Thursday, 20 June 2024

Merri-bek City Council

Anthony CIANFLONE (Pascoe Vale) (17:21): (728) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Local Government. What mechanisms and avenues are available to the residents of Pascoe Vale, Coburg and Brunswick West that ensure Merri-bek city councillors are doing their jobs and making decisions in the best interests of our local community? Merri-bek council, formerly Moreland council, has undertaken commendable work since its creation in 1994 through the provision of community, early childhood, maternal health, library, youth, aged care and many other services. However, it saddens me greatly to report that since being elected I have continued to be inundated with concerns about Merri-bek’s directions, priorities, governance and culture under the current Greens, Socialist and radical independent led council. In airing these grievances, however, I want to make it clear that these issues rest squarely on the shoulders of the elected mayor and councillors, not the hardworking council staff.

As outlined in section 8 of the Victorian Local Government Act 2020:

The role of a Council is to provide good governance in its municipal district for the benefit and wellbeing of the municipal community.

Yet under the current council, the fact is Merri-bek has been progressively letting down local residents, community organisations and businesses, who regularly tell me that as rates have gone up, so too have concerns around the quality of council’s responsiveness and eagerness to address local issues. In this respect I draw the Parliament’s attention to a number of absurd suggestions and decisions by Merri-bek that have caused major local concerns, including spending millions of ratepayer dollars acquiring land in central Coburg to just land-bank and let it sit there; considering doubling council rates on properties that accommodate businesses, families and renters to supposedly improve housing supply, whilst the Greens sit there and regularly vote against housing projects like the state’s Harvest Square big build project in Brunswick West; and campaigning against the Level Crossing Removal Project on the Upfield line in Coburg. If the Greens had their way, there would still be gridlock at Moreland Road and Bell Street. They refuse to listen to the overwhelming calls by local residents in Pascoe Vale to redesign the Kent Road corridor. They did not consult with the St Bernard’s parish and school community on the Barrow Street road closure proposal. In an absurd motion recently, a councillor sought to cut ties with Victoria Police whilst explicitly – get this – calling on police protection for their buildings and meetings. Despite the desperate need for women’s sporting facilities, the council did not apply for a single state government infrastructure grant in 2022–23 or 2023–24 in my electorate. They happily identified the need for more indoor basketball courts some years ago, but they have not built any – whilst we have been getting on and delivering as a state government by building some at local schools.

They mismanaged waste services in 2022 and 2023, leaving many locals with uncollected bins for days on end each week. They regularly fail to rectify many local neighbourhood issues, including the landslide that occurred at the corner of Reynard Street and Mitchell Parade in September 2022 and the landslide at Greenbank Crescent in April 2023, both of which are yet to be rectified, with council’s latest advice suggesting they will be repaired in six to 12 months time. That is around two years after the original incidents occurred. How is that good governance?

Residents have told me they expect council to be focused on bringing people together to address these and many other local issues before council seeks to engage on issues of international, national and indeed state significance. But they also paint a picture as to why Merri-bek has sadly, on a yearly basis since 2016, recorded some of the lowest local government community satisfaction survey results across Victoria. Local households and families expect the mayor and councillors of Merri-bek to focus on core business.