THE Corruption and Crime Commission is being urged to investigate links between a senior City of Melville official and a company seeking to build a surf park in Alfred Cove.

The Sunday Times can reveal the council’s manager of health and lifestyle services Todd Cahoon owned shares in Wave Park Group Pty Ltd until September 22 last year.

He was the officer responsible for a strategy to move Melville Bowling Club, which has freed up land on which Wave Park Group (WPG) now wants to build a surf park.

WPG began negotiations with the council after submitting an expression of interest last June. According to the council, a formal bid was then lodged in August. WPG first made a presentation to Melville councillors in October 2014.

The proposal to establish a surf park at Tompkins Park, on land currently occupied by the bowling club and some adjacent playing fields, is strongly opposed by hundreds of residents who have vented their anger at special electors’ meetings.

Opponents are now demanding the council scrap a meeting this Thursday at which councillors are to vote on whether to give WPG a 30-year lease on 44,065sqm of riverfront land, with the option of another 20 years.

Under the deal, the council would be paid $700,000 a year. The bowling club lease currently pays the council $700 a year.

Camera Icon Wave Park Group executive chairman Andrew Ross. Credit: PerthNow, Steve Ferrier

The CCC has been sent complaints from opponents, who have flagged a range of concerns about the council’s conduct. Mr Cahoon yesterday said he disclosed his shareholding to his employer in mid-2013.

“This was done directly to the CEO as well as through the regulatory requirement of completing an annual return as per the Local Government Act,” he said.

“When I became aware that Wave Park Group Pty Ltd were putting in a proposal within the City of Melville, I divested any interest I had in Wave Park Group so that there was no perceived conflict of interest.

“Due to disclosing interests I have had no involvement with the Wave Park proposal matter.”

He added: “The bowls strategy, of which I have had involvement in, is a stand-alone project and has no bearing on whatever happens on the site where the Melville bowls club is — whether it’s a wave park or whether it’s something else.”

Camera Icon Todd Cahoon said there was no conflict of interest because he’s had no involvement in the wave park proposal. Credit: PerthNow

Opponents had drawn attention to Facebook photos in which Mr Cahoon and WPG boss Andrew Ross appear together.

Both Mr Cahoon and Mr Ross said they shared mutual friends. “I see him only when our mutual friends organise a get together,” Mr Cahoon said.

“At the most, this is a couple of times a year.”

At the core of the controversy is the council’s plan to move the bowling club. Mr Cahoon is the officer responsible for the council’s lawn bowls strategy. The strategy report was presented to the council last June.

An adopted recommendation from the report directed the council’s chief executive Dr Shayne Silcox “to investigate and report to the council suitable future recreational uses of the existing Melville Bowling Club site for a possible financial contribution towards the redeveloped facilities at Tompkins Park and development of community sporting hubs”.

Within a few days of the council meeting, the City of Melville received an “unsolicited expression of interest by Wave Park Group to ground lease a portion of Tompkins Park to construct a wave park recreational facility”.

Camera Icon Todd Cahoon (far left) with friends, including Andrew Ross (far right). Credit: PerthNow

The City of Melville had engaged private consultant Darren Monument to “develop the Bowls Strategy 2016”. His findings were presented at the June meeting.

Both Mr Cahoon and Mr Monument are directors of a company DTG Management No.2 Pty Ltd. The company owned shares in Wave Park Group until September 22 last year.

The shares were purchased in 2013 and 2014 for about $34,000, but were worth six times that when sold.

The council declined to answer questions from The Sunday Times. Instead Dr Silcox issued a brief statement, that said: “The city has conducted an internal review on the allegations and has found no basis to support them. This information was forwarded to the Public Sector Commission.”

Mr Ross said he couldn’t see any conflicts of interest or any grounds for residents to be suspicious. “No, none whatsover,” he said.

He believed Mr Cahoon had not been a shareholder when Wave Park submitted its formal bid.

“An expression of interest went to council in June once it was advised that they were looking to move the bowls club,” he said.

“We put in a letter to the council saying: ‘Hey look, if you do decide to move the bowls club we would be interested in exploring the possibility of putting a surf park there’.

“That then started a conversation with council. Todd didn’t participate in anything to do with that ... I think (Mr Cahoon) divested (his shareholding) in August some time. You have 30 days to file with ASIC.

“So I’m not quite sure when the transfer occurred, but he was not a shareholder at the point we commenced the formal process.

“He didn’t have a conflict of interest up to that point. The bowls strategy is completely separate to the surf park strategy ... The bowls club will be moving in any event irrespective of whatever happens with the surf park or not.”

Mr Ross said he understood both Mr Cahoon and Mr Monument fully declared their interests in connection with WPG, and that “council has always been aware of these interests.”

Camera Icon Melville Mayor Russell Aubrey and Wave Park Group executive chairman Andrew Ross pictured where the Urbansurf facility is planned to go. Credit: PerthNow, Steve Ferrier

He added: “From my perspective we’ve done nothing wrong here. We have participated in a very transparent process. We have had no assistance, no involvement from Todd. The council has looked at it ... they’ve discovered no misconduct or wrongdoing, or anything like that ... This is just people grasping at straws.”

