This is an old post from when I ran for Council in 2020. I have left it up because it is just as relevant today
Today my virtual banner is hanging on THE PRIZE, the new council offices. It is ironic that with all the people competing to sit in the new council chamber that none of us (apart possibly from a small group of current Councillors) has ever seen it or even has any idea what it looks like. This is NOT just because of COVID-19. As a former Mayor has pointed out this $23 million building was built for Council by QIC as part of a land swap deal for “an old property that Council had no plans for”. Doing it this way also has the added benefit, of no public tender deals, or community consultations, or public scrutiny of designs etc. It enabled the Council’s bureaucracy to organize this building quickly and quietly without Councillors or the public looking over their shoulders.
I believe this building will be a modern, very energy efficient building, creating a productive and pleasant working environment. It even has a rooftop garden/barbeque area for the staff (and Councillors). The problem is that this belief is an act of faith. Even though the former Mayor in the same post stated that he knows “ALL of the facts” if he does, he didn’t let the public in on the secret.
I am not going to join the shouting that this is an extravagant waste of money because I don’t know. Like everyone else, I know very little about the now complete building. I do know that QIC has a legal responsibility to invest their money in profitable assets so I assume that they know the true value of a large block of land on the corner of Warrandyte Road and the bypass.
What I am going to shout about is … WE DON’T KNOW AND WE SHOULD!
As a Councillor, I will fight for good governance and good governance requires transparency and scrutiny.
The irony is that if the Council wishes to dispose of any of the lands they own (like the small pockets provided by developers) sprinkled all over Maroondah there is a prescribed process that they have to go through which includes public consultation, steps to ensure they are receiving a fair price, and a public council vote. It appears that these “land swap” deals bypass all of those controls. This has lead to the confusion amongst candidates as to what this building really costs, is it finished, and what was the land swapped actually worth.