Evidence Based Town Planning

Letter to the Editor - Advocate January 2008

During my time on Council, I have had a chance to observe leadership styles of people on many levels of Government. By far the most successful leaders are not always the ones making popular decisions - people respect leaders who make the right decisions.

It's important for a leader to consult, weigh up the pros and cons and then put their opinion to the community. The leader's job is to ensure that wide consultation has taken place. However - wide consultation is not always informed consultation. The leader needs to seek out appropriate opinions, look at the success and failure experienced by other councils and then put their recommendations to council.

In my role on the Local Government Association of NT (LGANT), I have made a point to consult councillors across the Territory and Australia in a bid to understand the workings of local government and the hallmarks of successful cohesive communities. Early in my time on Council I recommended that we bring in professional urban planners to help create a blueprint for the future of Alice Springs and the region. This was shouted down by the very aldermen currently standing for Mayor. It's all very well to have vision and put ideas to the electorate but they need to have sound evidence and research behind them.

Authorised by D Schild 12 Mills St Alice Springs