Businesses take charge in lead up to council elections

By Chris Dawson

After 10 years as a councillor with the City of Sydney, Kathryn Greiner has implored businesses to make certain they are able to vote in the upcoming local government elections.
Speaking at a breakfast forum hosted by the Kings Cross Partnership at Club Swans last week, Ms Greiner joined current Liberal Councillor Shayne Mallard in encouraging business owners to support their peers and ‘look after each other’.
All rateable property owners in the City of Sydney are eligible to vote this year, but have to register by August 18 ‘ less than a month before the election is held on September 13.
Ms Greiner said she had just returned from the People’s Collective of Libya, where even in the capital city of Tripoli, nobody collected the garbage.
‘Things we take for granted just do not get done,’ she said, highlighting the fact that she did not want to see this attitude take hold in Sydney.
Ms Greiner believes the old division between residents and businesses had gone, and should no longer be a hindrance.
Rather, her concern surrounded the amount of money being wasted in Sydney. ‘Sadly, in recent times we have lost our edge to Melbourne,’ she said. ‘We have become the poor city and have gone backwards.’
Ms Greiner was also unimpressed with Clover Moore’s grand plan for the City, particularly over the fact that she was not hearing the call to help business grow and develop.
‘I am not hearing any of this dialogue,’ she said. ‘The conversations are not taking place.’
Cr Mallard, who said he’d now taken over her office at Town Hall, applauded Ms Greiner for role in the history of Sydney.
The local councillor, and Victoria Street resident, said that Greiner had been the leader of the opposition to Frank Sartor and had been prepared to challenge ‘the thinking’.
‘Getting on to the role is not easy. It was designed not to be easy. The requirements have been changed recently deliberately making it harder to get on the role.’
He made the point that property investors, business owners and corporations – who pay all or part rate ‘ are entitled to vote in respect to the property or properties owned in a local government area.
Although they’re not allowed more than one individual vote, they may nominate an enrolled NSW resident who does not reside the local government area to vote on behalf of the ratepayer.
The NSW Electoral Commission was responsible for the update of the City’s non-residential rolls, with two officers now stationed at Town Hall.
In the first week of May, the all those listed on the City’s 2004 non-residential roll will receive a letter asking them to reapply if they are still eligible.