There is much in the June report of municipal monitor Yehudi Blacher to be heeded by all Yarra City councillors.
The report led to the state government ordering an extension of the monitor's term at Yarra City because of ongoing governance issues and "unsustainable" finances.
It would be wrong to blame the current council for all of the financial woes that date back to 2014-15, but existing councillors are obligated to navigate a prudent path out of the financial mire.
There was one telling sentence in the report that goes to the heart of a councillor's role. Blacher noted early on that it was "evident that a number ... struggled to distinguish their role as councillors from their party-political allegiances".
Councillors should vote in accordance with what is best for ratepayers, not take decisions to suit a political agenda. It is not beyond comprehension that decisions made in this fashion have resulted in some of the current problems.
With the council just starting to pay down principal on a loan of $32.5 million on which it paid interest-only for the past six years, and with provision for further borrowing of $20m to support its capital works program, prudence, not politics, is required. With rising interest rates, put aside costly vanity projects and pay down debt.
