Kiama Community Cabinet Meeting

Sue and I attended the Kiama Community Cabinet meeting last night. I was fortunate enough to be able to ask a question so I asked Mr Hazzard, Minister for Planning, about Shellharbour City's Local Environment Plan.

I spoke about the rezoning, at the Department's request, of the TAFE and all-bar-one of the local schools, as reidential. I also asked about the Departments requirement that Killalea be zoned to allow development in all areas of the Park.

Mr Hazzard told me that Councils would now have much more autonomy in deciding local zonings and that the standard template for LEP's (mandated by the Department) is a thing of the past. Happy days are here again!

The Councils 2011 LEP is going out on exhibition again. All concerned residents should make their views known to the Council on these issues.

 In my submission I urged Council to zone all schools and the TAFE as the same zoning as the Hospital. This provides maximum protection for them and would make it harder for any future government to subdivide and sell off parts of their grounds.

Killalea should be treated as it was in the October 2010 version of the Draft LEP.  This allows for development only in the area near the current caravan/camping area.

Make a submission. Ensure your voice is heard.

Killalea

No Fees for Killalea.
The Killalea State Park Trust has recently floated plans for a $10 gate fee for entry to Killalea. This would make Killalea the only place in NSW where locals have to pay to use their beach.
I am a member of the Save Killalea Alliance. I was one of those who fought to protect this park from the Babcock and Brown development which would have alienated the community from many of the most iconic and accessible areas of the Park. I think Parks such as Killalea should be open to the all community. I oppose any gate fee
On the WIN TV news last night ALP candidate Marianne Saliba was quoted as saying she "agrees with the Trust's plans for a gate fee." Marianne and the ALP support this gate fee even though the Trust has produced no business plan to support its case. Even  Lands Minister Hodgkinson said she would await a business plan before making any decisions on this matter.

Statement of Electoral Objectives

Some Electoral Objectives

1)    Openness and Transparency in the decision making process. 

•  Decrease in the number of decisions made in the Committee of the Whole (i.e. in confidential session of Council)
• Reconstitute Internal Audit Committee so as to have no link between members of that committee and organizations that benefit from Council decisions.

2)    Move away from “user pays” in the provision of basic sporting facilities.

       Council should not be imposing fees for the use of cold water pools and sporting fields. The provision of these facilities is one of the core responsibilities of Council. The imposition of fees on these facilities hits the lower socio-economic groups in our community the hardest. The budget for the 2011/12 financial year provides for a surplus of more than $150,000. Council could remove fees on cold water pools and sporting fields and not go into deficit. We believe this would be a better outcome for the community.

3)    Shell Cove Project

•  Project Finance   
• The Shell Cove Management Agreement anticipates that Australand will provide any finance not derived from the project’s own resources. The Shell Cove Quarterly Report to Council states that it is Australand’s responsibility to finance the project.  Council should adhere to this principle. The community should not be accepting commercial risk in relation to this project under the current terms of the Management Agreement. Council should not be seeking loans to progress what is clearly Australand’s responsibility.

• Business Park
• The Shell Cove Project provides for a Business Park to be developed in the Quarry Buffer Zone. Council anticipates this facility would provide 1000 direct jobs. Council should explore ways of bringing forward the construction of the Business Park.
• Golf Course
• The Links Shell Cove Golf Course lost approx $379,000 last financial year. It lost a similar amount the year before and will probably lose a similar amount this year. Council has recently resolved to lease out the hotel facility on this site and retain management of the golfing facilities. Given that Council has determined to lease out those parts of the operation that are profitable and retain those parts which are loss making, the community should be provided with a business plan which clearly lays out the way forward for this facility.

4)    Planning for a sustainable future

• Council should explore ways to encourage all developments to be planned for sustainability. Subdivisions need to be planned with a street/lot layout which maximizes solar access for each dwelling.
• New subdivisions should provide cycleways and should be public transport friendly.
• Council should explore ways to encourage sustainability in each individual development. We should be using Councils position to promote the use of solar panels, water capture devices and passive solar/thermal design encouraging reduced reliance on power. 

