Tensions rise, legal action threatened as Richardson Reserve debate rages
A WAR of words has erupted within Tea Tree Gully Council and legal action threatened ahead of a crucial vote on a controversial offer by a German supermarket giant Kaufland to buy a public reserve.
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A WAR of words has erupted within Tea Tree Gully Council ahead of a crucial vote on a controversial offer by a German supermarket giant to buy a public reserve.
The councillor who has led a community campaign against the sale of Richardson Reserve to Kaufland has served preliminary defamation action against Mayor Kevin Knight, forcing the council to obtain legal advice.
Paul Barbaro is demanding an apology from Mr Knight over an email he sent to elected members following a council debate about whether a meeting on August 14 to decide the fate of the Kaufland proposal should be live-streamed.
Elected members voted 5-4 against streaming the meeting on YouTube after lawyers for Kaufland warned the council it could potentially face legal action if defamatory remarks made by members of the public were broadcast.
Mr Knight subsequently sent an email to the councillors in which he referred to previous issues over audio recordings sought by a former councillor, Paula Luethen, which led to several code of conduct complaints.
Ms Luethen is now the Liberal MP for King, having won the newly-formed seat at the March State Election.
In the email, Mr Knight said a recent bid by Mr Barbaro to have all meetings of the council audio recorded — followed by his unsuccessful push to have the Kaufland meeting livestreamed — was reminiscent of the issues involving Ms Luethen.
In his Notice of Concerns sent to council chief executive John Moyle, Cr Barbaro demanded an apology for comments by Mr Knight that he was “right in the thick of things” when Ms Luethen was seeking audio recordings.
Cr Barbaro and Mr Knight then publicly clashed over the email on ABC Adelaide, with Cr Barbaro again requesting an apology — which Mr Knight said he was not obligated to provide.
The legal advice obtained by the council showed Mr Knight had made no defamatory statements and he was entitled to express his views on audio recordings, including raising historical matters.
He told the NorthEastern Weekly that he was disappointed Cr Barbaro had threatened him with defamation action.
“He is trashing the reputation of Tea Tree Gully and the reputations of his colleagues who are decent, responsible people and one can only question why,” he said.