JASON Modica is a man of contrasts.
One moment, he is a knockabout bloke who seems more at home on a building site wearing his tradie’s hard hat.
But in the next, he is an intellectual figure recounting in chapter and verse the great history of Mildura.
Indeed, Jason Mark Modica is far from your average tradie.
He has been on Mildura Council since 2016 and ran as an independent candidate in the seat of Mallee at the last federal election.
He picked up 9.37 per cent of first-preference votes, finishing fourth behind The Nationals’ Anne Webster.
On November 19, he was elected Mildura Mayor.
According to council staff, “Jake the Tradie”, who is about to turn 51, is one of the youngest mayors that Mildura has had.
During a sit-down interview with Sunraysia Daily this week, he reflected on his journey to becoming mayor, the challenges for the new council, his vision for the region and what Mildura means to him.
Coming from a large migrant Italian farming family, Cr Modica grew up on a market garden in Gol Gol with his parents and three siblings.
He was educated at Gol Gol Public School and St Joseph’s Secondary College in Mildura.
In 1987, he kicked off a career as a ceramic tile layer, before completing his trade certificate at the Holmesglen trade school in Melbourne.
“There was not a tile in our house and I was lucky to work with a gifted tradesman, who was a carpenter initially and then took on tiling,” Cr Modica said.
“It was something I took for granted in the early years of learning my trade, which was going to be elevated from putting tiles in a toilet, laundry, bathroom and kitchen splashback to completely tiled homes.
“The growth of trades like mine was reflected in the growth of Mildura.”
The 1990s was his “discovery time” as he visited and lived in many corners of Australia and travelled extensively through Europe, Asia and North America.
Arriving back in Sunraysia around the turn of the millennium, he put his tradie’s hard hat back on, set up his own business and met and fell in love with Danielle Hobbs, now Mildura City Heart general manager.
The couple have two children – Luka, 15, and Scarlette, 13.
“My kids are awesome. I’m so proud of them,” the doting dad said.
Before he was elected to the council in 2016, Cr Modica was a community campaigner in the Nichols Point area.
He served as deputy mayor twice in his first council term, setting him up for a successful tilt at the mayor’s post last month.
He is now the face of the council and is quick to defend its services and policies amid a trend of community surveys over the past four years showing growing dissatisfaction with council-run services.
“Most people understand there are vast amounts of services provided – and council provides them very well and engages community consultation to deliver something the community wants and needs,” Cr Modica said.
“There will always be an opportunity for people to make complaints. But I think the average person would be comfortable with the services that council provides.”
One of the biggest community concerns is the embarrassing state of Langtree Mall, where nearly half the 57 shops are empty.
Cr Modica has a perceived conflict of interest on the mall with his partner, Ms Hobbs, in charge at City Heart. He did address the issue this week, albeit in diplomatic fashion.
“Councillors signed off on a CBD plan last year,” he said.
“This is the council position, but there are various ideas about how the mall can be improved.
“There are a lot of things that work well in the mall, including Show ‘n’ Shine and the weekend markets.
“But there will be discussions in how we move forward with the mall.”
He leaves the council chamber when votes concerning the mall are held.
Planning for the region is another hot topic. Developers say the council is not rezoning enough land for residential development to cater for the rapidly growing population.
“I think we do quite well in planning,” Cr Modica said.
“But when there is a rush on land, that just happens and it’s something the council has been dealing with through strategic planning.
“I know there are plots around that are in different stages of being developed which will come online.
“But it’s about systematic planning … and having orderly and directive planning. And I think the council’s doing that.”
Cr Modica puts his deep thinker’s cap back on when asked for his vision for the region.
“For me, it’s understanding the precious nature of the river and resources we have,” he said.
“Also, just how important energy transition will be for this region.
“The State Government is giving $3.9 million for KerangLink, also supported by the Federal Government, which will give the region the ability to export more renewable energy.
“And they are providing another $540 million for renewable energy zones. The Mildura region could be central to this growth.”
Asked what he was most proud of about Mildura, he said: “The town’s resilience. I take quite a lot of interest in the history of our place – both indigenous and colonial.
“The Chaffeys came and the town was gazetted in 1887. Then there was a global depression in 1891-92 and a royal commission into why the irrigation colony failed in Mildura.
“And then George Chaffey went back to the US and W.B. Chaffey thatched a community together and generated the raisin board and the First Mildura Irrigation Trust.
“And there was a great collaborative effort from people to succeed. They came from all over the world to make it work here. This has been repeated for over 100 years.
“So there’s a deep, engrained resilience, and a realisation of how tough it can be here.
“But, along with this, there’s a great can-do attitude in this community. And that’s something that everyone can be proud of.”
