CLOVER MOORE TO SEEK RE-ELECTION AS CITY OF SYDNEY LORD MAYOR
Tuesday, 28 May 2024
In an email to supporters this morning, Clover Moore AO announced her intention to run for Lord Mayor with an Independent team of City Council candidates at the Local Government election in September.
Clover said she was highly motivated and inspired to continue the work of ensuring the City of Sydney is the best place to live, work and visit.
“When I walk into Town Hall in the morning, I am energised about our work transforming the City,” the Lord Mayor said.
“There are reminders everywhere: award-winning parks and community facilities, busy bike lanes and light rail, thriving
villages with greener and transformed high streets.”
“But the work to ensure the City is a great place to live, work and visit – with environmental, social and economic sustainability at its heart – is not done.”
“City making takes time.”
It is about having a vision, doing the consultation and research and having tenacity and courage to see plans through, regardless of the short sighted criticism from vested interests or tabloid media.
Just think Light Rail, bike lanes, action on climate change and even public art.”
The Lord Mayor said her track record of stable, corruption free governance with sound financial management put the City in a great position to continue recovering from the lingering impacts of Covid and heightened cost-of- living pressures.
“Independent teams that I have led have provided progressive, corruption-free governance since 2004 and can be trusted to continue this work. I fear our policies and projects would be put at risk if Town Hall falls into the hands of the major parties, or people who don’t share our values, experience or commitment.
“In my time as Lord Mayor, we have delivered annual budget surpluses with outstanding service delivery and capital works projects, while keeping residential rates low and providing free rates for pensioners.
“We have surged ahead on environmental action and set the ambitious target of Net Zero emissions by 2035. We are the only Council across the country to increase tree canopy over the past decade.
“We have met the State Government’s imposed housing targets – one of the only Councils to do so – while creating liveable communities with additional infrastructure like parks, playgrounds, pools and community centres, as well as delivering more Affordable Housing than anywhere in the country.
“We have been vocal and financial supporters of culture, creativity and inclusivity, standing by our communities through State and Federal government budget cuts, harsh laws and intermittent lip service.“We are in a strong financial position to fund new projects, facilities and asset renewals.
We are excited to transform Chinatown, Oxford Street, Broadway and complete George Street and deliver inspirational new affordable housing, transport and cultural projects.
“We steered the community through the worst impacts of the pandemic, but the issues exacerbated by Covid as well as global trends and cost of living pressures make it more important than ever to maintain stable, progressive independent leadership.”
*The Local Government election will be held on 14 September 2014.
CLOVER MOORE BIOGRAPHY
Clover Moore was elected Lord Mayor of Sydney in 2004, the first popularly elected woman to lead the City of Sydney.
She is the longest serving Mayor since city government incorporation in 1842. She was re-elected for her fifth term in 2021.
Clover served as an Independent member of the NSW Parliament from March 1988 to September 2012, and was concurrently Lord Mayor and Member for Sydney for 8 years until the State legislated against one person holding both positions.
Throughout her public life, in both State and Local Governments, Clover has championed progressive policies, achieving reforms which increase government transparency, defend our environment, protect the vulnerable and advance animal welfare.
As Lord Mayor, Clover initiated Sustainable Sydney 2030, an internationally renowned long term plan to secure Sydney’s future as a leading green liveable and creative city. This plan includes ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse emissions. In 2007, the City became the first government in Australia to be carbon neutral, and in 2014 received the
European Solar Prize for its Renewable Energy Master Plan. The City uses 100% renewable electricity and is working toward Net Zero by 2035.
Under her leadership, the City of Sydney has developed a global reputation for delivering award winning facilities; protecting and enhancing open space; promoting design excellence for private development; delivering new transport options, particularly safe cycling; promoting and expanding the City’s cultural and creative life and initiating progressive solutions to complex city social problems such as affordable housing and related homelessness.
Clover is an Arts graduate of the University of Sydney.
She later received a Diploma in Education and taught English and communication skills in London and Sydney.
As a young mother, she began advocating for her local community which led to her becoming a South Sydney and Sydney City Councillor before turning her attention to Macquarie and George Streets.She has two children, Sophie and Tom, and lives in inner-Sydney Redfern with husband Peter and two staffies, Bessie and Buster.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE LORD MAYOR’S CURRENT TERM OF CITY COUNCIL
New long term plan: Sustainable Sydney 2030–2050: Continuing the Vision developed and released; underpins everything we do
to continue to create a liveable, sustainable and thriving city and villages.
Breathing life back into the city post-Covid
• Committed $3m to fund precinct activation events like Neon Playground in Haymarket and Hollywood Quarter in Surry Hills.
• Ran multiple series of successful #SydneyStreets events, closing high streets to bring the community together safely post-Covid, support businesses and musicians and entertainment.
• Extended free outdoor dining to the end of 2025: The City is supporting over 700 businesses to trade on footpaths and roadways as part of the alfresco dining program – a key way we have supported businesses through the pandemic and provided opportunities to socialise safely.
Climate action
• Net Zero buildings: In an Australian-first, Council endorsed controls that require applications for new office buildings, hotels and shopping centres and major redevelopments to comply with minimum energy ratings now and net-zero energy use from 2026 – ensuring buildings help the City reach our target of net zero emissions by 2035.
• Began measuring heat island effect across the City.
• Recruited hungry maggots to wage war on food waste.
•Lowered barriers to EV use with on-street charging points across the city and are working to retrofit strata-run apartments with chargers, and mandating it through our controls for new apartments.
Secured the lease of three floors in 180 George Street for 20 year for Greenhouse, the biggest climate technology hub in Australasia.
Trees and greenery
- Released award winning Urban Forest Strategy and Street Tree Master Plan to guide our work to create an even more cool, calm, and climate change-resilient city.
