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Heritage and culture on show The celebration of culture, history and diversity is once more just around the corner for the City of Casey, as the 4C’s program gears up to begin in early September. The four ‘c’ letters in the program, which stand for cultivating creative cultures with communities, were the brainchild of Narre Warren South P-12 College’s Laitini Matautia, who is now readying her students for their performances. Student leaders from the school, ranging from their skills and workplace leaders, to dance heads for the performances, spoke to Star News about the upcoming events, starting on Monday, 1 September, for a total of four cultural showcases lasting until Tuesday, 16 September. Story page 6
Julian Putere, a primary student from Narre Warren P-12 College, gears up with his headphones and beanie as students across all year levels prep for practice on their 4C’s performance this September. (Stewart Chambers: 495897)
Brakes on power By Violet Li Casey councillors have reduced the CEO’s contract-signing delegation from a proposed $15 million to $5 million, following a heated debate at the August Council Meeting. The Instrument of Delegation allows the CEO to approve contracts within budget without councillors’ approval, a mechanism intended to improve organisational efficiency and speed up delivery of capital works. According to a council officer report, the delegation only empowers
the CEO to authorise the expenditure and delivery of projects that have already been approved through the councillors’ budget decision-making process. The original $15 million threshold, introduced under state-appointed administrators after Operation Sandon, sparked community backlash, with residents and advocacy groups arguing it gave the CEO excessive power compared to other Victorian councils. During the meeting, councillors debated transparency, accountability, workload impacts,
and the legacy of Operation Sandon. Councillor Anthony Walter, who raised the $5 million alternative motion, believed it was a reasonable reduction, and he would not suggest going below the number. “Reducing the delegation drastically would not only slow down project timelines but also shift more decisions into closed council meetings. This would limit public visibility and increase the risk of conflicts of interest,” he said. “It would also burden our meeting agendas, taking time away from strategic discussions and
increasing administrative overheads.” But opponents, including Cr Dave Perry, pushed for a lower $2 million cap, warning the higher figure “undermines financial accountability by allowing major decisions without council review” and noting most other growth councils set the limit at $1–2 million. In the end, the compromise passed 10 to 2, with councillors agreeing the CEO can approve contracts up to $5 million. Full story page 3
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