Oh what a tangled web we weave in Warrnambool

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Tight knit: I had plans to write today about the W’bool City Council election campaign being in full swing – it started with the knifing of the CEO and has gathered full strength now that Cr Mike “The Real Chief” Neoh starts popping up in the paper with all manner of either un-costed, outlandish or recycled ideas from years ago…..BUT…..

BUT this is too good not to share.

It’s a visual map put together by a reader showing a tiny corner of the spider web that operates in Warrnambool between our public boards, public institutions and authorities.

It’s the same map I sketched out in words last week on this page.

Wow! It looks like an FBI crime map, where the victim is Warrnambool, strangled by the thin, tight cord of mutually beneficial connections.

And this is only the merest skim across the surface of the ties between Lyndoch Living and WCC.

It doesn’t even touch on many of the most sought after boards and executive spots including the Warrnambool Racing Club, MPower, South-West TAFE, South West Healthcare, Wannon Water, Brophy, Regional Development Australia Barwon South West, Leadership Great South Coast, the Liberal Party, the Labor Party and all of the various partnerships, hook ups and cross fertilisation that happens behind the scenes.

Boiling steadily beneath the surface is a soup of new names and old, both well-known and less so, like Anson, McKenna, Philpott, Gaston, Ermacora, Rule, Waterhouse, Power, Nelson, Lane, Lee-Ack, Broekman, Cassidy, Boyle, Jeffers, Neoh, Wallis…around and around and around we go.

I will pluck out just one as an example: Steven Waterhouse. I don’t know Steven Waterhouse, but according to Linkedin he is General Manager at Wannon Water, Chair of South West TAFE, and Deputy Chair Warrnambool Racing Club. That’s a trifecta!

I am sure many regional cities could draw a similar map, but is it a good thing, or is it stifling? Is it mentoring, or is it controlling? Is it about maintaining power or sharing it?

All of these questions are swirling around my head as we prepare to vote for our next council.

This election, more than ever, is a chance for change at least within one public institution – a chance to break the mould. A fresh start, with fresh names, who you will come to know in coming weeks.

 

It is going to take a lot of hard work for these faces to bust through: to garner even a small corner of the thousands of dollars of free publicity that Cr Neoh, for example, has enjoyed for his recycled ideas, but I am hoping they can do it.

I don’t want someone on council who will have been there 20 years. That’s unhealthy in any democracy.

And I don’t want someone who is the puppet of someone else. That’s also unhealthy in any democracy.

If we want change, we are going to have work hard for it. I am ready and I hope you are too.



Unpicking the tight-knit connections of WCC and Lyndoch

Links: Lyndoch Living CEO Doreen Power, WCC Councillor Sue Cassidy, WCC planning chief Andrew Paton, WCC CEO Vikki King and Lyndoch board member Prof Rob Wallis.

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Oooh Warrnambool can be a tight-knit little place and the knit between two of our biggest public institutions – Warrnambool City Council and Lyndoch Living – just got a little tighter with the unexpected elevation of Vikki King to council CEO.

While the seven councillors continue to rip each other’s heads off and try to justify why they treat the public like numbskulls (#whitenoise), I thought I would briefly turn the channel to another station and unpick at least one row in the roll-neck sweater of the Warrnambool club.

As we know, the crucial vote for Ms King being hand-picked for the top role by four of the seven councillors came from Councillor Sue Cassidy (or as someone accidentally, but prophetically, said as a spoonerism the other day, Coup Sassidy), so let’s start there.

(Needles up! Cast on…)

Cr Cassidy is a member of the Lyndoch Living board.

Cr Cassidy, owner of Unisexcuts hair salon, is close to the Lyndoch CEO Doreen Power and, together with Ms Power, is one of three directors of Lyndoch Healthcare Pty Ltd that was set up to oversee the Warrnambool Medical Clinic which was bought by Lyndoch last year.

The Warrnambool Medical Clinic is set to relocate at some point into a new, multi-million dollar “super clinic” being planned for Lyndoch.

The third director of Lyndoch Healthcare Pty Ltd is Andrew Paton. Mr Paton is the Director of City Growth – the head of planning – at the Warrnambool City Council.

He is also on the Lyndoch board.

Mr Paton is also part of the council’s Economic Development Advisory Committee, where Ms Power is one of the nine committee members.

Another Lyndoch board member is former Deakin academic and former Wannon Water deputy chair Professor Rob Wallis.

Prof Wallis is also the independent chair of the council’s Audit and Risk Committee.

Cr Cassidy also sits on that committee.

 

Prof Wallis, as it happens, was also until recently one of two independent people on the council’s Chief Executive Employment Matters Advisory Committee, which advised on matters to do with the CEO.

That was until last week when, according to the Standard, he resigned in the wake of the unprecedented coup against CEO Peter Schneider.

Cr Cassidy was part of that coup, which loops us right back around and up and down to the new council CEO, Ms King.

Prior to being anointed CEO, Ms King already had connections to her Lyndoch counterpart, Ms Power.

They were both members of Beyond the Bell – a local network to encourage and support children in education – around 2016-17 when the program went through a period of transition on the back of receiving significant government funding.

