Newsletter201505

May 2015 — Newsletter
From the President’s Pen Roe 8 Launch
My Fellow Residents,
After much ado in the
amalgamation exercise, it is
finally confirmed that the
amalgamation will not go
ahead. In the meantime, the
administration
and
the
commissioners are working to
review the Ward Boundaries
and Councillor Representation.
We are of the opinion that the
City will be well served with 5
wards, comprising of 2 elected
councillors per ward and an
elected
mayor
by
the
ratepayers. I hope all of you
would participate in this Review
of Ward Boundaries and
Councillor Representation. The
submission closes Thursday 7th
May 2015. Please participate.
Do not let others decide for you.
It is your council.
I must also add that, it was
indeed a very busy year for
your
committee
members,
attending various meetings,
seminars and forums regarding
your
local
council.
We
assimilate lots of information
and put forward the best option.
As winter is round the corner,
time to look at the gutters and
tie down loose items. Keep
warm.
Kind regards
Paul Ng
Council Elections in October
Canning will be electing a Council in
October at the Local Government
Elections. You will have had the
Member Up-dates on the Review of
Ward Boundaries and it is still not too
late to have your say as the process
closes on May 7th at 5:00pm. It is
said all clouds have a silver lining and
the renewed interest in Local
Government generated by the
Amalgamation process is one of these.
The Ratepayers of Canning have the
opportunity to elect a new Council and
build on the restructuring created as a
result of the Kendall Inquiry. It is
important we all participate in these
Elections as voter turnout is often quite
low. Encourage potential candidates to
stand and ask about their vision for the
future. Together, we can make
Canning strong again.
In December ,a number of RRSRA Members attended
the announcement by the Premier, the Hon Colin
Barnett, along with the Federal Minister for Finance
(Mathias Cormann) and the State Minister for
Transport (Dean Nalder), of the start date for Roe
Highway completion as part of Perth Freight Link. This
construction will be one of WA’s largest road
infrastructure projects.
The State is contributing $650Million to add to the
$925M announced in the last Federal Budget making
the total budget for
this project $1.575
billion. Construction
will start early in
March 2016 and
should be complete
by mid-2019 with
some
of
the
construction
notably the keenly
awaited
Roe
Highway
extension - due to
open by mid-2017.
FAQ’s About The Ward and Councillor Review
Q: Why is this Review being rushed through now?
A: State Law requires a Review every 8 years and this process was begun in 2009 and
then reactivated in late 2012. The Local Government Reform proposals, which saw
Canning being joined to a number of other Councils, meant it was not needed. The
stopping of reforms gave a very short time to do the required review and the
Commissioners were able to ask for and get an extension.
Q: Why can’t the number of Wards and Councillors stay as they are and the new
Council sort it out in October?
A: There are a number of reasons. Firstly, are the legal requirements as already
explained. Secondly, Nicholson Ward (Canning Vale area) has only 1 Councillor for the
same number of Electors as other Wards who have 3 Councillors. This is very unfair.
Thirdly, the RRSRA believes that asking 51 000+ Ratepayers is more democratic than 9 or
11 people who may well have a conflict of interest. It is also quite an expensive process.
Let’s set it up properly the first time and pay once rather than in 12 months time doing it all
again. If Canning grows in line with the predictions we may need to adjust boundaries
slightly but this already happens. For example, there was a minor adjustment to Beeliar’s
boundaries a while back but most didn’t notice. The next major Review would be in 2023.
Q: Will we still vote for the Mayor?
A: Yes we will. Approximately half of Perth Councils have a Mayor elected directly by the
Ratepayers. The others elect their Mayor from the Councillors. There are positives to both.
However Canning’s Mayor will be elected by the people at the October 2015 Elections.
The topic as to how we elect our Mayor was included so it could be part of the discussion.
Q:There is a 4 Ward Option in the Discussion Paper – isn’t that the same?
A: No it isn’t. While the number of Wards is the same, the boundaries are very different.
We would be in a long thin Ward that ‘snakes’ it way across most of the City and probably
wouldn’t meet some of the requirements for Ward boundaries.
