Councillors are in the midst of applying to take over the role as Treasurer, after Councillor Lisa Bradley has stepped down from her role as Chairperson of the City Governance Committee.
Cr Bradley has been Treasurer since she was sworn in this year, and led Logan City Council out of a near budget deficit this year. Logan City Council is now over $6 million above budget.
She has chosen to step down and said it was because of decisions regarding the most recent budget being too ‘politically charged’.
Despite Chairperson of the City Governance Committee still being listed in her bio on the Logan City Council website, it has been confirmed she has definitely stepped down from the role.
Logan City Council media has confirmed Deputy Chairperson, Cr Natalie Willcocks, will chair the Committee for the foreseeable future.
A new Chairperson will then be elected in 2021.
A report will be prepared for a future City Governance Committee meeting and councillors are able to nominate for the position before a vote is held.
It is understood that this process might not be complete in time for next year’s first committee meeting or for the first 2021 Council meeting.
It is now up to Logan City Councillors to step up and self nominate for the open position of treasurer.
Councillor Jacob Heremaia, who turns 21 on December 13, already chairs the Procurement and Appropriations Special Committee.
Deputy mayor Jon Raven is chairman of the Planning, Economic Development and Environment Committee.
Councillor Teresa Lane is chairperson of the Infrastructure committee.
Councillor Laurie Koranski is chairperson of the Lifestyle committee.
It seems Councillor Miriam Stemp could be a likely candidate for the role. She has a bachelor in Business Accountancy and has experience working with money as a senior accountant for a Beenleigh based firm. She also has experience operating small business ventures.
There is also talk of whether the youngest councillor will nominate himself for the role. Cr Heremaia is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD) and is accredited in PRINCE2 Project Management.
Cr Willcocks may also nominate, after working as acting chairperson. As a tertiary qualified high school teacher, Cr Willcocks taught Health and Physical Education, Legal Studies and Home Economics for 10 years in mainstream educational settings.
Cr Scott Bannan is another possible candidate with a history of money handling experience through his prior work as a construction business owner. He also has a passion for rugby league.
Cr Mindy Russell, who Cr Bradley attacked during the Council Meeting over her ‘distracting’ election signs and dinosaur on a trailer, also has management experience. Prior to being a councillor she managed The Family Place, a community-led family support program. Cr Russell is qualified as a Child and Family Practitioner and a school teacher and has degrees in Education and Child and Family Studies.
Despite being known as a ‘quiet achiever’ it is also possible Cr Tim Frazer could put up his hand to head the committee. He has a degree in Psychological Science and holds certificates in Engineering (Fitting and Turning) and Training and Assessment.
Cr Karen Murphy and Cr Tony Hall could also be contenders, both with backgrounds in the real estate industry.
