Wollondilly’s first popularly elected Mayor Matt Gould today pledged to make sure Wollondilly gets the infrastructure it needs while managing the growth challenges ahead and protecting the unique much-loved village character and semi-rural lifestyle of his Shire.
A Wollondilly Councillor since 2016 and former Deputy Mayor, Mr Gould won a hotly contested race in the recent Local Government Elections after being overwhelmingly backed by residents in his north ward.
“I am humbled by the level of support I have received from the community and don’t take it lightly. I am excited to be taking on the role of Mayor for the next term of Council and I am really looking forward to getting to work as soon as possible and being a Mayor for the entire Shire,” he said, thanking the community for their generous support during what he has called a ‘grass roots’ election campaign.
36-year-old Matt Gould is an unmanned aerial vehicle pilot and a dedicated member of the Silverdale Rural Fire Brigade. He is a father of three and proud lifelong resident of Warragamba/Silverdale.
“It has been an honour to serve my community as Councillor and Deputy Mayor during the past term, which was significantly impacted by bushfires, floods and Covid-19 lockdowns and ultimately delayed the election by about 15 months. I am very proud of what we achieved during such a challenging time for Wollondilly,” Mr Gould said.
“I am looking forward to working with the newly formed Council, including some new faces who I’m sure will bring some fresh ideas to the table and some returning Councillors who I know are strongly committed to the wellbeing of this community.”
CEO Ben Taylor has welcomed the newly elected Mayor as he awaits confirmation from the Electoral Office of who will make up the rest of the Council.
The eight successful Council candidates are expected to be announced later this week, with the distribution of preferences scheduled for Wednesday 22 December.
The new Mayor and Councillors will go through an induction process and will be publicly sworn in at a live-streamed meeting on 18 January, with the first Ordinary meeting of Council scheduled for 22 February 2022.
