NEW PETITION FORM NOW AVAILABLE VIA EMAIL

PETITION FORMS are now available to be sent to you via eMAIL in a PGF format. 

This allows you to print off the forms you need to collect signatures in your street and among your friends and associates who are on the ELECTORS ROLL FOR LAUNCESTON. 

Please request an email with the form attached now!

ADDRESS: launcestonprojects@bigpond.com

SAVE OUR FUTURE 
KEEP THIS COUNCIL HONEST

SEE: http://lcc63.blogspot.com.au/p/electors-poll-petition.html

PETITION # 2 LETER TO SUPPORTERS

Dear Ratepayers and supporters,

Thank you to those who signed the original petition requesting that Launceston City Council convene a Public Meeting to discuss the gifting of the land at Inveresk (the old Velodrome cycling track site next to York Park Stadium) and the Willis Street public car park site (the old Goods Railyard on the opposite side of the North Esk River)  and who were able to attend the Public Meeting that was finally concluded last week on 21st June at Albert Hall. 

The 132 members of the public attending the Public Meeting overwhelmingly opposed the gifting of the land  to the University, compared to less than 10 of those who were willing to vote AGAINST the Motions put to the meeting.

Since the Meeting, The Examiner Newspaper (who has admitted publicly its bias in supporting the move by UTas to Inveresk) received 138 Facebook comments, all opposing the proposal. That level of comment to a media Facebook story is extraordinary!

Unfortunately, Launceston City Council is not obliged to accept the outcome of the Public Meeting, and we are sure that LCC will continue to progress the gifting of the 2 pieces of land to UTas.

However, the Local Government Act 1993 allows for petitioners to proceed to sign a SECOND PETITION, once a Public Meeting has been held on the topic, this time requesting LCC to facilitate an ELECTOR POLL of all Launceston people on the Launceston Elector Roll.

A minimum of 1000 elector signatures (we aim for say, 1500 so as to ensure its validity) must be collected and presented by 20 July 2016. 

We expect this will be a major undertaking in such a short time, however, with your assistance, we hope we can succeed.

If you are able to print off the Petition Form, then we ask that you:

• email LauncestonPR@bigpond.com asking for the PDF Form;
• sign the form and encourage as many friends and acquaintances on the Launceston Roll, to do likewise. 
• post original copies ack to our collection point (P.O. Box 513 Launceston 7250); OR
• simply drop them into my letterbox at 41 High Street, when you are passing. 
• You may also like to send a copy of the Petition to your friends, by email.

If you do not have printing facilities, please ask me for copie(s) to be forwarded to you.
In the meantime, here are a few ‘dot’ points to summarise last Tuesday night’s Public Meeting:

• Criticism of Council’s lack of due diligence, including construction problems/costs and issues with developing on the flood plains of the North Esk River and potential seismic risks
• The track record of UTas in consistently chipping away at the Launceston campus making it but a shadow of what it was 20 years ago. There is no confidence this pattern will change
• 10,000 PLUS extra students can’t be guaranteed. It is an aspirational figure based on demographics not fact, and a fraud to say that is the kind of figure that will eventuate from this proposal
• Absence of support by electors
• Risk of UTas plan not fully eventuating or finding success – the punt
• Reliance on trust versus a properly defined and proven business plan
• The Northern Campuses remaining lesser branches of UTas without the ability of independent initiatives to remain sustainable
• Traffic congestion and parking inadequacies for UTas and other users of the precinct
• We need a uniquely Northern campus independent of UTas 

Please do not hesitate to contact me should you like to discuss your position on this land give away, or have any ideas on how we may further engage with Launceston Electors in relation to this matter.

If you are concerned about the high level of LCC Rates that you are being required to pay, and at how LCC spends your hard-earned money, then please sign the Petition. Council’s valuation of these two pieces of land is $4.5M and apart from the loss of this significant sum that would lessen the Launceston rate burden, the land currently produces a healthy income to Council that helps offset rates paid by its citizens. Once this becomes University owned, not even rates are payable.

