Fairfield Council Shines with Award-Winning Safer Cities Initiative
Fairfield Council has claimed the top honour at the Government Professionals Awards for their Safer Cities: Her Way initiative, a groundbreaking project aimed at improving public safety, particularly for women and girls, in Canley Vale. The project, developed in partnership with Transport for NSW, is part of a $10 million statewide program to enhance safety in public spaces near transport hubs.
The Safer Cities: Her Way program stands out as a shining example of community engagement and effective public investment. Fairfield Council worked closely with women and girls to co-design the initiative, which included enhanced lighting, public art, temporary activations, and improved signage. These tangible improvements have already made a noticeable impact on feelings of safety and community pride in Canley Vale.
Fairfield’s success demonstrates how focused leadership and genuine collaboration with the community can deliver real results. The Council’s achievement has been widely celebrated, with the initiative becoming a model for other councils across NSW.
Liverpool Council’s Controversial Campaign Overshadowed by Fairfield’s Success
While Fairfield Council celebrated a well-deserved victory, Liverpool Council’s runner-up recognition for their Upgrade Fifteenth Avenue Now: A Transformative Advocacy Initiative has been met with widespread criticism. The campaign, which was allegedly masterminded by an external $100,000 contractor and incurred significant additional costs to Liverpool ratepayers, has been described as ineffective and wasteful.
Liverpool Council claimed that the campaign reached over 600,000 people, yet the petition to upgrade Fifteenth Avenue—a critical road connecting Liverpool to the Western Sydney International Airport (WSIA)—garnered just 2,245 signatures by our account. This translates to a staggering cost of $44.55 per signature, raising serious concerns about the campaign’s value for money and its impact on the community.
Adding to the controversy, Liverpool’s campaign only managed to secure runner-up status, falling short of Fairfield’s award-winning project. Critics have pointed out the stark contrast between the two initiatives: while Fairfield delivered tangible safety improvements, Liverpool’s campaign appears to have been more about optics than outcomes.
Federal and State Members Call Out Liverpool’s Efforts
The $1 billion upgrade for Fifteenth Avenue was jointly funded by the Federal and NSW governments earlier this year. However, federal and state representatives have made it clear that this funding was the result of years of advocacy by government officials, not Liverpool Council’s costly last minute campaign.
A rather cross, Nathan Hagarty, Member for Leppington, NSW, didn’t hold back in his criticism of Liverpool Council earlier today:
“Another day, another local Liberal treating the community like mugs.
We’ve just witnessed the consequences of the dishonest Liberal candidate in Werriwa, who tried to pull the wool over voters’ eyes on Fifteenth Avenue. Despite the record Federal election loss, the Liberals on council now seem keen to take up this myth.
With ICAC’s recent revelations about the misuse of public money on consultants and the upcoming Public Inquiry, Liverpool Council seems obsessed with justifying this abject waste of ratepayers’ money on a useless partisan political campaign.
Here’s some free advice: given council’s poor reputation and the state of its finances, maybe focus on cutting the grass, fixing the potholes, and finally building some parks in Austral.”
The Numbers Don’t Lie
Liverpool Council’s campaign has been described by its proponents as “groundbreaking,” but the numbers tell a very different story. The campaign’s cost-per-signature calculation underscores its ineffectiveness, especially when compared to Fairfield Council’s Safer Cities: Her Way project, which actually delivered meaningful results for the community.
While Liverpool Council boasts about reaching 600,000 people (even though the population in the LGA is under half those reached), the low signature count of just 2,245 reveals a real lack of genuine engagement. In contrast, Fairfield’s initiative involved direct collaboration with over 250 community members and implemented a range of safety measures that have already improved public spaces in Canley Vale.
Mayor’s Claims Met with Scepticism
Liverpool’s Liberal Mayor, Ned Mannoun, has labelled the Fifteenth Avenue upgrade a “victory for every member of our community.” However, critics argue that the Council’s role in securing the funding was marginal at best. The Mayor’s self-congratulatory remarks have been met with scepticism, with many pointing out that the funding was secured through years of advocacy by federal and state representatives. They did comment however, that they look forward to him wearing the award around his neck at the next upcoming Liverpool Council meeting next Wednesday the 18th of June.
