A report gauging how residents feel about the Clarence City Council may never see the light of day, with the council’s top bureaucrat recommending it stay under wraps.
Councillor James Walker will move a motion at Monday night’s council meeting calling for the full, unredacted release of the Clarence Sentiment and Community Perceptions report, compiled in 2025.
“The report contains no commercial in confidence material,” Walker said in his explanatory notes tabled with the agenda.
“Council should take pride in what it does well. Acknowledging any shortcomings with the community is a first step on the road to improving them.”
Walker argued the motion on transparency grounds, noting the Clarence City Council “prides itself on transparency”.
But council chief executive Ian Nelson has pushed back, saying the report was never meant for public consumption.
“This body of work has been commissioned and delivered for internal use only, to inform council’s strategies, plans and projects,” he said.
“It is important that the information is used within its appropriate context.”
Nelson said the report “was not intended” to be made public and recommended against its release.
Clarence has a population of roughly 64,000 and is one of southern Tasmania’s largest and fastest-growing municipalities.
The motion will be debated at the council meeting on Monday.
