Marion Council mayor Kris Hanna wants to poach 20,000 Onkaparinga Council residents
A southern council mayor wants to change its boundaries to poach 20,000 ratepayers from his biggest neighbour.
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Marion Council may attempt to poach 20,000 Onkaparinga residents by shifting its southern boundary.
Marion Mayor Kris Hanna will introduce a motion at next week’s council meeting to begin the process of expanding Marion’s footprint to include the suburbs of Happy Valley, Aberfoyle Park, Flagstaff Hill and O’Halloran Hill.
Darlington, excluding the area east of Flagstaff Rd, north of Bonneyview Rd and northwest of the Flagstaff Hill open space zone, would also be included.
Mr Hanna said there was anecdotal evidence that many residents in the affected suburbs felt a greater connection to Marion, where they shopped and enjoyed community facilities, rather than Onkaparinga.
If his motion is successful, the council will write to Onkaparinga Council giving notice of its intention to submit a proposal to the Local Government Boundaries Commission.
Council staff will also prepare a report analysing the impact of incorporating thousands of extra residents into Marion and determining the cost of community consultation.
According to latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Marion Council has an estimated 92,308 residents while Onkaparinga has 171,489.
The rates bill for a house in Marion valued at $435,000 – the district’s median – was about $1490 for 2018/19.
In Onkaparinga, the rates bill for a $349,358 property – the district’s median house price – was $1539 for the same period.
Onkaparinga Council has also been discussing boundary reform.
Mayor Erin Thompson said she had no objections to looking at boundary changes provided “the rationale behind the change is appropriate and balanced”.
“At this stage there are some areas in which a boundary change might make sense, such as Sigma Rd in Lonsdale and a section of Darlington, where there are some potential opportunities,” Ms Thompson said.
“We welcome any discussion if it results in a better outcome for our residents, but there’s still a lot of work to do to determine the appropriateness of any changes.”
Last month, Onkaparinga councillors requested staff prepare a report evaluating the potential impacts and cost of reforming its boundaries.
That report is expected to come back to the council next month.
The process for reforming council boundaries was simplified in 2017 to allow requests to be initiated by one council, a prescribed percentage or number of eligible electors, or the Local Government Minister.
The Local Government Grants Commission – an independent body – will assess any proposals, conduct investigations and make recommendations to the Minister.
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