Is local government capable of responding?

A leading figure in Melbourne told me of his “ineluctable insight” that consultation is kaput in this land of spinning. “We have various processes which magnify the voice of the whiners who simply oppose anything and for whom change is an anathema; allow vested interests to play merry hell with 'process' to get a great outcome for them; and allow a gutless authority - whatever it is - to slide away from stuff that is really necessary (and they know it) either because there is no willingness to hold a line on fundamentals or bow to the always negative advice from the clones in various Treasuries that something requires a dollar being spent (the rating agencies...)”.

To him this was “exemplified by the Windsor Hotel redevelopment in Melbourne, when, faced with an iconic building needing revival but a lukewarm or worse reception to the owner/developer's proposal, the planning minister's media tart was uncovered calling for a sham consultation so that the anticipated confected outrage would allow the minister to tell the developer to **** off. After the exposure of the plan, the Minister felt compelled to approve the project”.

After all, for all its other defects, the protests over the resumption of a handful of properties was enough for NSW premier Kristina Keneally to trash the Sydney 4-station $6 billion CBD Metro, in a state that is poll-averse. Also dumped was the Albanese-sponsored West Metro which he had put $111 million into. He then put over $2 billion into a rail project that was out-of-priority order, in the midst of an election campaign; with the state Opposition proposing to reverse that in favour of previously-announced (by Labor) rail extensions. People in Sydney are more than used to such shenanigans.

The University of NSW’s School of the Built Environment is probably not alone in hosting overseas students who study the decrepitude of governmental structures and functioning against international benchmarking.

Confusion reigns in various contexts, and where there is confusion, a different approach is needed.

Local government has complex politics and that is normal. What is not normal is chronic constipation and epic tribal warfare. Some things are logical but cannot be agreed; while others benefit a segment to the anger of other sections of the population. Albanese might find that local politics are as frustrating as dealing with Kristina Keneally.

Classic constipation: Bondi Beach’s water frontage is still much as it was in the 1940s whereas Manly’s has progressed.

Newcastle’s inner rail corridor remained once the goods yards had been removed and the riverfront developed as a lively precinct, even though Hunter Street West was thus denied the spending power of the new residents. The city has had the same lord mayor since 1999.

BHP announced the closure of steelmaking in 1997 which led to a recovery program, partly endorsed by the Howard government (such as a short-lived free trade zone on one parcel of land). However the politics of the place were such that the NSW Government stripped the city of its planning powers over the redevelopment zones on the river. The regional chamber of commerce called for the sacking of council.

Jump forward to 2011, the same calls are being made. The rail line is still there and the city council has borne some of the blame from stakeholders who believe that it did not adequately support the state transport minister who tried to replace the railway with a less divisive system. A major retail group pulled out of its massive redevelopment scheme. The city council has seen the departure of a fourth general manager as a result of acrimony.

Classic warfare: same issues plus greenfield residential developments on the borders of rural shires (Macarthur South in Sydney); about 20 agencies with control over Sydney Harbour; and the redevelopment of two officially-designated centres, Hurstville’s town centre (3 councils, 2 at war), and St Leonards (also 3 councils, 2 with very restrictive controls). Port Botany and Kingsford Smith Airport are both split between 2 Sydney councils; and Albanese has said that his port planning regime will ensure efficient planning of port areas. An inquiry into Sydney councils 10 years ago found that one of those councils had already frittered away its share of the port zone.

A leading Newcastle business figure who had pushed for economic reform and invested in community-led projects summarised his position last week to me: