Peppercorn rent still secret
by Shane Sody
The Chief Executive of the State Department of Environment and Water has refused to reveal the peppercorn rent paid by an Adelaide charity, for a one-hectare produce garden in your Park Lands.
Self-styled “transparency warrior” former Senator Rex Patrick has been trying to ascertain how much is being collected by the State Government, from a lease over the Dame Roma Mitchell Garden in Bonython Park / Tulya Wadli. (Park 27).
Location of the Roma Mitchell Garden
The garden is tended by volunteers and clients of the Adelaide Day Centre for Homeless Persons. For decades, it’s been producing fresh food for Adelaide charities.
However the actual leasing arrangements have been secret, until now.
Responding to a Freedom of Information request from Mr Patrick, the Department of Environment and Water has released the terms of the “non-exclusive licence” that extends out until 28 February 2034.
Even though the amount paid is known to be merely a token, peppercorn rent, the Department’s CEO, Ben Bruce has told Mr Patrick that he will not release the precise amount, because that:
“could reasonably be expected to have a substantial adverse effect on the financial or property interests of the State or an agency; and would, on balance, be contrary to the public interest; and
“would have a substantial adverse effect on the effective performance by an agency of the agency's functions”.
Rex Patrick says he will be appealing this decision to the State Ombudsman. He says the decision reflects a “persistent culture of secrecy” within the public service.
In the meantime, the remainder of the licence document with the fee redacted (i.e. blacked out) will be publicly released by the Department.
Rex Patrick has provided the Adelaide Park Lands Association with a copy, which you can read here: (PDF, 10 pages, 93 Kb).
Self-styled “Transparency warrior” Rex Patrick
Participants on a recent APA Guided Walk on 4 August 2024, were welcomed into the Roma Mitchell Garden, to inspect not only the garden but also the historic, heritage-listed, 19th century “Powder Magazine” where the Colonial government of the late 19th century stored explosives.
Read more about the Roma Mitchell Garden here:
The author of this article, Shane Sody, is the President of the Adelaide Park Lands Association and the editor of the semi-monthly newsletter, "Open Green Public".
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