Petrie Mill board of directors appointed as ‘Millovate’ becomes a thing
With a name like “Millovate”, there is no denying the direction Moreton Bay Council wants go when attracting new investment to the Petrie Mill site.
Moreton
Don't miss out on the headlines from Moreton. Followed categories will be added to My News.
With a name like “Millovate”, there is no denying the direction Moreton Bay Council wants go when attracting new investment to the Petrie Mill site.
By way of a competition among council staff, the two words “mill” and “innovate” became one and formed the now registered name for a beneficial enterprise that is responsible for attracting world class investors into the precinct.
Councillors vote on establishing private body to govern the Petrie mill site
Mayor says new corporate body won’t be like Ipswich
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 has appointed an inaugural board of directors for the body.
Last November, the council voted to establish the corporation in order to preserve former mayor Allan Sutherland’s vision for the site and shield it from any future attempts to sell off the land to developers.
Mr Sutherland said the mill would be a place for innovation, employment and learning, not big box retail.
“This is an opportunity to create a new Silicon Valley,” he said at the time.
The council has stated that optimal development of the site would generate almost $1 billion in economic benefit to the region, and create around 6000 new jobs.
There was, however, an acknowledged risk that optimal development of the site might never happen.
On August 5, the council appointed Millovate’s new board of directors.
They include current council CEO Greg Chemello, John Aitken, Sarah Zeljko, Toni Thornton, Patrice Sherrie, James (Jim) Walker. It will be chaired by Nigel Chamier.
Mr Chamier is the Former chairman of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation and the Commonwealth Games Infrastructure Authority.
He is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, a Fellow of the Australian Property Institute and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Mr Chamier is also an OAM and AM recipient for services to the property industry and was instrumental in the highly acclaimed $215 million restoration of Brisbane City Hall.
He has also played major roles in the development of Brisbane landmarks including the Eagle Street Pier.
One of council CEO Greg Chemello’s roles on the board was to ensure as much as possible that the board followed the council’s vision for the site.
Some concerns have been raised over the lack of transparency relating to beneficial enterprises which, while being an arm of the council, can act independently.
The council, however, would still have a say on any development applications that were brought to the table by the board of directors.
Mayor Peter Flannery said during last November’s meeting that the directors would be politically independent and that he was confident about leaving the management of the mill site to “experts in the field”.
Millovate’s directors were expected to be paid “significantly” for their positions, and it was not yet clear whether Mr Chemello would receive payment on top of his existing council CEO salary.
There are also moves afoot to realign the suburban boundaries of Petrie and Kallangur in order to move the entire mill site into Petrie.
Part of the site was currently situated in Kallangur.
The council will workshop a potential boundary change and make a submission to the Queensland Place Names Authority, should it proceed further.