting Services to assist the Shire in the delivery of an East Kimberley Economic Development Strategy and accompanying Prospectus. The Strategy will outline an investment pathway for the orderly development of the East Kimberley economy, bearing in mind the effects of the recent COVID-19 pandemic and the stimulus required to facilitate recovery. The Prospectus will provide us with a marketing tool that can be utilised in advocating for critical infrastructure projects in our region.

Due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and restrictions put in place by State and Federal Government, the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley would like to remind the community that as per the notice released on 22 April 2020, the location of all Meetings of Council will continue to occur by eMeeting until further notice. eMeetings are administratively run from the Kununurra Administration Building.

The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley and Horizon Power would like to advise of a planned power outage, due to tree trimming, on Casuarina Drive from Victoria Highway end to Flametree Street.

The Kimberley Regional Group joined key regional leaders yesterday to provide the Premier with a 12 point plan for a COVIDSafe reopening of the Kimberley border on the 18th June 2020. This represents the first time that all key leaders across the region have united, delivering a powerful message of cooperation.

The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley is pleased to announce that the Kununurra School & Community Library has partially reopened. As part of the COVID Safety Guidelines and Plan provided by the State Government, the library will implement the following restrictions:

At the Ordinary Council Meeting on 24 March 2020, Council endorsed the following proposed differential rates and minimum payments for advertising. In accordance with Section 6.36 of the Local Government Act 1995 the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley hereby gives notice of its intention to impose the following differential rates and minimum payments on rateable property for 2020/21:

The Kimberley Development Commission wishes to advise that application for round three of the Regional Economic Development (RED) Grants is now open. The McGowan Government is investing up to $6 million in regional projects to sustain jobs and build business resilience. The RED Grants program supports locally-driven projects that contribute to the economic growth and development of regional Western Australia.

On Thursday 14 May 2020, the State Government officially released the COVID Safety Guidelines and Plan for Sports and Recreational facilities. As such, the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley is working to ensure all necessary measures are met before reopening the facilities to the community; this includes completing the COVID Safety plan recently provided by the State Government.

The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley would like to advise that the State Government has released a COVID Safety Plan and Guidelines for Food Businesses.

Proposed Disposition of Land (Lease) – Part Lot 200 on Deposited Plan 66654, East Kimberley Regional Airport, Peter Reid Drive, Kununurra The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley proposes to lease a portion of the East Kimberley Regional Airport landholdings, part Lot 200 on Deposited Plan 66654, to the adjoining landowner Margret Conley for three years for the permitted purpose of cultivating crops.

In accordance with Section 5.4 (a)(1) of the Local Government Act 1995 the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley wishes to inform the public of a Special Council EMeeting taking place on Thursday 7 May 2020 at 5 pm at the Kununurra Council Chambers.

The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley would like to advise that the walking trail at Kelly's Knob will temporarily close for essential repairs. The trail will be closed to the public from 6:00 am Wednesday 6 May 2020 to 6:00 pm Thursday 7 May 202

The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley wishes to advise that repairs to footpaths along the eastern side of Weaber Plain Road, between the industrial area and Hidden Valley Tourist Park, will commence on Monday 4 May 2020.

At the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley’s Ordinary Council Meeting held on 28 April 2020, Council adopted a number of new policies in relation to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, including an Emergency Response and Recovery Policy and a Financial Hardship Policy.

The ANZAC #drivewayatdawn initiative was a success, with over 3500 viewers tuning in to the ANZAC dawn service via the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley Facebook page.

The Shire is pleased to announce that Wyndham Boat Ramp pontoon jetty is now open for members of the community to use. The damages to the pontoon jetty were caused primarily by the impact of weather on infrastructure which has passed its renewal date.

Due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and restrictions put in place by State and Federal Government, the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley would like to advise the location of all Meetings of Council will occur by eMeeting, which will be administratively run from the Kununurra Administration Building. As per regulation 14D(3) and (4) the Shire President has approved a method for conducting all Council and Committee Meetings which can be summarised as follows;

The Kununurra and Wyndham RSL branches have partnered with the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley to launch the ANZAC day #DrivewayAtDawn initiative. From 5:30 am on Saturday 25 April 2020, the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley will live stream the dawn service from ANZAC Hill via Facebook. Members of the community can join in a minute of silence to honour veterans and active service people from their driveways, whilst watching the service from their mobile device. The Kununurra and Wyndham RSL branches and the Shire will also distribute a limited number of 'electronic candles' to PO boxes within the Shire. For those without a PO Box, we encourage you to download the app 'Real Candle'. Lest We Forget.

The Water Corporation would like to advise the community to play their part in minimising wastewater blockage in the North West region. Residents are urged only to flush the 3P's – pee, poo and (toilet) paper. Items such as wet wipes, paper kitchen towel and sanitary products should be disposed of in a bin, as these materials do not break down in wastewater pipes and can cause blockages.

The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley would like to advise that Firebreak and Hazard reduction activities are required to be completed by 1 June 2020. Failure to do so will incur a fine in accordance with Section 33 of the Bush Fire Act 1954. Landlords/occupiers are responsible for managing their property to reduce the risk of a bush fire. Below are a few tips to ensure you are following Firebreak protocols:

On 15 March 2020, the State Government declared a State Emergency in respect to the COVID-19 virus. The WA Department of Health is designated as the Hazard Management Agency (HMA) and are liaising with all relevant bodies as nominated under the State Council. The HMA has activated the State, District and Local Emergency Management Committees (LEMC). The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley, as the chair for LEMC in the East Kimberley, we would like to inform the community that we have activated our local LEMC team.

As a local government, we are responsible for taking precautionary measures to minimise risks to community health at Shire facilities in the face of this pandemic:

At the Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley’s Ordinary Council Meeting, held 24 March 2020, Council agreed that the 2020 direct flights trial between Melbourne and Kununurra be deferred to 2021.

The four Kimberley Shires are united in their support for medical teams that are at the coal face of the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. ‘We recognise and appreciate the service of the medical professionals in our region and the contribution that they continue to make,’ said Cr Chris Mitchell, Chair of the Kimberley Regional Group.

The Department of Health is warning Pilbara and Kimberley residents to take additional precautions to avoid mosquito bites following continued detections of Murray Valley encephalitis (MVE) virus. While no human cases of MVE have been reported this year, evidence of the virus has now been detected from the sentinel chicken surveillance program coordinated by the Department of Health, PathWest and local governments, to provide early warning of virus activity.