LAUNCESTON:
OUR CITY,
YOUR VOICE

FROM PLANS TO ACTION:

What's next for Launceston | 2027 - 2031 | Stage 1

FORWARD

Under my leadership as Mayor, Launceston has spent this last term building vital foundations for our future. We have a strong 10-year Strategic Plan. Year-on-year record capital investment. Major developments underway. Long talked about projects unlocked and importantly, have returned planned deficits to surplus.

We've built momentum, together.

This next term cannot be about starting again or making promises that aren't possible to keep.

For me, what's next is about turning plans into action, building on what we've started and continuing to challenge ourselves to do things better.

I believe Launceston can be a city that backs good ideas, celebrates creativity, looks after what we have, and plans confidently for growth. A vibrant, connected city where anybody can see every reason to stay, return and build their future. No matter the stage of life.

I'm incredibly proud of what we've achieved, but even more excited about what's next. Our best days are still ahead.

The below isn’t about Council processes, reviews, dashboards or strategies. It’s about what they can actually deliver for you.

FROM PLANS TO ACTION

MY VISION FOR 2027 - 2031

Taking the plans we've already seeded and nurturing them into outcomes you can actually see, use, experience and benefit from.

MY APPROACH: AMBITIOUS. REALISTIC. ACHIEVABLE.

First and foremost, I want to start the term by building the strongest possible elected team. That begins with an extensive introduction into the role, not just shaped by process and procedure, but by the real-life lessons and experience I’ve gained as Mayor.
It means understanding the role and responsibilities, each Councillor’s priorities, strengths and what they hope to achieve for Launceston. Knowing where our goals align sets the foundation to work together, make better decisions, and get things done.
A COMPREHENSIVE INDUCTION
I’ll bring the newly elected Council together with staff to map our priorities against the Strategic Plan and available resources, identify shared goals and setting clear expectations around meeting procedures, communication and collaboration.
No silly questions. Less focus on ourselves. More focus on Launceston.
Less running around. Less red tape. Let’s get good ideas off the ground.
Whether you’re opening a business, building a home, organising an event or trying something new, I want dealing with Council to be an easy and positive experience focused on finding solutions.
THE UNLOCK LAUNNIE REVIEW
Ask developers, businesses, event organisers, community groups and others dealing with Council where they’re getting stuck.

Sort those barriers into three categories:

We Control It: can we change it.

We Can Influence It: advocate.

