Sensational-Adelaide.com

Will a change of mayor really change anything about the Adelaide City Council?

From: The Advertiser November 16, 2010 12:01AM

?THERE'S a new Lord Mayor in town but he will need to bring 11 councillors with him if he wants to be able to deliver his vision.

WINDS of conciliation are blowing through Adelaide Town Hall as the historic election of the state's youngest Lord Mayor sparks hope the City Council will move beyond a culture of conservatism.

Lord Mayor-elect Stephen Yarwood has pledged to pursue a progressive agenda of taller buildings, more bike lanes and cooperation with the State Government to deliver major building projects including Adelaide Oval and Victoria Square. However, he will be forced to walk a tightrope between being conciliator and leader as he deals with a new-look council expected to be collectively less progressive than he is personally.

After being elected as a councillor in 2007, Mr Yarwood proved himself a prolific user of social media and became the first City Council member to go paperless when he began conducting all official business through a tablet computer.


He also advocated changes to planning laws to allow construction of an "iconic" 70-storey building and called for expansion of the council's solar power and wifi network schemes.

Now Mr Yarwood will carry the burden of expectation and responsibility of his new office and need to be the leader of a disparate group of individuals he has no direct power to control.

As officials continue counting the 6300 votes cast in the City Council election, new faces look set to claim six of the 12 seats in the chamber.

The returning councillors - Anne Moran, David Plumridge, Sue Clearihan, Sandy Wilkinson and Michael Henningsen - are well-known heritage advocates shy of allowing developers more freedom.

They have large residential votes and claim pockets in North Adelaide and the city's south as their political heartland.

The City Council has extraordinary powers over the parklands and can single-handedly block the Adelaide Oval rebuild. It will be a central player in shaping the city as Premier Mike Rann's pushes plans for a new Royal Adelaide Hospital and revitalisation of the Riverbank including Adelaide Oval and Convention Centre redevelopment.

Mr Yarwood has long been an advocate of growing the city's skyline and appears to be shaping as a key ally as Premier Mike Rann seeks to rapidly boost Adelaide's population. But the perpetual frustration for mayors is that they have high profiles but minimal power.

Mayors are unable to introduce new initiatives on the floor of the council and can only vote in the case of a deadlock.

This means the returning councillors alone could form a bloc and stymie plans to liberalise planning regulations if they wished. The five new councillors, some elected on as few as 280 primary votes, could also band together to fight against Mr Yarwood's expansive vision.

Mr Yarwood has been open about his inability to wield the cane to get results and says he is well-aware delivering results will be more about using the carrot.

Unusually, the rhetoric from his colleagues is similarly positive and suggests achieving group decisions and pursuing reform may be more than just a pipe dream.

Mr Yarwood yesterday said Adelaide could become the "world-class city" he was pledging to deliver if the council worked together.

"It's obviously really early days and I don't want to be making promises I can't keep," he told The Advertiser. "For me it's just got to be about focusing on finding common ground between the councillors and building relationships and understanding how we can build consensus.

"Let's find the things we can agree on first. My biggest job is building teamwork within the council."

Mr Yarwood conceded there would be times when agreement was impossible but disputed suggestions he was facing gridlock with a conservative council.

"I haven't polled the councillors, but I'm optimistic that they're all balanced professionals who want to find the common ground," he said.

"That's not just rhetoric. I know all of these people, and I'm excited."

His predecessor Michael Harbison was an exceptionally successful businessman who became frustrated by how slowly the wheels of a council bureaucracy turn.

Just days after a new election, the Property Council of Australia is already calling on the Government to undertake root and branch reform of the City Council if it fails to act in the interests of greater Adelaide. Members of the previous city council privately admitted many decisions were made under a climate of uncertainty, where they constantly feared the Government would swoop in and abolish or amalgamate.

Veteran councillor Anne Moran was returned at the weekend with an increased personal vote and more support than any other candidate.

She said Mr Yarwood was the first Lord Mayor in recent memory elected without factional support and without a solid block of votes guaranteed on the floor of the chamber.

"Stephen hasn't come in with a team, but he hasn't come in with a team of enemies on the other side either," she said. "I think it's a refreshing change actually."

Ms Moran said the new council appeared more progressive than the former, but was likely to be less progressive than Mr Yarwood.

"I think it's good to have a Lord Mayor that goes out there and pushes the boundaries, and I think that's what the public wants," she said. "The council's job is to make sure it's sustainable and sensible, given it's ratepayers' money."

Returning councillor Sandy Wilkinson said there was broad support for the Riverbank development, but he would call for an equivalent return of parklands for any new building.

"I think he (Mr Yarwood) is going to have a council that has more knowledge and experience on certain matters than he himself does," Mr Wilkinson said.

"I think he'll have to learn from that and not think he knows best.

"Being more prepared to say yes to things does not necessarily mean being more progressive."

capitalist wrote: looks like, from reading that article it is going to be another do nothing council.

SRW wrote:

capitalist wrote: looks like, from reading that article it is going to be another do nothing council.

Are you really going to take the 'tiser's word for it, though? Isn't that what they would want you to think?

capitalist wrote:I am suggesting a Ward Councillor - just for a voice on the board not the whole council.

capitalist wrote:that Sandy Wilkinson sounds like a whole lot of fun

looks like, from reading that article it is going to be another do nothing council.

"I think he (Mr Yarwood) is going to have a council that has more knowledge and experience on certain matters than he himself does," Mr Wilkinson said.