Thursday, 27 April 2023

 

Dear Friends and Owners of Unley,

Please find attached my 2023 Winter Newsletter. Items include:

4 Unley Ovals to go?                                           Keswick TOD over Wayville Station

10 Business Proposals                                               Tour Down Under 24

Rates 3% below CPI?                                                 More Highrise SCAP

Forestville Overpass                                                  Brews & Bars

Parkside walking tour                                               Brown Hill Creek Trees to go

 Once again, my newsletter includes stories you have shared with me which I highly value.  We all own our Council, and it is a privilege to work with you to make Unley a better place.

Our new Council is working well together with a unanimous draft budget going out for consultation. A number of the newsletter items cover the budget issues for you to consider. We have close and contentious votes, but we are still working together.

You will also find attached the links for items in the newsletter. For example, an ABC article stated that last year wages went up by 3.3% and costs by 7.8%.

With my best wishes,

                          Michael




Buying Carbon offsets vs direct action

Australian councils told to cut emissions rather than spend millions on overseas carbon offsets | Carbon offsetting | The Guardian

 

Australians experienced their largest real wage decline on record in 2022

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-22/wages-growing-at-3-3-per-cent-december-quarter-2022/102007390

Friday, 3 March 2023


 

Dear Friends and Owners of Unley,

Please enjoy the Autumn News, having survived last week’s 41°C you may like to see the link on my new Mayoral Unley Facebook page the link to the article, ‘We’re doomed’: Expert loses it over the jaw-dropping image. https://www.facebook.com/MayorMichaelHewitsonAM

This new page seeks to build our community with accurate information about things Unley. You are welcome to join in to provide links to your story and events. Please ‘like’ or ‘follow’ the page to show your support.

On Monday night our Council unanimously resolved to approve the submission to the Parliamentary Inquiry to the Urban Forest: Parliamentary Urban Forest inquiry Unley Council Submission.   The link to my complementary submission is, Why we lose our trees, $552,857.07 submission to Parliament Mayor.

This newsletter contains the following stories

ROLE OF Council?  Australians want more from Councils or do we?

Unley loses $552,857 

Unley Road Plans

Free Fringe events

Citizen of the year

Two more schools safe to cycle to.

LeCornu park needed.

Reformed smoker?

At the Council Meeting on Monday; with the Council vote I expect to result in spending the estimated $190,000 of Australian carbon credit shortfall to be Carbon neutral within Unley. This will actively reduce our Carbon emissions within Unley, but we would not be Carbon neutral until 2030. I hope we can achieve Carbon Zero by then! I have attached the motion and voting for this and the Tour Down Under motion and voting as a late press release. Go to the Mayor’s Facebook page where I will discuss the meeting and the 2023-4 budget.

With my best wishes,

                          Michael

Mayor Michael Hewitson AM


Council’s submission to the parliamentary inquiry into trees canopy can be found and to Council Planning Rules submission to Ministerial review here.

  • Every Year we lose another 2 Unley ovals of trees and we have less than 200 across the whole city,
  • A once-off offset payment is a license to never plant trees.
  • In four years of accelerated planting Unley will run out of Council land, we need to increase from 22% to 27% canopy on private property.

I have made a complementary submission as Mayor to highlight the lack of power the Council has to enforce even the weak current rules. and what we need to do, Mayor Planning Rules submission on trees to Ministerial review






Saturday, 25 February 2023

 2023 Summer news

Dear Friends and Owners of Unley,

                                We have a new Council. Thank you for returning me as your Mayor. We have four years to deliver the reality of a future Unley that is liveable.

Please let either Justine or I know if you do not wish to receive the four times a year emails with the quarterly newsletters attached.

Planning     Council Assessment Panel (CAP)   Vote 6/5

On 12th of December Council voted not to have any Councillor on the Council Assessment Panel. (CAP) Unley Council has no power over planning matters. The six members who voted not to elect a Councillor to CAP, did so to underline the reality that Council has no say. Our planning rules have largely been taken over by the State Government. The Unley CAP is made up of professionals who have to apply the State Planning Rules. We are trying to have the State Planning Minister give us the power to have a ‘tree offset fund’ so we can deal with a well-known local tree canopy problem. Our problem is not shared by so many Councils in outer areas like Playford with large tracks of open space. Council does however have the right to select the membership of the CAP. We will be looking for people with an understanding and empathy for our City. Five members opposed the motion because they believed that CAP would be improved with a member who understands the political will of the local people. Please open the link to the Council agenda and Minutes for December to see who voted each way. Cr Don Palmer moved the motion and Cr Michael Rabbitt seconded it.

Tree canopy and our future 50°C hot summer days? Vote 9/2

One of my key election commitments was to voice the reality of life in Unley with a loss of tree canopy. I was extremely relieved at the strong commitment of the new Council to continue to tackle head on the known loss of tree canopy in half of the new developments that increase the built form. Council voted 9/2 in favour of the motion for Unley Council to be able to have an offset fund.