Many thanks,

Regards,

Lionel MorrellPresident
Tasmanian Ratepayers Association Inc.
41 High Street
Launceston TAS  7250
T  03 6331 6144
e  li82303@bigpond.net.au

NEW MEETING DATE AND INFORMATION

Notice of Public Meeting

Public Meeting 7 June 2016 postponed to 21 June 2016

The public is advised that at the Public Meeting held at the Albert Hall, Launceston at 7pm on Tuesday 7 June 2016 in response to a petition received by the Council Meeting, the subject matter being:

1.    That the Launceston City Council call a Public Meeting for the purpose of discussing the Council's decision to transfer (free gift) land, known as Willis Street Car Park and Old Velodrome

2.    Call on Council to rescind the motion passed by the Full Council Meeting 9th November 2015 to transfer said land (free gift) to UTAS

3.    That the said land be placed for sale on the open market via a public auction with a Reserve Price of $5 million,

the following decisions were taken:

1.    That Mr Don Wing AM is appointed as chairperson for the purposes of the Public Meeting; and

2.    That in view of the flood crises that is threatening Launceston and with respect to the efforts and pleadings by the petitioners and their representative for this Public Meeting to be rescheduled to a later date since yesterday, such a request having been refused by Council's representatives, this meeting now be adjourned forthwith and resume at this same venue on Tuesday 21 June 2016 at 7pm, so that those people attending can now return home safely.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a Public Meeting will be held in Albert Hall, corner of Tamar and Cimitiere Streets Launceston, commencing at 7pm on Tuesday 21 June 2016 to consider the matters sought by the petitioners, namely:

1.    That the Launceston City Council call a Public Meeting for the purpose of discussing the Council's decision to transfer (free gift) land, known as Willis Street Car Park and Old Velodrome

2.    Call on Council to rescind the motion passed by the Full Council Meeting 9th November 2015 to transfer said land (free gift) to UTAS

3.    That the said land be placed for sale on the open market via a public auction with a Reserve Price of $5 million.

The chair of the Public Meeting shall be Mr Don Wing AM and the Meeting shall be conducted in accordance with the Local Government Meeting Procedures (Regulations) 2015, as appropriate. The agenda of the meeting will be:

1.    Opening remarks from the Mayor, Alderman A M van Zetten

2.    Introductory remarks from the Chair, Mr Don Wing AM

3.    Report on submissions by the General Manager under section 60A(4) of the Local Government Act 1993 (Tas)

4.    Statements of position (15 minutes each)

(a)  Council

(b)  Petitioner

5.    Motions on the subject matter

6.    Close

Written submissions in relation to the subject matter have been summarised by the General Manager and will be available to those attending the Public Meeting and can be viewed at www.launceston.tas.gov.au.

Robert Dobrzynski

General Manager

UNANAMOUS DECISION TO POSTPONE THE PUBLIC MEETING

June 7, 2016, 8:20 p.m.... CLICK HERE

A public meeting to discuss the City of Launceston’s transfer of land to the University of Tasmania has been postponed for two weeks due to the ongoing flood emergency.  ......... The public meeting at the Albert Hall in Launceston on Tuesday.   ......... About 100 people filed into the Albert Hall just before 7pm on Tuesday to attend the meeting, which had been organised in early May.   .........  A motion to postpone the meeting until June 21 was put to the floor just after chair Don Wing was appointed.   ......... A number of attendees spoke to the motion, many urging the meeting to support it, but some voicing their disappointment at the “waste of time.”   ......... Former alderman Basil Fitch told the meeting that petitioners had tried to persuade the council to postpone the meeting throughout Monday and Tuesday.   .........  Launceston general manager Robert Dobrzynski said the council had been in a difficult position because he did not believe they had the “prerogative to make unilateral decisions” on cancellation.   ......... He said the decision had been to convene the meeting and then the meeting could determine whether to postpone in fairness to all parties.   .........  A petition on the UTAS land transfer deal was presented to council in March.  .........  The petition called on the council to hold a public meeting on the decision to transfer the Willis Street Car Park and Old Velodrome.  .........  It also called on council to rescind the transfer passed at the meeting of November 9, 2015, and for the land to be placed for sale on the open market with a reserve auction price of $5 million.

INVITATION PUBLIC MEETING TUES JUNE 7 AT 7 PM ALBERT HALL

PUBLIC MEETING ANNOUNCED AT LAST

You may wish to use this form to make a written submission to the General Manager in respect of the subject matter explained below.

Written submissions must be lodged with Council by 5pm Wednesday 1 June 2016.

You may use a Council form to make your written submission but that is not compulsory.

The City of Launceston 
will hold a 
PUBLIC MEETING
@

 7pm on Tuesday 
7 June 2016 

Albert Hall

Corner of Tamar and Cimitiere Streets, Launceston. 

This meeting is being held following a petition seeking a public meeting being lodged with the Council. Subject matter of the public meeting As described by the petition, the subject matter of the public meeting will be: 

1. That the Launceston City Council call a Public Meeting for the purpose of discussing the Council's decision to transfer (free gift) land, known as Willis Street Car Park and Old Velodrome. 
2. Call on Council to rescind the motion passed by the Full Council Meeting 9th November 2015 to transfer said land (free gift) to UTAS. 
3. That the said land be placed for sale on the open market via a public auction with a Reserve Price of $5 million. 

