Category: Abuse of Power

Kiama Council’s Gaslighting Didn’t End with the Report, It Got a Standing Ovation

 

Kiama Council’s latest report into 7.11/7.12 developer contributions might have skipped the $970,000 loss, but some councillors didn’t just let it slide, they applauded it. And now the video message tells us everything’s fine. The gaslighting hasn’t stopped. It’s evolving. I imagine the internal conversations, “Is this the hill I want to die on?” “Is it worth rocking the boat?” But every time that question wins out over accountability, the damage deepens. Not just to public trust, but to the reputation of anyone who stays silent. When do they call it out? When is enough finally enough?

What Happens to a $1 Million Developer Contribution That Was Never Collected?

Recently, a councillor dismissed community concerns about Kiama Council’s lost $1 million developer contribution from the Golden Valley project by saying, “Jamberoo didn’t need any extra roads.”

Let’s be clear: that’s not how Section 7.11 contributions work. And it’s not an excuse.

What Are Section 7.11 Contributions For?

Section 7.11 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act allows councils to charge developers for local infrastructure needed as a result of new development.

That includes:

  • Roads

  • Footpaths and cycleways

  • Drainage and stormwater upgrades

  • Community halls and libraries

  • Open space, parks and playgrounds

  • Traffic calming and local safety improvements

It’s not just about roads. It’s about ensuring our community services, infrastructure, and public spaces keep pace with population growth.

What Would Have Happened to the $1 Million?

If Kiama Council had maintained a valid Section 7.11 plan and the $1 million contribution had been collected from the Golden Valley development, here’s what would’ve happened:

  • The funds would have gone into a dedicated infrastructure reserve, separate from general council revenue.

  • The money could only be used for works listed in the adopted 7.11 plan, local projects identified as needed due to growth.

  • Even if the infrastructure wasn’t needed immediately, the money would remain in reserve and be used when the demand appeared.

  • Councils usually have up to 10 years to use the funds. If nothing is built in that time, they must return the funds, but that rarely happens with well-managed plans.

So Why Didn’t Council Collect It?

The developer had agreed to pay the $1 million. They considered it reasonable. But while the development was in the Land and Environment Court, Council repealed its 7.11 plan.

By the time the court made its final ruling, there was no legal mechanism to impose the original $1 million contribution. Instead, the court applied a Section 7.12 levy, which is capped at 1% of the development cost. The developer paid $30,000.

That’s a $970,000 shortfall to the Jamberoo community. Not because of a court loss. Not because of a loophole. But because of Council’s own failure to manage its planning instruments.

Why This Matters

This wasn’t a technical error. It was a preventable governance failure. And it’s been compounded by a refusal to explain what happened or who was responsible.

The community deserves more than a shrug and a video saying “Council did nothing wrong.”

The Jamberoo community  lost $970,000 in infrastructure funding and we’re being told not to ask why.

#DeveloperContributions #CouncilAccountability #GaslightingBySilence #InfrastructureFail #GoldenValley #KiamaCouncil #PlanningMatters #WhereDidTheMillionGo #ReputationByAssociation #WhenIsEnoughEnough

How to Master the Fine Art of Bureaucratic Spin (No Soul Required)

Satirical representation. No actual clowns were employed in the making of this council.

Looking to pivot away from meaningful communication and into a career where vague language, circular logic and passive voice reign supreme? You might just have what it takes to become a spin doctor in local government.

At Kiama Council, we’ve seen the craft honed to such dizzying heights, it really ought to be a university major. So, for those inspired by recent exhibitions of bureaucratic ballet, here’s a breakdown of the essential skill set, and the degree you’d need, to enter this murky but marvellously well-defended world.

📚 Degree: Bachelor of Arts (in Obfuscation and Delay)

Double major in Strategic Ambiguity and Circular Consultation

Core Subjects Might Include:

  • Intro to Passive Voice
    “Mistakes were made.”
    Learn how to strip agency from every sentence so no one ever knows who did what, or why.

  • Advanced Euphemism
    Translate “we stuffed it” into “unexpected budgetary variance within a dynamic delivery environment.”

