Be an influencer – share your feedback on the city’s future

Image: Stuart Park, Wollongong, towards Mt Keira.

Don’t let your chance to influence Wollongong’s future pass you by.

Right now, we’re seeking feedback on key documents that set out our city’s vision and goals, as well as the work we’ll deliver to make Wollongong an enviable place to live, work and play.

At Monday’s Council meeting, Councillors voted to put on public exhibition for community feedback the draft Our Wollongong our Future 2035 – Integrated Planning Documents.

Together these documents set out the vision and strategic direction for the Wollongong community. They also outline Council’s actions and resource commitments in working towards achievement of the Community Strategic Plan and Council’s Delivery Program.

“It could be too easy to dismiss these documents as uninteresting or unimportant because they don’t necessarily have catchy titles, but to do that would be short-sighted and wrong,’’ Lord Mayor of Wollongong Councillor Tania Brown said.

“These are some of Council’s most important documents and they’re the ones that guide all the work we do as an organisation, but also how what we’re doing each day aligns with what our community has asked us to do.”

“If you’re going to participate in one community engagement process this year, this is the one.’’

The Integrated Planning Documents on exhibition include the:

• draft Our Wollongong Our Future 2035 Community Strategic Plan
• draft Resourcing Strategy 2025-2035
• draft Asset Management Policy
• draft Delivery Program 2025- 2029 and Operational Plan 2025-2026 which is made up of the draft Budget 2025-2026, draft Infrastructure Delivery Program 2025-2026 to 2028-2029 and draft Revenue Policy, Rates, Annual Charges and Fees 2025-2026.

We are also taking the opportunity to put on public exhibition the draft Local Strategic Planning Statement 2026-2046 which outlines priorities for housing, jobs, transport and the environment over the next 20 years.

Wollongong General Manager Greg Doyle said a significant amount of community engagement had already informed the development of these documents and this was the opportunity for Council to confirm that what we’d heard was a reflection of our community’s wishes.

“We’re a proudly diverse city and with that celebrated difference come a wide range of expectations and needs from our community,’’ he said.

“Council is about so much more than building and maintaining local roads, managing waste and providing well-cared for parks and public spaces.”

“We’re about ensuring our community has access to well-run community spaces and facilities, we’re about providing equitable access to libraries and community centres to support learning and social engagement, we’re about building a positive future for our young people by attracting investment and diverse employment opportunities to Wollongong, and we’re about keeping people safe at our beaches and pools.”

“This suite of documents is the road map of how we’ll achieve all these things.’’

You can view the draft documents and share your thoughts on Council's website. Feedback closes 7 May 2025.