As a result of that transition, Brophy CEO Francis Broekman became chair.

As an aside, Mr Broekman is the husband of former Mayor and long-term councillor Jacinta Ermacora who is now chair of Wannon Water. The CEO of Wannon Water, Andrew Jeffers, is on the board of Beyond the Bell.

Up and over and around we go….knit one, pearl one….but I digress.

Ms King and Ms Power are also on the executive committee of the South West Primary Care Partnership which is a collective of health service agencies.

Ms Power is chair and Ms King is deputy chair of this network.

The partnership itself, as of last year, is now included in the financial statements of Lyndoch Living.

Some of the SWPHP members have also been involved in the transition of the Warrnambool Medical Clinic over to Lyndoch’s control and ownership.

(Needles down. Cast off…)

This little knitting exercise is not only interesting for the links between these WCC and Lyndoch – but also for where they sit in terms of public accountability.

Both Lyndoch Living and WCC are arguably in the middle of unprecedented change and will face ongoing questions from us, the public, whom they serve, about their operations, direction, expenditure and staff morale.

It will be fascinating to watch how these questions are handled in coming months, as we enter annual general report time, annual general meeting time, and council elections.

Will we see greater transparency and openness, or will the wool be once again pulled over our eyes?

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Councillors become king makers, but the secrecy remains

In charge: former WCC Community Development manager Vikki King was chosen by the leaders of last week’s coup to replace the sitting CEO Peter Schneider. Image: WCC

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

I asked a simple question of the Warrnambool City Council last Friday: could I have the CV of our new CEO?

The answer was no.

Secrecy is so ingrained in the Warrnambool City Council that ratepayers are not allowed to see the CV of the person who we will potentially* pay around $340,000 – or $26,000 a month for the next 12 months – to run our city.

*(Edit: I have added the word potentially, as this was around the mark for the former CEO, Peter Schneider. Another former CEO, Bruce Anson, received a package of $320,000 in his final year. These salaries are in line with what is offered in “Band 2” councils which include W’bool. The WCC has not disclosed the package for the new CEO.)

As we know, the council’s head of Community Development, Vikki King, was thrust into the top spot by the Four Horsemen who decided to axe Peter Schneider and replace him with the person they wanted in the job.

Given this extraordinary turn of events, I thought it logical that we, as ratepayers, should see the credentials and work history of the person we just “hired” as our chief executive.

The request was denied by Ms King herself.

Here we go again.

It’s just a few weeks since the release of the community survey which showed the people of Warrnambool have had a gill full of being treated like shiitakes, but nothing has changed and, if the past week is any guide, it’s worse.

We were not told by our councillors that the former CEO was about to be sacked, or why, and in some sort of perverse charade the councillors spent the last monthly meeting congratulating themselves many times over for their brilliance.

We also don’t know the cost of this whole set up, and because the coup conveniently happened after 30 June, that cost won’t be included in this year’s annual report.

Amidst all this darkness, it’s the terriers who have to do the digging and delving and poke holes into the walls so that the light gets in.

As I say many times over, scrutiny of our council is not about personalities, but process: when decisions are made on behalf of the public, and involve public money, we have a right to know.

So what do we know?

Well, we know Ms King has been with the council for five years as head of Community Development and, according to some of those who worked with her over that time, is known as “a straight shooter”.

As it happens, Ms King’s contract was due to end in August and who knows what that meant for Ms King’s plans or her future with the WCC?

It doesn’t matter now, because Crs Neoh, Gaston, Cassidy and Owen had Ms King pegged for a whole new post and signed her up for a full 12 months, all without asking the Mayor or the other two councillors.

They didn’t even bother to put an ad on the tearoom noticeboard: “Vacancy. Long hours. Pays well.”

Ms King told the local newspaper last week that she had no idea what was coming.

Judging by the evidence put forward so far by Mayor Tony Herbert, neither did Mr Schneider, who had passed his performance reviews and received a pay rise before being booted out the door without so much as a farewell speech and a WCC tie-pin.

Ironically, Mr Schneider’s departure is the latest in a string of senior resignations from the council these past 12 months under his watch.

Among them was head of governance Anne-Marie Neal, who reported directly to the CEO – both Bruce Anson, and then Mr Schneider – before she departed suddenly late last year without any explanation or comment by the council.

A reader alerted me to a case listed in the Magistrate’s Court for September involving a worker’s compensation claim between Ms Neal and the WCC, so perhaps the circumstances surrounding that situation will soon become clearer.

Another three senior managers have also resigned in the past six months: Manager Economic Development Shaun Miller, Facilities and Projects Manager Ben Storey and, most recently, Director City Infrastructure Scott Cavanagh.

The council itself now has more holes than Swiss cheese and the councillors have never been more divided, with many now asking the same question: how did it get this bad?

And as the Warrnambool Ratepayers Association asked at the weekend, where to from here to turn it around?

As we head toward an election on October 24 and have a chance to determine who runs our city, both behind the scenes and up front, these questions have never been more important.

