When former mayors and senior executives gathered last week to mark a Shoalhaven milestone - 40 years since it gained city status - a comment from Paul Green stood out.
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His biggest regret was that during his term he did not see the city adopt a green bin service. We reckon quite a few residents and ratepayers share that sentiment.
As spring approaches, many of us are poised once again to become slaves to our gardens and lawns. And once again the cycle of the trip to the tip begins. We pay to dump our green waste and have to pay again if we want to take some of it back as mulch.
Apart from potholes, the lack of green bins is the most commonly heard bugbear when it comes to Shoalhaven City Council.
It's especially galling for locals when they learn surrounding councils all have a green bin service and annoying when residents are continually urged by council not to fill red bins with green waste.
While a new waste processing system that will enable green waste to go into a bin is in the works, the failure to get a service up and running all those years ago was a classic example of politics getting in the way of good policy.
Sadly, local government is too often the kindergarten for aspiring politicians, a stepping stone into state or federal politics. Playing political games on the floor of council might sharpen the debating talons of ambitious councillors but it does little for sensible outcomes. One thing residents would like to see in future in less politics and more policy that benefits the community.
Others former mayors had interesting observations as well.
Jo Gash said her biggest regret was not being re-elected after one term. She was first past the post on primary votes but the preference flows saw Amanda Findley win the top spot on council.
Council veteran Greg Watson looked back over four decades, noting that while the region had grown in terms of population, like places all over the Western world it had seen its manufacturing base steadily decline.
What we've all seen during that time is a steady increase in rates but we should remember we've also seen roads sealed, services improved, sewerage extended and public facilities provided, maintained and improved. There will always be room for improvement. Council could communicate and listen better, just as should have when green bins were first proposed.
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