Ellis voting recommendations 2024

Peter Perkins, Ellis ward Councillor since 2010 is standing – again, and we support his re-election – again.

He has proven over many years his commitment to the Diamond Creek community by working for a long list of community services. Life member of Diamond Creek Fire Brigade. If you’re in Ellis ward you’ll know more about that than we do.

Authorized by D Macrae 61 Oxley Road Kangaroo Ground

Nillumbik’s new council..

Nillumbik’s new council..

Nillumbik’s new council..

The results are well and truly in, and they’re mostly good news. The majority anti-regulation, pro-development voting bloc is no longer, so we stand a chance that the new council will do justice to our green wedge shire.

In Sugarloaf, vacated by PALS-supported Jane Ashton, our recommendation was to choose between Ben Ramcharan and Don Vincent, both candidates with strong green wedge credentials. Ben prevailed by a significant margin, getting 28.8% of first preference votes, well ahead of the next candidate, PALS-supported Narelle Campbell, who attracted half as many.

In Wingrove, the central Eltham ward vacated by faction heavy Peter Clarke, our choice Geoff Paine comfortably outpolled Clarke’s would-be successor, David Mulholland, after preferences.

In Edendale, held by John Dumaresq, we recommended you vote for ether John or Natalie Duffy. Natalie prevailed over John, with daylight next. We welcome Natalie, from whom we expect a great contribution, but we commiserate with John, who has consistently stood up for good governance in the face of the successive outrages of the outgoing council.

Eltham-Research ward Swipers Gully had been held by Clarke follower Bruce Ranken until he resigned recently, having left the Shire. Our choice turned out to be the community’s choice: Francis Eyre won decisively.

A good result in Ellis, the ward centred on Diamond Creek, apparently never in doubt. Only three candidates – compared with sixteen (!) in Sugarloaf – and  won on first preferences by incumbent Peter Perkins. Having fought the many unfortunate efforts of the previous council, he could be ready to play an important positive role in the new one.

In the other big rural ward, Bunjil, we would have liked Steve Mullins or Sarah Hunter to win, but PALS founder Karen Egan scraped home by  24 votes, after preferences – not much of an endorsement after two years as Mayor. As a member of the Clarke faction in the outgoing council Egan was a significant part of the green wedge problem, but will face a different situation without her voting bloc.

And unfortunately, incumbent Grant Brooker failed in Yarrambat ward Blue Lake – a casualty of the preferential voting system. As we explained previously, the preferential voting system when applied to single councillor wards almost requires serious candidates to find ‘running mates’ who will collect votes and pass on their preferences. Grant elected not to play this game, and despite 31% of the ward putting him first, with almost twice as many votes as any other candidate, he did not prevail. The new Councillor for Blue Lake is Richard Stockman. He made no mention of the green wedge in campaigning that we know of, so time will tell. We offer tentative good wishes!

Overall, a very successful campaign, resulting in the removal of a distinct problem flavour from the Nillumbik Council. But the challenge facing the new Council is complex. The outgoing Council engineered wholesale turnover of staff, including the CEO and all experienced planning staff, and surely  created a pro-development, anti-environment context for the new people to operate in. To establish a new direction and professional standards in the organization will require a coherent approach.

Nillumbik Council: our voting recommendations

Ballot packs will be mailed out from today, October 6, so should arrive in your letterbox within a week or so. Voting is compulsory, and you have until before last mail collection on Friday October 23 to post your completed ballot

The 2016 Council has been ruled by a voting bloc of four, led by Peter Clarke, Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Wingrove councillor. He was supported by Bruce Ranken of Swipers Gully and two anti-green wedge regulation councillors, current Mayor Egan of Bunjil ward and Sugarloaf’s Jane Ashton. As we have documented at some length, this group have been responsible for consistent attempts to subvert or weaken the planning scheme, wasteful expenditure and the decimation of the council organization.

Three of this bloc are not standing for re-election: Peter Clarke is standing for the Melbourne City Council, Bruce Ranken no longer lives in Nillumbik and Jane Ashton has decided she has done enough. But replacements who would continue their damaging, pro-development, anti-regulation path are on offer. The new Council will be faced with a significant restoration task. This is our opportunity to get our Shire back on track, to elect councillors who will be up to the task.

We have used our best endeavours to identify those candidates who would be most likely to contribute to the good governance of our Green Wedge Shire, and in some cases those to beware.

We included one or more ‘how to vote’ cards for each ward, so follow one of those unless you have additional relevant information. Your ballot paper will indicate your ward. Click on its link below to see our recommendation:

Blue Lake voting recommendations

We recommend that you vote to re-elect Cr Grant Brooker.

Routinely outvoted by the Clarke faction,  Grant has established himself as an independent with a good grasp of the issues affecting his ward and the Shire. He was an incisive critic of the weak green wedge management plan rammed through by the majority clique, and recently accurately identified the problems with a 150 seat restaurant proposed for the green wedge in Yarrambat.