Options for lodging your submission:

• Print and complete this form, and return it via email, post or in person. 
• If you do not wish to use the Council form, your written submission will be accepted by email, post or in person. 

City of Launceston's contact details are provided at the bottom of this page.

Remember that your submission must be received by 5pm Wednesday 1 June 2016. 

At the public meeting Submissions will be summarised by the General Manager and will be made available to people who attend the public meeting. Your name and contact details will not be included in the summary.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE COUNCIL FORM

When making your own submission LCC News would appreciate it if you:

1. Make your submission by eMAIL to City of Launceston General Manager 

• Robert Dobrzynski  Robert.Dobrzynski@launceston.tas.gov.au

2. Please copy your submission to  

      LAUNCESTON PROJECTS –  launcestonprojects@bigpond.com 

     So that your submission can be put on this website for the information of others making submissions

3. At the top of your submission please provide your contact details and the date submitted 

•  Unit/street number: 
• Street name: 
• Suburb:                   State:            Postcode: 
• Daytime phone number: 
• Email address: 

• Council may wish to use this information to contact you if they have a question about your submission        OR
• LCC News may wish to contact you with additional information relevant to the meeting

Section 60A(2) of the Local Government Act 1993 (Tas) (the Act) requires Council to:

(a) publish a notice on at least 2 occasions in a daily newspaper circulating in the municipal area; and 

(b) send to the person who lodged the petition. 

The notice will be published for a second time in the Examiner on Saturday 14 May 2016.

The actions taken by Council in relation to the public meeting are directed at meeting the legislative requirements as set out in the Act.

WAS YOUR SIGNATURE COUNTED?

In reply to a request for information regarding the large number of rejected signatures Ray Norman, the petition's authoriser, received the following information and explanation.

"Thank you for your email. I can advise:

• Section 59(2) of the Local Government Act 1993 (Tas) (the Act) requires that council must hold a public meeting if the petition is signed by (a) 5% of the electors in the municipal area; or (b) 1,000 of those electors (whichever is the lesser).
•  If the above is not met, Council may still resolve to hold a public meeting regarding the subject matter of the petition, as provided for in section 60(3) of the Act.
• The purpose of verifying the number of signatures to the petition was to inform Council whether the public meeting must be held, or whether the public meeting required a resolution of Council to proceed.
• For section 59(2) to apply, it was necessary for Council officers to verify the number of electors in the municipal area that signed the petition.
• We obtained a copy of the electoral roll for the Launceston Municipality as at 31 January 2016, from the Tasmanian Electoral Office.
• Council officers checked the signatories to the petition against the electoral roll.

        • 273 names could either not be found in the electoral roll, or the name and address on the petition could not be matched to a name and address in the electoral roll
         • 38 entries were duplicates
         • 14 entries were not legible
         • 17 entries had no name
         • 22 entries had no address
         • 1 entry was on a piece of paper that did not have a heading as required by section 57(2)(b) of the Act
         • The letter provided as a cover to the petition specified 1,493/1,492 signatures; Council officers counted 1,495 signatures. The above entries were deducted from 1,495 to        arrive at 1,130 validated signatures (i.e. 1,495 - 273 - 38 - 14 - 17 - 22 - 1 = 1,130)
         • Signatures were considered individually i.e. we did not reject a whole sheet if a signature failed for any reason; any entries on a page that were able to be validated were counted as validated signatures."

PETITION PROGRESS

PETITION REPORT

Council has flagged that it is “going absolutely by the book” despite there being 1,493 signatures. In its own way that says something for community engagement, accountability and “Organisational Values”!

Date: Sun, 17 Apr 2016 23:34:20 +0000 To: Ray Norman 7250  Cc: Robert Dobrzynski Mayor Subject: RE: Citizen's Petition Progress

The response on behalf of the General Manager.

As outlined in the Council Report on 11 April 2016, the General Manager, in accordance with s60(2) of the Local Government Act 1993 (the Act), will report to Council within 42 days after tabling the petition. This will therefore be on or before 23 May 2016.

Following the Council Meeting, if the petition complies with s59 of the Act, the council will hold the public meeting within 30 days after the meeting, which is on or before 22 June 2016.

When [Council] has] determined the date of the Council Meeting, [the authoriser] will be advised regarding the petition's compliance and the date of the Council Meeting in accordance with s60(1) of the Act.

From: Ray Norman 7250 ] Sent: Sunday, 17 April 2016 6:30 PM To: Robert Dobrzynski; MayorSubject: Citizen's Petition Progress

Dear Robert and Albert,

I note from the Council minutes that the Citizen Petition to Council has been tabled in accordance with Section 58 of the Local Government Act 1993 (Tas) and I have advised several petitioners of this fact.

