Councillor hubris is 'breathtaking'
Congratulations to Minister Hancock for finally listening, hearing and acting.
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Many hope you will follow through.
However, the hubris of some WSC councillors is breathtaking.
Cr Whipper wonders who the Minister has been listening to?
Easy answer - the ratepayers, residents and small business owners...the many who have not been heard for too long.
Cr Gair calls it the worst day for the community and the workers of WSC!
If that is so why can cheering and applause be heard from one end of the shire to the other?
Staff are not affected. What is affected, and why the councillors will no doubt scrabble together an attempt to bestay suspension, is because for those thinking of running again, their chances of re-election probably just suffered a major blow.
With the possible exception of Cr Turland who has repeatedly called for administration and questioned budgets, operations and planning decisions, our councillors must surely accept the situation is of their own making and accept responsibility.
Hopefully the Minister will suspend WSC - preferably up to the elections in September.
This could also allow the new councillors to review and appoint a new general manager.
It's especially possible should Minister Hancock roll over the suspension time which could elongate the appointment deadline.
The Station Street/Bowral Bypass project, Bowral Memorial Hall and Mittagong Playhouse, around $1million for a set of traffic lights on Wingecarribee Street, the Moss Vale Pool budgetary overruns, the Mittagong Pool not being insured, not to mention as reported in this paper from a recent council meeting, around $423m in unfunded projects, including as Clr Turland stated, a "second bridge over Wingecarribee Street which is $12m", second stage of Station Street which is from Links Road to Bowral Street which is $15m. Both of those with underrated budgets...This is extraordinary. Some common sense needs to come into play here. If you're prepared to spend $43m from Bowral Street to Bundaroo Street and add all those things up..., then this council needs to be removed."
Well, hopefully the Minister will stand firm and realise enough is enough and that this shire deserves a chance to re-boot, recalibrate, heal and move on under new, inspired, collaborative and visionary leadership courtesy of a new council and a new GM.
H Campbell (former councillor, 2012-2016)
READ ALSO: Alternate acting general manager appointed
Friends of Bowral disappointed by Cr Whipper's comments
Friends of Bowral Inc (FoB) is extremely disappointed with the comments of Councillor Whipper, as reported in the Southern Highland News dated March 3.
FoB representatives met with Cr Whipper last year and at that meeting Cr Whipper seemed to understand that FoB's agenda was to ensure any changes to Station Street Bowral realignment were ones supported by the community, would provide benefits to the community and not impose unacceptable costs.
FoB explained to Councillor Whipper that was why over 3,000 people had signed a petition in 2018/2019 not to support Station Street roadworks as proposed by Wingecarribee Council.
Cr Whipper seemed to appreciate the fact that the scheme lacked a comprehensive Report of Environmental Factors, a current cost benefit analysis, would remove a large proportion of the car parking at Bowral Station, would destroy the iconic entrance to Bowral and, at that stage, would cost $18.2m.
Cr Whipper appeared concerned that despite numerous requests by FoB to meet with the mayor, the mayor had not agreed to meet.
FoB and the community have many questions they would like answers to, and the majority of councillors, including Cr Whipper, are leaving it to Crs Scandrett and Turland to try get get some answers as to where this project is up to.
Cr Whipper speaks of the knockers of not "having any responsibility, accountability or knowledge of processes, procedures and the regulations".
FoB would welcome confirmation from Cr Whipper or Mayor Duncan Gair that council, in proceeding with the Station Street project, has acted responsibly, and complied with all legislative processes, procedures and regulations.
In terms of accountability we might leave that to the electorate come September.
In relation to the GFC impost Cr Whipper refers to in his letter, could he please remind the community who in the council, had oversight for the investment of millions of Wingecarribee ratepayers' money in dodgy collateralised debt obligations (CDOs).