Council has another  riority which it will stick with irrespective of other opportunities in a way similar to the fiasco over the attempted land grab at Marong.

Council’s alternative is drawing up two master plans for the Golden Square recreation area including Bacchus Oval;   one plan that retains the swimming pool, the other that does not.   Both plans to exclude consideration of the primary school site.

Council says it’s working with “ key stakeholders” on the “key Issues”. One needs to ask who these key stakeholders are, and who will be left out, and what are the key issues?

Part of the “working” will be an online survey.  Hopefully council will reveal the outcome of this survey.  Council has a bad habit with online surveys of asking questions that give it the answers it wants, and not questions that give outcomes that the community wants.

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I also have a concern about online surveys  which exclude sections of the community and exploit vulnerabilities;  promoting inequality. There are those in our community that do not have or want the internet, or digital advertising, or are all too busy working hard to pay off mortgages and household debt.

So I hope council gives “all” Golden Square residents the opportunity to raise issues other than through the online survey,  and then informs us how that can be done.

Importantly, council must release all resident’s ideas prior to the development of these master plans no matter what the source, so members of the public can make their own judgement. One can only hope that our elected representative on council are fair-minded and concerned .

The mayor made this statement back in February 2018 after the protests over the swimming pool ;

“We don’t think it’s fair to the community or to the Golden Square pool committee to be just continuously giving them an  extension and I think this master plan work with user groups will inform that decision”.    

Golden Square residents must put up ideas and keep alert and watchful of council pushing “their priorities “.

To say that the Coalition has had another "Annus Horribilis" year is a massive under statement, as so much has happened, mostly negative.

While trying to swat away Andrew Broads "sugar daddy" claims, Nationals leader Michael McCormack was attempting to promote his Governments achievements when he said, wouldn't you like a coat of paint for your leaky hall instead of talking about this.

Well Michael, wouldn't you fix the roof first.

The behavior of this Government has shown that conservative politics is locked in the past, and fearful of the future.

But it is our future we are concerned about-- not theirs

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