THE Oberon Shire Residents and Ratepayers Association (OSR and RA) thanks the mayor for her Mayor's Column in the Oberon Review of May 21, where under the heading "Opinion Presented as Fact", she comments on the circumstances surrounding the sale of the Hathaway independent living units.
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Let's see if we can fill in the gaps.
The selling agent reported Hathaway was sold June 22, 2017 for $780k plus GST (this would have been the exchange of contracts; the sale according to council's accounts was not settled nor booked until financial year 2018). Council in its financial year 2017 accounts noted that the property was sold (but not yet booked) for $708k excluding GST.
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Where might the $72k difference have gone? Well, as the purchaser did not pay GST, council evidently became responsible because it was at fault in this contractual cock-up.
Why wasn't this situation formally declared to the public in the accounts?
OSR and RA wonders who got sacked for this little mistake of $72,000?
Agent fees for the auction plus advertising would be at least 3 per cent, add legal cost of around $10k and stamp duty and estimated selling expenses would be around say $38k (these expenses are not separately shown in council's published accounts for financial year 2018). Less $20k for the concept design for new units at Curtis Street and a further $50k for council chamber renovations leaves $600k, as confirmed by council.
The council, according to its records, at first generously intended to take $125k of the sales proceeds and transfer to the Althea Johnson Trust. But circumstances willed it otherwise.
After having to foot the $72k GST bill, and taking $50k for doing up council chambers, and facing a then assumed Curtis Street build budget of $720k, not only was there no money for Althea Johnson, but worse - council had to take $120k from that Trust to fund Curtis Street.
And there is more: because the final tendered cost of Curtis Street units grew to over $1.1 million the council had to inject another $400k to the project from the Land and Development Reserve.
In June 2017, the mayor stated the proceeds from the sale [of Hathaway] are earmarked for subsidised housing for seniors at low-cost units in Curtis Street.
In October 2019, she says it is morally incumbent upon council to ensure the most vulnerable ... are looked after. Still, it appears the council did not hesitate taking $50,000 from the most vulnerable in our community apparently to celebrate our independence, by refurbishing the mayor's office and committee room so as to signal our prosperity and the renaissance of our council.
After more than one questionable decision, the effects of which have been increasing divisiveness in the community, and from the council's lack of transparency, most people would question the applicability of the word renaissance.
And with a 39.4 per cent rate increase over the last five years the prosperity is that of the council, not of the community.
As for the mayor's $8743.46 mentioned in the May Oberon Review, we don't know if only the $8.7k was spent. We do know that $50k was taken and that none of that has come back to fund the independent living units in Curtis Street (refer June 30, 2019 restricted cash report).
Council also proposed to siphon off money from the Town Improvement Fund in November 2019, suggesting to use unallocated funds ($85,670) miraculously found after not having had a reconciliation in 10 years.
Propping up the independent living units from rates paid for a specific and different purpose shows the council does not know nor understand the purpose of the Town Improvement Fund.
Check out OSR and RA on Facebook for more.