Killalea still needs help

A number of us from the Save Killalea Alliance recently met with Gareth Ward, Member for Kiama. Gareth indicated that he believes the Dep't of Planning may have a different perspective on the issue of Killalea now there is a new government. The previous government had a gung-ho attitude to development in the park. Hopefully, those days are gone.

Now that submissions for the 2011 Draft Local Environment Plan (LEP)  have been re-opened, I urge everyone to make a submission to Council asking for Killalea to be treated as it was when the 2011 Draft LEP was first presented to Council on 19 October 2010.

The Draft LEP of 19 October 2010 made an important provision in relation to Killalea. It proposed that, unlike the 2000 LEP, large areas of the park be quarantined from development. Any future development would be confined to a small envelope surrounding the pre-existing caravan/camping area. This has the effect of preserving the most iconic and most well used parts of the park from development. This is in line with the community's wishes. It also allows for the Killalea State Park Trust to establish a small income generating facility in a relatively unobtrusive area of the park.

Council proposes to defer consideration of Killalea from the 2011 LEP pending further discussions with the Dep't of Planning, The Land and Property Management Authority, The Killalea State Park Trust and the Shellharbour community. This leaves the Park under the provisions of the 2000 LEP which allows for development in most of the park. It would remain zoned 7(f2), a zoning which allows for hotels, motels, serviced apartments. souvenir shops etc.

The community has made its views known in a number of ways.

 There has been a 15,000 signature petition collected, opposing over development of the park.

There have been numerous well attended public meetings opposing over development of the park.

The local media has been full of stories opposing over development of the park.

I commend Shellharbour Council for the way they approached Killalea in the October 2010 Draft LEP. It appeared to be entirely consistent with the community's expressed wishes whilst still allowing the Trust some freedom to generate extra income.

I urge council to reinstate their preferred treatment of Killalea into the Draft LEP as this would provide the greatest level of protection to this much loved site.

      10 Reasons to vote for Peter Moran

          for Shellharbour Council.

1)      I know how Council works. I have attended nearly every Council meeting over the last 10 years. This is more than any other candidate, even those who used to be Councillors.

Not one of the ALP or Liberal candidates have attended more than a couple of meetings since the Administrator was appointed over three years ago. Many have attended no meetings.

.

2)      I have been involved in Council through the writing of submissions. In the last three years I have, on a number of occasions, had my suggestions adopted by the Administrator and incorporated into Council policies. After I spoke at a Council meeting recently (31 May, 2011) the Administrator said “…..the matters raised by Mr Moran were, as one would expect, legitimate concerns."

”

3)      I care about how my community works. That is why my wife and I wrote a submission to the recent Council budget, as we have done in years past. Among other things, I called for the abolition of cold water pool fees.  NO OTHER CANDIDATE CARED ENOUGH ABOUT POOL FEES, OR ANY OTHER COUNCIL BUSINESS, TO WRITE A SUBMISSION. I make numerous written and verbal submissions to Council each year on issues that affect our community. Most of the other candidates only take an interest when elections roll around.

.

4)      I ask questions. The only reason the community knows about the $176,000 legal fees and the $1.3 million “unliquidated damages” attached to the recent write-off of over $400,000 in relation to the Links golf course is because I questioned Council staff. Council was not going to tell the community about these costs otherwise.

.

5)      I have been responsible for saving Council time and money through attention to detail. At a Council meeting on March 30, 2010 I pointed out a mistake by Council staff where a land swap was going to take place with the wrong piece of land being swapped. The Mercury reported this as an “embarrassing backdown” for council.

.

6)      I am prepared to put my money where my mouth is. In 2003 I spent over $17,000 of my own money taking Council to the Land and Environment Court to force them to take decisions in accordance with the Local Government Act. Council (including then Mayor Joan Vinton as well as other current candidates Briggs, Murray and Cicolini)  had improperly taken several decisions relating to the sale of public land in confidential session. I forced Council to obey the Act and do things in an open and transparent fashion.

.

7)      My team includes Sue Moran (my wife) who has been responsible for the release of the Shell Cove Management Agreement and other documents relating to this troubled project. Previous councillors had been unwilling or unable to have this document released. Sue took on Council using Freedom of Information and the Administrative Decisions Tribunal and had information released. After 12 years of being told these documents were secret ratepayers now can see what we signed up for and why this project is in such financial trouble. Sue has succeeded where others, including previous councillors, have failed.

