Council Meeting
17 March 2021
Steve Christou (Mayor) |
Councillor |
Eddy Sarkis (Deputy Mayor) |
Councillor |
Ned Attie |
Councillor |
George Campbell |
Councillor (via web conferencing) |
Greg Cummings |
Councillor |
Glenn Elmore |
Councillor |
Paul Garrard |
Councillor |
Ola Hamed |
Councillor (via web conferencing) |
Kun Huang |
Councillor |
Lisa Lake |
Councillor |
Joseph Rahme |
Councillor |
Suman Saha |
Councillor |
Michael Zaiter |
Councillor |
Tom Zreika |
Councillor (via web conferencing joined 6:48pm) |
Peter Fitzgerald |
Acting General Manager |
Melissa Attia |
Director Community & Organisation Development |
Daniel Cavallo |
Director Environment & Planning |
Richard Sheridan |
Director Finance & Governance |
Brendan Govers |
Acting Director Works & Infrastructure |
Also Present:
Charlie Ayoub |
Executive Manager Corporate Services |
Colin McFadzean |
General Counsel |
Carol Karaki |
Senior Coordinator Governance & Civic Events |
Olivia Shields |
Senior Governance Officer |
The Mayor, Councillor Christou declared the meeting open at 6:31pm.
Opening Prayer
The opening prayer was read by Fr. Peter Blayney from St Patrick’s Catholic, Guildford.
The Mayor, Councillor Christou read the following Acknowledgement of Country:
“I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of this land – the Darug People, and pay my respects to their elders past, present and emerging.”
National Anthem
At this point in the meeting the Mayor, Councillor Christou asked all of those in attendance to stand for the playing of the Australian National Anthem.
Notice of Live Streaming of Council Meeting
The Mayor, Councillor Christou advised that the Council meeting was being streamed live on Council's website and members of the public must ensure their speech to the Council is respectful and use appropriate language.
Min.1052 Apologies/Leave of Absence
Resolved (Elmore/Sarkis)
That the apology tendered on behalf of Councillor Zreika be accepted.
Councillor Zreika later joined the meeting at 6:48pm via web conferencing.
Councillors Attie and Sarkis declared a less than significant non-pecuniary interest in items C03/21-699, C03/21-700 and C03/21-701 as they are both members of the Sydney Central City Planning Panel and they noted it is possible that these matters may be heard by the Panel in future. As such, they exited the Chamber during the consideration of these items.
Confirmation of Minutes
C03/21-695 Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of Council - 03 March 2021 |
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That Council confirm the minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of Council held on 3 March 2021 with an amendment to Min.1043 to reflect the amendment moved by Councillor Garrard which was subsequently accepted by the mover of the Motion.
The Motion moved by Councillor Sarkis seconded by Councillor Garrard on being Put was declared CARRIED on the casting vote of the Mayor.
A division was called, the result of the division required in accordance with Council’s Code of Meeting Practice is as follows:
Councillor(s) For the Motion: Attie, Christou, Garrard, Rahme, Sarkis, Zaiter and Zreika.
Councillor(s) Against the Motion: Campbell, Cummings, Elmore, Hamed, Huang, Lake and Saha. |
Public Forum:
Speakers on Items on the Council Meeting Agenda
Speaker |
Item # |
Suburb |
Mr Roydon Ng |
C03/21-707 Notice of Motion - Racism Not Welcome Campaign |
Lidcombe |
Dr Sabrin Farooqui |
C03/21-707 Notice of Motion - Racism Not Welcome Campaign |
Potts Hill |
Miss Nazanin Sharifi |
C03/21-707 Notice of Motion - Racism Not Welcome Campaign |
Doonside |
Ms Yusra Metwally |
C03/21-707 Notice of Motion - Racism Not Welcome Campaign |
Chester Hill |
Min.1054 |
Suspension of Standing Orders |
Resolved (Attie/Cummings) That in accordance with Clause 8.2 of the Code of Meeting Practice, Council suspend standing orders to allow Item C03/21-707 to be brought forward for consideration at this time of the Meeting.
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Min.1055 |
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That Council: 1. Note the alarming rise in incidents of racism in Australia and our local community; 2. Endorse the “Racism Not Welcome” campaign developed by the Inner West Multicultural Network (IWMN); 3. Support the instalment of bi-lingual* “Racism Not Welcome” street signs in key locations around the Cumberland LGA as part of this campaign; 4. Work with the IWMN to install the “Racism Not Welcome” street signs; and 5. Allocate $5000 towards Racism Not Welcome Campaign. (*English + one of the top 5 languages that reflects the demographic of the local community)
The Motion moved by Councillor Huang seconded by Councillor Saha on being Put was declared LOST on the casting vote of the Mayor.
A division was called, the result of the division required in accordance with Council’s Code of Meeting Practice is as follows:
Councillor(s) For the Motion: Campbell, Cummings, Elmore, Hamed, Huang, Lake and Saha.