- Only city in the country to increase our canopy cover over the past decade. Last year planted 70,000 plants and 800 trees and now we’re readying to go even further – to plant more trees, plants and shrubbery, and make sure they are species that are hardy and resilient to our changing climate.
New parks and facilities
- Continued our impressive program of park upgrades, opening the Crescent Skate Park in Glebe, additional indoor and outdoor courts at the Perry Park Recreation Centre in Alexandria, Lawrence Hargrave Reserve in Potts Point, The Drying
Green in Green Square, Clyne Reserve in Millers Point and Crystal Plaza in Waterloo. Lawrence Hargrave, Drying Green, Clyne Reserve, Tote Park, Minogue Crescent Reserve, Lyons Road Reserve, Blackwattle Bay Park and Peace Park. Butterscotch Park and Wimbo Park in Surry Hills, where we continue to advocate for a light rail stop.
- The Premier committed to converting half the Moore Park Golf Course to parkland (20 hectares) for the growing community of Green Square, Waterloo, Zetland and Redfern.
Connecting the bike network
- King Street and Pitt Streets in central Sydney; Gadigal, Crystal and Potter Streets in Waterloo; Portman Street and Zetland Avenue in Green Square; and MacDonald Street in Erskineville.
- In central Sydney, began construction of the Castlereagh Street north cycleway and completed the long-awaited return of College Street. Began constructing a separated cycleway on Oxford Street west between Taylor Square and College Street – jointly funded with the NSW Government.
• There was a 24% increase in bike trips between October 2022 and October 2023 and a 163% increase since bike trip
counting started in March 2010.
• Between 2008 and 2023, the City has spent over $135million on cycleway infrastructure including a cycleway between
Ashmore and Eveleigh and six new connections around Erskineville and Alexandria.
• The 2023/24 Operational Plan has a budget of $22.5 million for Bicycle Related Works for this financial year.
Upgrading high streets
• Extended the George Street pedestrianisation south to Central station, and north through to Circular Quay.
• Completed major upgrades of Macleay Street, Potts Point, Macdonald Street, Erskineville, and George Street – creating
beautiful streetscapes and more space for people.
• The $34 million upgrade of Crown Street is moving ahead and we’re creating even more space for alfresco dining,
landscaping, new smart poles, bubblers and seating.
• Council approved a $44 million plan to rejuvenate Chinatown, which includes major public domain upgrades, supports for
businesses and more community events.
Securing Oxford Street’s future
• New planning controls that encourage investment while creating more creative and cultural space, an-Australia first
LGBTIQA+ place strategy to safeguard its heritage and the major redevelopment of City-owned properties and we
provided seed-funding for the establishment a new queer pride museum, QTOPIA.
Increased diverse housing
• Lord Mayor joined other Capital City Lord Mayors in Canberra to meet Federal Government Ministers and crossbench
MPs to push for increased funding for social and affordable housing.
• Provided discounted land to St George Community Housing to enable its Gibbons Street Redfern social and affordable
housing development, with 45% for Aboriginal families, which won the award for excellence at the Urban Development
Institute of Australia’s NSW Awards.
• Supported the refurbishment of the Wesley Mission’s Wesley Edgar Eager Lodge in Surry Hills with a $1 million grant from
our Affordable and Diverse Housing Fund, creating larger, secure bedrooms with private bathrooms and wrap-around
services.
• Campaign to increase affordable and social housing on the Waterloo Estate redevelopment was successful providing
funds from development levies to City West Housing and we gave Bridge Housing $7.8 million enabling them to buy a 20-
unit block in Glebe for low income housing.
Continuing Eora Journey
• At a headland ceremony reminiscent of traditional Gadigal gatherings, First Nations dancers unveiled one of the city’s
most significant public artworks: bara, our Monument to the Eora.
• Began installing signage for Yananurala, a nine-kilometre walk that will highlight Aboriginal history and culture at places
along the Harbour foreshore.
Supporting a creative city
• Officially opened our five-storey City of Sydney Creative Studios in Bathurst Street, which we negotiated with Greenland
developer for a peppercorn rent for 99 years. The centre has affordable spaces for painters, musicians, dancers, film
makers, digital, multimedia artists and has a stunning rehearsal studio.
Championing inclusion
• Transitioned to flying the Progress Pride flag over Town Hall and throughout city streets during this year’s Mardi Gras. The
design represents greater inclusion, embracing the breadth of identity within the LGBTIQA+ community.
• Allocated more than $1.7 million in funding to support World Pride which was the largest event hosted by Sydney since
the Olympics.
• Created a new $4.5m grant program to help organisations distribute food to struggling households as the cost-of-living
soars. This is the heartbreaking reality of food insecurity in Sydney, and which will continue into 2024.
• Gave Qtopia Sydney, Sydney’s new Queer Museum, a temporary home in Green Park during WorldPride, before they were
officially handed the keys to their permanent site in the former Darlinghurst Police Station at Taylor Square.
Delivering design excellence
• Refurbished significant City buildings like the Corporation Building in Haymarket and 343 George Street in the city centre.
Worked with developers to deliver not just impressive, sustainable office towers but also a network of retail lanes, public
art and community facilities at the AMP Tower/Quay Quarter Lanes and 180 George Street/Salesforce Tower projects in
the CBD.
• Recently restored Archibald Fountain was honoured by a National Trust (NSW) award.
Standing up to State Government
• Negotiated improved development outcomes on significant sites at Blackwattle Bay, Barangaroo Central, Waterloo and
the Paint Shop Precinct in Redfern. This work will continue in 2024.
• The Government proposed taking local councils’ developer contributions – money levied from developers to pay for
community infrastructure associated with development, like parks and playgrounds. Led a campaign of metropolitan
councils who successfully defeated the Bill.
