Georgie Davies looks to the future, unveiling the 'Getting It Done' team for the Wagga Council election

Another serving Wagga City councillor has confirmed her decision to stand for re-election with Georgie Davies setting her sights on a second term.

Cr Davies unveiled her five-person ticket for the September Local Government Elections decked out in hi-vis orange shirts sporting the team name, Getting It Done.

“We need to keep getting it done. We have ticked off a lot of our campaign promises from the 2021 election and I am proud of the progress,” Cr Davies said.

“I have lived in Wagga for most of my life and I am here to stay. I absolutely love this city and I want to see it flourish and thrive whilst still maintaining its country-town feel and family-friendly vibe.”

Reflecting on the last three years, Cr Davies cited the addition of 12 new shade sails over playgrounds, significant road rehabilitation across the LGA and the move towards a new conference and entertainment centre for the city.

The Getting it Done ticket includes youth worker Karen Butts at number two, Pradeep Kurien, who is a registered theatre nurse at the Wagga Wagga Base Hospital, founder of Wagga’s Small Stars sports program Sarah Humphries, and retired accountant Steve Taylor.

“We have a number of exciting campaign platforms, which, if I am fortunate enough to be re-elected, we will be working to get done,” said Cr Davies.

On the agenda is a splash park for the city, improvements to parking at Bolton and Jubilee Parks and building a sporting precinct and more community hall space in the northern growth area.

“Our roads are still the number one priority – it’s something which impacts everyone,” Ms Davies said.

“We know we have a huge shortfall in funds to maintain our extensive road network but we need to be laser-focused in directing all available funds, including grants, towards resealing our roads.”

Ms Butts said that the team wanted to represent families and to see the region grow in a sustainable, attractive and functional manner.

“We have playgrounds which don’t get used because there is no shade and a lake which is closed during summer because of blue-green algae outbreaks,” she said.

“We need to ensure that the assets we have now are running at their prime and can be enjoyed to their full potential.”

Ms Humphries agreed that Wagga is a great place to raise a family, but said there’s work to be done to keep the the region vibrant.

“Wagga City Council run fabulous events such as the Festival of W and Fusion Festival – but we need to keep coming up with new ideas that make our city even more attractive,” she explained.

“For example, Christmas in Wagga is dead – what could we do to liven our city up over the festive season?”

The building of the proposed state-of-the-art conference/entertainment centre in the CBD is also high on the list.

“A lot of progress has been made with the feasibility study but now we need to secure grants to get the facility designed and costed-out,” Ms Humphries said.

Mr Kurien moved to Wagga a decade ago and said that he would like to address some of the challenges he faced as he settled into the community.

“There is a huge shortage of community hall space for the different groups in our city,” he said.

“It’s really hard to reserve a hall for an event. Our group also recognises the need for a larger sporting precinct in the north, and we think we can weave the two together to better serve our community.”

Lake Albert local Steve Taylor has been an active volunteer in the community for years and said they were eager for feedback.

“We are here to listen to the entire community and to bring their concerns, ideas and opportunities to the table to be heard – that’s our approach – to listen and to represent,” he said.

Seven of Wagga’s Councillors have confirmed that they will stand for reelection. There is one vacant seat after the departure of Cr Dan Hayes last year and former Mayor Rod Kendall has confirmed that he will not stand for reelection.

The NSW local government elections will be held on Saturday, 14 September.