Callan Park tensions fray at precinct meeting

Just as the Callan Park Master Plan won another award, Labor Councillor Simon Emsley and Leichhardt residents have butted heads over altering the plan.

Residents were angered at the November 14 Council meeting by a perceived a lack of community consultation over the amendment to include a sixth sporting field.

When questioned by residents about the decision to amend the Callan Park Master Plan after a vigorous five-year community consultation campaign, visiting Councillor Simon Emsley replied that as an elected councillor he has a “mandate” to make changes. Communication quickly broke down between the groups.

Following the meeting, Mr Emsley filed a five-page letter to the precinct chair complaining about the need for precinct meetings.

Leichhardt residents Teena Clerke and Jennifer Aaron were among the community activists attending the meeting.

“I think [Simon’s] behaviour was appalling,” Ms Aaron said. “He said that because they were in power, they had a mandate to do everything that they wanted to do because they were there.

“I have never heard of anything so ridiculous in my life. Callan Park has been one of the most consistent processes that has ever taken place and the community were incredibly involved, and fundamentally responsible for the changes proposed and subsequently adopted.

“Now after that long consensus process to turn around and say ‘because we are here we have a mandate to change’, that is absolutely utterly outrageous, undemocratic and not transparent.

“[Labor] didn’t achieve the highest vote … they are there because they couldn’t come to an arrangement with the Greens, so they are not there because they were elected under a mandate to do whatever they wanted to do.”

Ms Clerke said Mr Emsley was not receptive to any of their concerns.

“It’s a very odd way to approach people in the community who supposedly elected him … to then say that precinct isn’t important and isn’t worthwhile, it is a small minority of people. [Mr Emsley] thinks we are very outspoken, very militant, that we are anti-everything and by the way, our process sucks,” she said.

After Mr Emsley abruptly left the meeting an hour early, the precinct passed motions to validate precinct meetings, oppose the changes to Callan Park and to inform other precincts in the LGA of the opposition.

Mr Emsley defended his decision to leave early and justifed his invalidation of precinct meetings.

“I told the chair that I could only stay for an hour,” he said. “I had also attended previous precinct meetings where the same people have presented the same questions again and again, and accused me of not answering the question.

“I found personally that both meetings were unsatisfactorily chaired and I felt it was not a constructive exercise staying at that meeting.

“I have written to the general manager raising and recording some of the issues I had at that meeting and other precinct meetings I have attended. I think the point of those meetings has to be considered with some reservation in the circumstances. I have some concerns about precinct meetings and the their value of them.”

Mayor Darcy Byrne said the Labor Party responded to a survey from the sporting alliance that “represents several thousand residents” in their decision to add another sporting field.

“This minor amendment to the draft Master Plan does not require a revision of the whole plan. I make no apology for listening to the voices of thousands of local families over the self-interested nonsense of anti-sport activists,” he said.

Friends of Callan Park are holding a rally in response to the Master Plan changes on Sunday, December 2 at the Veterans Oval.