New here?
This blog is part of a series that explores how local government decisions affect everyday people in the Kiama area. I’m a long-time resident and former civics reporter, and I write to help our community stay informed, ask better questions and understand how things are meant to work – especially when they don’t.
In a 2024 media release, Kiama Council CEO Jane Stroud responded to community concern about the Gerringong Surf Life Saving Club build.
At the time, she said:
“There are several important lessons to be learnt in this project in terms of community driven replacement of Council owned facilities versus planned strategic replacement and renewal of Council assets.”
That’s a loaded sentence.
On the surface, it sounds like collaboration. But read between the lines and you’ll spot a recurring theme in how this Council operates: control, deflection, and carefully curated language that shifts accountability without ever saying the word.
When the CEO refers to community-driven replacement versus planned strategic replacement, she is drawing a line between Council’s preferred way of working – slow, top-down, internal – and what actually happened: a local surf club took initiative, secured $6 million in funding, and managed a major public project on community land.
The club did what Council didn’t. And instead of asking what Council could learn from that, the statement subtly positions the community effort as the problem. As if the real issue is that the community acted – not that Council failed to meet its own development consent conditions, failed to date the construction agreement, and allowed the building to be occupied while key access issues were unresolved.
When asbestos was discovered during construction, Council agreed to contribute an additional $370,000 to help cover remediation costs. It was a necessary move, but also a telling one, especially when paired with what the CEO said next:
“We hope this half-million-dollar shortfall serves as an important lesson and a model for better collaboration in future community projects.”
This reads like gratitude wrapped in a warning. A way of saying, thanks for doing the hard work, but don’t do it like this again.
This is the heart of the problem. At Kiama Council, there is a pattern. When something doesn’t go to plan, the instinct is not to own the issue or bring the right people to the table. It is to recast the story. Reframe the facts. And remind everyone who holds the pen.
That might pass in internal briefings. But in a community? People notice. Because they remember who showed up. Who fundraised. Who built the thing. And who quietly waited for Council to catch up or come clean.
And let’s not forget, this wasn’t a private build on private land. The new surf club was constructed on community land, managed by Council. That means Council was the landowner, the regulator, and the eventual asset holder. So when asbestos was discovered during construction, the obvious question is: why didn’t Council already know it was there?
If Council had done the necessary environmental due diligence, it should have been flagged long before the project started. Instead, the cost of that oversight was shifted, again, to the community group doing the heavy lifting.
This is what happens when governance loses sight of its core job: to serve, support, and safeguard the public interest. Not to act surprised when the cracks show.
It’s time we stopped mistaking polished press releases for leadership. Real leadership is about working with the community, not against it. It’s about learning lessons, not assigning them.
And most of all, it’s about being honest – especially when it’s inconvenient.
#KiamaCouncil #LocalLeadership #CommunityAccountability #PublicLand #SurfClubBuild #AsbestosOversight #GovernanceMatters #CivicEngagement #DevelopmentConsent #InfrastructureTransparency