But nothing prepared him for the calamitous state of Central Coast Council when he was brought in to manage its affairs in shambles.
“It was certainly the biggest financial collapse [of a local government] in NSW and possibly across Australia,” Mr Hart, appointed as Council Administrator in 2021 told the Central Coast Sun.
“As pointed out by the commissioner [Roslyn McCullough] in the public enquiry report, they were incompetent people at the highest levels.
“Also, the councillors’ behaviours [according to the enquiry] findings showed they were a dysfunctional group.”
The former Coalition local government minister Wendy Tuckerman sacked all 15 suspended councilors in March 2022.
The entire council and its top executives were subjected to the McCullough public enquiry that lasted months to find out how they accrued over half a billion dollars liability.
The council with an estimated $750M in annual turnover was suspended in October 2020 after it was found financially strapped.
Management was at a standstill unable to pay staff salaries, operate council services, and repair nor maintain council facilities and council-owned amenities.
The council’s inabilities to meet its financial obligations were found to be mainly administrative in nature however, Mr Hart said, citing they lacked experience and skills to effectively manage the operations following the merging of Gosford Council and Wyong Council.
Despite the huge debts incurred, Mr Hart said councilors and staff were cleared of any corrupt practices or fraud allegations as findings revealed the financial oversight was mainly “due to lack of operational experience.”
“There was no issues of impropriety or fraud or anything like that. There was no evidence for it, but it was incompetence at political and senior staff level,” Mr Hart said.
“It was more of misunderstanding, that they didn’t have the basic understanding and skills at the time of managing a big council and they ran out of cash.”
Mr Hart said the appointment of new chief executive officer David Farmer and new chief financial officer Natalia Cowley paved the clearing of huge debts that by the end of this year, council has paid off more than $150 million overdue liabilities and saved at least $1.3M for road repairs.
“We took the tough decisions that unfortunately involved a few people losing jobs, had increased the rates and other general rates, and all of these had to be done in such a short time,” Mr Hart said.
Next month, Mr Hart said the third and final information session for potential candidates in the upcoming September 14 local government elections will be about briefings on the reformed council by his team to be led by Mr Farmer.
High standard of procedures
“David Farmer is in a change position to lead an executive team equipped with a high standard of procedures, as well as a monthly financial reporting procedures in place, so basically this election planning program will get the new councillors get off to a good start as recommended from the enquiry,” Mr Hart said.
“These potential councillors will have extensive introductory program, so they come in to run the council [if they are elected] with a clean slate.”
Up to 80 locals have attended the two sessions for potential candidates while another session will be held in July run by the Australian Local Government Women’s Association to encourage more women to throw their hat in the ring.
Mr Hart said so far up to 20 locals have expressed their interest to run for council, including two former councillors from among those sacked by Ms Tuckerman in March 2022 after Commissioner McCulloch’s inquiry findings were released.
In the September election, the voters will also respond to a referendum on the proposed carving of current five wards with 15 councillors into three wards, with three councillors each ward or nine in total.
A community wide survey in 2022 showed 78 percent of the coast’s more than 400,000 residents were amenable to reducing the number of councillors following the inquiry into the financial mismanagement of their council.
In July, Mr Farmer will take those candidates confirmed by the Australian Electoral Commission to the final information session when they hear about the vital tasks at local government level they are expected to act on as elected councillors.
“David will take them to the more real issues with them, that if you are elected these are the important issues you have to turn your attention to,” Mr Hart said.
“David has refreshed the executive team working with the council to restore public’s confidence and put in place better processes and systems to mitigates issues that may come up.”
Among those vital issues that the new set of councillors will face concerning the Central Coast not only include rates, rubbish and local roads, but emerging concerns such as coastal erosions, transport, housing, bushfire, flooding, flood plain management, reducing development application backlogs and repairing potholes on local roads, among others.
“The job of a council is to govern the entity in the best interest of the whole of Central Coast residents, and basically lifting the whole organisation,” Mr Hart said.
“Council is now in pretty good shape to come back in and to continue the good work. That’s what we hope the new councillors would do.”
To know more about the Central Coast Council election and referendum, visit https://www.centralcoast.nsw.gov.au/about-council/council/election-and-referendum
