Ku-ring-gai Council and the community have been given until Sunday February 28 to lodge written submissions in response to the NSW Government council merger proposal for Ku-ring-gai and Hornsby Shire Council (part). This follows the Baird Government announcement just before Christmas that Ku-ring-gai Council is to be forcibly merged with Hornsby Shire to create a new council of around 270,000 residents.
The merger proposal outlines what the NSW Government describes as the “impacts, benefits and opportunities of creating a new council by merging Hornsby Shire and Ku-ring-gai councils”.
The proposal and submissions will be examined and reported on in accordance with the requirements in the Local Government Act (1993) by Delegate Mr Garry West, who has been selected to act on behalf of The Chief Executive of the Office of Local Government.
Ku-ring-gai Council Mayor Cheryl Szatow welcomes the opportunity to work with Delegate Mr Garry West, however remains concerned about the speed and bullish approach in which the Baird Government continue to push through their agenda of forced council amalgamations.
Council remains firm in our belief that merging with Hornsby Council is not in the best interests of Ku-ring-gai residents
“Council remains firm in our belief that merging with Hornsby Council is not in the best interests of Ku-ring-gai residents,” said Ku-ring-gai Council Mayor Cheryl Szatow.
“We look forward to working with Delegate Mr Garry West and sharing the extensive community consultation and comprehensive research that we have conducted to come to this conclusion.
“The NSW government have indicated that reviewing the submissions will be one of the most important ways for Delegates to gather information. So I encourage the community to please continue to speak up and have their say by visiting the Council Boundary Website and making a submission”.
The community can view the merger proposal and lodge a submission by visiting the Council Boundary Review Website at www.councilboundaryreview.nsw.gov.au.
For more information and to stay updated on the Ku-ring-gai Council’s position visit www.kmc.nsw.gov.au/forcedmergers
About Delegate Mr Garry West
Council’s delegate is Mr Garry West. He was elected to the NSW Parliament in 1976 as the Member for Orange and retained the seat until 1996. During this time he served as Minister and Shadow Minister for various portfolios, including Energy, Local Government, and Police and Emergency Services.
Following his retirement, Garry entered the private sector as the Public Affairs Manager for Unifoods, a division of Unilever Australia Pty Ltd until being appointed as Corporate Relations Manager for Unilever.
Garry currently serves as Chair of the Northern Joint Regional Planning Panel and Independent Chair for the Caroona Coal Project Consultative Committee, and is a member of the Planning Assessment Commission.
Mr West is also the delegate for the “Hills-Hawkesbury” proposal.