Twenty three years a Blue Lake resident. Grant was a founding member of Friends of Apollo Parkways Inc 2007.This community group has worked effectively to retain open space in the Civic Drive Precinct & avoid spending $18 million on a replacement Shire Office in Eltham. We are confident he will make a valuable contribution to the next Council.

We  recommend that you do NOT choose Richard Stockman or Peter Griffiths. We believe these candidates would be likely to undermine good governance and good planning outcomes. We think that they are likely to work to continue down the same disastrous path as the present Council.

Bunjil voting recommendations

The whole Shire has suffered for the last four years under Mayors Clarke and Egan, both members of the dominant four member clique on Council. Current Bunjil councillor, Mayor Karen Egan demonstrated scant knowledge of the planning scheme with her involvement in failed attempts to wave through inappropriate developments in the green wedge, and also in her inept handling of the fill dumping issue in Doreen.

To get the Shire back on track, we recommend that you choose one of these  candidates:

Sarah Hunter
As a landholder directly affected by the Chapel Lane fill dumping disaster, Sarah aims to work for the return of transparency and good governance to the council, as well as for the restoration of a strong and impartial professional organization. With a background in urban design and a history of community involvement, Sarah is committed to protecting the green wedge and to ensuring that council projects reflect community needs. She is currently President of Arthurs Creek District Landcare Group and was on the Nillumbik Environment Advisory Committee from 2013-2016.

Steve Mullins
Steve lives and works in Cottles Bridge, running a small manufacturing business. Prior to that he spent decades in management, overseeing grant expenditure and working with organizations to improve governance. He believes that the current Council’s spending on external consultants is excessive, and was critical of the wasteful expenditure on the un-necessary and weak green wedge management plan. He believes in a community led Council, and wants to  foster community through sporting clubs and volunteer groups.

 We recommend that you do NOT vote for Karen Egan:
Self proclaimed founder  of the PALS lobby group, whose central value is that only residents lucky enough to live in Green Wedge zones should have a say on land management. In reality all citizens of Nillumbik and Melbourne are green wedge stakeholders.

Choose your how to vote card:

Edendale voting recommendations

John Dumaresq, the current Edendale councillor, is standing for re-election. He has consistently voted to support the protection of the green wedge in the face of the threat from the Council majority. Strongly community focussed, as a councillor he has helped to deliver many community projects, and he says he wants to see more to completion. WedgeTales recommends that you choose John, or

Natalie Duffy: Says she was motivated to run for council by the lack of transparency, poor decision making and wasteful spending of the current Council. A local since 2008, Natalie has been actively involved in fund raising for community projects and campaigns to keep community assets like Edendale Farm and the  Eltham War Memorial Complex in community hands. She will prioritize green wedge protection.

We recommend that you do NOT vote for Colin Hall or Meralyn Klein. Hall is the PALS-supported candidate, and was one of the authors of the Community Panel’s  ‘Minority Report’, which was essentially an anti-green wedge regulation manifesto. He is currently suggesting that the Nillumbik Shire should be ‘dismantled’, reminiscent of the failed Clarke proposal in 2019 to merge Nillumbik with Banyule.

We understand that previously Klein has pushed for eating into the green wedge near Yarramabat by rezoning from Rural Conservation Zone to residential.

Ellis voting recommendations

Peter Perkins, Ellis ward Councillor since 2010 is standing again, and we support his re-election. He has proven over many years his commitment to the Diamond Creek community by working for a long list of community services. If you’re in Ellis ward you’ll know more about that than we do. Lots of stuff listed in his candidate statement. He says his to do list is still full, and that his commitment to maintain and enhance the neighbourhood character continues.

He has been insightful and conscientious in calling out the problems created by the Clarke faction in the current council, including the weak green wedge management plan, and particularly the damage done to the council organization.

Life member of Diamond Creek Fire Brigade.  Mayor 2012-2013. Emergency Management Committee Chair.

Sugarloaf voting recommendations

One of the two predominantly rural wards, Sugarloaf is currently held by PALS-aligned Cr Jane Ashton, who is not standing for re-election. We recommend

Don Vincent: a fresh face with decades of infrastructure management experience, private and public, international and local. Don stands for preserving the green wedge and the rural character of the Shire, for sound financial management and for addressing bushfire risk. Member/Volunteer with Friends of Warrandyte State Park.

Ben Ramcharan: a strong advocate for the protection of our green wedge and the environment. Committed to protecting the local character of Nillumbik from inappropriate development. Other priorities are road safety for both people and wildlife, and local action on climate change. Member of local groups including Warrandyte Community Association, Nillumbik Greens and Nillumbik Climate Emergency Action Team.

We recommend you do not vote for Narelle Campbell, Janet Holmes or Damien Crock. We believe these candidates are likely to work to undermine the planning controls which protect the green wedge from inappropriate development and subdivision.

