Former Wyong Mayor and State Member for the Entrance Bob Graham says the answer to Central Coast Council’s problems is to shrink the size of the Local Government Area (LGA).
This could be achieved by a boundary reallocation which would see Gwandalan and Summerland Point join the Lake Macquarie LGA, Spencer become part of the Hawkesbury Council area, and Mooney Mooney become part of Hornsby Council he said.
“The previous State Government in its wisdom thought that it would be a good idea to amalgamate Gosford and Wyong Councils into a mega council,” Graham said.
“This has backfired on them big time and we now have 360,000 residents, making us one of the largest local government areas in Australia.
“We can’t unscramble the egg by going back to two LGAs.
“It would be far too hard and costly, and we can’t expect this present State Government to pick up the bill for the mistakes of its predecessors.
“Nor should the ratepayers have to foot the bill; but I believe that there is a way to rectify the mess that won’t be too costly for the residents.”
Graham said shrinking the Central Coast Council boundaries made perfect sense, with residents of Gwandalan and Summerland Point being “more aligned” to Lake Macquarie than the Central Coast.
Mooney Mooney and Spencer would be better served by Hawkesbury Council, he said.
Once boundaries have been reset, the numbers of councillors and wards should be reduced, Graham said.
“Fifteen councillors are far too many; we should aim for quality rather than quantity,” he said.
“At the last Council election both the Labor Party and the Liberal Party were struggling to fill their ballot papers.
“We should have either seven or nine councillors with a popularly elected mayor and two wards with three or four councillors in each ward.”
Graham said the ward boundaries should be roughly aligned with the old Gosford/Wyong boundaries.
While he thinks the Central Coast Water Authority should remain owned by ratepayers, Graham said it should be controlled by a separate body comprising councillors and suitably qualified knowledgeable members, either elected or appointed or a combination of both.
“My ideas would take a lot of pressure off Council staff by them not having to service far-flung areas north, south and west, and would save a lot of money,” he said.
We need neighbourhood level representation and so should have many more councillors. From my discussions with neighbours, very few people know what’s going on in the local area, how they can participate in what is supposed to be a democratic process and do not feel represented. Our councils are stuffed with developers and those representing private and narrow interests. Like much of the world we are governed by PR. We need actual grassroots representation that is not directed by elites.
But shrinking the area of the LGA is a good idea.