Mayor4Unley

I have been approached by the public seeking clarity about Item 731 in the Minutes of the Unley Council meeting held on 23 January 2017. The item is titled 'Breach of Conduct for Council Member'. I provide clarity without further comment. The incident occurred in 2016 and involved Councillor Michael Hewitson and a confidential email (to Council) regarding a tender for public lighting and external parties who were related to him; the external parties were his son and his nephew who works in the public lighting industry. After an internal investigation, when the email trail came to light, Council was obliged to self-report the incident to the Office of Public Integrity. The matter was deemed a potential issue of misconduct in public administration within the meaning of the ICAC Act, and it was referred by the Independent Commissioner Against Corruption to the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman investigated and determined that Cr Hewitson had failed to comply with Part 3 of the Cod...

There must be a State election coming. Liberal Opposition Leader Steven Marshall has just dumped 2 veteran MPs from the opposition front bench. Long serving Liberals Steven Griffiths and Duncan McFetridge have been dumped from the Opposition’s shadow cabinet. Replaced by a couple of younger MPs; people I've never heard of. Hopefully with Griffiths going, the Liberals will reverse their stupid (or brave) plan to introduce rate capping for Councils. The policy is solely for political expediency; to win votes; with little thought of the reality of the outcome. For example, under the Liberal rate capping plan, Unley Council would not have been able to fund the current renovation of Goodwood Road. The danger for Marshall is that sacking a couple of veteran Liberals will cause angst within the Party. They will gang up against him; unless a deal has been done eg. a plum overseas posting or appointment to a nice quando or committee. I don't think that Steven Marshall has gone f...

I was staggered to read in The Advertiser (25 January) about the SA greyhound trainer caught fiddling with a male dog just prior to a race; and the episode was broadcast live on TV. The offence was termed 'stimulating' and he was found guilty by Greyhound Racing SA; it was deemed that his actions were improper and an offence under Greyhound Racing Rule 86(o). Racing experts are still unsure if the stimulation would have made the dog run slower or faster; opinion tended to favour a slower outcome. Animal welfare groups had never before encountered such behaviour and were unprepared for professional comment; other than saying that animals must be treated with respect and not subject to indignity or ridicule. The Greyhound Racing body did not give public consideration to the possibility that the trainer had performed the act for his own gratification. Talk about fiddling a race! Absolutely disgusting!!

Here's a letter to the editor, published on 25 January 2017 ... It was another great Gourmet Gala evening and a fantastic Tour Down Under start in Unley. Next year I want it to be even better by moving the gala and start events to Goodwood Road to celebrate the completion of the streetscape and roadworks. Goodwood Road is being transformed into the premier main road in Unley. It's time to share the love and bring these events to Goodwood Road. The local traders would embrace it and inject a real Goodwood flavour. I will pursue this initiative at Unley Council.

My favourite beer is Pirate Life. It's new on the Adelaide scene and it is local, brewed at Hindmarsh. It's only been on the market for a few years, but it's going gang busters; hugely popular. A great range of beers and only in cans; and on tap in some pubs. My best fav is the Pale Ale Tip: drink slowly as the alcohol content is high. Another tip: avoid the Golden Era Golden Ale . I don't know why they make it. Amongst my Pirate Life drinking mates, no-one will touch it. The brewery is frequently reviewed with glowing reports. Here's a link to a conversation with chief brewer Lewis Maschmedt @ Pirate Life. Click here

I found the bargain of the year! Yesterday on eBay I found a used bridge for sale. It was the pedestrian and cycle overpass bridge on South Road at Tram Stop 6. Despite it being SA Government property, a frustrated commuter from Sellicks Beach (eBay account keynes8963 ) listed it for sale on eBay. The description said that it was only 7 years old and had cost $30m. Postage was $10.40 via Australia Post Parcel delivery. I placed a bid early in the day at $250. I was quickly outbid with the bids exceeding $100k. I did send the seller a message asking if the overhead lights were included. He replied that if I paid cash he would throw in the lights. Later in the day the advertisement and all trace of it was removed from eBay; probably at the instigation of the Government.

I have just been updated by DPTI about the condition of the Tram Stop 6 Bridge and they have provided the following information….  DPTI Community Engagement teams have been out speaking to local businesses impacted by the closure of South Road.  We have managed to improve some of the impediments for businesses to ensure, no cones are blocking business access points and that traffic management staff are accommodating to all vehicles, such as courier drivers. The following information was discussed with businesses and DPTI is promoting on social media that businesses remain trading as usual. South Road remains closed between Cross Road and ANZAC Hwy. The overpass structure consists of five beams and it’s the fifth beam which supports the combined cycle and walking path has tilted towards the edge of the bridge posing a safety risk. The beam sits on bearings and that tilting has caused those bearings to compress on one side. Engineers are not yet certain...