11/06/2026
🚨 ATTENTION GOLD COAST RATEPAYERS
Mayor Tom Tate says rising property values justify rising rates.
But for many retirees and pensioners, increased land values don’t put a single extra dollar in their bank account.
The bigger question, however, is not rates.
The bigger question is where your rates are going.
💰 FOLLOW THE MONEY
The 2026-27 Gold Coast budget allocates almost $190 million to four Council Controlled Entities:
• ARRC (Advanced Resource Recovery Centre)
• Experience Gold Coast
• Invest Gold Coast
• Brand Gold Coast
Ratepayers are entitled to ask:
Why are Mayor Tom Tate and CEO Tim Baker involved across all four entities?
Why are hundreds of millions of dollars of public funds being directed through organisations that operate at arm’s length from ordinary council scrutiny?
Does this strengthen democracy?
Or weaken it?
🏗️ THE ARRC QUESTIONS ARE GROWING
The most expensive controlled entity by far is ARRC.
Yet significant questions remain unanswered.
How did former council project manager Grant Gabriel become CEO of ARRC?
What recruitment process was undertaken?
What governance oversight was applied?
Who approved the appointment?
What checks and balances exist?
ARRC is no ordinary council project.
It is a billion-dollar-plus waste and resource recovery project that has already resulted in significant property acquisitions and will impact generations of Gold Coast ratepayers.
The higher the cost, the greater the need for transparency.
🏠 PROPERTY ACQUISITIONS DEMAND SCRUTINY
The acquisition of properties associated with the ARRC project raises even more questions.
Residents are entitled to ask:
Why are some property owners disputing council valuations?
Why have concerns emerged that some properties have been valued significantly below what owners believe to be fair market value?
What process is being used to determine compensation?
How can confidence be maintained when concerns continue to be raised about valuation methodology and acquisition outcomes?
And perhaps most importantly:
Why are properties being resumed where questions remain about whether they are actually required within the operational footprint of the project?
Even Deputy Mayor Mark Hammel indicated in the early stages that certain properties were not necessarily within the project’s footprint.
If land is being acquired, ratepayers deserve to know precisely why.
If land is required, affected families deserve fair and just compensation.
If Council takes the land, Council must pay fairly for the land.
⚖️ QUESTIONS ABOUT GOVERNANCE AND CONFLICTS
Another aspect of the ARRC project that deserves public scrutiny relates to governance and declared conflicts of interest.
Deputy Mayor Mark Hammel was previously employed by JJ Richards and has reportedly declared a conflict of interest in relation to aspects of the ARRC project.
That fact alone raises legitimate questions for ratepayers.
What role, if any, have major waste industry participants played in discussions surrounding ARRC?
What protections are in place to ensure decisions are made independently and in the best interests of ratepayers?
How are conflicts identified, managed and disclosed?
Given the scale of the project and the significant public funds involved, residents are entitled to seek clarity regarding governance arrangements and decision-making processes.
🔍 FOLLOWING THE MONEY
Another question now emerging relates to the waste and recycling industry itself.
ARRC is fundamentally a waste and recycling project involving enormous sums of public money, significant infrastructure investment and substantial property acquisitions.
As more information comes to light, we are examining potential connections and relationships surrounding the project.
One company that appears regularly in discussions regarding waste management, political donations and government contracts is JJ Richards & Sons.
Public donation records show that JJ Richards has been a significant donor within Queensland politics.
Given the scale of the ARRC project, ratepayers are entitled to ask:
• What relationships exist between Gold Coast City Council, ARRC and major waste industry operators?
• Has JJ Richards had any involvement, direct or indirect, in discussions surrounding the project?
• Are there existing contracts, future procurement opportunities or commercial arrangements connected to ARRC?
• Have all relevant relationships been fully disclosed?
• What safeguards exist to ensure complete transparency and public confidence?
To be absolutely clear, these are questions.
We are not alleging wrongdoing.
We are joining the dots, examining publicly available information and asking reasonable questions about one of the largest projects ever undertaken by Gold Coast City Council.
When billions of dollars are involved, scrutiny is not only appropriate—it is essential.
❓ CAN COUNCILLORS ASK QUESTIONS?
Perhaps one of the most concerning developments is the response to questions being raised about Council Controlled Entities and ARRC spending.
Councillor Brooke Patterson publicly questioned whether expenditure associated with the controlled entities represented value for money for Gold Coast ratepayers.
That is precisely the type of question elected councillors are expected to ask.
Reports indicate that Mayor Tom Tate has sought legal advice following Councillor Patterson’s comments regarding the controlled entities and whether they represent value for money.
That should concern every ratepayer.
If a councillor cannot ask whether nearly $190 million in controlled entity spending represents value for money, then who can?
If councillors cannot scrutinise expenditure, governance arrangements, appointments, acquisitions and procurement processes, then what purpose does democratic oversight serve?
Ratepayers do not elect councillors to rubber stamp decisions.
They elect them to ask questions.
They elect them to challenge assumptions.
They elect them to scrutinise spending.
They elect them to hold power accountable.
Questions are not misconduct.
Questions are not disloyalty.
Questions are accountability.
Questions are democracy.
🏛️ DEMOCRACY OR CONTROL?
At a time when rates continue to rise, residents are entitled to ask whether power is becoming increasingly concentrated.
We now have:
• Four controlled entities.
• Nearly $190 million in annual ratepayer funding.
• Mayor Tom Tate and CEO Tim Baker connected across all four entities.
• Significant public assets and acquisitions being managed through those structures.
• The largest controlled entity, ARRC, responsible for a project expected to cost well over a billion dollars.
Does that look like transparency?
Does that look like accountability?
Does that look like democratic oversight?
Or does it suggest the need for an independent review of governance, appointments, acquisitions, procurement processes and expenditure across the controlled entity network?
These are not unreasonable questions.
They are exactly the questions ratepayers should be asking.
Because every dollar spent belongs to the people of the Gold Coast.
Every property acquisition affects real families.
And every decision made with public money should withstand public scrutiny.
The Gold Coast deserves answers.
The Gold Coast deserves transparency.
And ratepayers deserve better!
