Eight residents registered to speak at the public hearing into the proposal to merge Gosford Council with Wyong Council.
Only one public hearing was held in Gosford, on Wednesday, February 3. Another two hearings convened by the NSW Government-appointed delegate who will assess the merger proposal, Mr John Rayner, were held in Wyong.
Around 70 residents attended the Gosford meeting and there were mixed views about the proportion of speakers in favour of the merger versus those opposed to it. Local business owner and one of the registered speakers, Mr David Abrahams said he counted three speakers in favour of the motion and five against.
“Of those three for amalgamation, it was qualified on a more open and honest process,” Mr Abrahams said.
Other speakers included Cr Vicki Scott, Cr Hillary Morris (both of whom spoke as residents and not in their roles as Gosford councillors), Mr Jeff Sundstrom — all argued against the proposal to amalgamate the two councils, “and bemoaning a flawed process,” according to Mr Abrahams.
“Sadly none of the Liberal or independent councilors or the mayor spoke,” Mr Abrahams observed. Gosford Council’s chief executive officer did speak, outlining the progress of the merger.
“He did of course simply want more money for the merger process, estimating it would cost at least $40 million-plus, not $10 million, to merge.” Mr Abrahams noted in his own presentation that he had been a long-term advocate of Gosford and Wyong Councils merging, both as a past chair of Regional Development Australia Central Coast and as a resident.
However, he said he was “dismayed at the way this amalgamation process is being held. “Instead of an informed community debate, we have a decision made on high and then people are asked to comment on it,” Mr Abrahams said. “It is simply ludicrous, it is a ‘democracy in reverse’,” he said.
“Such a process will not build legitimacy in a new organisation, it will instead sow the seeds of decent and of ongoing ‘deamalgamation’ campaigns as indicated here today by some of the speakers. “I believe the NSW government is wrong to cite economics as the reason for the merger.
“A merger will be a zero sum game for capital and operational expenditure. “Indeed experience from Queensland shows in the first five years, it will be a financial negative until systems and staff levels settle. “That’s the inconvenient truth.
“The State Government needs to at least recognise this and help communities with that financial burden. “The case for a merger should be more about building a strong local identity and creating a powerful, unified voice to fight for funds from state and federal government infrastructure and service funds.
“My experience has shown me that the Central Coast does miss out because we are constantly seen to be fighting each other, as a house divided is a weak house. “That is the real reason we have substandard roads, schools, telecommunications , healthcare and employment services.
“I call on the government to stall the process and for the premier and his ministers to come up here and articulate their reasons for a merger. “There are good reasons for a merger, though I agree with the vast majority of people here today that the process is deeply flawed, unpopular and lacks legitimacy,” Mr Abrahams said.
Coast Community News requested a copy of Mr Paul Anderson’s presentation to the public meeting but the council’s media unit declined to make it available until Gosford Council’s formal submission to Mr Rayner is publicly available. Mr Rayner’s office advised that they did not want to advertise the public hearings.
Email, Feb 3, 2016 David Abrahams, Digital Research, Strategy, Policy and Investment Email, Feb 4, 2016 Gosford Council media