Cathy Jayne Pearce preparing a comeback to the real estate industry
One-time queen of the Adelaide property market Cathy Jayne Pearce is getting back into the business that made her a millionaire. Also in today’s Off The Record — details of a Liberal takeover in the city and star recruits for Police Minister Corey Wingard.
In today’s Off The Record column — one-time queen of the Adelaide property market Cathy Jayne Pearce is getting back into the business that made her a millionaire, we reveal details of a Liberal takeover in the city and unveil the star recruits for Police Minister Corey Wingard.
Former property queen getting back to business
FORMER BRW rich-lister turned suburban mother of eight Cathy Jayne Pearce is seeking to get back into the property business that, in her heyday, fuelled a $19 million fortune.
Now known as Cathy Hogben (having taken her partner’s surname), she told Off the Record she is “actively looking for business and real estate opportunities” because she is keen to put her “property experience into further use”. She is particularly keen to ensure any business venture has a charitable aspect, citing issues such as domestic violence and homelessness.
Hogben advertised for “investor (s) or joint venture partner” in The Advertiser on July 21, pitching “real estate security with cashflow; capital; ‘add value’ opportunities with freehold and relevant licences”. This could involve “flipping strategies” with “versatile possibilities for passive investor or working party”.
“As you can imagine, any deals have a strict criteria and so far nothing has progressed to my satisfaction,” she told Off the Record.
Hogben in 2011 split from the late real estate tycoon Myles Pearce, with whom she once enjoyed A-list parties and a glamorous lifestyle.
She ended a decade of legal wrangles in 2016 when fraud charges against her were dropped in the Brisbane District Court.
Liberals take over in the city
THE stage is set for long-awaited action on important major city projects because of a rare collision of a can-do Lord Mayor and a City Council favoured by the government of the day.
Liberal insiders are delighted with the Adelaide City Council election results, because a swath of their allies were elected and unaligned new Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor is viewed as someone with whom Premier Steven Marshall can work.
Two new Liberals were elected: Franz Knoll, father of Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government Minister Stephan Knoll; and former Young Liberal president Alexander Hyde, now an electorate officer to Boothby MP Nicolle Flint, responsible for “operations and strategy”.
Former deputy lord mayor Houssam Abiad is also a former chairman of the Liberal’s state fundraising arm, Future SA, while influential veteran councillor Anne Moran runs as an independent but is considered Liberal-leaning.
Party sources consider Moran’s fellow Area Councillor Arman Abrahimzadeh a fellow traveller.
Another new councillor, Jessy Khera, is considered more conservative, having stood as part of defeated Lord Mayoral candidate Mark Hamilton’s ticket.
Asked by The Advertiser to interpret the City Council results, one senior Liberal source responded simply: “Liberal takeover”.
Labor sources did not disagree, although they said the party had been relatively uninvested in the City Council poll.
Verschoor is considered to not be aligned with either major party, although Liberals rate her as open-minded and progressive in terms of city development. “As far as getting stuff done in Adelaide, she has been music to our ears,” one Liberal said.
Verschoor swiftly declared her top priorities would be the development of the former Le Cornu site in North Adelaide and the redevelopment of the Central Market Arcade.
The council bought the O’Connell St site from tycoon Con Makris for $34 million.
Dowdy line in a risky pursuit
SCALING Mt Everest is a dangerous pursuit at the best of times, with risks including avalanches, oxygen deprivation and fierce weather.
But for Onkaparinga Council chief Mark Dowd there is another, more surprising peril. This was raised in a council response to an Advertiser story about a Chinese businessman, who wanted to build a multimillion-dollar hotel in McLaren Vale, donating to Dowd’s current charity Everest climb.
“We consider that to publish a story that publicly identifies that Mr Dowd is travelling is highly inappropriate and could potentially expose his family and property to harm,” council public relations manager Bobbie Jean Stevens said.
We’ve heard a few zingers from spin doctors over the years but this one has to be up there with the best of them.
Stevens also said Dowd was travelling in “his personal capacity” and was uncontactable. He is raising money for the Little Heroes Foundation.
Star staff
BACKGROUND checks for new staff at Police Minister Corey Wingard’s office must be a little more interesting of late.
First, former Tindall Gask Bentley senior associate Sam Hooper landed a job in September as Wingard’s police and emergency services adviser.
The interesting bit? He was “fired” by billionaire Mark Bouris during a 2009 appearance on TV show The Apprentice, yet then spent a year in Sydney working for Bouris’s Yellow Brick Road firm before becoming a lawyer.
Now former Adelaide Crow Ken McGregor has this week signed up to act, from the start of next year, as Wingard’s media adviser.
After playing 152 games for the Crows, McGregor worked as an Advertiser journalist, coached North Adelaide for a while and, most recently, has been deputy editor at the NT News.
ABC intrigue
DETAILS of ABC board member Donny Walford’s role in the September sacking of former managing director Michelle Guthrie are likely to be revealed at a looming Senate inquiry.
Walford this week was branded “a Liberal government political pick from South Australia” by Four Corners.
The ABC program said Walford was present at an August meeting, when former chairman Justin Milne told Guthrie the board had “deep concerns” about her performance and, subsequently, Walford acted as Guthrie’s executive coach.
The program said Guthrie later alleged to Walford that Milne had touched her inappropriately in a Sydney restaurant in 2017. ABC public affairs head Emma McDonald declined to comment, on Walford’s behalf.
Just because there are clowns doesn’t make it fringe
EVERYONE knows the fringe is where the action is. It’s funnier, louder, more irreverent than the main show.
That is — up until now. While the big national Labor conference is rolling into town next month, for the first time since 1979, it will also be dragging along another event known as the Labor Fringe.
And it’s well-named event. There are plenty of fringe ideas. And much like the actual fringe there’s a fair chance of some clowns and comedians turning up.
Topics to be discussed include international aid, climate change, the arts and animal welfare. The website boasts there will be 80 events, 2000 attendees and 100,000 ideas.
It includes the Let’s Rebuild Australian Aid drinks event with Senator Penny Wong, there is Labor and the Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty, at which the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons will display its Nobel Peace Prize. You don’t want to miss Ethical Artificial Intelligence, Trade Justice: The progressive alternative to both Trump and unfair trade deals or the MUA Patrick Dispute 20th Anniversary Or even New Fracking Gasfields: No solution to the energy crisis. Presumably, former state treasurer Tom Koutsantonis won’t be attending that one.
All very worthy. All very modern Labor. Although the session of What can we learn from UK Labour? is probably straightforward. Big take-out? Don’t elect Jeremy Corbyn.
Unfortunately, the best stuff is being kept for Labor members. That is the dark arts on how to campaign and how to win elections. Day two sees Inside the Black Box: Using Data to Win. Aren’t black boxes only recovered in times of disaster? Then there is No One Cares About Your Campaign hosted by marketing type Dee Madigan.
The good news is that access to all this wonderful information, outside the Black Box stuff, will only set you back $30 or $10 concession. Enjoy.