Mayor says new corporate body governing Petrie mill site won’t be like Ipswich

Council to create a corporate style governance body over sections of the Petrie Mill site

PLANS to put Queensland’s “New Silicon Valley” into the hands of a corporate board of directors got the green light today.

Councillors voted 10-2 in favour of establishing a beneficial enterprise over sections of the Petrie Mill site that are owned by the council.

Full Digital Access: $5 per month for the first 3 months (conditions apply)

The move protects the council’s vision for the site and shields it from any future council’s efforts to sell off the land to developers.

Mayor Allan Sutherland said the mill would be a place for innovation, employment and learning, not big box retail.

At today’s council meeting he called the decision a “momentous” day.

“This is an opportunity to create a new Silicon Valley,” he said.

“This is just one of 80 of these beneficial enterprises around the state, it’s not unique and it’s not Ipswich City Council.

Artist's impression of part of the Petrie mill site, including USC Moreton Bay.

“We do not want to make the same mistakes as others have in the past.

“The Ipswich model was an absolute disaster because they didn’t get their model right.”

Ipswich council’s beneficial enterprises came under fire by the Corruption Commission Queensland as having a heightened risk of “serious corruption”.

However, the model to be adopted by Moreton Bay Council would be more akin to the successful beneficial enterprises such as at South Bank.

Development scheme map showing the five different sections of the Mill at Moreton Bay PDA.

A beneficial enterprise is effectively a corporation, operating outside of council’s immediate control, that can be established under the Local Government Act.

The council would still have a say on development applications that were brought to the table by the board of directors.

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for a council and we do not want to blow this opportunity,” Cr Mick Gillam (Div 8) said.

Cr Peter Flannery said the directors would be politically independent and that he was confident leaving the management of the mill site to “experts in the field”.

Moreton Bay Mayor Allan Sutherland at the USC Moreton Bay Commencement Ceremony on the site of the foundation building on July 4 2018. Picture: David Alexander

He added it would avoid any political interference and reiterated it would be different to the model used by Ipswich City Council.

A late amendment to the original motion was added to ensure the body’s constitution would be made public, once finalised.

This was not part of the original motion, and the council’s legal representative stated that release this information publicly could give developers an advantage over the council.

Councillors Denise Sims (Division 7) and Brook Savige (Division 1) voted against the proposal.

They both raised issues surrounding, not the actual vision for the site, but the process surrounding it this particular motion.

Deputy Premier Jackie Trad and Moreton Bay Mayor Alan Sutherland announce the former Petrie paper mill site and its surrounds as Queensland’s next Priority Development Area. Photo: Claudia Baxter

This included its timing just months out from an election, how the board’s decision would work alongside the site’s masterplan, a lack of transparency and the community not being able to have any input into the board’s decisions.

“How will the experts on the board know what the community wants?” Cr Savige asked.

Cr Sutherland replied: “They will meet with the council”.

Cr Savige also questioned what public consultation had been done in relation to this move to several councillors pointed to consultation done as part of the PDA application.

It was also stated that the directors, which would include the incoming CEO, would be paid for their positions on the board, and that high-level directors with international expertise would most likely require a significant renumeration.