Holdfast Bay Mayor Amanda Wilson rejects call to merge with Marion Council
Holdfast Bay Mayor Amanda Wilson says another “mega council” is not what the community wants, after Marion Mayor Kris Hanna suggested the two amalgamate.
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Holdfast Bay Mayor Amanda Wilson has rejected a proposal to merge her council with Marion saying another “mega council” is not what the community wants.
Last week, Holdfast Bay decided to apply to the Boundaries Commission to begin the process of wrestling Marino and Glengowrie from Marion’s control.
In response, Marion Mayor Kris Hanna suggested the two councils amalgamate as it would be more efficient.
However, Mrs Wilson said she was listening to residents in Glengowrie and Marino who wanted to join Holdfast Bay — where they already spent most of their time — because they would pay lower rates.
“This isn’t about the financial interest of one council, or the empire building of mayors pushing for amalgamation,” Mrs Wilson said.
“It is about listening to the community and letting them work out what is in their best
interest.”
She said the owner of a median-valued home of $665,000 in Glengowrie would pay $1628 annually in rates if it was in Holdfast Bay.
This is compared to $2283 in Marion due to Holdfast Bay’s lower rate in the dollar.
Mrs Wilson said she would also not support amalgamation because bigger councils were less in touch with their community.
“No serious mayor could suggest that another mega council will provide better services, lower rates or more accountability,” she said.
“All of the problems with South Australian councils in the past few years have been due to the fact that, when they get too big, they stop listening to residents.”
Earlier this year, Marion Council began — and then scrapped — a plan to expand into Onkaparinga.
It wanted to take the suburbs of Happy Valley, Aberfoyle Park, Flagstaff Hill and O’Halloran Hill.
However, it backed out after learning it was facing a $250,000 charge for a consultant to assess the proposal and determine compensation for Onkaparinga’s assets such as footpaths, libraries and community centres.