Boundary review: the reason why ratepayers on the Gold Coast need another city councillor
The Gold Coast needs another city councillor to cope with the population boom, a local government review has been told.
Council
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THE Gold Coast needs another city councillor to cope with the population boom, a local government review has been told.
Several councillors support a new division being created at Coomera, east of the Pacific Motorway in the city’s north.
In his submission to the Local Government Change Commission, Councillor Cameron Caldwell provided maps showing the only other major change to boundaries would be for his Division 3 at Hope Island and Paradise Point to extend south to include Runaway Bay.
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If the new northern division is not created, it is understood all other boundaries are likely to be modified before the poll in March next year. The biggest changes would be Nerang joining Mudgeeraba and the Southport CBD split into two.
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Residents in submissions wrote that they were “absolutely disgusted” about plans to split Nerang and business leaders strongly oppose Southport being divided.
Hinterland-based councillor Peter Young told the commission: “All of the people of Nerang — and indeed Southport — have common interests, and those interests should be held as one rather than falsely divided by rivers and roads.”
A new division in the north will “substantially raise people’s perceptions that they are truly a recognised part of our city”.
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“I think this will add significantly to the better governance of the area and an improved level of community engagement and identity,” Cr Young said.
Cr Caldwell admits the extra division will need to be funded but estimates the cost for staff to only be about $350,000.
The current allocation of $750,000 to councillors for local area works could be reduced by $50,000 in each division, he said.
“It is therefore open to the council in annual budget deliberations to minimise the impact of such change,” he wrote.
Councillors Daphne McDonald and Glenn Tozer support creating a 15th division, and colleagues Pauline Young and Gail O’Neill backed Cr Caldwell’s model.
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Southport-based councillor Dawn Crichlow said the CBD was a Priority Development Area and splitting the electoral boundary would cause “operational, political and reporting concerns”.
The State Government has ordered the review because at least two divisions were now outside the quota of about 27,000 electors.
Mayor Tom Tate has previously warned his colleagues they have a conflict of interest in the redrawing of boundaries and urged them to allow council chief executive Dale Dickson to make a submission on behalf of council.
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