City of Melville Hires New Director

Mr Cope, who is currently Director Development and Community Services at the City of South Perth, will be commencing work at the City of Melville on 28 April 2009.

Chief Executive Officer Dr Shayne Silcox said Mr Cope had extensive experience in the Urban Planning area in both the local government and private sectors. “He possesses a Bachelor of Economics, a Graduate Diploma in Urban and Regional Planning, a Municipal Town Planner’s Certificate and is a certified practising planner,” he said. “His accolades include the Royal Australian Planning Institute Medal, awarded for academic performance in the Graduate Diploma in Urban and Regional Planning.”

Dr Silcox said many of Mr Cope’s key priorities, including staff leadership and maintaining customer service, reflected his and the City’s ethos. “He is proactive, highly qualified and capable of leading the City’s proficient planning team. Among his many roles, Mr Cope has acted as Chief Executive Officer at the Cities of South Perth and Geraldton. He will be of great benefit in helping the City of Melville move forward,” he said.

Mr Cope said that in local government planning, councils were generally required under Town Planning Schemes to make planning decisions that sought to improve the quality of life and enhance the amenity of local areas. “Additionally local government is expected to offer high-quality customer service, maintain efficient development assessment systems, and continually look for opportunities for process improvement,” he said. “I can see that it will be a busy time for the City of Melville with a number of important strategic urban planning projects in the pipeline. I have no doubt the new role will be challenging and I am looking forward to it."