NEW COUNCIL CHAMBER OPENS IN DUBBO
Dubbo Regional Councillors officially opened the new Council Chamber in Dubbo on Thursday afternoon, ahead of the Ordinary Council Meeting for July.
The cornerstone of transparent governance and community engagement was officially opened by the current Councillors who, dressed in formal robes, gathered together to cut the ribbon.
Invited guests including former mayors, councillors and directors, attended the official opening outside the doors to the new Chamber with Councillor Lewis Burns performing a smoking ceremony while local resident Elissa Burden performed the National Anthem.
The new Chamber is now part of a multi-purposed suite of rooms on the ground floor of the Dubbo Civic Administration Building (CAB), allowing staff to utilise the room as a meeting room when not in use as a Chamber.
The milestone marks a significant step forward for Dubbo’s enhanced services and improved public engagement with the change providing community members with improved disabled access and toilet facilities.
“The new Council Chamber is where the future of our region will be shaped,” Dubbo Regional Council Mayor Mathew Dickerson said.
“The new Chamber is the heart of our civic engagement, enabling us to work collaboratively and transparently with our community members. This Chamber symbolises our commitment to build a better and more accessible future together,” Clr Dickerson said.
Councillors elected to move the chamber from the previous location to the ground floor during the Ordinary Meeting of Council in March 2023.
“Being on the ground floor of the CAB the Council Chamber is now easily accessible to all community members and new technology in the Chamber in terms of speakers and microphones will make it even easier for the public to access and listen to the meetings,” Clr Dickerson said.
“It means our community will be able to more clearly see governance in action and join us in the public gallery of the new Council Chamber for both the Ordinary and Committee meetings twice each month.”
The new Chamber will house a new visual and audio system which consists of three televisions, two for Councillors and one for members of the public gallery; 22 desk microphones and an additional four handheld microphones; a hearing loop; new ceiling speakers and amplifiers and the capability to control the room set up from a control panel.
The integration of the technology enables a higher quality live stream of Council meetings, making them accessible to community members who cannot attend in person.
The former Council Chamber on level two of the CAB will be decommissioned and turned into additional office space for staff.
Last Edited: 28 Jul 2023