Choose your how to vote card:

Swipers Gully voting recommendations

Until he resigned his position recently the Swipers Gully councillor was Bruce Ranken, a faithful member of the dominant and damaging Clarke faction on the present Council. To correct course our recommendation is that you vote for

Frances Eyre

She says her focus as a councillor would be on connecting with the community. Has worked in the community for 25 years, including working for Nillumbik Council in community development. Has lived in Swipers Gully for 11 years. She wants to re-activate ward meetings, and has a long wish list of actions she would advocate for as a member of the next council.

She thinks that the Nillumbik Planning Scheme should be strengthened to protect neighbourhood character from inappropriate development. She would like to see targeted environmental education programs and community-based solar generation.

Her focus is local, but we have discussed green wedge issues with her and we are confident she will support its protection.

 

Wingrove voting recommendations

As Mayor during the first part of the current Council’s term, Wingrove councillor Peter Clarke was the principal architect of a range of damaging strategies. Clarke is not standing for re-election, having decided to throw his hat into the bigger ring of the Melbourne City Council, but we need to ensure that his style of politics does not continue. We recommend that you vote for..

Geoff Paine. A first time candidate but a long term resident of Eltham, says he is standing to contribute to the restoration of transparency and good governance of Nillumbik. He is for improving the urban amenity of Eltham, not selling off community open spaces and not making wholesale changes to the zoning. He recognizes that the green wedge needs active protection in the face of the threat from the political and property interests which have held sway on Council for the past four years.

We recommend that you do not vote for David Mulholland.
He was a losing candidate for the Federal seat of Jaga Jaga in 2016 and has now shifted his focus to Nillumbik, having recently moved to Eltham, where he’s a close neighbour of the retiring Deputy Mayor Clarke. As yet he has no roots in Eltham and is possibly just using the council as a stepping stone in a political career. We believe he is the no change candidate.

One shire, seventy nine candidates..

Council elections are coming up. Ballots will be posted out all over the State from October 6, and votes must be put in the mail by October 23. Candidate nominations are complete, and while there are regions in the State with electorates with zero nominations, that is very far from the case in Nillumbik. There are seven single member wards in the Shire, and a total of seventy nine candidates have nominated:

Ward Candidates
Ellis 3
Blue Lake 8
Edendale 10
Swipers Gully 11
Bunjil 13
Sugarloaf 16
Wingrove 18

 

Voting is preferential, and all candidates must be ranked. Or all candidates but the last one, since the missing number may be inferred. A large number of candidates historically has resulted in a high informal vote, due in part to errors in entering the sequence. Informal votes in Bunjil, Sugarloaf and Wingrove are expected to be in the vicinity of 10%.

The reason for the high number of candidates is not that so many people wish to serve as councillors. It is that the voting system employed encourages ‘running mates’, candidates who are not serious about winning, but who aim to direct preferences to a lead candidate.

Unfortunately we tend not to be well informed about the choice before us at council election time. In part this is because of the decline of local newspapers, so regular reporting is scarce. It is also because in the relative absence of party politics we don’t have the option of voting for a preferred political party. And in this time of lockdown candidates are not allowed to doorknock, and public events are impossible.

So we are confronted with the task of ranking individuals about whom we may know no more than what we can glean from the 300 word statements that are mailed to us with the ballot paper.

A perennial favourite in candidate statements is a promise to keep rates low. This sounds attractive, but is largely meaningless. Rate increases are capped by the State, at present to 2% per year – for the average property, that’s $40, one cheap coffee per month. Sound financial management is imperative, but the key issue is well-directed expenditure and competent debt management, not empty promises.

Any candidate without horns will gain a few votes. Most and probably all candidates will have a how to vote card, in which they indicate how they wish our preferences to be allocated. A genuine candidate who can organize a number of friends or supporters to be candidates will benefit from their preferences. What this means, unfortunately, is that to be successful a candidate must have running mates, which leads to the situation we see, in which most of Nillumbik’s seventy nine candidates are running mates.

This is not a satisfactory situation but we seem to be stuck with it. The Victorian Electoral Commission conducts an electoral review every twelve years, and a review was conducted last year. The  issues it addresses are the total number of councillors and the electoral structure of the Shire. More than half of the public submissions were in favour of either an undivided Shire or a multi-member ward structure. This would have introduced proportional representation, which most saw as an improvement, but the VEC opted to stay with the single member ward structure anyway. It is not within the review’s terms of reference to consider a change to the preferential voting system. Result: in this election we must cope with eighteen candidates in the central Eltham ward of Wingrove, and sixteen in rural Sugarloaf.

Regular high profile scandals indicate the danger of various degrees and flavours of corruption in local government, always connected with the lure of potential profits from the relaxation or bypassing of planning controls. It can be impossible to discern the motivation of a candidate about whom we have no prior knowledge. And there may be significant differences in candidates’ visions for the Shire, and these too can be hidden in candidate statements and marketing designed to be all things to all men – and women.

So our voting choice is important. We are finalizing our candidate review, and will be publishing our recommendations at the weekend.