`Oh yes it is`

CONSULT: Seek approval for a course of action already decided upon.

The Devils Dictionary

So informs my copy of the Devils Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce. The Gutenberg projects version differs somewhat , yet the point , in true Applebian fashion, survives;

CONSULT, v.i. To seek another’s disapproval of a course already decided on. 

The Devils Dictionary according to Google

I am not personally aware of the gritty details of alleged unwarranted comments about elected members as referred to by Cr David Lagan at the last full Council meeting, but in lieu shall offer some of my own.

Mount Lawley Ward Councillors it appears, are so distrusted by several prominent local business owners* that they have as a group given up dealing with them, the feeling appears to be mutual given the Ward Councillors made zero effort to even acknowledge the attendance of these capital R respected business owning ratepayers attending yet another Council meeting looking forward to this weeks pantomime of the illusion of fair and fit-for-purpose consultation.

Act 1 Part 1: They’re behind you…

The debate on the 2 items affecting the Beaufort Street Community in attendance was indeed classic pantomime .. every time Councillor Migdale, Ferrante or Lagan mentioned ‘the community’ I wanted to shout out with the other children in attendance ‘they’re behind yoooou’ , not that it would have made any difference, the intended audience was not those members of the community who had turned up to protest their exclusion but  Liberal Party mover and shaker Simon Ehrenfeld seated in the Gallery, with lots of pre-selection candidates to choose from.

The audience by the way held no illusion of hope, this was not going to be a fairy tale ending , there was no expectation of victory or even concession, the audience with tickets have seen this show before, they have attended enough Council and Committee meetings regarding this ‘plan’ to know how the show ends, to understand that this resolution, like many others in the City was predetermined, this is Stirling after all, the City of Stepford (that would be a good panto), of pre meeting betting tips, and like all pantomime the final act, the vote itself (within a margin of error of 3 or so) was known long before the meeting started.

Intermission:

Current cabal dictate at the City is for Councillors to keep their noses out of other Councillors ward business, despite the intent of the Act, of course if Councillors were trusted to represent all of their community without fear or favour, this would indeed be the default and sensible starting point.

Regardless, every Panto worth it’s salt needs a baddie, It fell therefore to Councillor Re who is known to be stubborn when it comes to representing the views of the community, to request a deferral, but that would require backup from the rest of the cast who were reading a different script.

Act 1 Part 2: Oh yes he is…

Councillor Migdale thanked those in the community who took part in the consultation process, though not of course the elephants sitting in the very same room so we are unsure of which ‘community’ Clrs Migdale and Ferrante were referring to though to be fair two questions were read out by the Mayor – the intangible attendees entering (or not as it turned out) stage left were if I recall correctly a Ms Dorothy Dixer and a Mr Will Uaksthisforme (Scottish perhaps?),  pondering  out loud why anyone might be against the City’s glorious crusade of Street Activation.

IN an unexpected departure from panto norm the the show then morphed into a Western in line with cabal dictate Councillors circling the wagons to protect the cowboys and gals inside, Cr David Lagan stepping up to entertain us with the heroic adventures of our Mt Lawley Councillors past glories, Cr Elizabeth Re interjecting to suggest comments should relate to the agenda item and that this was not a trial of what Councillors have or have not achieved, Mayor Irwin disagreed stating that it did not sound to him like Councillor Lagan was praising Councillors, at which Point Cr Lagan regaled us with even more praise and fascinating adventures of the Mt Lawley posse**.

Mayor Irwin’s interjection is missing from the you tube version of the streamed meeting which fortuitously suffered (again) some ‘technical issues’.

Act 2 Part 1: Booo Hiss….

With background knowledge, Councillor Migdales summation of the agenda item was a badly disguised victory speech, imperious in nature, condescending to those present and nauseating enough that Stirling might consider complementing its COVID-inspired hand sanitizer to also provide buckets for gallery members, though I think the ringmaster quite liked it.

Clr Migdale conjured up wistful imaginings of future potential baskings under the the shade of the greened leaves of the Bunyip’s*** to be planted in Beaufort street… as if that were something opposed in any shape or form by any of the Mount Lawley Business community, indeed these members of the community have been asking for a greener more activated streetscape for longer than the Ward Councillors have been Ward Councillors and any suggestion – tacit or otherwise is dishonest.

Act 2 Part 2: Oh no he’s not

What traders did not ask for was Council accepting, then not accepting that a lack of parking is hurting business owners and responding instead by selling off valuable parking land at the worst possible time pre-covid to dispose of Council property to someone who I can not name but you all know (and might explain the near unanimous vote) , and by way of compensation removing even more parking by providing a plaza/piazza in the wrong place, this is where the script runs foul of the usual panto fare.

Mayor Irwin repeated the adage that this plan was still just a concept and nothing was written in stone, something that has been said many times about this item at many other Council resolutions, each one sharpening the chisel.

(un)Happily Ever After:

The actual issues surrounding the Agenda items in question are too long-winded for this blog, it’s about piazzas and parking and the greening and activation of Beaufort Street.

This post however is about the disgraceful treatment of long standing active respected community members trying to engage with the City even going so far as to put their hands in their own pockets, in good faith, to pay for independent professional advice, and making the effort to attend the performance to again be treated as though they simply did not exist.

This accusation of contempt extends not only to Ward Councillors to whom several expect little else but to the whole Council (Clr Re exempt), even those Council members who were simply supporting the Ward Councillors in line with recent re-education of their responsibilities – clearly without thinking too long and hard on the minor democratic niggles this might introduce.

Fail:

Background:

https://perthvoiceinteractive.com/2020/07/23/traders-up-in-arms-over-parking-plans/
https://www.perthnow.com.au/community-news/stirling-times/plaza-plan-to-enliven-beaufort-street-c-889992

*This distrust is not isolated to the MLBG, other local issues have produced troubling concerns from residents who likewise think that only certain parts of their community are important to their Ward Councillors.

**hilariously including Hamer Park clubrooms which is a story all of itself – coming soon, and removal of paid parking on Beaufort Street  …

** not actual Bunyips