After everyone else has had the opportunity to speak, I was able to address the concerns of the two members opposing the motion.  I argued that our motion did not let the State Government off the hook. Whole of SA planning rules do not address the particular need of the inner City Council with the least amount of open Space in SA. Should the State Minister give us some power to deal with our local issue, the State Government is addressing one real problem with the working of the code… the loss of trees on private property in an inner city suburb. No amount of public consultation and new ideas can address a problem over which we have no power to act. Please open the link to the Council agenda and Minutes for December if you wish to see who voted each way. Cr Jack Gaffey moved the motion and Cr Don Palmer seconded it.

Wishing you and all those you love a Merry Christmas and a safe and prosperous 2023.

I hope you enjoy the attached newsletter,

With my thanks and best wishes,

Mayor Michael Hewitson










Monday, 14 November 2022

2022 Election Results

 Thank you to all who encouraged, helped and voted. I so often heard the comment, "I'm very happy with Unley Council, You are a shoo-in, so I didn't need to vote." With a very slow voter response I was concerned. Those who were unhappy with something they believe Council is responsible for, they are likely voters. Fortunately 9,133 took the trouble to vote. An absolute majority supported my return as Mayor, so no preferences were distributed. Thank you. Below are the provisional results from the ECSA electoral site.

Mayor

 

 

Goodwood

 

Candidates

First

 

Election quota

 

Election quota

Preference

 

496

 

4,567

Votes

 

Candidates

First

SCHNELL, Bob

2,391

 

 

Preference

HEWITSON, Michael

4,807

 

 

Votes

CENTRELLA, Dario

436

 

TIPPER, Denise

209

MACFARLANE, Marijana

1,499

 

HART, Georgie

345

Total

9,133

 

CRABBE, Chris

305

 

 

 

TIPPER, Jake

40

Unley

 

 

McPHEE, Scott

223

Election quota

543

 

MACFARLANE, Chris

197

FINOS, Stephen

565

 

SMOLUCHA, Luke

166

RUSSO, Jane

597

 

 

 

DEWING, Sue

466

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clarence Park

 

Parkside

 

 

Election quota

 

Election quota

458

 

475

 

Candidates

First

 

Candidates

First

Preference

 

 

Preference

Votes

 

 

Votes

BLYTH, Leah

193

 

PALMER, Don

694

ANASTASSIADIS, Kay

236

 

ROGERS, Rebekah

472

BONHAM, Jennifer

414

 

SQUIRE, Jayden

256

DOYLE, Luke

529

 

 

1422

 

 

 

 

 

Fullarton

 

 

Unley Park

 

Election quota

523

 

Election quota

 

Candidates

First

 

486

 

Preference

 

Candidates

First

Votes

 

 

Preference

HAVORD, Peter

121

 

 

Votes

GAFFEY, Jack

556

 

BRONIECKI, Monica

557

CAULFIELD, Finn

128

 

RABBITT, Michael James

484

BRAENDLER, Josh

91

 

CHATAWAY, Roslyn Marie

235

HUGHES, Peter

670

 

PRIOR, Paul Thomas

179



Wednesday, 12 October 2022

 

Dear Friends and owners of Unley, 

This election is about building a thriving and sharing community. It is about ensuring Unley is a great place to live. See and explore https://www.michaelhewitsonmayor.org/

I will continue with a plan to make Unley connected, green, and affordable. My work with you over the past four years has supported our council to:

·        keep rates well below CPI

·        increase avenues for how our community connects, interacts and to support your voice to be heard

·        present a plan through a ‘tree offset fund’ to protect and promote tree cover to safeguard our council area in a changing climate. No owner of an existing property will ever pay a higher rate because they lack trees.

Spread the word with your friends and encourage them to vote.  It would be great to have a high turnout and to elect a council that will support our great Unley region to be valued and enjoyed for generations to come.

Please reach out to me if you have any questions about who I am and what I stand for.  I would greatly appreciate your support to re-elect me for a second term as Mayor. 













Thursday, 4 August 2022

 


Dear Friends and owners of Unley,

I have served you as your Mayor since 2018. We have achieved so much together with more to do to make Unley liveable and more accountable. When I started, I was told it would take two terms to affect the agenda I took to the last election. We have made Australia wide award-winning progress.

We have achieved so much and here are just two

1.     Rates with the lowest base rate in greater Adelaide, with a rate reduction of 4% below CPI we are building an inclusive mixed Unley.

2.     We have a cohesive working Council that can disagree yet unanimously vote in

a.     a budget that reduces debt and delivers our programs.

b.     our climate change policy and energy plan to be carbon neutral  Carbon neutral Unley

c.      walking and cycling safety  Walking and cycling Plan 2022 -2027

d.     delivers accelerated tree planting 

We have laid the foundation to deliver real community participation in policy decision making. (shaping Unley) but we are still losing 4 Ha of trees each year from our <400 Ha citywide total. Without completion of our current work our children will cook!

You can go to my website to see the breadth of policy and achievements of our Council in this term. Home | michaelhewitsonmayor 

“Need help to stay at home?” is an important story that did not fit into the newsletter.  The four videos below talk about the services available to support people living independently in their own homes through the Commonwealth Home Support Program (CHSP) and other local programs.

Unley people share their experience accessing services,  Need Help at home?