GALLERY Vacancy! Albury City Council

Edited 11/01/12

Why not attend the Council Meeting and see for yourself? The gallery is just about always open and Council chairpersons extend a welcome to members of the public.

[Nowadays it is possible a rare item may be dealt with 'in confidential' - although, apart from the GM review, I can not recall that happening at all in 2011. If there is an item closed to the press and public, the Agenda lists that at the end of the meeting, which is polite to the public and media.]

The meeting business papers are required to be available on request [usually on Fridays]. Almost everything is consistently posted on line late in the day prior to the meeting. Otherwise you can collect the meeting papers at the door. Meetings usually start at 6 pm on Monday. The schedule for 2012 is available now. [It will undoubtedly change a bit.] Most meetings occupy less than an hour - you can see my detailed record.

There is a reward for attending. I found it an advantage to have a copy of the papers as printed - particularly re diagrams and mapping. You get to see exactly how each councillor votes on each decision. [I would not call it a reward to hear some of the stuff said. However, that is part of the deal. It goes with open democracy. Sometimes the debate is uplifting - not as often as I would like - but that is how it is.]

I was not able to be present to directly observe at the last Council Meeting for 2011.  [In fact I was in Sydney]. Nor do I expect to be a regular observer of Council meetings in 2012. From this point on, any reports I do make may be derived from the official records and on-line research.

I have been recording the votes of indiviual councillors. Currently in Albury that is mostly only possible if present in the chamber.  [Votes regarding development are officially recorded in the minutes.] 'Draft' minutes are available on AlburyCity website within a few days.

During Council meetings, if any councillor wishes the voting to be recorded they can request that be done, or even move for a division. Otherwise we will know [as per standard procedure] only the mover and seconder and the fate of the motion [carried, or, lost]. The newspaper may report more - certainly the reporter is usually present.

In some ways the Committees are more significant than the Council Meetings. Items are debated in the Committee. The report from that debate may be simply adopted at the Council Meeting - as happened on 19 December, 2011 - and thus the decision is 'final' when the committee report is adopted by the majority.