Wendy Tuckerman’s column in last week’s Young Witness says a lot! Or really it doesn’t say much at all. She makes claims but fails to back it up with any evidence whatsoever. The Hilltops Administrator is talking about “Engaging with developers who are looking at expanding and or bringing their businesses to the Hilltops Region.” The least she could do is name the sector, be it agriculture or tourism for example and give the residents of Hilltops Shire some idea as to what developers may be coming. Is it just more spin? More spin from an unelected Administrator whose role is to sell the Hilltops Council ideal to the 19,500 residents? Whose income for doing so is $180,000 per annum. It looks more difficult now since the forced merger, that developers will be coming to the Harden area. Under an amalgamated Council LEPs are on hold. I’m pretty well situated to comment on the subject as I was on Council during the time the Local Environment Plan or (LEP) for the former Harden Shire Council was to be renewed. A new LEP was made priority number one by the 7 Councillors keen to see land uses finalised so that families could buy a lifestyle block, business could have a designated commercial location and farmers looking to downsize and pass land on to their children and hold on to a small holding could be assisted.
Just a couple of weeks after being elected the LEP was priority number one on the expensive weekend retreat at rate payers expense in October 2012 to the Sutherland Shire. Soon after a $100,000 grant was thrown at the project with the hope that a result could be found to see land uses finalised in the Harden Shire area. In the 3 years and 6 months since that date It only made it to the draft stage before the forced amalgamation. It is now in limbo until at least October 2017, when 11 democratically elected members of Hilltops Council will have a chance to look at it. Many who will no doubt not live in the former Harden Shire area. This date will signal 5 years since it was first highlighted. Half a decade before priority one could be realised.
Hilltops Administrator Wendy Tuckerman.
Developers may be looking at the Hilltops Shire according to Tuckerman, but due to the lack of a functional LEP the former Harden Shire area will struggle to assist them too much. No doubt the former Young and Boorowa Shire areas will be rejoicing that it’s a 2 horse race and not 3 for the developer dollar until then. Tuckerman went on to say in her column that “Despite the rhetoric and misinformed opinion of a very small minority, the Hilltops Region is sparking the interest and confidence of established businesses to expand and new businesses to relocate to the region.” The Blantrye Farms Piggerry may be lost to the district and end up in another Shire. How is that for interest in the Hilltops Region. For readers in Young and Boorowa, 90% of Harden residents didn’t want the merger. I nor Tuckerman can now substantiate if that number has gone up or down since.
Maybe it’s time after 6 months for surveys to be sent out to residents to gauge their opinion on the success so far of Hilltops Council, Wendy Tuckerman and General Manager Anthony McMahon. Wendy, please do so soon. The survey, however, wouldn’t get a very favourable response in my household based on recent dealings with Hilltops Council. My partner and I subdivided a very narrow block of land in Harden on which we currently live, approximately 200 metres long by 22 metres wide. The block should have been subdivided decades ago and could have earlier provided another family with a block to build their home on. We asked Hilltops Council for a quote to apply asphalt to an area 6 metres by 4 metres as part of the their development consent for the subdivision. 6 weeks after not receiving the quote and after further discussions with staff we rang the Young office and spoke to a staff member. A week later we received the quote. We paid the $950 fee and awaited for the work to be completed. After another 10 and a half weeks the work had not been completed. More phone calls, discussions and emails ensued, with council staff before the work was completed last week. On top of this we were charged double for the water meter to be connected to the block of land. Connection of water was another part of the development consent. Anyone in Bobbara St who has had their water connected based on the maps used at Council may have been charged double and should go and find out. The map is wrong. We are awaiting the overcharge of some $850 to be returned to the bank account.
Let’s put this in perspective. It takes around 3 months for a team of builders to complete a 3 bedroom brick home from start to finish. It took myself and my partner 4 months to get a small area of driveway, 6 by 4 metres covered in asphalt by Hilltops Council. This work is called private works and actually provides an income for the Council. It is regarded as ‘cream’ for the coffers. There are 3 possible outcomes as far as I’m concerned. Hilltops Council is either suffering from (A) lack of resources and staff, (B) lack of funding or (C) incompetence. I doubt you will hear too much negativity from Administrator Tuckerman, it’s not in the job description for her role. However, the buck stops with both her and the General Manager Anthony McMahon who is collecting $272,000 per annum.
Are we as ratepayers getting value for money here?
Harden’s highest paid unelected Local Government official is Chris Manchester. Manchester was a Councillor, Deputy Mayor and Mayor for over 30 years. He currently receives $46,890 from membership of two committees and the position of chair for both. Manchester’s position on the local advisory board compiled by Administrator Wendy Tuckerman sees him receive $11,010. Additonally he receives another $11,010 to hold the position of Chairperson on the same committee, overseeing the other 5 members from Harden. In addition to this Manchester has been a board member of Goldenfields County Council for many years. He currently receives $9,410 for his position on the board and an additional $15,460 to be the Chair. Goldenfields Water meet 6 times a year. The total of $46,890 is staggering in that the median wage of adults in the local government area of Harden is $36,767 (based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data from 2013) This means Manchester receives $4,145 for each meeting attended at the Temora office. The same figure if he is absent. Travel to and from the office can also be claimed along with food and drink expenses. For arguments sake if the meeting took two hours, it’s a pretty tidy sum of $2072.50 an hour.
Former Harden Shire Mayor Chris Manchester.
When we were told Harden Shire wasn’t fit for the future and needed to be merged, residents expected that efficiencies would be found and savings would be made. What we have found is that bureaucrats are being paid large sums of money to sit on boards or chair boards. The proof is in the pudding and Christmas is coming soon! What amazing achievements can Hilltops Council lay claim to in the last 6 months? It’s bad enough that a rate paying resident has to wait such a long time for such minor works to be completed. How long will a developer or business person wait if they are to be treated so shabbily. It’s easy for Tuckerman to say the following as she did in her column last week. “Let’s turn our heads to the front and together we can build a region that enables opportunity, diversity and prosperity.” I wonder if that statement will help the next person who may be overcharged and looking to have private works done in a timely fashion. That is the reality. Then the most amusing comment from Tuckerman “Like it or not the merger is here to stay and it will be what we make it; nothing will be achieved through continued negativity.”
Tuckerman should spend less time getting her photo taken and raising her profile and more time sorting the merger out. As far as I can see it’s a quagmire of a mess. The people of Orange proved that the people have the power and will use it when they have to. (All figures quoted are from publicly available documents.) Winston Churchill said, “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.”