Councillor(s) Against the Motion: Attie, Christou, Garrard, Rahme, Sarkis, Zaiter and Zreika. |
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Min.1056 |
Resumption of Standing Orders |
Resolved (Sarkis/Zaiter) That in accordance with Clause 8.2 of the Code of Meeting Practice, Council resume the normal order of business. |
Min.1057 |
Matter of Urgency – Councillor Attie |
Resolved (Sarkis/Cummings) That in accordance with Clause 9.3(b) of the Cumberland City Council Code of Meeting Practice, Standing Orders be suspended to permit the Matter of Urgency in relation to outdoor dining during Ramadan and Easter.
ADJOURNMENT
7:50pm The Mayor, Councillor Christou adjourned the Meeting for a short recess during the consideration of this item.
7:58pm The Mayor, Councillor Christou resumed the Meeting and consideration of this item continued accordingly.
Carried Unanimously |
Min.1058 |
Matter of Urgency – Outdoor Dining during Ramadan and Easter |
That Council:
1. Allow cafes/restaurants within the LGA that wish to apply for the ability to serve customers immediately in front of their business during the month of Ramadan commencing at the time of Iftar and during the Easter period. 2. The outdoor dining fees shall be suspended pending a further decision of the Council under Section 610E of the Local Government Act for the period of Ramadan and Easter, consistent with the approach of the Mayoral Minute resolved by Council in April 2020. 3. Any café/restaurant that wishes to undertake cooking in front of their business can also apply however will be required to have inspections and comply with Council policies. 4. All activities pertaining to this motion are to be in accordance with Council’s outdoor dining policy, Section 68 of the Local Government Act and relevant policies. 5. Fast track any applications within this category.
Carried Unanimously |
Min.1059 |
Resumption of Standing Orders |
Resolved (Garrard/Attie) That in accordance with Clause 8.2 of the Code of Meeting Practice, Council resume the normal order of business. |
Min.1060 |
Items by Exception |
Resolved (Sarkis/Attie) That Council adopt items C03/21-696, C03/21-697, C03/21- 702, C03/21- 703 and C03/21-705 on the Council Agenda in bulk as per the recommendations in the reports. |
That Council receive the report. |
That Council receive the report. |
C03/21-702 Readoption of the Asbestos Management Policy and Guideline |
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That Council readopt the Asbestos Management Policy and supporting Guideline. |
That Council place the Draft Asbestos Management Framework 2021 on public exhibition for a period of 28 days, with a report to be provided back to Council following the conclusion of the exhibition period. |
C03/21-705 Approval of Heavy Vehicle Access to FBT - Transwest Pty Ltd |
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That Council: 1. Approve a trial period of twelve (12) months for heavy vehicles under Higher Mass Limits to access Council roads identified under recommendation 2, subject to the completion of a surface dilapidation and condition report submitted by the applicant to Council and the payment of a performance bond as determined by Council’s fees and charges.
2. Note that permissible access to Council’s roads would be restricted to the following road sections:
(i) Long Street, Smithfield – From Cumberland Highway to Gipps Road (approximately 2.3km) (ii) Britton Street, Smithfield – From Long Street roundabout to past the first bend (approximately 520m) |
That Council receive the report and congratulate the finance staff on their efforts. |
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C03/21-702 Readoption of the Asbestos Management Policy and Guideline |
This item was dealt with earlier in the meeting. |
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C03/21-703 Draft Asbestos Management Framework |
This item was dealt with earlier in the meeting. |
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C03/21-705 Approval of Heavy Vehicle Access to FBT - Transwest Pty Ltd |
This item was dealt with earlier in the meeting. |
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C03/21-707 Notice of Motion - Racism Not Welcome Campaign |
This item was dealt with earlier in the meeting. |
Min.1072 |
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At this stage of the meeting being 8:27pm, the Mayor advised that in accordance with Section 10a of the Local Government Act 1993 the meeting would move into Closed Session, with the members of the press and public excluded from the closed session and access to the correspondence and reports relating to the items considered during the course of the closed session being withheld. This action was taken as the items listed were within the following provisions under Section 10a of the Local Government Act:-
(2) The matters and information are the following: (d) commercial information of a confidential nature that would, if disclosed, (i) prejudice the commercial position of the person who supplied it, (ii) confer a commercial advantage on a competitor of the council. |
Min.1073 |
Open Session |
Resolved (Sarkis/Cummings) Council returned to Open Session at 8:36pm to resolve the below Confidential Item: C03/21-708 Outcome of Expression of Interest Process - Opportunity for Redevelopment of Council's site at Wentworthville |
C03/21-708 Outcome of Expression of Interest Process - Opportunity for Redevelopment of Council's site at Wentworthville |
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That Council defer the matter to the next Council Meeting. |