A KEY member of lord mayor Robert Doyle's election team organised a series of meetings with city developers in which they were asked for tens of thousands of dollars each for the Doyle campaign in return for Town Hall access.

The revelation raises questions for the Lord Mayor about who is bankrolling his campaign, and on what basis. Credit:Angela Wylie

One developer, who attended one of the meetings organised by Cr Doyle's No. 1 council candidate Kevin Louey, told The Sunday Age he was surprised at the sum of money requested as a donation - between $50,000 and $100,000. The source said he felt uncomfortable when it was made clear that a donation would open doors in Town Hall, if Cr Doyle was re-elected.

The developer, a significant player in Melbourne's property market, does not want to be named, but wants the meetings, held mid this year, made public because their cash-for-access message seemed inappropriate.