While Central Coast Council CEO David Farmer was away on holidays, the councillors reviewed his performance.
The September 23 meeting of Council moved into confidential mode after 10pm to deal with the CEO’s performance review as the last item of the night.
The meeting re-opened to the public at 10.30pm with the announcement councillors wanted to extend the meeting for another half hour to continue to their debate.
They voted to agree to continue – and closed the meeting to the public again.
At 11pm, the meeting reopened to the public and the councillors’ decision was read out.
The 3.5 per cent pay rise is in response to the CEO’s better than satisfactory performance and it will take effect from the first full pay period after the meeting.
The report into his performance remains confidential.
Meanwhile, the anticipated change in the deputy mayor position was postponed until the October meeting.
Current Deputy Mayor Doug Eaton proposed the postponement saying he was elected in October so his term was still current.
Please publish the list of efficiencies, cost savings, benefits that ratepayers have enjoyed since the General Manager has been hired ? On the same night we get an 8 % water rate rise, a 3.5% pay rise that the average person just can’t fathom the system gets manipulated to benefit a handful of Wamberal beachfront landowners who bought into a known Coastal Erosion Zone !