I’VE always loved sport.
After our council just dropped this huge, unwanted and unneeded conglomerate, only 400m from our town square, with no warning except to anyone who weekly scans through multiple pages of minutes, I’ve been totally disillusioned and heartbroken.
But more importantly, extremely concerned about its transparency and behaviour.
I never saw their public notice, and don’t know anyone who did.
Further to my two recent letters, the Annual Budget and Business Plan 2023/24 gives total income from rates and services at $37.9m.
While committing $20m to Lyndoch Recreation Park during this same time – this is 53 per cent of its total rate revenue.
My rates for ’24 were $17,575 – 53 per cent equals $9,274 of my precious, hard-earned dollars have gone towards Lyndoch Recreation Park.
While spending what is left over, council is actively and aggressively promoting its land- mark Wellbeing Project.
Its elected spokesperson says “we know how important it is for our community to feel good in all aspects of our lives” and “we want to know what they’d like to be involved in, and what might prevent them from doing the activities that make them feel happy, healthy and connected to community”.
To use an AFL commentator’s analogy, council is trying hard to “sell us some candy”.
But I’m not buying.
The best thing council can do for me is to stop selling candy, and not spend $20m on what appears to be someone else’s 35-year intergen- erational project instead of the urgent need of not only our children, but our grandchildren.
We will all use, and have need of, a new hospital.
It is important to note I am certain these actions, non-actions and expenses are totally compliant with all relevant acts and other legal requirements and would pass any scrutiny by the Office for Public Integrity.
But I have serious concerns around where the real power and decision-making lies.
Is it where it properly should be, with the elected group of 11 councillors?
This is where the real, democratically elected power in any local government should reside.
I ask myself, where does the real power reside? In this elected body? Or their elected spokesperson, the CEO and paid white collar staff?
Tim Barritt, Lyndoch
