GAWLER Council chief executive Henry Inat has declared his council’s boundary reform agenda “is not about revenue”.
At a special meeting last Tuesday night, elected members voted 6-3 to proceed with a boundary reform plan, championed by Gawler mayor Karen Redman, to bring some of Gawler’s surrounding suburbs into its jurisdiction.
The motion passed by councillors will see public consultation undertaken with affected residents and further investigations carried out into the “optimum” way for the boundary changes to look, ahead of a formal proposal being submitted to the newly-formed Boundaries Commission in the future.
The suburbs of Hewett, Gawler Belt and Reid – currently a part of Light Regional Council – Kalbeeba and the Concordia Growth Area – under Barossa Council’s jurisdiction – and Playford Council’s portions of Evanston Park and Hillier would be brought under the control of Gawler Council as part of the reforms.
Portions of Bibraringa and Uleybury currently controlled by Gawler Council would be ceded to Playford Council.
Mr Inat, when asked by councillor Nathan Shanks about the financial value of shifting the boundaries, said the council “wasn’t making money” by expanding its boundaries.
“This is not about revenue, this is not about additional funding,” he said.
“If we look back in history and look at where we are now, we’re financially sustainable, but, we’re not rolling in money.
“Councils do not make money from residential development; if you take into account whole of life assets, depreciation, which these figures (included in the accompanying council report) do not, it’s a snapshot in time of some very clear assumptions.
“It’s not about revenue making, we will not be making money out of this project.”
Mr Inat said the cost of officially submitting the council’s boundary reform plan is unknown, but acknowledged Marion Council pulled out of its own similar plan when it discovered it would cost $250,000 for a Boundaries Commission consultant to assess the plan and calculate what damages it would have to pay to affected councils.
An official application to change Gawler’s boundaries would happen in two stages, with no guarantee any or all of the council’s proposed changes would be accepted by the commission.
The first stage would include the commission considering an initial proposal, with the second seeing a general proposal from the council investigated further.
Council staff also asked elected members for guidance on including Roseworthy in its future submission, but no decision was made on the expanding township.
Councillors Ian Tooley, Jim Vallelonga and Shanks were the only elected members to vote against proceeding with boundary reform.
Cr Shanks said the way the council had proceeded with its plan forced him to vote against the motion.
“This conversation is very one sided, we are being accused of being in the Town of Gawler bubble,” he said.
“We talk about (residents) from these surrounding suburbs entering our town like a plague of locusts and then swarming back out again.
“What we’re talking about are young families driving to a train station, using our roads and going into the city.
“They also service our businesses, and these businesses are where they are because of these people bordering (us).”
