Lord Mayor's stunning admission

by Shane Sody

Adelaide Lord Mayor Jane Lomax-Smith has broken a tied vote in the City Council chamber, and used her rarely-exercised casting vote to support a State Government $135 million attack on your Park Lands.

In recent weeks, the City Council received overwhelming feedback from the public in favour of an alternative brownfield site for a new Aquatic Centre. 98% of the feedback direct to Council was for Council to “restore and protect” Denise Norton Park / Pardipardinyilla (Park 2), and look for a win-win site instead.

Why should you care?

The State Government admits that its plans for a $135 million megalith aquatic and commercial centre would require the destruction of 15 regulated trees and seven significant trees (and many smaller trees) including many used as wildlife habitat. Its plans also include expanding the hard surfaces within the Park for more roadways and 108 more car parking spaces.

Its plans also break four of its own promises, including a promise to keep the old Aquatic Centre open while a new one was being constructed, and the lie that the new centre would have a “smaller footprint”.)

Despite receiving 7,500 signatures on a petition, urging selection of an alternative win-win brownfield site, the Premier Peter Malinauskas has not looked at switching sites.

The State Government wants the Council to clear away legal obstacles that would allow construction to begin, as soon as possible.

On Tuesday 10 October, the City Council was deadlocked 4-4 on whether to support their own community’s wishes, or whether they would fall into line with the State Government’s proposed Park Lands attack. There was heated debate in the Council Chamber:

“The community has made their voices clear. We can’t bury our heads in the sand” said Councillor Keiran Snape.

“We should be doing everything possible to advocate to the State Government to choose a brownfield site”, said Councillor Henry Davis.

But Councillor Mary Couros told the chamber: “It’s too far gone … If we request the State Government to change the site we will look like fools.”

Councillor David Elliott based his position on denying even the possibility of a win-win site, anywhere: “There is no win-win” he claimed.

Even if there was an option to put the new Centre at Thebarton or Hindmarsh, Cr Elliott said: “We cannot justify spending $20 million to send the Aquatic Centre outside Council boundaries.”

However the most surprising comment came from the Lord Mayor, Jane Lomax-Smith. The Lord Mayor was elected in November 2022 on a platform of protecting your Park Lands.

Asked on 10 October, by Councillor Mary Couros, whether she had approached the State Government to seek a brownfield site, the Lord Mayor responded: “I have not pressed them on that”.

So, on her own admission, the Lord Mayor has not even attempted to explore a win-win outcome.

Rather, the Lord Mayor joined these other four, above, who voted NOT to seek an alternative brownfield site, but to press ahead by approving a new State Government attack on your Open, Green, Public Adelaide Park Lands.

LEFT: The Lord Mayor, on 27 July 2023, receiving what was, at that time, 5,100 signatures from APA President Shane Sody and Deputy President, Ben Ayris.

RIGHT: The Premier, on 26 September 2023, receiving what was, at that time, 7,500 signatures. The petition is still open on change.org and is approaching 8,000 signatures.

These are the words that the five Council members, pictured above, voted to include in a new Community Land Management Plan for your Park Lands.

In contrast, these other four, above, were your would-be Park Lands protectors. They did not support a motion to adopt this plan. If they had had just one more colleague on their side then it would have allowed the Council to suggest alternative near-city brownfield sites for the proposed two-storey megalith Aquatic and commercial centre. It was only the casting vote of the Lord Mayor that broke the 4-4 deadlock.

Here’s how the story was covered at InDaily on 11 October: https://indaily.com.au/news/2023/10/11/new-aquatic-centre-clears-council-hurdle-despite-filibuster-attempts/

What happens next?

This is the revised Community Land Management Plan that was adopted. (PDF, 12.6 Mb, 131 pages).

Now that it’s been adopted, it is expected that the same or similar narrow majority of Councillors will, later this month, approve a 42-year lease at a peppercorn rent, and a construction licence permitting State Government contractors to move in and destroy these trees.

Three Councillors (pictured below) were missing from the debate on Tuesday 10 October. It is possible, although very unlikely, that the Council might, with backing from the missing three, revisit this decision and/or block the granting of a lease and construction licence when it comes up for discussion later this month.

You can email the Lord Mayor, or any of the 11 Councillors pictured on this page by clicking on their respective photos.

The options for getting a win-win outcome are narrowing. However it is not too late for the Premier and his Ministers to read the room.


What can you do?

Very last line of defence

If neither the Council nor the State Government heeds the very clear community message to PROTECT your Park Lands, and the bulldozers are threatening to move in to destroy the trees, will you put yourself in their way?

If you’re prepared to rebel for your Park Lands, then please give us your confidential contact details, so we can invite you later to participate in specific direct action. Contact secretary@adelaide-parklands.asn.au to be put on a confidential alert list.

Read more

See our ongoing coverage of the proposed new Aquatic Centre:

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