Whitsunday resident Dan Popovich has announced his intention to run for the division two seat, joining candidate Clay Bauman, who announced his candidacy three weeks ago.
A United Kingdom expatriate, Mr Popovich has lived in Woodwark for the past 15 years and raised his family in local area.
“We live here and work here in this division and we love the place,” he said.
“I feel this is a call of duty to some degree, this area’s been so good to us, and I thought it was an appropriate time to offer my skills, service and experience to the community.”
Mr Popovich has a broad career history as a strategist for a global company, involved with many infrastructure and development projects, as well as being a qualified surveyor, civil engineer, and project manager.
While living in Hobart he was also active in the local progress association working between interest groups and the local council.
Mr Popovich says he now wishes to use all these skills to create more transparency.
“It seems like there is a big divide between the community and the Council,” he said.
“I’d like the people to have a closer relationship and to feel that the Council is there for them and not them for the Council.”
Tackling issues such as “the rash of traffic lights becoming an epidemic in the area”, Mr Popovich says that he hopes to help create a vision for the town.
“It all just seems very ad hoc - we need a strategy and we need a vision – there seems to be too many conflicting powers and influences and as a rate payer I don’t feel included in this,” he explained.
“At the moment I feel the tail wagging the dog – the Council’s got it’s fingers in so many pies and it forgets that it’s the rate payers that should be looked after fist.”
Dan Popovich is running for the Whitsunday Regional Council’s division two seat
Clay Bauman announced as a division two candidate three weeks ago
