Inner West Election Candidates Profile: Ashfield-Djarrawunang Ward

By DANIEL LO SURDO

There will be at least one new face representing the Ashfield-Djarrawunang Ward following the Inner West elections, with Greens councillor Tom Kiat not seeking reelection. Liberal councillor Julie Passas, as of writing, has not yet announced her plans for reelection. 

Mark Drury 

Mark Drury is an incumbent Inner West Labor councillor looking to retain his seat in the Ashfield-Djarrawunang Ward this year. Cr Drury has worked for social and economic justice for the past 30 years and has lived in the Inner West for decades. 

Cr Drury has been on either Ashfield or Inner West Council for 15 years with the intention of representing the most disadvantaged in the community. 

Drury hopes to make housing and rental properties more secure, address Inner West urban issues in partnership with the State and Federal Governments, as well as ensure the sustainability of council-run facilities, including aquatic centres and swimming pools, for the community to enjoy. 

Drury is also a representative of the Sydenham to Bankstown Urban Renewal Working Party and the Parramatta River Catchment Group. 

Dylan Griffiths 

Dylan Griffiths will seek election in the Ashfield-Djarrawunang Ward for The Greens after incumbent Cr Kiat announced he will not be returning to council. 

Griffiths has lived in the Inner West for 25 years and today is a resident of Ashfield, having also lived in Dulwich Hill. 

Griffiths aims to build on the work of Cr Kiat in affordable housing should he be elected in December, with Griffiths promising that he will campaign for inclusionary zoning to ensure that developments in the Inner West contribute to greater housing stock, as well as working towards a levy for long term vacant properties. 

Earlier this year, Griffiths partnered with Kiat to campaign to reduce aquatic centre entry fees for social security recipients across the Inner West. During this campaign, Griffiths garnered support from The Australian Council of Social Services and the Australian Unemployed Workers Union. Council supported a motion to reduce entry fees for social security recipients in September.  

The Ashfield-Djarrawunang Ward covers the southwestern corner of the Inner West and occupies Dulwich Hill, Summer Hill and southern parts of Ashfield. 

City Hub will be hosting its Inner West Candidates’ Forum on the 14th of November at The Gumbramorra Hall at 142 Addison Road, Marrickville. You can register for the event here.