By Lachlan Ellis
Moorabool Shire Council’s CEO has signed on for a second term, and he’s looking forward to the years ahead.
Derek Madden became Council’s CEO back in October 2018, and will commence another five-year term later this month.
Mr Madden has overseen an ambitious capital works program during his first five years with a number of ‘big ticket’ facilities, and Mayor Cr Rod Ward congratulated him on his work so far in planning for expected population growth, and advocating for government funding.
“Derek has overseen a very significant capital works program for the shire, including construction of the $17 million indoor stadium in Bacchus Marsh, the extensive redevelopment of the Bacchus Marsh Racecourse Recreation Reserve to transform it into a major sports and community centre for the town, and the upcoming Ballan Library and Community Hub project,” Cr Ward said.
“He also ensured the organisation was able to quickly pivot online from the very beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, providing strong leadership during this challenging time.”
Cr Ward also thanked Mr Madden for his “strong leadership and support”, and said he looked forward to “building on this success in the years to come.”
Mr Madden said it was an honour to have served Moorabool since 2018, and the next five years are exciting.
“It has been a privilege to be Moorabool Shire Council’s CEO for the past five years and I am excited by the future opportunities for Moorabool Shire. The past five years has seen significant change in the shire: from a growing community and the pressures this brings, to changes in local representation at state and federal levels,” he told the Moorabool News.
“Building and maintaining relationships with the other levels of Government in sometimes challenging circumstances is something I am particularly proud of as CEO. I feel the results of this can be seen in the high level of funding we have been able to attract. This relationship has allowed our local members to advocate strongly to ensure Moorabool Shire continues to receive funding in line with the needs of the community.”
Mr Madden said a focus over the next period would be “strengthening and building relationships with different agencies – both government and not-for-profit – to bring much need services into the shire”.
“It is an exciting time for Moorabool Shire and a lot of work has gone into building a strong base for this Council to be able to thrive and deliver services and infrastructure that is required now and into the future.” he said.
