Source: Australian Jewish News, 12th June 2013, Page 21
Time to Throw out Conservative councillors
A few weekends ago nearly 1500 locals gathered to support AJAX Senior Football Club when it recently played away at Princes Park in South Caulfield. Yet this club has been barred from home games at the ground by an unfair and unknown decision-making process wielded by the seemingly all powerful bureaucrats hidden in the halls of Glen Eira Town Hall.
Over a decade in politics I have observed with increasing bemusement the relative weakness of most elected councillors compared to the officials who seem to dominate Glen Eira Council. It must be said that the chief executive Andrew Newton of Glen Eira Council is polite and highly professional.
Many of the Glen Eira councillors are well-intentioned people but their conservative values dictated by the Liberal party have put them at odds with their community, have made them weak and they have not sought to bring much needed transparency to decision-making. New Councillor Mary Delahunty will make a difference.
Residents of Caulfield are fed up by the popular local footy club being barred from its local ground or by its over-development by a rapacious racing club fawned over by conservative councillors.
Sorry to say, however, the answer for Glen Eira residents fed up with overweening power of unelected professionals is more politics, not less.
Glen Eira voters must turf out the conservative councillors afraid to take on the bureaucrats.
Their replacements must run on an explicit program of asserting themselves over the civil servants of Glen Eira.
I am afraid that is the only way AJAX Senior Football will get to Princes Park, where so many of their boisterous local family and friends celebrated the opportunity for them to play in an “away” game.
MICHAEL DANBY
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Challenging council on ground allocation
Regarding Council allocation Mayor Hyams has not quite got it right/ Ajax could have got the Princes Park allocation and Old Haileybury could have stayed at McKinnon Reserve.
Alternatively, Old Haileybury could have been sent to GlenHuntly Oval and shared that ground with Caulfield Grammarians, where no junior Sunday games occur.
That way, no existing ground allocation would need to be cut. Glen Eira Council could have catered for the existing tenants and also catered for its real community club around Princes Park – AJAX FC where the junior play on a Sunday.
So as Councillor Hyams has advised in Council Minutes – that Old Haileybury has been moved due to the need to give the Mckinnon Reserve a rest. It is safe to assume that Old Haileybury will be moved back to its traditional home ground for 2014 opening the EOI (expression of interest) process for Princes Park?
IAN FAYMAN
Glen Eira Debates 
June 14, 2013 at 1:39 PM
As a Labor man it’s not surprising that Danby is taking a pot shot at the Liberals. His barbs don’t go far enough. I’d include the Greens in his labelling of “conservatives” on council. Pilling has been there for 5 years and achieved practically nothing except voting with the gang on numerous issues. His pay off has been the e-waste collections and very little else. That’s a fool’s bargain to my mind. Danby’s overall assessment of unelected officialdom is closer to the mark. There is the unwillingness of councillors to rein them in, or at the very least, to insist on transparency. After years and years of silence it is finally out in the open that Glen Eira did not have any policy on ground allocations and that councillors did not get a look in. This won’t change since I anticipate that the new policy will still leave officers in charge and councillors on the outer. It will only enunciate some general principles but who decides on who gets what will remain untouched. As long as Newton is in charge and he has backing from these conservatives then residents should expect more of the same – no accountability and no transparency.
June 14, 2013 at 5:40 PM
You refer to the Liberals as conservatives. You fail to label the the non libs. We could call them socialists or left wingers. I doubt that you would do that as like the current talking points of the alp they are all told to label libs as conservatives. Won’t help them. There are 3 socialists on the GEC. All alp members.
June 14, 2013 at 6:06 PM
You haven’t read carefully enough what I wrote. I also happened to label Pilling and the Greens as “conservatives” judging by their performance on council. I also disagree entirely with your leap of imagination and generalisation in calling all others as “socialists” or “left wingers”. If we really did have socialists on council then childcare would be a priority instead of car parks! Even the so called Labor councillors are a worry. Lobo wouldn’t know if he was Arthur or Martha, and Magee does what is good for Magee and not any party. As for Delahunty, well her voting patterns on car parks raises a few eyebrows. But the jury is still out on her. Thus far I’d say not an entirely auspicious start.