I am however receiving many enquiries about the expected timeline from this point forward in respect to the petition. In particular, as the authorising person, I’m being asked about the anticipated date for the public meeting. I would appreciate any advice that you are able to offer in order that I can more adequately advise petitioners seeking this information.

Regards,

Ray Norman
“A body of men holding themselves accountable to nobody ought not to be trusted by anybody.” Thomas Paine
“The standard you walk past is the standard you accept ”  David Morrison

PETITION PRESENTED TO COUNCIL

 CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE

  CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE

Today the citizen's petition with 1493 signatures calling for a Public Meeting in regard to Council's in commitment to gift land to UTas was presented to the city's General Manager.  The Local Govt. Act 1993 requires Council to call a pub;oc meeting if 5% of the electorate, or 1,000 residents on the electoral roll, call for such a meeting.

Council has 42 days to verify the veracity of the petition. The letter accompanying the petition calls upon Launceston City Council to call a public meeting in accord with SECTION 57 of the Local Government Act 1993 for the purpose of: 

1. Discussing Council’s decision to gift land known as Willis Street Car Park and the Old Velodrome site to the University of Tasmania; 
2.  Calling upon Council to rescind the motion passed by the Full Council Meeting 9th November 2015; and to 
3. Discuss the proposal to place this land on the open market via a Public Auction with a Reserve Price of $5milliion. 

 Furthermore, it is requested that:

1. The meeting time be 7 PM 
2.  The meeting be chaired by an independent chairperson; 
3. Council and spokespeople for the petitioners be given adequate time to state their respective cases – 15 minutes; 
4. The meeting accept any motion from the floor for the consideration of Council; 
5.  Council consider the following people as appropriate independent chair people: Hon. Rosemary Armitage MLC; Hon. Don Wing AM; Hon Kerry Finch MLC; and Hon Ivan Dean MLC.

Given that half as many again signatures are required have been provided there should be no inhibitions in calling the meeting promptly. Indeed, there are many reasons to rethink the whole UTas relocation  proposal given the level of community disquiet.

It has been said that the the number petitioners "is only a small number of people who disagree with Council gifting land to UTas" but in the scheme of things it needs to be considered that:

• Only three Aldermen won their seats on council with more votes than there are signature on the petition – Ald. van Zetten, McKkenzie and Finlay;
• Five won their seats with less votes than signatures on the petition;
• With the other four winning their positions with less than 1,000 votes and three with less than half the number of petitioners. 
• See http://www.tec.tas.gov.au/LocalGovernmentElections2014/2014LGResults/LauncestonCity.html
• And only seven aldermen were in attendance to receive the petition.

In any event if the petition makes one point it is that the aldermen, and council by extension, on this issue ate least, are not connected with their constituents and have failed to include their constituents' concerns in their decision making processes.

CLICK HERE SEE EXAMINER STORY

Citizens' Petition To Be Presented To Council March 30

CLICK ABOVE TO ENLARGE

Curiously the Mayor seems to have adopted a position where he is deliberately privileging the "Property Council, the Chamber of Commerce, prominent private developers like Errol Stewart, TasTAFE and many other" (unnamed!) over and above ordinary ratepayers. 

After all these 'stakeholders' might be expected to – or even be expecting to – turn a dollar out the development phase of any large scale development project. Nothing inherently wrong with that except that it is a slanted and self-serving world view.

The Mayor in particular, via his dogged defence of the agreed 'land gift' to UTas, has put ordinary ratepayers' interests to one side. Is the Mayor actually invoking Matthew 12:1-11 were "Spiritual gifts were extraordinary powers bestowed in the first ages, to convince unbelievers, and to spread the [word]"?

If so, ordinary ratepayers, it appears, are being required bear the burden of funding ancillary infrastructure for the benefit of UTas – a non-contributor to the city's recurrent budget albeit that the institution is a significant benefactor in regard to Council services.

Indeed, it can be argued that Council is proactively discriminating against the greater part of the city's ratepayers in failing to consult with them in a meaningful way. It would appear that the risk in doing so, from Council's adopted perspective, would be to receive the kind of unwelcomed feedback embodied in the petition. It is an unavoidable and self-fulfilling prophesy!

Someone, somewhere, has said that the only real mistake is the one from which nothing is learnt. So if as they say, life is a process, not an end, mistakes are an inherent part of 'the process'. Thus mistakes are lost opportunities unless something is achieved via mistakes. Suffice to say unless the lessons learned are put into practice nothing at all can be achieved.

Here it seems that there is a 'Mexican stand off' in play and there a need for something that will break the nexus and perhaps its time to consider Proverbs 28:13: Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.