Tonight’s Council Meeting was frankly disappointing in terms of the overall turnout of residents. Of the 20 plus submissions on the Council/Community Plan, only three people addressed council whilst most of the submitters were not present in chambers. Whether unforseen circumstances prevented their appearance and presentation (ie Friends of Caulfield Park had expressed the desire to address council) or whether residents after years and years of submitting their thoughts, ideas, and aspirations, only to have nothing come from their efforts, thought in the end, it was a useless exercise, we do not pretend to know. However, as the saying goes, the outcomes of the submissions are what’s important and residents will undoubtedly judge council on this basis. We will report in greater detail on the presentations in the next day or so.

Of immediate interest are the two development applications which together drew approximately 110 objections – the Glen Huntly Road, and the Gilmour St, Bentleigh proposals. We believe that the debate on these two applications illustrated precisely what is amiss with Glen Eira Council, its Planning Scheme, and how reluctant councillors are to challenge the current (hidden) agendas. The Glen Huntly Rd applications basically accepted the officers’ recommendation, whilst the Gilmour St application reduced the number of dwellings to one double storey and two single storeys.

Penhalluriack made two ‘suggestions’ – to defer decision on the Glen Huntly application. There was no seconder. His request for a report on the Exeloo toilets and for a cost/benefit analysis that included maintenance costs, and graffiti removal costs, was defeated. Magee seconded.

In the coming days we will present a detailed account of the arguments so that residents may judge for themselves the contradictions, the grandstanding, and the innumerable lapses in logic.

PS: It’s also worth mentioning that the game of verbal gymnastics continues unabated. 3 councillors continually referred to the “transitions policy” as a “transition ZONE”. We remind readers that nothing could be further from the truth. This is NOT A ZONE. It merely creates setbacks for those properties abutting Minimal Change Areas. To call this a ZONE is not only misleading, but we contend, deliberately mischievious. If councillors do not even know what they are voting for, then we are all in real trouble. If they do know, then their obfuscation of the truth is unacceptable.