By Christine de Kock
THE move to create a City of Greater Melbourne by amalgamating the councils of Maribyrnong, Port Phillip, Stonnington and Yarra was rejected at last Tuesday’s Melbourne City Council meeting.
Peter Clarke, a Melbourne councillor ,told Star he put forward the motion saying that a single super council would be more effective in dealing with issues of transport, public open space and “the whole raft of human service issues”.
He suggests that a “Greater Melbourne Council” would have a budget of about $500 million to take care of ratepayer issues.
Cr Clarke said he put the motion to address residents’ and businesses’ concerns that community issues could be handled more effectively by a single council.
Cr Clarke said in relation to Maribyrnong: “I’m interested in putting the boundaries of the Maribyrnong River under one management authority under one creek edges and public open space authority.”
He said issues around public transport and improved access to libraries and public health services for City of Maribyrnong residents would result from the amalgamation of the five councils.
Cr Clarke’s motion proposed in part, that councils within the suggested super city be asked in writing to support a poll of residents in conjunction with 2008 State council elections on whether they want an amalgamation.
He also called for a committee to be formed to discuss an “appropriate electoral model to be put to the individual municipalities at this poll”.
The motion was rejected by a five votes to four, with Lord Mayor John So breaking the tie.
Cr So told Star: “This private motion by Cr Peter Clarke is not the policy of the City of Melbourne. The City of Melbourne is firmly focussed on the amalgamation of Docklands into the City, which will in effect double the size of the central business district.
Cr So said the City of Melbourne has strong partnerships with a number of councils, including the Inner Melbourne Action Group, which is comprised of the Cities of Yarra, Stonnington, Port Phillip and Maribyrnong.
Maribyrnong mayor Janet Rice said both Cr Clarke and Cr So rang her last week to say that such a motion was to go before Melbourne City Council.
“I wasn’t surprised when it was overturned,” she said.
“If you are serious about entertaining such a suggestion you to have a lot more discussion before putting it up in chambers.”
Cr Rice said councils working cooperatively together could achieve effective outcomes relating to the issues that Cr Clarke was concerned about.
“In a ‘Greater Council’ I’d be concerned about small voices, like Braybrook, that would get overlooked in the big picture.