June 14, 2013 at 4:30 PM
What is really missing here is a set of principles, ones whose consistent application leads to sound decisions. I personally resent the fundamental principle of AJAX, that if you’re not Jewish, you’re not welcome. I find discrimination in all its many forms abhorrent. Still, it appears AJAX has clout, and GEC has struggled to explain itself.
June 14, 2013 at 4:37 PM
It should not be a surprise that the Councillors have always been the cause of no transperancy. The same Councillors (who belong to liberal party) have been appointed by liberal government to be trustees at MRC. What a coincidence!
June 15, 2013 at 7:49 AM
Stick with the facts. Esakoff is not a Liberal member and is a Liberal member. I believe she is a trustee. Itnis unhelpful to make things up.
June 15, 2013 at 12:52 PM
Sounds like you have been on the turps again, anon!
June 16, 2013 at 2:29 PM
Esakoff is not a liberal member. Stay on the left wing tablets. the city always needs a village idiot. Bring on Sept 14. Can’t wait.
June 14, 2013 at 5:03 PM
Danby is an idiot. The ALP and Greensparty coumcillors easily have the numbers and control the council. Thia bloke is desparate. He has very few local members and relies on union people to man his booths. He is sweating blood. He should learn to count. His luck is running out. The libs are shorter than Black Cavier. Bring it on.
June 14, 2013 at 5:14 PM
In regards to waiting for the EOI process, don’t hold your breath , council only uses the EOI process if it sees fit. If the current tenants are fulfilling what the council deems adequate, regardless of actual agreement then they will stay tenants . No need for an EOI process because to do so would be fair and equitable. The court allocation at GESAC being the case in point. Pathetic process.
June 15, 2013 at 6:08 PM
…and you don’t think the current Basketball tenants are paying the promised $4000 plus per week? Which equates to more than $200,000 for the 12 months just gone. Let’s see a statement Mr GESAC.
June 16, 2013 at 7:11 PM
Council does not hand out other people’s or organisations statements, which is all well and good. The actual request was for the statement for the council owned , therefore the ratepayer owned GESAC concerning the basketball agreement. Response was to contact FOI , good to see open and transparent council operating. Nothing to hide?
June 14, 2013 at 7:29 PM
D. Evans – You are mixing apples with oranges. You have no idea at all how the voting pattern takes place. Get your facts right. Delahunty has already proved herself. It appears you either do not go for council meetings or someone on your payroll is feeding you garbage. By chance, are you a part of Ched Evans’ family tree?
June 14, 2013 at 7:59 PM
Who are the “weak” Councillors Mr Danby is referring too?
June 15, 2013 at 7:45 AM
All of them – they have all chosen the path of least resistance by opting to support the administration rather than their constituents. The only difference is that Hyams, Esakoff, Lipshutz and Okotel have chosen to actively support while the others (ie Lobo, Pilling, Magee, Delahunty and Souness) do so more passively. No one ever questions anything the administration says, they have all signed over their responsibilities to the administration and forgotten/ignored their legal oversight role and nary a one of them makes any connection with previous decisions or what the community has said it wants.
June 15, 2013 at 11:49 AM
Off topic, but important.
We are again pointing out the vast differences between Glen Eira City Council, its management and interaction with the community, as opposed to what happens in other councils. With the new planning zones about to take effect input from residents becomes crucial. Glen Eira has maintained its silence apart from an almost glowing endorsement of the proposals. We ask readers to compare the inactivity of Glen Eira compared to this recent release by Kingston –
http://www.kingston.vic.gov.au/Lists/News/New-Residential-Zones
Please note: online discussion forum; 3 evening events; a survey and ultimately formal submissions. What has Glen Eira done? What will they do?
June 15, 2013 at 12:08 PM
I wonder how the new Councillors are handling the transparency and wider public consultation of the new planning zones? Apart from the Blue Tie councillors, can someone stand up and speak on behalf of the residents that new planning zones be sent for public consultation? Why are you guys in the Council for? if the interest of the residents is not represented?
June 15, 2013 at 5:22 PM
It is indeed time to throw out the Conservative Councillors. Their game is over as other councillors have caught up with their tactics.
June 16, 2013 at 2:32 PM
Ok . Toss out the conservative. What about the liberertarians?