Job contours

By Bridget Cook
A NEW project to attract business investment and boost new jobs in the City of Casey and neighbouring municipality, Cardinia, has been launched.
The Southern Melbourne Regional Development Australia (RDA) committee has commissioned the project in partnership with the two local councils.
The project, to be undertaken by AEC Group consultants, will report on future population and business and employment trends in the two municipalities – which are both among the fastest growing areas in Australia.
The committee aims to provide advice on new investment, business retention and employment creation options and will recommend strategies for the councils and state and federal governments to increase the number of local jobs. RDA deputy chair and member of the management committee overseeing the project Faith FitzGerald said Melbourne was growing faster than the infrastructure needed to support new communities.
“Most importantly there are too few local jobs,” she said.
“People are travelling unacceptable distances to work each day, a high cost in time and money. We need more employment land and business investment in the area.”
The consultants will use economic modelling to develop future scenarios, based on informed assumptions. Using the status-quo as a base-line, scenarios will predict the outcome of continued population increases in terms of economic, social and environmental well being. One potential scenario is the impact of developing the Port of Hastings, a priority for the current State Government.
Statistics maintained by Casey and Cardinia indicate that about 85 new families move into the two municipalities each week.
Cardinia Shire CEO Garry McQuillan is part of the project’s steering group and is actively working with the new State Government to advise ministers and local members of the challenges faced by his council.
“We know the problems, but we are not sure that other levels of government have a clear understanding of what is happening in the new suburbs,” he said.
RDA and the councils plan to communicate the outcomes of the project widely to business, governments and within the local community.
Southern Melbourne RDA is also commissioning two other studies, in partnership with other organisations. A review of the status of manufacturing and future growth is currently in discussion with consultants, and a major study of freight and logistics in the region is in the final design stage.
For further information, call the Southern Melbourne RDA committee on 9938 0144.