There’s a Good Reason: communicate it better.
THE YES TEST
Create a simple test on how we approach decisions, processes and new ideas. This is to ensure we’ve explored whether there’s a reasonable pathway to 'yes' before reaching a 'no'.
Start with how we can help, not why we can't.
More parking choices, easier trips around the city, and a free alternative to moving your car every hour.
With the Tiger Bus falling to around 4% usage, it’s time for an updated approach tailored to how our city moves today. I will explore a City Loop shuttle using smaller, accessible vehicles, offering frequent services and connections between parking, the CBD and key destinations.
As an example, Council operates in excess of 1,500 under-utilised, low-to-no cost, parking spaces between Forster Street and Churchill Park. A City Loop shuttle will enable CBD users to park once and get where they need to go. This will free up premium central spaces, better connect workers and students, make Launceston easier for visitors to explore, whilst providing another option for people who don’t drive.
Reliable. Frequent. Free.
I’m tired of waiting for reviews and someone else to step in. So let’s trial it.
Prioritising infill housing means; more customers for local businesses, more safety, more activity, and life in our shopping districts.
We need to turn empty upper floors into homes and vacant shopfronts into opportunities.
This means exploring waivers or rebates, time-limited rates incentives, support for heritage and adaptive reuse, while making government processes easier to navigate. It also means backing projects that align with our priorities, and recognising where public and private investment can work together to achieve outcomes that otherwise wouldn’t happen.
At street level, I’ll explore policy and partnership pathways for pop-ups, start-ups, artists, community groups and emerging businesses to temporarily activate vacant spaces.
More people living upstairs and more happening downstairs means more customers, activity and life beyond traditional business hours.
More people. More opportunity. More life.
Better roads, parks, playgrounds and community facilities, with a clearer picture of where your money is going.
Council manages around $2.5 billion worth of community assets. Looking after them responsibly means maintaining what we have and addressing problems before they become bigger, more expensive ones.
I want to develop a public Asset & Investment Dashboard, making it easier to see the condition of our roads, parks, playgrounds, buildings and other assets, what we’re spending, what’s being renewed next, and why.
We'll use this information, alongside reviews like our Open Space Review, to set priorities, schedule renewals and better inform future budgets.
Better maintenance now means fewer nasty surprises later.
More colour, creativity and personality in the places we experience every day.
We know that art doesn't only exist inside galleries. I will bring Thoroughfare 2.0 forward for budget consideration, building on what we’ve learned and creating more opportunities for local, Tasmanian and international artists, property owners, and our community.
I will also use this as an opportunity to look differently at some of the infrastructure already around us. Roundabouts, levees, walls, buildings, and other public spaces are just examples of places that could become canvases for murals, installations, sculpture, and unexpected creativity.
This approach is having a real impact on unwanted graffiti. We’ve seen how quality street art, activated spaces and a positive approach to creativity can discourage vandalism while improving the cleanliness and presentation of our public spaces.
Cleaner, more creativity, less graffiti, and greater pride in our city.
We talk a lot about building a night-time economy, but let’s be realistic, we’re a cool-climate city and in winter it gets dark and cold quickly. Thousands of people are already in and around our city when the working day ends. Let’s give them more reasons to stay out, grab a knock-off and catch up before heading home to retire into their trackie dacks.
I'll champion building Launceston’s Knock-Off Economy, working with hospitality, retail, entertainment and the creative sector to understand what would help them trade, perform, and activate our city later.
This will be a collaborative approach; reviewing permits, trading restrictions, live music support, outdoor dining, and the use of public spaces; whilst exploring activations and incentives, lighting, and better connections arround the city.
For businesses, it means more customers and opportunities. For the rest of us, more to do.
Council and businesses united to make Launceston more Launceston, for a few more hours of the day.
I came into this role wanting to knock down the four walls of Town Hall, and I've done that. Council is more than a building. It’s a community built on connection, and local government should feel local and accessible to the people we represent.
I’ve taken the Mayor’s Office into the community sporadically throughout this term. Next term, I want to formalise it and make it a regular part of how I work.
I’ll further establish Mayor’s Pop-Up Offices across urban, suburban and rural Launceston, at different times and locations. Alongside Councillors and Council staff, I'll make sure issues raised are recorded, followed up and reported back.
No stress of submissions, Council chambers, 12-hour Council meetings, or reading a 427-page agenda. But maybe a sausage.
Continuing to bring local government to you.
One big annual celebration of the people who make Launceston, Launceston. All of us!
This is my opinion, but we need to move on together. Without the politics. Without the division. Let’s celebrate US! I want to establish an annual This is Launceston celebration in January. Beginning with welcoming our newest Australian citizens before growing into an afternoon and evening of food, music, culture, comedy, cabaret, community and entertainment. Whatever we think makes Launceston...Launceston.
We’ll bring together community groups, sporting clubs, performers, service organisations, multicultural communities, local businesses and our City of Gastronomy food scene, creating opportunities to showcase what they bring to our city.
Whether your family has been here for generations or you became a Launcestonian that morning, this is your city too.
One city. Plenty of stories. This is Launceston.

PRIORITY MAJOR PROJECTS

Deliver Princess Theatre redevelopment on time and on budget

Secure funding for NTCA upgrades

Initiate Launceston Leisure and Aquatic Centre Master Planning

Develop timeframe for St Leonards Sporting Complex Master Plan

Advance QVMAG flood relocation strategy and Collection Discovery Centre

Build on my current Notice of Motion to asses Council owned property for housing development.

SO, WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU?

A Council that works better together and is easier to deal with.

A city that’s easier to move around and park, with more housing and more life in our CBD.

Better maintained roads, parks, playgrounds and community facilities, with greater transparency around where your money goes.

More art in unexpected places. More live music, food, events and things to do after 5pm. More opportunities for local businesses, artists and people with good ideas to have a crack.

More chances to talk directly to the people you elected and have a say in what happens next.

And one great big annual celebration of the city we all call home.

That’s what From Plans to Action is really about. Not another pile of strategies, reviews, and reform; but harnessing the momentum we’ve created together this term and turning it into outcomes you can see, use, experience, and benefit from.

Launceston’s best days are still ahead. Let’s get on with it.

LAUNCESTON • OUR CITY • YOUR VOICE •

LAUNCESTON: OUR CITY, YOUR VOICE