Mr Ross expressed annoyance that the details of Thursday’s vote had been leaked. He believed a councillor had leaked the information, he said in a statement to the newspaper on Saturday.

“This is one of a number of leaks of confidential information about our proposal that has occurred during the process, for which we are pursuing legal redress,” he said.

Mr Ross said he knew Mr Monument, as a business acquaintance. He said he knew Mr Cahoon and Mr Monument had “business interests together”.

Mr Cahoon last night said he’d had no involvement in the procurement of Mr Monument’s services for the council’s bowls strategy or any other projects.

“The city’s Lawn Bowls Strategy 2016 was instigated as a result of a councillor’s motion to investigate relocating the Mount Pleasant Bowling Club to Shirley Strickland Reserve,” he said.

“To be able to investigate this council directive, it was necessary to update a Bowls report first completed back in 2009. Mr Monument was contracted to complete the Shirley Strickland Concept Plan and the Lawn Bowls Strategy 2016.”

Camera Icon Locals Martin Kalkhoven, George Gear, Margaret Sandford, Mel Randall and Tim Smith are are also fighting plans for the wave park at Tomkins Park. Credit: PerthNow, Michael Wilson

The Alfred Cove Action Group has made a complaint to the CCC. Spokesman David Maynier said all wave park negotiations needed to be suspended, pending a full investigation. He said hundreds of ratepayers at a meeting on March 15 had passed a motion urging the same.

“The mayor now has an opportunity to lift the secrecy,” Mr Maynier said. “There is a lot of secrecy surrounding this project.”

Another complaint has been made to the CCC by former Federal MP George Gear, a social member of the bowls club.

Mr Gear, the former member for Canning, said his concern was directed at the Bowls Strategy report. He said the data in the report was inaccurate because it only focused on pennant bowls, which was only 22.7 per cent of the bowling activity.

“It also doesn’t take into account all the social activity of the club,” he said.

“There were 168 functions where 12,750 people came to the club ... it’s a vital community asset. “The report focused a section of the bowling activity that was in decline.”

UPDATE: On Thursday, April 6 the City of Melville issued a statement saying the Public Sector Commission had found “no minor misconduct” in relation to allegations against City of Melville officer Todd Cahoon, who had previously owned shares in Wave Park Group.

City of Melville chief executive Dr Shayne Silcox said the PSC had assessed information provided voluntarily by the City.

“Not only did the City not find any misconduct, but the Commission has now also assessed the allegations and concluded they do not constitute minor misconduct as defined within s. 4(d) of the Corruption, Crime and Misconduct Act 2003 (CCM Act),” Dr Silcox said.

“The Commission has advised it will take no further action in relation to the matter.

“One would now expect an apology from those who made, and continue to make, damaging accusations without any regard for due process, fairness and equity, particularly after the City had assured them an appropriate investigation had been conducted, and found no misconduct.

“As CEO I would hope the media and the community understand the personal impacts, stress and trauma, that are caused when unfounded and unsubstantiated allegations are bandied around recklessly. This leads me to question why those making the allegations would broadcast them so widely without appropriate due process of confidentially, other than it would seem on the face of it, to discredit the City and its officers.”

Boss blames rich nimbys

THE businessman wanting to build WA’s first surf park has given a giant spray to “wealthy nimbys” trying to block it.

“There’s nothing else to this other than nimbyism,” said Andrew Ross.

“What we have is a group of entitled wealthy people trying to prevent an area of the river foreshore being used by the general community and preventing what’s going to be an amazing project for all of Perth just because they treat that area of land as an extension of their front lawns.

“It’s all just scaremongering. We have faced this now for months and months. I think the biggest story is how the hell all these anti groups got hold of all of the confidential information about our proposal that has only been presented to councillors behind closed doors. There has been a consistent and constant leak of information from a particular councillor or some councillors to the anti groups.

“The anti group has just tried to confuse everyone and usurp the process in an attempt to stop this project. That to me is really dishonest.”

Mr Ross, who cited a petition with more than 3200 signatures from supporters, said it was worth remembering the land is zoned for sport and recreation.

“Tompkins Park has operated as a sports hub for over 60 years,” he said.

“Adding a blue field sport, instead of another green field sport, makes a whole lot of sense.

“There’s more surfers in Perth than people who play cricket, both indoor and outdoor combined. There are 350 cricket ovals in Perth and there’s not single dedicated surfing facility.

“It is the right type of sport and development at the right time in the right location we believe . . . We have looked for four years in Perth and this site is head and shoulders above anything, better than anything else we have looked at.”

Mr Ross said WPG would move its attention to the Eastern States if the plan was knocked back on Thursday.

Lisa O’Malley, the new MLA for Bicton and former Melville councillor, believes Thursday’s vote should not go ahead.

“I think there should be a thorough review of all these things that are now coming up,” she said.

“The questions should be fully answered to satisfy the community. This is a really sensitive stretch of river foreshore. It’s precious public open space. You don’t giveaway or change public open space without a thorough investigation.”