Yarra uses new technology in road pavement trial

A Melbourne council is trialing a road pavement technology designed to minimise urban flooding.

7 April, 2022

Proposal floated for council-owned energy retailer

Councils would become renewable energy retailers under an innovative proposal.

2 March, 2020

Uber on-demand bike scheme comes to Melbourne

Melbourne councils have signed an MOU with Uber to deliver an electric bike share scheme.

7 February, 2020

Australia enters era of ‘grab-and-go’ library

Yarra City Council has developed an Australia-first ‘grab-and-go’ library app.

20 January, 2020

Opinion – Pointless Australia Day point scoring obscures real issues

Australia Day rolls around again this week. Its observance has once again become an issue, with many councils, individuals and The Greens calling for its date to be changed, or at least the observance of a national day for Australia to be moved to another date. The issue has become totemic of Australia’s continuing culture […]

22 January, 2018

Melbourne wins global sustainability award

By Paul Hemsley The City of Melbourne has triumphed over New York and Berlin in worldwide contest for creating sustainability programs after the city’s submission won top honours for efforts in retrofitting older buildings to become much more environmentally friendly. The CBD council was this week awarded the C40 & Siemens City Climate Leadership Awards […]

5 September, 2013

Melbourne declares itself ‘carbon neutral’

By Paul Hemsley The City of Melbourne has hailed itself as ‘carbon neutral’ after being certified by the Australian Government’s independent carbon offsetting authority Low Carbon Australia through the council’s effort to become one of the world’s most liveable and sustainable cities. Victoria’s capital city has joined the City of Sydney as well as two […]

22 March, 2013

Brothel bribes confront council officers

By Julian Bajkowski The recurring problem of how local and state governments deal with unapproved and illegal brothels has been thrown back into the spotlight after a Victorian court heard evidence from an ex-cop convicted of taking bribes in return for tip-offs to feed his gambling habit. The former Yarra City Council enforcement officer, who […]

6 September, 2012

Yarra pays unemployed to clean streets

By Paul Hemsley The City of Yarra has activated an ambitious project to tackle long-term unemployment and social disadvantage by replacing private cleaning contractors with labour sourced from high-rise public housing residents. A partnership between council and social welfare activists the Brotherhood of St Lawrence, the project has created traineeships for public housing tenants and […]

8 August, 2012