The Daily Advertiser continues its series of questions and answers with council election candidates with two former deputy mayors mounting career comebacks.
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Mary Kidson
You'll turn 80 in the next term of council, is that too old?
Not from where I stand.
A substantial number of the Wagga population is in the later age group and council has to have a mix of age, interests and experience.
You can’t predict how your health will stand up but at this stage my age is not an issue.
After 22 years on council between 1977 and 1999, are you the right person to steer Wagga's future?
I’m just one of nine elected, all you can do is speak up for what you believe in.
Questionable how much influence one person has but I think I have a good finger on the pulse of the community.
You decided to run when it looked unlikely any female candidates would have realistic chances of winning, but that’s since changed. Does that weaken your resolve?
It’s excellent to see women coming forward; it’s not a bad idea having 50 per cent of the population represented.
In the past I have been the only woman among 15 councillors.
A diverse group of people contribute different life experiences, attitudes and beliefs.
The issues before council typically have nothing to do with gender but gender colours perceptions.
What are the biggest issues Wagga faces?
Firstly, I support the continuation of public art at the current rate ($300,000 in the next three years) or possibly more.
Attractive cities gain reputations and word spreads, like Melbourne’s wonderful graffitied lanes and Sheffield in Tasmania with its 27 murals.
No one will agree with everything on display, but to attack public art because you don’t like a particular piece is unduly negative.
Secondly, housing developments like Estella are being built further and further from the city.
New estates must be required to develop meeting centres, facilities for young people, passive recreation areas including playgrounds and seats for parents to watch kids play, and safe walking and cycling opportunities.
Obviously car parking is an issue; in my experience there is ample parking in the city but people don’t want to walk or they don’t feel safe walking at night.
I don't think anyone can have a firm view on parking until the transport study is released.
How will you tackle the divide between councillors and bureaucrats?
It’s comes down to positive communication but fearless questioning.
In the past, councillors have been given code of conduct warnings just for making enquiries and told operational matters are purely the domain of staff.
Councillors are not entitled to interfere but they are entitled to ask questions and comment on anything they like.
At the end of the day councillors are the only body who can authorise significant expenditure and if we have to use that power to get a point across, that’s how it ought to be.
However, strong teamwork between councillors and staff is essential and councillors must respect the staff’s expertise on local government matters.
Ray Goodlass
Are you only running to make up the numbers for a Greens ticket and secure a better ballot position for Greens councillor Kevin Poynter?
I am running to support Kevin Poynter’s re-election.
At number five on the ticket it’s highly unlikely I will be elected but it’s less about my ambition and more about supporting Kevin.
The group gives an indication of what the candidates stand for, which you couldn’t ascertain from 53 individual candidates.
It also provides simplicity by helping to reduce the tablecloth-sized ballot paper.
Will the political party dictate terms to Wagga Greens councillors?
Local autonomy and grassroots democracy is very important to the Greens and we will not be dictated to.
A vote for a party is a safer bet than an independent asking voters to back them on their word, because you know what most parties stand for and their policies are readily available.
An independent candidate might campaign on one or two key issues, but there’s no clear indication of how they’ll vote beyond that.
Brain seizures forced you to resign from council in 2012, are you fit enough for another term?
The medication is working and I’m in quite good health.
What are the big issues Wagga faces?
The community needs a voice in development decisions, including planning.
Several candidates and current councillors have railed against the Integrated Transport Study but at least it’s an attempt to include the community in transport planning.
The state government has taken away a lot of local government planning power, but how a bureaucrat in Sydney knows what’s good for our community is beyond me; councillors need to everything they can to recover those powers.
Council needs to do all it can to encourage residents to be actively involved so they have a vested in the community, which can be achieved with positive, productive activities.
These activities might include weekly tidy streets instead of annual tidy towns, after-school programs for the kids, and in suburbs where there are lots of home invasions council needs to find ways of connecting with disaffected youth.
As council’s first openly gay councillor, how important is diversity in local govevrnment?
Council tends to be dominated by business people, which is important for driving the economy, but it’s not representative of the entire community.
Increasing the number of women is part of it, but diversity extends to sexuality, ethnicity and age.
