Water & environment · Central Coast Council
POET governance plan recommended by committee after former-member workshop rejected 3-2
Central Coast Council’s Governance and Finance Committee recommended that Environment and Planning Committee members form the Protection of the Environment Trust’s clause 22 management committee. A proposal to consult former POET members was defeated before the vote.
Reporting from public council minutes. How this article was prepared
A proposed new management committee for the Protection of the Environment Trust has been recommended by Central Coast Council’s Governance and Finance Committee, after a suggested workshop with former trust members was rejected by three votes to two.
The committee recommended that Council refer the POET management committee report to its Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee for information and endorse Environment and Planning Committee members to form the management committee under clause 22 of the Trust Deed.
Councillor Jane Smith moved the amendment for former POET members to be invited to a workshop on the trust’s operations and future. It also proposed a further report after the consultation. Councillor Helen Crowley seconded the amendment.
The amendment was lost, with Cr Crowley and Cr Smith voting for it and Cr Jared Wright, Mayor McNamara and Cr Doug Eaton OAM voting against it. The original recommendation was then carried, with the same three councillors voting for it and Cr Crowley and Cr Smith voting against it.
The minutes record a committee recommendation to Council, not a final Council decision. They do not specify when Council will consider the proposal or whether any other consultation with former POET members will occur.
What deserves a closer look
The source distinguishes the committee's recommendation from a final Council decision.
The defeated amendment is not part of the recorded recommendation, but the minutes do not establish whether other consultation could occur.
Questions for follow-up reporting
When will Council consider the committee's recommendation?
What powers and responsibilities would the clause 22 management committee have under the Trust Deed?
Will Council provide another opportunity for former POET members to comment before deciding the proposal?
What happens next
If Council adopts the referral recommendation, the POET management committee report would be referred to the Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee for information.
If Council endorses the proposed membership, Environment and Planning Committee members would form the management committee under clause 22 of the Trust Deed.
Check the record
These passages were matched to the source text. Read them in context in the original minutes.
The supplied document identifies the meeting as Central Coast Council's Governance and Finance Committee meeting held on 10 November 2026.
OFFICIAL Central Coast Council MINUTES of the Governance and Finance Committee Meeting held in Function Room 2 2 Hely Street, Wyong Tuesday 10 November 2026 Members Status Cr Jared Wright, Chairperson Present Cr Kyle MacGregor, Deputy Chairperson Apology Cr Helen Crowley, Member Present Cr Doug Eaton OAM, Member Present Cr Jane Smith, Member Present (Items 1.1 - 3.2) Mayor McNamara Present Council Officers Status Jamie Loader, Chief Executive Officer Present Marissa Racomelara, Director Corporate Services Present Boris Bolgolf, Director Infrastructure Services Present Phil Cantillon, Acting Director, Community and Recreation Services Present
Document title and meeting details
Open original minutes ↗The motion recommended that Council refer the POET management committee report to the Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee for information and endorse Environment and Planning Committee members to form the clause 22 management committee.
CARRIED FOR: Cr Wright, Mayor McNamara, Cr Crowley and Cr Eaton OAM AGAINST: Cr Smith 2.9 Protection of the Environment Trust - establishment of a POET Clause 22 Management Committee - for Endorsement 8:36pm A MOTION was MOVED by Cr Eaton OAM and SECONDED by Cr Wright: GFC-26/62 That the Committee: 1. Receives the 'Protection of the Environment Trust – Establishment of a POET Clause 22 Management Committee' report. 2. Recommends that Council: a. Refers the 'Protection of the Environment Trust – Establishment of a POET Clause 22 Management Committee' report to the Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee for information as requested by that Committee. b. Endorses the members of the Environment and Planning Committee to form the Management Committee referred to in clause 22 of the Trust Deed. Central Coast Council Governance and Finance Committee Minutes 10 November 2026 Page 12 OFFICIAL 8:46pm An AMENDMENT was MOVED by Cr Smith and SECONDED by Cr Crowley: That the Committee recommends that Council: 1.
Item 2.9, GFC-26/62
Open original minutes ↗Cr Smith moved, and Cr Crowley seconded, an amendment recommending that Council invite former POET members to a workshop on the trust's operations and future and receive a further report after the consultation.
b. Endorses the members of the Environment and Planning Committee to form the Management Committee referred to in clause 22 of the Trust Deed. Central Coast Council Governance and Finance Committee Minutes 10 November 2026 Page 12 OFFICIAL 8:46pm An AMENDMENT was MOVED by Cr Smith and SECONDED by Cr Crowley: That the Committee recommends that Council: 1. Invites the former members of the POET to a workshop to consult on the operations and future of the trust. 2. That Council receives a further report after the consultation via a workshop with former POET members.
Item 2.9, amendment
Open original minutes ↗The amendment was declared lost, with two votes for and three against, and debate resumed on the original motion, which was then declared carried.
LOST FOR: Cr Crowley and Cr Smith AGAINST: Cr Wright, Mayor McNamara and Cr Eaton OAM The AMENDMENT was put to the vote and declared LOST, debate resumed on the original MOTION. The MOTION was put to the vote and declared CARRIED.
Item 2.9, amendment result
Open original minutes ↗The original motion was declared carried, with Cr Wright, Mayor McNamara and Cr Eaton OAM voting for it and Cr Crowley and Cr Smith voting against it: three votes for and two against.
LOST FOR: Cr Crowley and Cr Smith AGAINST: Cr Wright, Mayor McNamara and Cr Eaton OAM The AMENDMENT was put to the vote and declared LOST, debate resumed on the original MOTION. The MOTION was put to the vote and declared CARRIED. CARRIED FOR: Cr Wright, Mayor McNamara and Cr Eaton OAM AGAINST: Cr Crowley and Cr Smith 2.10 Proposed New Open Space and Recreation Fees and Charges 2026-27 - for Public Exhibition 8:49pm A MOTION was MOVED by Cr Eaton OAM and SECONDED by Mayor McNamara: GFC-26/63 That the Committee recommends that Council: a.
Item 2.9, original motion result
Open original minutes ↗Source record
Reporting from Central Coast Council’s minutes for the Governance and Finance Committee meeting held on 10 November 2026.
Key facts from the minutes
- The Governance and Finance Committee considered the POET management committee report on 10 November 2026.
- The committee recommended referring the report to the Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee for information.
- It recommended that Council endorse Environment and Planning Committee members to form the management committee under clause 22 of the Trust Deed.
- An amendment proposing a workshop and further report involving former POET members was lost.
- The original motion was declared carried, with the minutes listing three votes for and two against.
Why it matters
- The proposal would place Environment and Planning Committee members on the Protection of the Environment Trust’s clause 22 management committee. The recorded recommendation does not include the proposed workshop with former POET members, and the final arrangement remains for Council to consider.