Guildford resident Andrew Kiely has called on City of Swan councillors to resign.
Camera IconGuildford resident Andrew Kiely has called on City of Swan councillors to resign. Credit: Supplied/Bruce Hunt

Call for councillors to resign

By Sally McGlew, Midland ReporterMidland Kalamunda Reporter

Mr Kiely claimed the council, in its ignorance and lack of knowledge of such matters, was trying to recreate a Western Sydney, or a Dandenong South (Melbourne), by infilling green space, removing public amenity and lowering the value of homes.

He made it clear he spoke only on his own behalf and was not representing a group of people.

‘What is the value of a petition, if it is obvious the majority of people in Guildford don’t want this?’ he said.

PerthNow Digital Edition.
Your local paper, whenever you want it.

Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE

Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.

READ NOW

‘I cannot turn my acre in Guildford into a piggery due to zoning but they have allowed the reverse of that to happen with the golf course.’

Mr Kiely, who came into the council chamber complete with his golf bag and clubs, called on councillors Sandra Gregorini and Mark Elliott to resign because he said they had no mandate to vote for the rezoning of the golf course from rural to urban.

He said at the last election Cr Elliott polled 26.3 per cent of the vote, with 1487 votes, and Cr Gregorini polled 1360, or 24.1 per cent of the votes.

He said he had a petition with more than 4000 signatures ” significantly more than the total votes polled by the councillors.

‘You don’t have a mandate,’ he said.

‘Your decision has cost me thousands of dollars in lost property value and I am not alone.

‘Your voting decision has cost pretty much every household thousands of dollars.

‘You have gone against your constituents and I believe you must pay the price. I have lost any faith in you as my elected representatives.’

Cr Gregorini has been on council since 2009. She has lived in the Midland and Swan View area since 1967 and is a member of the Swan Communications Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade, Stratton Lions Club and has been a member of the Fire and Emergency Services Board and Chair of the State Emergency Service Consultative Committee since 2001.

Like her late husband, former mayor and councillor Charles Gregorini, she is a passionate supporter of the Swan City Youth Service, among other local groups.

Cr Mark Elliott was elected to the council in 2011 and has lived in the Midland area most of his life. He has worked in the community both as an employee association’s delegate and a youth worker at his local parish.

He is the youngest councillor at City of Swan and serves on the Audit and Youth Advisory committees.

‘Midland is very much the place I call home,’ he said.

‘It is where I live, work and studied,’ he says on the Swan website.

‘I am passionate about the improvement of services in the area, both for the young and the elderly, and as we grow as a city, I am keen to help ensure that it becomes an even better place for all people to call home.’

Crs Gregorini and Elliott’s terms expire in October next year. Neither has indicated if they will stand again.

Neither responded to the call for their resignations at the meeting.

Mr Kiely spoke for about five minutes. Acting Mayor Mick Wainwright asked him to move away from the microphone three times after his allotted time was up.

City chief executive Mike Foley and a staff member then removed Mr Kiely from the chambers. He was joined by other residents.

‘I don’t know why we got thrown out, we weren’t being disorderly,’ City of Swan resident Bette Bradley (78) of Woodbridge said later outside the chamber.

‘All we were doing was clapping and cheering and saying ‘hear, hear’. I have never been thrownout of a meeting before.’