BITTER FEUD AT HEART OF COUNCIL
HOW THE FUSE WAS LIT
LET’S have an honest and frank discussion about the family that is the Gold Coast City Council. Under Mayor Tom Tate, in his first term, it was united. Now it is divided. What does it mean for you, as a ratepayer?
To answer that, first consider why Councillor Tate and his most senior councillor, Dawn Crichlow, are feuding and how that slows the wheels of council.
This began last year after the Palaszczuk Government suddenly announced it was canning the Broadwater integrated resort project. The Mayor immediately looked at a casino at Southport.
Cr Crichlow felt left out of discussions. Her support was recorded when in fact she was opposed to the proposed site, which would impact on the bowls and tennis clubs.
She campaigned successfully against it and by year’s end found herself, after the political blood shedding at December’s last full council meeting, on just one council committee. Cr Crichlow has told colleagues she approached Mayor Tate during the luncheon break and asked him to put William Owen-Jones ahead of her to be a chair.
Remember later emails between the pair where she refers to “I thought you would have at least said ‘it will be fixed’ or ‘I will fix it’ like you did on 8 December”.
Whatever the details of this private conversation, Cr Crichlow, Cr Owen-Jones, Mudgeeraba’s Glenn Tozer, Nerang’s Peter Young and Palm Beach’s Daphne McDonald are on the outer.
Burleigh newcomer Pauline Young, Robina’s Hermann Vorster and planning chair Cameron Caldwell are on the Mayor’s team and Deputy Donna Gates is the face of council when he is overseas.
Now, was this all deliberate? The answer is “yes”. Did the Mayor realise his actions would divide council? Again “yes” because he cannot be bothered getting these councillors on side and wants to use his energy elsewhere.
Was this all the Mayor’s doing? Is the division between the councillors and the Mayor all due to him not getting on with them?
The answer to that to be fair is “no” on both counts.
Another political player is involved here – what everyone refers to as “the mayoral office”.
Yep, c’mon everyone at City Hall, this is the fella they all talk about as much as the Mayor. What is the Mayor’s chief-of-staff Wayne Moran up to today?
Can anyone at Evandale picture Mr Moran, Cr OwenJones and Cr Tozer blowing the froth off a beer at Burleigh Brewing? Or Peter Young sharing a glass of red to settle differences on the hinterland cable car proposal?
Or Mr Moran joining CEO Dale Dickson in his rock band? That arrangement would make the members of the volatile Fleetwood Mac blush.
For ratepayers, what this means is if their councillor on the outer walks into the “mayoral office” offering potential budget initiatives post-Games, they will be “noted” – which translates to “go away’’ or a much stronger phrase.
So the family that is our council cannot compare to how Darryl calms down the Kerrigans at Bonnie Doon. Put a pool room inside the chamber at Evandale and the cues would not just be for pocketing the eight ball in a corner pocket. You get my vibe?