Toowoomba Regional Council took home four awards from last week’s 2024 Institute of Public Works Engineering Australasia Queensland/Northern Territory (IPWEA-QNT) Excellence Awards gala dinner in Brisbane.
The Council won the coveted award of Public Sector Employer of the Year; General Manager Infrastructure Services Group, Mike Brady, took out the prestigious ‘President’s Award’ for Outstanding Contribution to Public Works; while the ‘Pierce Street Active Street Project’ won the Project Innovation Award.
Council’s Principal Project Manager, Blaise Shann was also recognised as the Public Works Professional of the Year, having led the delivery of Council’s 2022 Flood Recovery Program over the past two years.
Separately, the ‘Landfill Gas Powered Renewable Energy Behind The Meter At Toowoomba’s Wetalla Sewage Treatment Plant’ won the Innovation & Sustainability in Water award and then Project of the Year award for Council’s contractor, LGI Limited.
Council Construction and Maintenance (Infrastructure Services) portfolio spokesperson, Councillor Carol Taylor said she was delighted Council had been recognised at the awards.
“The IPWEA Excellence Awards places a spotlight on the projects and people who deliver exceptional outcomes for Queensland communities, and I’m delighted that TRC has again been recognised with these four awards,” Cr Taylor said.
“I congratulate everyone involved in the projects which were recognised on the night as these are very much team awards, as was the big award of Public Sector Employer of the Year while it was also wonderful to see Council recognised with two individual awards.
“Mike Brady was quite rightly recognised for his outstanding leadership for both Council and the public works sector over many years with this year’s ‘Presidents Award’.
“Mike has been an outstanding public service engineer, leading us through disasters and large-scale projects over his 13 years with our Council.”
Mr Brady is currently overseeing the $250 million 2022 Flood Recovery program which is nearing completion.
“As a public works engineer Mike has always put our community at the heart of flood works and projects,” said Cr Taylor.
“The Toowoomba Region is lucky for having Mike at the helm of our Infrastructure Services Group as General Manager. The ‘President’s Award’ that Mike was presented with was the most prestigious on the night and he was a truly deserving winner with this recognition by his peers in this manner.
“Blaise Shann is also to be congratulated for taking out the Professional of the Year award up against some outstanding public works professionals from right across Queensland and the Northern Territory.
“Blaise lives and breathes Council and IPWEA’s values and is recognised by Council’s leaders, peers, and the community who’ve experienced his dedication to achieving the best outcome while exhibiting all the qualities and traits sought in a professional public works engineer,” Cr Taylor said.
The Pierce Street Active Street Project was recognised for Innovation in that it is Queensland’s first Active Street. It’s been transformed into a low-speed (30 km/h) Active Street, transitioning into a new three-meter-wide shared path along the West Creek corridor, extending to the recently completed Alderley Street pedestrian bridge.
“This corridor is a critical active transport link between the University of Southern Queensland Campus and the Toowoomba CBD,” said Cr Taylor.
“Drawing inspiration from successful international models and Western Australian precedents, this innovative design, often termed “cycle streets” or “neighbourhood greenways,” aligns perfectly with the Council’s Strategic Transport Strategy (STS) and Active Transport Policy. These frameworks champion pedestrian and cyclist-friendly environments, aiming to foster a cultural shift towards more active travel.”
