However the fate of eight other Sister City relationships inherited following the 2016 council mergers, is yet to be formally determined.
Cumberland inherited differing approaches to civic relationships, with the former Holroyd City Council maintaining a formal Strategic Alliance with Hay, while the former Auburn Council had official Sister City relationships with seven international cities in Korea, Palestine, Turkey and China as well as the NSW town of Oberon.
In December last year, councillors resolved to prepare a formal policy to clarify its position on the issue, while also affirming their existing partnership with Hay. A draft proposing a two-tier system of formal civic relationships involving both ‘Friendship’ and more involved ‘Sister’ City relationships was put on public exhibition for 28 days in May and June and received one submission in support of the policy.
A report in May also noted that Cumberland had contacted the former Auburn Council’s eight sister cities in late 2016 asking them to indicate “the extent of any continuing desire to maintain a Sister City type relationship with Cumberland Council”.
Cumberland received two responses expressing “interest of an ongoing relationship at the appropriate time and once Council had an established formal position and related Policy”, although the report did not specify which cities responded.
Sister cities could leave family probe
AN EXISTING relationship with the Hay Shire Council, will be reviewed to make sure it aligns with a new Sister City and Friendship City Policy formally adopted by Cumberland this month.
