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The City of Nedlands is in limbo while Local Government Minister Hannah Beazley moves to appoint a three-person panel of commissioners to replace the council after the resignation of four councillors on Monday.
“As minister for local government, I’ll be bringing an end to the embarrassing saga of dysfunction and disunity at the City of Nedlands with the appointment of a series of commissioners, which is work I’m undertaking as quickly as possible,” she said.
WA Local Government Minister Hannah Beazley.Credit: Hamish Hastie
Nedlands councillors Ben Hodson, Noel Youngman, Fergus Bennett and Hengameh Amiry all tendered their resignation on Monday, leaving the council without a quorum and paving the way for Beazley to intervene.
The council has been embroiled in controversy for more than 18 months after butting heads with the state government over the Children’s Hospice under construction in Swanbourne and plans to use the Allen Park A-Class reserve next door as recreation space for the children.
Nedlands Mayor Fiona Argyle led the campaign against using the reserve, which included arranging a digital billboard with the Nedlands council logo calling on the Perth Children’s Hospital Foundation to keep its hands off the reserve.
Councillors have also walked out of past meetings, leaving it without a quorum.
The Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety is also due to wrap up an investigation into the council dysfunction soon.
Beazley said the dismissed council should take some time to reflect on its behaviour.
“I would encourage them to use this opportunity to rest and reset and reflect on the behaviour that they have undertaken, the decisions that they have undertaken for the city, and whether they’ve acted in the best interests of the city during their tenure,” she said.
The minister was unable to say when the new commissioners would be appointed or whether the city would be ready to elect a new council at local government elections in October.
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Beazley’s comments came after Nedlands Mayor Fiona Argyle gave an extraordinary interview on ABC Radio on Monday afternoon, where she said the resignations marked a fantastic day for the council.
Argyle accused the other councillors of working against her and rubbished the continued controversy over the city’s opposition to a children’s hospice and adjacent play area in Swanbourne.
“No one on this planet is against dying children, no one hates dying children, everyone loves dying children,” she said.
“What I don’t like, and the city doesn’t like, it was a unanimous decision, that is the city’s land.
“It’s like giving away Hyde Park, Jardin du Luxembourg, the Royal National Park in Sydney.
“If anyone accuses me of bad behaviour or defamation I’ll sue them, because I have been nothing but a good mayor.”
Beazley said she listened to the interview and reiterated her point that the councillors should rest and reset.
Hodson let rip in his resignation letter, describing the council as consistently toxic and dysfunctional.
“The constant infighting, lack of productive dialogue, bullying behaviours, weaponising the code of conduct that has been rather vexatious in nature and the unwillingness to address serious concerns have made it impossible to effectively represent the community,” he said.
The council’s website was updated on Monday afternoon to list just four councillors: Mayor Fiona Argyle, Deputy Mayor Kerry Smyth, and councillors Blane Brackenridge and Rebecca Coghlan.
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