.

8)       Other members of my team include a retired magistrate and a JP. These are highly regarded local people who know how proper processes are supposed to work.

.

9)      I have a plan to provide jobs in the area. The Shell Cove project includes a business park expected to provide 1000 permanent full-time job. Under the current plan these jobs will not come until 2018 at the earliest. Even that date depends on Council borrowing many millions to construct the marina first. I believe Council should use project funds to build the Business Park now.  We should seek Federal Government support to hook this Park into the National Broadband Network which is on line just 4 km down the road at Minnamurra.   We can wait at least 7 years for a marina that may never be built and use that to support jobs, or we can build the first NBN-connected Business Park near a major population centre in NSW and attract those jobs now. Most other candidates think those jobs should wait.

.

10)  I do not believe in Party politics in local government. I am a member of the Greens but I am standing as an Independent, accepting no money or support from the Greens. If elected I would be answerable only to the community, not the Greens. I have fought for the local community’s interests for over 10 years – long before I joined the Greens. If elected I would continue to fight for the local community.  Others, including the Liberal Party and the Labor Party, wish to entrench Party politics in your council.

Shellharbour Heritage Precinct

The Draft Local Environment Plan (LEP) being considered by Council includes a heritage precinct over Shellharbour Village. While heritage protections have a valuable place in our community, this proposal is way off beam. The aim of the listing of the village is to protect the atmosphere of the area. Sadly, council is about 20 years too late. The horse has well and truly bolted. It seems no one at Lamerton House has noticed the new 3 story buildings up and down the street, dwarfing the single level, 19th century shops/cottages.

Blanket heritage provisions such as these should only be used where there are a significant number of heritage-worthy items in close proximity to each other. That is not the case here. Of course, perhaps the council thinks those new buildings so beaut they deserve heritage protection!

The Draft LEP should have the Shellharbour village precinct removed from it before it is sent off to the Minister. Council should identify those items with real heritage value and protect them.

It is also my belief that Council should lobby the Government to provide for rate reductions for private property with a heritage listing. These items cost the owner more to maintain than a non-heritage building. The community as a whole benefits from having heritage buildings protected. The community as a whole should make a small contribution to their upkeep.

All items on the State Heritage Register should have their rates paid by the State Government. Any item on the local heritage lists should be entitled to a rate rebate or a complete rate holiday. Both of the above scenarios would require legislative change to enable them to happen. If elected I would be working towards Council putting this proposal both directly to the State government and also to the Local Government and Shires Association.

Shell Cove Business Park

Nick Hartgerink (“NBN puts us up with the best” Merc 1/8/11) is impressed with the potential of the National Broadband Network. Nick recognizes the opportunities for employment created by super fast connections, opportunities centred around IT businesses. I feel the same way and hope we in the Illawarra do not lag behind the rest of the country as we do in so many other areas of the economy.

There is one way in which we can seize the day and give ourselves a head start.

The Shell Cove project involves a Business Park that Shellharbour Council expects will create 1000 permanent full-time jobs. The Council tells us the Park is dependent on the construction of the marina. Sadly not one of the jobs in this Park will be delivered before 2018 under the current plans, and most do not expect these jobs to come on-line until at least 2020.

Instead of waiting for the marina to be built I believe we could accelerate construction of the Business Park. Instead of hoping for Federal and State Gov’t funds to help build the Marina we should be asking the Federal Gov’t for help to connect the Park to the NBN which is coming on line just 4km down the road at Minamurra. Instead of waiting at least 6-8 years for these jobs we could start to create them next year.

If we had a brand new business park with connection to the NBN the Shellharbour area would be in a position to capitalise on a new way of doing business and attracting employment. We could have the first employment generating development in close proximity to a major population centre hooked into the NBN.

What is more likely to attract new businesses to our area – a nice view or a new way of engaging in the economy?

Let us take the Shellharbour area forward into a jobs-rich future by taking advantage of the exciting new opportunities on our doorstep.