City\u00a0of Newcastle is\u00a0seeking\u00a0support\u00a0from State and Federal Governments\u00a0for a dedicated Local Infrastructure Stimulus program, with funding for both large-scale infrastructure projects and a Local Government New Deal aimed at protecting jobs and delivering community infrastructure.
\nThe move would bridge the gap between State and Federal Government\u00a0COVID-19 stimulus packages and\u00a0increase local employment by fast-tracking shovel-ready infrastructure projects.
\nLord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said in times of crisis, local government was often the first to respond and rebuild at a grassroots level.
\n\u201cAs one of the single-largest employers in rural and regional communities, Councils like City of Newcastle are best placed to kickstart shovel-ready projects and get people back\u00a0into\u00a0the\u00a0workforce,\u201d the Lord Mayor said.
\n\u201cSuch a move, when supported by State and Federal stimulus, has the power to create legacy community infrastructure, sustain local services and employment and drive the local economy, as was the case during the early\u00a01990s\u00a0recession when the\u00a0Federal\u00a0Government formed the Local Government Capital Works Program.\u201d
\nPriority projects\u00a0previously\u00a0endorsed by the NSW Government as key to significant job growth\u00a0across Greater Newcastle include\u00a0Coastal Management Planning and Erosion Management, particularly at Stockton Beach; flood mitigation works at Wallsend;\u00a0the Greater Newcastle Light Rail Expansion; and affordable housing initiatives.
\nWith a diverse workforce of more than 1,200 staff, City of Newcastle has\u00a0been significantly impacted by Government-mandated closures and restrictions aimed at containing the spread of COVID-19 \u2013 particularly community and cultural facilities such as Newcastle Museum,\u00a0City Gall, the Civic Theatre, the Stockton Holiday Park and\u00a0Newcastle Art Gallery.
\nIneligible to receive the $1,500-per-employee, per-fortnight JobKeeper subsidy, the City has opted-in to the Local Government (COVID-19) Splinter (Interim) Award, backed by the Office of Local Government NSW and United Services Union, to identify opportunities to retain and redeploy affected staff.
\nThe Lord Mayor thanked staff for their commitment to serving the Newcastle community despite the disruption to day-to-day life.
\n\u201cStaff have been exceptional in\u00a0their effort to\u00a0continue\u00a0to deliver a high level of service for our community during the COVID-19 pandemic.
\n\u201cNow more than ever, it is vital\u00a0that the State and Federal Governments partner with local government to\u00a0support shovel-ready projects that can grow our economy and support\u00a0our workforce.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
City\u00a0of Newcastle is\u00a0seeking\u00a0support\u00a0from State and Federal Governments\u00a0for a dedicated Local Infrastructure Stimulus program, with funding for both large-scale infrastructure projects and a Local Government New Deal aimed at protecting jobs and delivering community infrastructure. The move would bridge the gap between State and Federal Government\u00a0COVID-19 stimulus packages and\u00a0increase local employment by fast-tracking shovel-ready infrastructure projects. … Continue reading “Shovel-ready infrastructure projects key to supporting local jobs in wake of COVID-19 pandemic”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6470","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newcastle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6470"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6470\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}