New City of Karratha Dampier councillor welcomed at first meeting

Dampier’s new councillor is hopeful of treading the fine line between preserving the “old-school” feel of the coastal town and bringing new ideas to freshen up its image for future generations. Cr Jamie Armstrong attended his first City of Karratha council meeting last Monday after being elected in the February 26 extraordinary election following former Dampier ward councillor Georgia Evans’ resignation. Mr Armstrong was up against candidate Len Vertigan and received 233 of the 292 votes and is set to hold term until October 16 this year. Having lived in Dampier with his family for nearly 10 years, Mr Armstrong fell in love with the small town’s community and said he was passionate about preserving Dampier’s identity while optimising community opportunities. Mr Armstrong said his first meeting went well and he enjoyed working with like-minded people. “I’m in love with the region and I think there are improvements to be made,” he said. “The direction of my predecessors have been so positive and I want to continue that.” Mr Armstrong said community inclusion in the Dampier master plan would be critical to the future. “There’s land tenure swap over from Rio Tinto to the city,” he said. “It’s going to be a fantastic boon for Dampier and I want to make sure that the community is involved in that process, similar to what we did at the foreshore but this is obviously on a larger scale for the whole of Dampier. “So I am really excited about implementing that master plan and getting that out to the community.” City of Karratha Mayor Peter Long said Mr Armstrong would be a welcome addition to the council. Ms Evans resigned last November before her term expired because of relocation and family priorities.