It’s a true honour to mark one year as Mayor. I’m proud to be representing the people of the Central Coast and leading our new Council as we return to democratic decision making.

I commend Councillors on their commitment to, and participation in, Councillor professional development programs that will ensure we have the knowledge and skills we need to effectively perform our roles. 

A real highlight has been overseeing the completion and opening of the new Gosford Regional Library. This is a true community-building project that will serve us now and in the future. It’s also generated a significant collaboration with the University of Newcastle, establishing state-of-the-art maker spaces that will inspire creativity and innovation. 

Our region is growing and transforming, and a key focus is to ensure we have what it takes to support growth, create jobs, grow our visitor economy and realise our potential.

I enjoyed the opportunity to speak about Council’s vision for future growth at the Urban Development Institute of NSW and held a forum that attracted 120 people from the development industry who gave feedback on ways we could work together to overcome challenges.   

And we delivered a report on our first ever business retention and expansion survey that gathered valuable insights to help us better support local businesses. 

One of most important things we’ve achieved is to fully participate in developing our 10-year Community Strategic Plan, four-year Delivery Program and one-year operational Plan – our first set of strategic plans as a Council.

Councillors engaged with residents at ‘Let’s Talk’ sessions, taking on feedback that helped to inform our strategies. These plans will guide us as we grow and set us up for success. 

As part of this planning process, we developed key Councillor Priorities that align with community aspirations and support our vision. 

We focussed on improving local roads after people sent a strong message that this is a top priority. Councillors reviewed the existing roads strategy and released a fresh 10-year Road Renewal Program, allocating an additional $20M for roads and a further $800,000 to fix potholes. We launched this with a new interactive map that allows people to see the details of road works happening near them. 

Councillors also prioritised improving accessibility and participation in sport and recreation, as well as increasing connectivity through footpaths and shared pathway upgrades.

We committed to taking a strategic approach to conserving our environment, delivering our youth strategy, completing our Coastal Management Plan, developing a Warnervale Business Precinct Masterplan, addressing affordable housing and implementing the Warnervale Airport Masterplan.

And we identified key priority infrastructure and investment projects that will benefit our entire region. We’re now seeking to establish partnerships with government, industry bodies and private enterprise to deliver these.

During the year we’ve been working to develop strong relationships with all levels of government to ensure we align our priorities and secure grants for important projects. 

To help build government relationships, I represented the interests of the Central Coast at the NSW Annual Local Government Conference in Tamworth, participating in the dialogue around the challenges Councils face.

I’ve held two meetings with the Hon Chris Minns, Premier of NSW, to discuss important matters impacting the Central Coast, and to acknowledge our partnership. 

And I’m pleased to announce that the Central Coast will host the 2027 Australian Local Government Women’s Association Conference, demonstrating our commitment to empowering women in local government.  

We’ve also established a strategic partnership with Lake Macquarie City Council to explore opportunities for collaboration, resource sharing and joint advocacy on regionally significant issues.

A real joy for me over the past 12 months has been connecting with the people who embody the spirit of the Central Coast. 

I’ve welcomed hundreds of residents as new Australian citizens across three citizenship ceremonies, and we hosted a wonderful delegation of high school students and teachers from our Sister City of Edogawa.

I’ve worked alongside our tireless volunteers and seen first-hand the value they add to our community, from planting trees and shrubs on National Tree Day to delivering meals for Meals on Wheels. And thank you is never enough for the incredible effort of our local emergency services during our recent severe weather events. 

Of course, celebrating with our community and presenting The Mariners Ninja A-League team with the Key to the City after they won the 2025 Championship was a genuine highlight.

I believe it’s important to recognise people who work hard to make our community a better place, and this is why I launched the Community Champions initiative when I became Mayor. These are our quiet achievers, making a real difference through their actions, and so far we’ve acknowledged Alison Heathcote, Sheridyn Fisher, Kylie Nicholson and Donald McMurray; Catherine Deblaere, Nicole Jackson and Lauren McDonnell; Matthew Hindson, Kerry Langdon-Down and Adam Yager; Lachlan Hobman and Elijah Rea; Paula Hardwick, Billy Isaacs, Carmen Cooper and Jane Hillyard; and Roslyn Greener, with more worthy Community Champions to come.

We recognised outstanding citizens and organisations at our Australia Day Awards, and it’s been a pleasure to be invited to speak to community groups and progress associations and hear their suggestions for making the Central Coast even better.  

Our region values the contribution of creatives, and I’m proud of the way we incorporate their work into our lives. It was a thrill to have the International Highland Dancing Festival hosted here on the Central Coast, with our own Laycock St Dance Crew leading the points score.

We celebrated 25 years of the Gosford Regional Gallery and launched a new moving image gallery. The Gosford Art Prize grew, adding a new digital media award, and I enjoyed presenting awards to the winning artists and makers.

And we invited our community to have their say on our 10-year Public Art Plan and Policy, that will direct the way we incorporate art within our community in the future.   

Events are important to us, and I’ve been delighted to meet so many wonderful people at our community’s signature events including Chrome Fest, Seniors Week, Youth Week, our biggest Harvest Festival ever, and the iconic Lakes Festival that went on to win an award in Local Government Week 2025. 

I’m looking forward to continuing to work in the best interests of our community in my second year as Mayor.

We have important projects underway and nearing completion, including the Tuggerawong Foreshore shared pathway, the construction of the new Regional Animal Care Facility at Mardi and the upgrade of our water and sewer infrastructure.

I’m particularly proud of Council’s commitment to maintaining financial sustainability and ensuring we stay in good shape through the actions in our Long-term Financial Plan. 

When I first became Mayor, I described my goals as leading our new Councillors to work cohesively as a team, delivering the services and projects needed to support growth, advocating at both the State and Federal Government level, engaging with residents in a meaningful way to deliver what our community needs, and ensuring we do this in a way that is future-focussed and financially responsible.

I believe we are well on track to achieving all of this and more as we create a prosperous Central Coast that offers an exceptional quality of life. 

Mayor Lawrie McKinna