Arron Wood returns to run for Lord Mayor

“A fresh start for the City of Melbourne” is the message former Deputy Lord Mayor Arron Wood is urging Melburnians to get behind as he makes a renewed bid for Town Hall.

Mr Wood ended weeks of speculation on July 28 as he announced his candidacy for Lord Mayor of Melbourne in the upcoming October local government elections.

The well-known environmentalist, who was an instrumental part of shaping the City of Melbourne’s Melbourne Renewable Energy Project (MREP), finished second to former Lord Mayor Sally Capp in the 2020 elections.

He was a councillor for eight years after first being elected in 2012, serving as Deputy Lord Mayor in 2016-17 under then Lord Mayor Robert Doyle, and then as Acting Lord Mayor from December 2017 until the May 2018 by-election.

As small business owner and long-term Kensington resident, he said he understood what made Melbourne liveable and knew the challenges businesses were facing.

Mr Wood said he brought “a proven track record” into his campaign and emphasised his reason for running was to give Melbourne the “fresh start it deserves”.

“This year’s election is a huge opportunity for change - it’s time to give our city a fresh start and strong leadership that gets the basics right,” Mr Wood said.

“Businesses and residents are not only struggling with increasing cost-of-living pressures but face significant future challenges, including the ongoing post COVID recovery, more crime across the city and a council budget in dire straits.”

“As a local Kensington resident and someone who works in the CBD, I will use my proven track record to bring fresh energy, new ideas and practical solutions where others at Town Hall have failed.”

Mr Wood said that if elected he would deliver a “five-point recovery plan to get the city back on track”, which included tackling cost-of-living pressures, improving safety, cleanliness, and sustainability, revitalising the economy, and enhancing city planning to support growing populations.

As part of his plan to “revive Melbourne’s cultural heartbeat”, Mr Wood said he would also work to make Melbourne Australia’s “Christmas capital” and “revive Docklands and

Southbank precincts in consultation with residents”. •