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Million dollar question on CEO axing remains unanswered

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Questions: Are we about to throw $1 million of ratepayers’ money down the drain because the four horsemen of the apocalypse decided to sack the WCC chief without warning?

This is the figure being floated about and because Crs Owen, Neoh, Gaston and Cassidy refuse to tell us the full cost of their night of the long knives last Monday, I am going to say it must be close to the truth.

The math makes sense: 2.5 years left on a $340,000 contract, plus paying the acting CEO another $340,000, plus legal fees, leave entitlements etc.

If it isn’t such a huge cost, why is it secret? Ballarat City Council dumped its CEO in May – after a damning Ombudsman’s report – and the payout was in the local paper by the following Friday.

This time last year, these same four councillors voted for a rate rise of 4.5% – almost double the cap.

We were told this massive jump was essential to raise $700,000 extra to pay for bridges and footpaths and all of the crumbling infrastructure that had not been properly maintained under their watch (all ‘inherited’ according to Cr Neoh, who has since told us not to look at the past.)

Every cent of that rate rise will now go toward paying for their treachery.

Thankyou very much Crs Owen, Gaston, Neoh and Cassidy.

These councillors have clearly lost touch with the average ratepayer who they claim to represent and that, to me, is the greatest travesty.

We – and I am among those who have watched my rates go up and up – are just pawns in a power game. A game that was cooked up many months ago.

The acting CEO Vikki King didn’t suddenly get a tap on her door last week from Cr Gaston, or Cr Neoh, or whoever was given that exciting task, to see if she was free for the next 12 months.

How convenient that the acting CEO was slotted into the $340,000 a year role without it being advertised, or offered to any of the other senior managers who might have been interested.

It might be legal, but is it ethical?

Speaking of ethics, I am yet to see one shred of evidence as to why the CEO had to be knifed without so much as a final warning.

If the council gets out of this without a legal battle of some description, especially given the CEO’s professional reputation is now in tatters, I will be amazed – and grateful, that this attack in the night will not leave us carrying an even greater financial burden.

This story is far from over.

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Barry the Boolshite detector on why the CEO had to go

While you may understandably be feeling some concern, we’d like to remind you that every large organisation, whether government or private, must occasionally, in the best interest of that organisation, go through such a process.

We like to sound patronising and caring as we move into election mode. 

You have elected us to make the right decisions for this community.

We make the decisions and then tell you about them later, and this time we have put a gag in place, just for extra comfort.

Sadly some recent choices have not worked out and now we are attempting to correct that situation, prior to the next council term.

We %$%ed up the appointment process, we signed off on all the performance reviews, and now we are trying to cover our asses before the next election. (Barry, tone down the language.)

These results were extremely concerning given that ‘staff culture’ and ‘community engagement’ was asked to be elevated as key organisational priorities and risks.

See above.

It has also been baffling as to why one of our most successful engagement strategies, the Warrnambool City Council 2040 Plan, has seen the operational implementation of the plan both neglected and stripped of resources after being given contrary assurances at the highest level.

The CEO was so busy getting rid of the bullies and sorting out the mess he inherited, that he didn’t focus enough on the 2040 plan. That is baffling, and sackable! 

Having engaged with thousands of community members and almost 100 supporting organisations in developing the plan, it’s disturbing that councillor’s continual requests for appropriate operational support has fallen on deaf ears.

He had 17 months to get the Titanic in order, what more does he want?

This is just not acceptable.

Having someone milk our credit cards? Shrug. Spending $40,000 on renovations to a council-owned apartment where the former CEO’s executive assistant lived for 30 years without a written lease? Yawn. Watching Flagstaff Hill bleed us dry while we raise rates to double the cap? Boring! Not getting that 2040 Plan up and running? Now you’re talking! Unacceptable!

Councillors have developed a plan with you, the community, and we made a pledge to you that we are committed to it being resourced and implemented.

There are lots of other plans we have developed too, and done nothing about – they sit on shelves – but this one! This is the one! You want it, you got it!

We are confident that the acting CEO will reinforce our values, particularly with staff, and pursue Warrnambool’s interests with passion and represent us well with external stakeholders.

We know this, because we had her lined up from day one of this coup plan. Pity we didn’t hire her in the first place and saved you all a lot of money.

Whilst there may be diverse views in the community and among councillors, potentially the one thing that will hold the city back is obsessively dwelling on the past and using the past as an excuse.

This has worked for others, so we thought we might try it too. Forget the past! And especially forget the parts where we might have aided and abetted a certain culture while the council slowly fell apart financially, in community trust and in staff morale. Move on, people!

We believe that our decision, as difficult as it has been, is in the very best interest of our community.

And that’s why we did it without telling you anything.

To convey a clear plan and pathway forward, for you the community, we have put in place a time- line that will see the newly-elected council undertake a recruitment process post council election which is scheduled for October 2020.

We are already telling the next council what to do. This is how we roll.

Now that the decision has been made, we expect the Mayor and all councillors to move forward and continue to focus on the aspirations and needs of the community for the remainder of the current council term.

Sorry, this is too much even for Barry. He has passed out.

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