It’s no use arguing that we shouldn’t sack all the city councillors because there’s no doubt that anyone who sat around the table for the past three years should have known what was going on and moved to put a plug in it along the way.
Those councillors who haven’t gone before the ICAC enquiry may feel they deserve to stay on and try and bring about some reform.
Not so, it’s too late, the damage has been done, and their past lack of voice and action to stem the tide makes them equally guilty as those whose names have been gracing the media of late.
What is of concern, however, and despite the fact that I have been calling for an administrator to be put in place for some time now, is that if the person is an Iemma government appointee will we really make headway?
Maybe, just maybe, we should ask for one more chance. An election in the short term for a new city council. And even then it mightn’t all be new!!!
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You could knock me down with a feather
It’s hard to believe but here we have our birthday mob the Illawarra Business Chamber – 10 years old this year – finally making a real statement about something.
Led by new chairman Les Dion they are on the record as saying our city council should be sacked for the future sake of our city and its business reputation.
And this less than a week after the Chamber, Tourism Wollongong and the Illawarra Regional Development Board formed a pact to try and get our city back on the rails.
The fact that the Chamber has emerged from a 10 year old slumber is welcome, so keep up the good work Les, for after all you have a fine record in business development and for being a doer around this city.
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Do we really need it?
I notice that our Mayor recently was quoted as supporting development on public land along the harbour foreshore, including Flagstaff Hill.
From what I am hearing around the traps there are more people out there who would prefer for this area to be left alone.
As one said to me “Flagstaff Hill is already a major beauty spot of the area and it doesn’t need its attraction clogged up by eateries and the like”.
After a drive around the area on Sunday I agree with them. Leave our hill alone, it’s just right as it stands.
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Brett heads the good and bad sports stories
Well done Brett Lee on winning the prestigious Allan Border Medal and for being judged Australian cricket’s Test Player of the Year.
It was a well deserved honour for the former Oak Flats junior.
And then there’s the saga facing one of our top basketball teams the Sydney Kings. They, too, are now fighting to stay financially viable and maintain a place in the national competition.
Seems it doesn’t matter where you are on the basketball ladder having the funds to keep going is a problem. Just ask our Hawks.
And then there’s the AFL wanting to put a team in Sydney’s west. Now I’m a fervent Aussie Rules fan, but I must admit I wrote recently to their chairman telling
him to scrap the idea and to leave the NSW promotion to the Sydney Swans.
The AFL will have us believe the code is ready for an explosion in Sydney’s west and the Gold Coast, but I’m not sure it’s really not all about extra income from television exposure.
And much closer to home we learn that Port Kembla won’t be able to field teams in first and second grade in the Illawarra Carlton League this season, and again it’s a financial problem.
What a shame for this proud club and its supporters.
Are we playing too much sport? For example, here it is early March and apart from the drawn out saga of interminable cricket matches we already have rugby union and league
going through their paces, the finals of the basketball and the AFL into pre – season mode and the A – League soccer only just finished.
Remember the days when the summer months were for cricket, tennis and bowls and footy was played in the winter? Not any more!!!
And all this hoo hah about sledging on the cricket field. What a joke. Maybe it’s our umpires we need to have a look at? After all, many of them have been around a long, long time.
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We should never have lost Steelers
Now we have a former president of the then Illawarra Steelers suggesting the club’s ongoing ties with St George are fairly wonky, to say the least.
The truth is that we should never have had to join St George if more consideration had been given at the time when Rupert Murdoch invaded rugby league.
At the time BHP had just agreed to a $500 000 sponsorship of the Steelers, and they warned the club’s management that if it joined St George the money would cease to be available forthwith.
I know this because I was involved behind the scenes in the $500 000 deal. It was at a time when many of BHP’s senior management at head office in Melbourne got a big kick out of seeing BHP Steelers on the team’s guernsey.
It was also explained to the then Steelers management that BHP felt it owed Murdoch something for his loyal support to them as a major shareholder when the late Robert Holmes a Court was trying to take hold of the company.
But, the locals knew better and decided to stick with the somewhat out – of - touch league set up of the day. The result has been a major fall off in interest in the local club
and a great loss of identity for the region.
I’m sure if more thought had been given at the time the BHP assistance might have even been extended. The opportunity to test this unfortunately slipped away.
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One we haven’t heard about
That little bird tells me that we have an independent councillor who received a $2000 donation from a local developer towards campaign funds before the last city council elections.
It seems that anything over $1000 has to be declared, and while I believe this councillor has done this, we can only wonder how many more slight breaches have taken place?
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Local Libs want more say
Local Liberal Party members want more say and will ask the organisation’s State Executive to spend more time listening to the branches and their viewpoint, particularly when it comes to local election issues and the like.
Some locals went as far at the Corrimal branch’s most recent meeting to suggest head office in Sydney had lost the plot.
It is likely the boffins based on Sydney’s north shore will be strongly reminded that they cannot ignore the branches further afield in NSW, and if they continue to do so it will be at their own peril, particularly at an election time. And by the way it’s not just Corrimal that thinks this way.
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I thought we were trying to cut costs
Fresh on the heels of the duplication of jobs being advertised by our city council in the areas of the library and public affairs – I mentioned them last week – we now have a position for a Special Project Officer – Aboriginal Policy Management.
It is seen as an exciting opportunity for someone to facilitate the identification of significant cultural heritage sites and to develop plans for their implementation.
It comes with a salary of close to $80 000, but when we add on office space and clerical support and the like is it really worthwhile?
Maybe the appointee could declare the Fowlers Road bridge extension down Dapto way as a necessary heritage development and that would make many people happy.
But in reality, sorry, I don’t think we need such an appointment.
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Wait for it
I’m told there’s likely to be another dust up involving our city council in the next week or so.
This one is purely a local issue, but it will prove to be a matter for considerable debate in our community.
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Tallawarra Rezoning
While ICAC is looking into Wollongong Council maybe it should look at the proposal for the 660 houses that TruEnergy want to build at Tallawarra.
I was told by one of the Labour party members stood down that Bob Carr sold the crown land at Tallawarra to Duke Energy a while back who onsold it to the current company. It is zoned "Wildlife reserve, special purpose Power Station".
TruEnergy have been promised that Wollongong Council will rubber stamp the rezoning application and should they refuse to do so Frank Sartor will step in and do it.
Apart from the unique flora and fauna on site there are lots of nasties such as asbestos, PCB's and oils contaminating various areas all over the site and most were not logged.
N. Hodges
Nepotism is alive and well in the Illawarra
Tony Kent? Was he the one who was going to resign from the ALP and run as an independent? Or am I getting my councillors mixed up?
Fergie | 
