Stage 3 restrictions impact Council services

Stage 3 restrictions impact Council services

Published on 06 August 2020

As Baw Baw Shire and the whole of regional Victoria once again enter Stage 3 restrictions, several Council services will be temporarily altered or suspended.

As of today, the following changes to Council services apply for the duration of the restriction period:

Services operating with restrictions

Customer Service Centres in Drouin and Warragul will close from 5.00pm Friday 7 August. Customers are encouraged to contact Council by phone, Live Chat and email. Household waste and kerbside hard waste collections will continue as normal. Transfer stations will also remain open with physical distancing limits in place. Payment by EFT is encouraged. Maternal child health centres will close but continue nurse appointments over the phone. Immunisations – check Council’s website for up to date locations and times. Kinder enrolments will continue to operate online or over the phone. Family day care is still operating with strict hygiene protocols in place in accordance with government requirements. Home maintenance and modifications. Personal care. Council supported parent groups and playgroups will continue to operate virtually. Libraries and mobile libraries will close, with home deliveries, online chat, Tech Talks, online programs and events continuing to be available for the community.

Services temporarily suspended/closed

Advisory Committee meetings. Committee of Management meetings. Council Pop-ups. Council-managed bookable spaces. Public events on Council land. Council’s community bus. Playgrounds, camping grounds, and skate parks. Leisure centres and pools. West Gippsland Arts Centre, including Albert and Smith restaurant.

Council staff must continue to work from home where practicably able. For those who perform community-based roles and can’t work from home, strict hygiene and physical distancing limits apply. Face coverings must be worn by all employees, contractors and delivery staff at all times while on Council sites and out in the community.

More information including links to other handy resources are available at Council’s online COVID-19 Information Hub at www.bawbawshire.vic.gov.au/Coronavirus

Message from Mayor Cr Danny Goss

As we move again to Stage 3 restrictions, I think we all understand the hardship in front of us. As the Mayor of Baw Baw Shire, I want to urge and encourage all of my fellow citizens to obey the new laws and restrict your movements to essential ones only.

We have only ever had a handful of COVID-19 cases in our Shire. So many people are quite rightly asking why they are being asked to sacrifice their normal day to day activities once again. Of course, I don’t know the exact answer to that, and can only speculate. But it is apparent that this virus could quickly gain a foothold in a regional area such as ours - with devastating results.

We are so close to Melbourne and while COVID-19 is so rampant and out of control in the metropolitan area, it would not take much to ignite the spark of an outbreak here. We have seen what has happened in other regional places such as Colac. So, we need to stay vigilant.

Please remember to wear your face coverings and to especially keep your social distancing up. I still feel too many people around our towns are not observing appropriate distancing. We need to be aware of this as distancing is our new way of life.

We all understand the enormous hardship these new laws bring us and that there are so many secondary consequences for so many. I think especially of those isolated at home and for those working in or running small businesses. Let’s support these people as much as we can.

We need, as a Community to do whatever we can and to do the right thing and observe the law. We all need to play our part. I am very proud of our Shire and of all our communities – large and small.

Let us all be good examples for each other and hopefully we can rid ourselves of this horrible virus and return to our normal way of life as soon as possible.

Stay safe everyone!