The Community Connections Annual General Meeting was held in November 2011 and a highlight was the presentation from Dr Gordon Forth on his study of Warrnambool, which explores the town's recent past and predicted future.

Called ‘City by the Sea’ and being published by Discovery Press (Community Connections' publishing program), the study will be published online so that it reaches a wide audience, maintains its relevance through easy updating, and encourages dialogue about the issues raised.

Dr Forth discussed the scope of the project, and outlined the range of topics, such as population, housing, employment, business, the rise of the city's professional class, health and aged care, education and training, power and politics, community values and attitudes, and infrastructure.

The completed study will benefit different levels of local government and business by assisting in the analysis of regional trends and by helping to attract new residents and employees to the area, and also to government and academia for addressing issues of regional development. It will also be a lively and informative read for locals and visitors to the region.

‘City by the Sea’ is funded by the Department of Planning and Community Development, with the support of Deakin University who has loaned Mark Rashleigh, lecturer in graphic arts and computer-assisted design.