Rob Armstrong, Peter Beale, Bob Sanders and Jo Armstrong, who all served on the most recent term of council, attended the forum, along with new candidates Luke Preston, Daryl Scherger, Amanda Mead, Osman Kokcu and Teli Kaur.
Candidates at the forum were given two minutes each to introduce themselves to the public and articulate the policies and ideas they have to improve and grow the municipality.
The forum then opened up to the public to ask questions, with some members of the community quizzing past councillors on specific projects, such as Green Lake, Evans Park and Aradale, and how council went about attracting and supporting businesses. The four councillors presented as a united front with their answers to the public’s questions.
Candidates were also asked about their stance on lobbying governments, their vision for increasing tourism and infrastructure in the municipality, and how they would go about attracting new businesses and supporting existing retailers.
Chaired by Greater Ararat Business Network president Tom Clark, the forum attracted about 50 people.
The forum ended on an unusual note with Ms Meade, a publican, telling the audience not to vote for her, but to vote for one of the new candidates who would make changes to the council.
She said she believed council was not going to look outside of the city of Ararat, and didn’t care about the rural areas of the municipality, so there was no point in voting for her.
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