Q; Does the RRSRA have a recommended position?
A: Yes we do. Your Association is recommending the Option of 5 Wards with 2
Councillors in each, plus an Elected Mayor. Canning has been though tough times and
new smaller wards would allow the new Councillors to know the area and build
relationships with its Ratepayers / Residents. This new arrangement and new
representation would allow for the healing to begin in an environment that brings
Communities together. We should also remember that while we have 50 000+ Electors,
Canning is a City of 100 000+ People so the workload for Councillors may be significant.
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RIVERTON ROSSMOYNE & SHELLEY RESIDENTS’ ASSOCIATION (INC)
Email: info@rrsra.org.au
Web: www.rrsra.org.au
PO Box 2034 ROSSMOYNE
6148
Riverton Rossmoyne & Shelley Residents' Association—May 2015 -Page
Foreshore Trail nears Completion
Many
RRSRA
Members
are part of
Dolphin
Watch
and River Guardians,
but did you know
about ‘The Friends’?
‘Friends of River Guardians’ are Perth
riverside businesses that help support the
River Guardians program by providing
discounts on goods and services for River
Guardians members.
To join River Guardians, go to
www.riverguardians.com .
It’s a winner all round. To take advantage
of the great special offers all you need to
do is show the Friends your current River
Guardians membership card. Enjoy!
natural
history
of
Dyarlgarro [Canning
River].
City
of
Canning Consultant,
Susan Harris, from
EcoMedia, has worked
on
the
project
accessing some of
Perth's best heritage
minds and creators for
many years. Hundreds interested in history and the environment,
including local residents, volunteered their advice, research and
observations. Susan was particularly grateful to RRSRA for their
trust and support of such a large project with its many and diverse
stakeholders. (Photos courtesy of Susan Harris)
Looking Back
The City of Canning’s Wadjup-Gabbilju foreshore walk found its
feet stylishly on the walls of the Shelley Beach Park ablution block
in
February
this
year. The rest of the
walk's
suite
of
interpretative signs is
currently
being
installed along the
foreshore. Most of
the signs give sitespecific detail on
heritage
subjects
such as the Convict
Fence
and
the
Committee Member Robert Morgan has
been backing up our Association Records
to an electronic format, so we thought you
might be interested in a few snippets from
our past.
The 1992 AGM was a busy one. The
Mayor, Dr Mick Lekias was Guest Speaker and the agenda included the change of
name from ’Canning River Ward Ratepayers’
Association’
to
Riverton,
Rossmoyne & Shelley Ratepayers’ Association. This was brought about by the
changes to Ward Boundaries within the
City of Canning, the creation of Beeliar
Ward and the formation of the Willetton
Ratepayers’ Association.
As well as, the AGM set up a Works SubCommittee to assist Members with joint
contracts in the then forthcoming sewerage connections.
CONGRATULATIONS
Progress at Tribute Street
At long last the barren waste of the old Service Station Site could be a
thing of the past.
The City of Canning is proposing to sell the site and Residents close to
Monota Avenue and along Tribute street for a 200m radius received
letters about the proposal and had the opportunity to put forward their
views.
Several Residents contacted the city to ask questions and respond.
Local businesses are important to communities.
There’s an old saying – “use it or lose it”.
While we all understood the commercial reasons for the closure of the
service station, it’s loss was still keenly felt.
ROSSMOYNE NETBALL CLUB CELEBRATIED
Their 40TH ANNIVERSARY on SUNDAY 29
MARCH 2015 AT THE NETBALL COURTS SHELLEY RESERVE
The Rossmoyne Netball Club held a 40th anniversary function (afternoon tea and a sausage
sizzle) at the Reserve, which was attended by
the Committee, Players, Coaches and past
Members.
Also in attendance was the original Patron
Clive Griffiths (from 1977) and Mrs Norma Griffiths and the inaugural President, Molly
Rodgers.
Clive presented jackets to the club’s milestone achievers (200 games or more).
The Club President is Lana Glogowski .