Unclear who would pay for any potential demerger
The Protect Pittwater Association (PPA) says it will push for a ‘vigorous’ campaign for the Northern Beaches Council (NBC) to demerge, following Labor’s election
Prior to the State Election, Labor had promised to allow communities ‘forced’ to merge during the term of the Liberal Government to disband. Now several regions are pursuing de-amalgamation, but it is unclear who would bear the brunt of the huge cost.
New PPA president, Simon Dunn, said there had ‘never been a more critical time to engage the community to protect Pittwater’s natural environment’.
“A change of state government presents an opportunity to hold Labor to its promise to allow communities who opposed the undemocratic forced amalgamations to…restore true local government.”
Mr Dunn is the son of former Pittwater Mayor Robert Dunn, who led the charge for the successful fight for Pittwater to secede from Warringah Council in 1992.
He says Labor’s talk of demerger plebiscites in council areas that demand it could signal that the ‘honeymoon for the oversized NBC is coming to an end’.
The PPA was formed in 2017, following Pittwater Council’s amalgamation with Warringah and Manly into the Northern Beaches Council in 2016. It has gained over 3,000 signatures on a demerger petition.
Mr Dunn said the NBC ‘lacks an appreciation of Pittwater’s distinctive natural and built environments’.
“Council is ignoring the valuable ecological and geographic richness of Pittwater, and plans (to remove over 3,000 dwellings from the protected Conservation Zone) would change the nature of Pittwater forever,” he says.
However, NBC says that the case to stay merged was more compelling, due to increased efficiency savings. “We are solidifying efficiencies and gains from merging three former councils and over a 10-year time frame, efficiency savings are estimated to be more than $160 million, far exceeding the government’s estimate of $76.3 million,” said a council spokesperson. The savings will be ‘reinvested back into the community’ through ‘improved service levels and priority infrastructure.’
It is believed Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig does not want to foot the bill for any de-amalgamations. The Inner West Council estimates a de-merger would cost $150 million over 10 years, with the NSW Boundaries Commission expected to conduct an inquiry this year.