Minute by the Lord Mayor
To Council:
I wish to inform Council of the sudden passing of Tony Bleasdale, Mayor of Blacktown City Council, on 3 May 2024, whilst returning from a trip to Blacktown City’s sister cities in China and Korea.
Tony arrived in Sydney from Merseyside in England in 1963 where he worked in the building industry for 40 years before starting his own labour hire business.
He was first elected as a Blacktown City Councillor in 1996 and since then, has served his communities with integrity and a genuine commitment to deliver good outcomes for residents and businesses in the area.
In 2010, he was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for his charity work and service to the community.
Following a three-year prelude as Deputy Mayor, Tony was elected as Mayor in 2019 and faced the challenge of transforming Blacktown City to meet the needs of its growing population with housing and jobs, most notably through the Blacktown Quarter project.
In 2021, we worked together alongside other Metropolitan Council mayors opposing the former NSW Government’s proposed changes to local infrastructure contributions that threatened the ability for councils to fund and deliver essential community facilities. Tony was part of a delegation of mayors that met with the then Minister for Planning where he fiercely defended the future liveability of his community.
Just last month I visited him in Blacktown to see their impressive new animal shelter, Blacktown Animal Rehoming Centre (BARC), and the Blacktown Exercise, Sports and Technology Hub. He was proud of what they’d achieved, and his legacy will have a lasting impact on the community he served.
Tony was a wonderful community leader and will be dearly missed by many.
COUNCILLOR CLOVER MOORE AO
Lord Mayor
Moved by the Chair (the Lord Mayor), seconded by Councillor
Kok –
It is resolved that:
(A)
all persons attending this meeting of Council observe one minute's
silence to commemorate the life of Tony Bleasdale OAM and his steadfast
commitment to the Blacktown City community;
(B)
Council expresses its sincere condolences to Tony Bleasdale's wife,
Nina, and their four children and all those who worked with him at Blacktown
City Council; and
(C)
the Lord Mayor be requested to write to Tony Bleasdale's family
conveying Council's condolences.
Carried unanimously.
S051491
Note – all Councillors, staff and members of the public
present stood in silence for one minute as a mark of respect to Tony Bleasdale.