Sycopoulis wants to change Warrnambool council from the inside

By PETER COLLINS

Oct. 6, 2012, 4 a.m.

Peter Sycopoulis is campaigning for better sea views from McGennan car park.

PETER Sycopoulis is running his second bid for a Warrnambool City Council seat on a platform of making municipal affairs more accessible to the community.

Years of attending council meetings in the public gallery have given him a sense of changes he would try to introduce if elected.

“I don’t think the council process is made accessible enough,” he said. “On the eve of the elections a great percentage of people are confused on who to vote for.

“I believe council meetings need to be recorded and streamed live on the internet and the time and format of meetings changed to accommodate the community better.

“Possibly a 7pm timeslot which would allow more working people to attend.

“I believe potential candidates were put off because of the time of meetings and commitment required.

“As a councillor you’ve got to dedicate yourself to keep abreast of issues and to be in contact with the people affected by your decisions.”

Mr Sycopoulis said he was fortunate to have an understanding with his employer, The Good Guys, which would allow him to meet council commitments while retaining his job as a salesman.

“It’s imperative that people can either go to council meetings or have the ability to see and hear a recorded version of the meeting,” he said. “If that was the case they could go to elections as an informed observer.

“People are hungry for knowledge on how their money is spent.”

His other campaign issues include a call for the AquaZone diving board to be reinstalled and better sea views from McGennan car park. He also lists the need for closed circuit TV cameras in the CBD, better efficiency in council operations and better CBD parking.

“I’m more than prepared to tackle VicRoads head-on to get approval for centre median strip parking on Raglan Parade,” he said.