  • Spin Cycle 101
    Turn every negative into an ‘opportunity for growth’, preferably in 600 words or more.

  • Community Engagement (Optional Elective)
    Because listening is optional. But looking like you’re listening? That’s gold.

  • Excel Acrobatics
    Essential for hiding real meaning inside colourful bar graphs with zero context.

  • Public Speaking for Politicians and Possums
    How to appear calm, cute, and a little bit confused, while firmly refusing to answer the question.

🛠 Real-World Skills Required

  • Deadline Evasion:
    An internal clock that knows how to stall until after the next election cycle.

  • Email Mastery:
    Say everything while saying nothing. Bonus points for including the words “noted,” “strategic,” and “ongoing.”

  • The Long Pause:
    Perfected by council spokespersons everywhere. Gives the illusion of deep thought while waiting for legal to respond.

  • Meeting Bingo:
    Learn how to use terms like “framework,” “lens,” “alignment” and “stakeholder pathways” in a sentence without blinking.

At Kiama Council, we don’t just admire this art form, we live it. From “monitoring future needs” to “aligning with state frameworks,” every missed opportunity is neatly packaged and returned to sender with a bow and a hyperlink to a 72-page PDF no one asked for.

So if you’ve ever read a council report and found yourself more confused than when you started, don’t worry, it’s not you. It’s working as intended.

#KiamaCouncil #BureaucraticSpin #LocalGovLife #PassiveVoiceMasters #StrategicAmbiguity #StakeholderBingo #YouveBeenFrameworked

Are we being gaslit by our own Council?

Moving On Without Looking Back Isn’t Leadership. It’s Evasion.

There’s a growing call within Kiama Council to “move forward” on developer contributions, to focus on new frameworks, technical capabilities, and future improvements. That instinct is understandable. For newly elected councillors, the pressure to defend decisions they didn’t make must be exhausting. No one expects them to carry that weight alone.

But the issue here isn’t the future. It’s the refusal to face the past.

The latest Council report into Section 7.11 and 7.12 developer contributions presents itself as a review. It’s not. It’s an administrative summary, a carefully curated narrative that avoids the most troubling questions.

  • It does not explain why Council allowed legally required contribution plans to lapse without replacement.
  • It does not acknowledge the nearly $1 million in lost infrastructure funding from developments like Golden Valley. See previous blog post: How Kiama lost $970,000 in developer contributions and no one explained why
  • It does not explain why staff continued applying 7.11 levies after the plans had expired, resulting in $1.5 million in overcharges.
  • And it certainly does not address why this information was omitted from the CEO’s public statements earlier this year.

Instead, we are told that everything is under control. That staff have the skills to prepare new plans. That forward planning is happening “across all departments.”

But if no one inside Council can admit what went wrong, how can we trust that the same systems and staff will get it right this time?

While the report confirms the repeal of the 7.11 plans and notes that overcharges have been refunded, it still fails to address the most critical issues:

  • Why the required five-year review process was ignored

  • Why Council allowed the plans to lapse without any replacement

  • Why the Golden Valley development, with its $1 million 7.11 condition, is excluded entirely from the analysis

  • Why the CEO’s earlier response omitted this development

  • What steps are being taken to prevent this kind of governance failure from happening again

  • Why the review ignored key issues raised by councillors and the community, including those I raised in good faith

  • It also fails to acknowledge the damage caused when a CEO publicly undermines the credibility of an elected councillor, then commissions a review that examines only what suits the executive agenda. This was not a full or independent review. It was a tightly controlled exercise in reputation management, not truth-telling.

The people responsible for these failures should not be allowed to rewrite history with a few carefully worded lines in a report.

If Council is serious about moving forward with the community, it must first confront what went wrong, tell the truth, and start rebuilding trust from there.

BTW If you’ve ever read a council report and found yourself more confused than when you started, don’t worry, it’s not you. It’s working as intended.

#KiamaCouncil #AccountabilityMatters #DeveloperContributions #GoldenValley #PlanningFail #Governance #LocalGovernment #TransparencyNow #CommunityDeservesBetter #InfrastructureFunding