NEWCASTLE council election lord mayoral candidates were put in the hot seat as engaged community members took them to task on the city's challenges at a public forum.
City Hall was full to bursting on Thursday night, as the public put forward questions about major projects like the Newcastle Ocean Baths revitalisation and a new basketball stadium site, missile manufacturing at Newcastle Airport and attitudes towards respect and governance.
On the bill was incumbent Newcastle Labor lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes, Independents Ross Kerridge and Milton Caine, Greens candidate Charlotte McCabe and Socialist Alliance candidate Steve O'Brien.
Newcastle Liberal lord mayoral candidate Callum Pull was unable to attend.
Each candidate had 10 minutes to state their case before answering questions from some of the 170 members of the public present.
'I inherited a financially unsustainable council'
Labor lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes said when she was first elected there weren't many women on council, the capital works program was $30 million and the community was deeply concerned about asset renewal.
"I inherited a financially unsustainable council," she said.
"That $30 million works program, this year, is $140 million."
Cr Nelmes said there is no other city that has seen the urban renewal that Newcastle has.
She took the opportunity to highlight the council's focus on environmental sustainability, including EV charging points across the city and the council converting to 100 per cent renewable energy and a net-zero goal of 2040.
Cr Nelmes said her focus was on continuing to address the housing crisis.
"I'm really proud to be a council that saw this coming and made sure we are doing everything we can to address the housing crisis even with the limited resources local government has," she said.
"I'm asking you for that support at this election to keep going so we are sustainable and have a functional council."
'I didn't have a political childhood'
Greens councillor and mayoral candidate Charlotte McCabe said she didn't have a political childhood.
However, when she got to university she started to think about her role as a citizen.
"I felt it was my responsibility to become more active and engaged and I pretty much haven't stopped since then," she said.
Cr McCabe said she ended up in Darwin, living and working in Aboriginal communities.
In 2012, she moved to Newcastle and said she can't imagine how she will ever leave.
Cr McCabe said protecting the coast, housing affordability, active transport, small and local business concerns are in her sights.
"We've really focused on contributing ideas into this campaign that we think are contributions that address and assist with some of the big issues our city is facing," she said.
"They are things that the Greens have been talking about for a very long time."
Housing, climate and open and transparent government are priorities for the Greens, and Cr McCabe said she sees a huge opportunity for social and affordable housing as part of Broadmeadow's redevelopment.
"I feel very, very strongly about democracy and I've spent a lot of time thinking about how to achieve change because we don't have time to do it the wrong way anymore," she said.
Cr McCabe said in any leadership position she has been a part of, she has had a deep respect for the contributions of others.
'A travesty of democracy'
Our Newcastle Independent mayoral candidate Ross Kerridge went on the attack, saying Newcastle council meetings are a "farce" and "a travesty of democracy".
"This is what is driving me and my team of Our Newcastle to stand in the forthcoming election," he said.
Mr Kerridge said his campaign hinges on a few key themes: creating a council that listens and works respectfully together to deliver services to the community; to stop waste on glamour projects and focus on the things that matter; to be open and accountable and to plan for Newcastle's future by listening to Newcastle people.
"There has been too much spending on inappropriate glamour projects that has gotten out of control," he said.
Mr Kerridge said pools have been privatised and he believes the inland pools could be free.
He said there is a need for openness and transparency, and said there is no clear strategic plan for where the city is headed.
"We need to keep open space, what bushland remnants we have, the unique character of Newcastle with its special villages," he said.
"If we are to do so, as we do so, we can provide better housing and more variety of housing that we need."
Mr Kerridge said the council needs to focus on bringing the community together.
"There is so much potential for Newcastle to be great but instead we have had years of scandals," he said.
"It's time for change."
'People before profit'
Socialist Alliance candidate Steve O'Brien said the problem in Newcastle is a question of trust.
"I think to me the problem is at a certain point our council, current leadership, made a decision: which way were they going to go? Towards the community or towards corporate Australia?" he said.
"Unfortunately, I think they made the decision to go towards corporate Australia."
Mr O'Brien said his philosophy is people before profit, establishing trust in the community and having "real dialogue" with the public.
"Let's talk about having two sets of big ears, moving forward and actually getting decisions the community needs," he said.
Mr O'Brien said he teaches social policy and spent 10 years working in international development, HIV awareness and prevention in Southern Africa.
He said he is prepared to ask difficult questions about financial management if elected to council.
"We could be doing a lot more, with a lot less," he said.
"We have lovely glossy documents, lovely websites, but they're [City of Newcastle] not actually putting it into practice."
Mr O'Brien said the council needs to address the climate emergency and the housing crisis.
'Nobody wants to accept responsibility'
Independent candidate Milton Caine said locals might know him as the "dude" who drives a wheelchair taxi.
Mr Caine said there needs to be a target for affordable housing in Newcastle.
Mr Caine lashed out at lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes for leaving the forum to attend another event saying she "should have handed in her resignation" on the way out the door.
Cr Nelmes had already committed to another event.
Mr Caine said the council needs to do things on time, on budget and "right".
"The job is about one thing and one thing alone, being servant leaders," he said.
"If you're standing in the way by helping the elite, you are a problem and you need to go, and go quickly.
"That's what the lord mayor needs to do."
Mr Caine said if members of the public have seen him driving around the streets, they would have noticed he drives slowly, because of the state of the roads across the city.
"We need to have access for people with disabilities to the places they want to go to," he said.
"They are citizens, not second class, they should be first class citizens as far as I am concerned."
Mr Caine said the people "need the city back" and they "need it back now".
The forum was hosted by Hunter Community Forum, with Newcastle Herald columnist and social commentator Paul Scott steering the ship as MC.
