Majority of councillors express no confidence in Onkaparinga Council mayor Lorraine Rosenberg at special meeting

A PACKED gallery witnessed controversial Onkaparinga Council mayor Lorraine Rosenberg losing the confidence of councillors present at a special council meeting on Tuesday night. She won’t step down despite the vote.

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ONKAPARINGA councillors have lost faith in their Mayor Lorraine Rosenberg, saying they have no confidence in her leadership abilities in the wake of controversy surrounding her council.

At a special council meeting on Tuesday night — in front of a packed gallery — nine out of 14 councillors present said they had no confidence in her.

The councillors said she lacked transparency, was not inspiring, had divided the council and the chamber had become an “unpleasant” place to do business.

The decision does not mean Ms Rosenberg has to step down.

She issued a statement after the meeting, saying: “I am disappointed that the majority of those present were prepared to pass a motion in no confidence of me.

“However, that disappointment aside, I will continue to do my job and role as mayor to represent the people who elected me — the ratepayers.”

Councillor Robyn Holtham, who called the meeting, said the public had lost confidence in its leader, and the council needed to get back to doing its core job — representing its ratepayers.

She said some of Ms Rosenberg’s behaviour could be considered “bullying” and “intimidating”.

Onkaparinga mayor Lorraine Rosenberg … nine out of 14 councillors present at Tuesday’s meeting said they had no confidence in her.

Councillor Sandra Brown said a leader should be inspirational, and not dividing.

“When the tough gets going, those people look to you and will follow,” Cr Brown said.

“A leader promotes people to grow and give, and I do not think that has happened in this chamber”.

Councillor Don Chapman said the council, with the mayor at the helm, had become comical across South Australia.

“This is how the biggest council, which lots of small councils once looked up to, has now become a joke,” he said.

Two back-to-back special meetings were held last night to express confidence in Onkaparinga chief executive Mark Dowd and his “leadership team”, followed by a vote of no-confidence in Ms Rosenberg.

Both Ms Rosenberg and Mr Dowd have come under fire from councillors and residents in the past year following a number of controversial issues, which started with the council paying Mr Dowd’s $6818 fee to join Kooyonga Golf Club.

Onkaparinga chief executive Mark Dowd.

There was no decision on the motion against Mr Dowd at Tuesday’s meeting.

The State Ombudsman is also investigating the council’s credit card spending.

Councillor Heidi Greaves disagreed with the no-confidence vote, and said Ms Rosenberg had fulfilled her duties.

“She is doing a pretty damn good job … and shame on every one of you (who have made nasty statements),” Cr Greaves said.

“We need to be adults and represent our community, have each other’s backs, although at sometimes we might not agree.”

Councillor Hazel Wainwright said she was “appalled” by some of the debate, comparing the chamber to a schoolyard.

“Lorraine is a tough character and deserves our respect,” Cr Wainwright said.

Last Thursday, councillors Heidi Greaves, John Gunn and Gary Hennessy called a special meeting asking elected members to show their confidence in Mr Dowd and Ms Rosenberg, however, that meeting failed to get a quorum and was rescheduled to Tuesday night.

That meeting was just half an hour before a special meeting called by Cr Holtham, with support from councillors Bill Jamieson, Jonathon Deakin and Peter Schulze, that asked elected members to decide on a vote of no confidence in Ms Rosenberg.

Tuesday night’s meeting was the culmination of more than a year of controversy that has threatened to engulf Onkaparinga Council.

In February 2017, The Advertiser revealed the council used ratepayers’ money to pay for Mr Dowd’s $6800 joining fee to Kooyonga Golf Club in Lockleys.

The council initially defended Mr Dowd’s golf club membership, saying it was part of a wider strategy to attract Chinese investor to Adelaide’s southern suburbs.

Mr Dowd later repaid the membership fee after a backlash from residents.

The council has also faced public scrutiny over its staff credit card spending, which has included an Apple watch for Mr Dowd, overnight accommodation in city hotels after functions and an Adelaide Oval rooftop climb.

The SA Ombudsman last month revealed he had been examining the council’s credit card spending since September 2017 as part of an ongoing investigation.