City of Mount Gambier is seeking community feedback on the city’s cultural identity as part of the development of a vision to guide council’s strategic planning process for the next 10 years – Mount Gambier 2035.
The cultural identity survey consists of five questions to better understand the community’s connection with Mount Gambier as a place.
They are:
-What has brought you to, or kept you in, Mount Gambier?
-What are you most and least proud of about Mount Gambier’s culture or identity?
-If you only had 30 seconds, what would you say is uniquely Mount Gambier?
-What could only happen in Mount Gambier?
-How would you describe the feeling and atmosphere of Mount Gambier?
Council chief executive officer Sarah Philpott said with feedback gathered so far it was clear culture and identity meant a lot to the community and would play an important role in future plans.
“Our goal is to clearly identify a sense of identity for Mount Gambier today – reflecting aspects of our identity that should be reinforced, developed or improved,” she said.
“This will help guide decisions to enhance and/or evolve these core aspects of our sense of place.”
She said council wanted to further understand the character of the community and what makes the city unique.
“Each community has its own traditions, values, and norms that shape its identity over time,” she said.
“These aspects are very important because they give us pride, a sense of belonging, and a responsibility to each other.”
While Mount Gambier/ Berrin is known as the Blue Lake City, Ms Philpott said there was more to the community.
“We would like to delve a little deeper to define our unique identity, giving consideration to our social and cultural interests, our rich history, our diverse people, and our unique pursuits, whether you live, work or study or regularly visit the city,” she said.
Council has facilitated targeted conversations and interviews with key stakeholders and community members to further explore the themes that were highlighted from the first phase of the project.
The information will be collated and provided to a community panel to support council in shaping Mount Gambier 2035.
The panel will consider feedback themes and provide recommendations to inform the community vision, the strategic priorities for the community, and define the cultural identity of the city.
Survey responses will assist the Mount Gambier 2035 community panel to understand and define our cultural identity as part of shaping the vision for the future.
For further information about the development of the strategic plan, and take part in the cultural identity survey visit haveyoursaymountgambier.com.au/mountgambier2035
The survey closes on Sunday, May 5.
