Mayoral Candidate · Holdfast Bay

I'm Martin Small, and I'm standing for Mayor of Holdfast Bay.

This is the first election since the Jetty Road Glenelg project doubled Council's debt, which makes this next Council term critical. I have the skills and experience needed to bring change, rebuild trust, deliver value for money, and leave our grandchildren the best beach suburbs in Australia.

Meet Martin My Priorities Get Involved
Martin Small above the Holdfast Bay coastline

Martin's Priorities

I will bring change, focusing on

Rebuilding trust

When trust breaks down, so does everything else: communication, delivery, results. I'll rebuild it by listening, discussing and responding.

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Delivering value

We're heavily indebted. Every dollar needs to work harder. I'll bring fresh eyes to existing spending and cap rates to inflation for at least two years.

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A liveable community

As trust and value are restored, we can focus on the life, connections and opportunities that make Holdfast Bay special, leaving our grandchildren the best beach suburbs in Australia.

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Portrait of Martin Small

Meet Martin

Ready to serve

I'm a Kiwi Australian — born and raised in Adelaide's sister city of Christchurch — part of a large family whose parents lived their values of service, kindness, justice and resilience.

I started my career in Wellington working for government transport agencies, where I met my wife Andrée. We became proud parents of Jo and Eleanor, who are now building their own lives here in Australia.

We moved to Adelaide in 2006, became citizens in 2012, and when we first arrived we lived a stone's throw from the Broadway Kiosk. We later moved to Hawthorn, and then in 2024 Andrée and I chose to come back home — first to Seacliff, and now settled in Glenelg, where it all started for us.

I was a senior executive at the Department of Infrastructure and Transport, serving as Director Road Safety and Registrar of Motor Vehicles. After two decades in public service, I set up my own road safety consulting business in 2012.

I'm an experienced company director and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. I was President of the Australasian College of Road Safety for three years, and have been a Director of Football South Australia since 2022. I also served six years on the board of RAA — South Australia's largest membership organisation and most trusted brand — where I helped lead it through a period of major change.

My consulting work has taken me overseas, advising governments and organisations including the World Bank and the United Nations on road safety. I now work largely from home, and I'm committed to being here, present, and ready to serve our community.

See Martin's Priorities

Martin's Priorities

Let's rebuild trust

Trust in government is plummeting. There are many reasons for this, and the Jetty Road Glenelg project is a good illustration of why our community is so frustrated.

I have spent my career in positions of trust. As your Mayor, I'll work with all Councillors and the administration to rebuild trust within our community. I'll listen, I'll be honest, and I'll tell you the bad news as well as the good.

I will back the businesses, community groups and residents working towards a thriving Holdfast Bay, and I'll convene a community forum every three months to promote trust and transparency.

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Let's cap rates at inflation

Having gone through the last decade of Holdfast Bay's annual reports, the overriding impression is of a magic pudding. Additional rates revenue magically generates additional expenditure. The doubling of Council debt for Jetty Road Glenelg means we won't be able to do everything we want. Rates have risen 2.3% a year for the last three years — 6.9% cumulatively — to service that debt.

As a senior executive in government, I delivered significant cuts in the wake of the Global Financial Crisis while improving service and safety. As your Mayor, I'll make sure every dollar goes further. With residents and business facing historic cost-of-living pressures, it's not acceptable for Council to increase rates above inflation without showing how it's controlling costs and generating better value for money.

We need to live within our means, test what we can achieve with current revenues, and cap rate increases for at least the next two years to no more than the rate of inflation.

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Let's fix Brighton Road

Brighton Road is hot, noisy, congested, dangerous, and it divides our community. Most of the traffic is us, simply getting to and fro — for work, school, shopping, footy practice or church. It's the State Government's responsibility, but we can't leave this essential community asset to the whims of others.

I've spent my working life in infrastructure and transport. As your Mayor, I'll engage constructively with all levels of Government on this issue. We need a ten-year masterplan for Brighton Road, with the State Government and Council working in partnership with business and residents for the community we want to live in.

South Road is being transformed to carry the load of north-south traffic through metropolitan Adelaide. The Majors Road connection onto the Southern Expressway is for exactly that same purpose. We are now in a position to plan a better future for Brighton Road, for businesses and residents alike.

I've been working independently with the Brighton Road Re-Imagined group on this issue.

Complete the survey and have your say →

My submission to Council

In my submission to the City of Holdfast Bay's Draft 2026/27 Business Plan, I focused on three main issues:

  • The plan did not address how the significant loss of trust between the Council and the community will be turned around.
  • The plan was deaf to the cost-of-living pressures facing residents, many on fixed incomes, who are all expected to service the doubling of Council debt.
  • The plan held investment in the community hostage to additional rates rises, without any demonstrable cost savings or process for prioritisation.

I assume the best intentions of those who prepared the plan. But something has to give. Change is required to rebuild trust between the Council and the community, and to help remind us why we want to live in this most blessed part of Australia.

Read the full submission (PDF)

Join the Campaign

However you can help, we'd love to have you on board.

Every conversation, contact and share within our community moves us closer to the community we want to live in.

Make sure you're enrolled

If you're on the South Australian electoral roll, you're already enrolled for this election. Check your details are current. Businesses, non-resident property owners, and landlords can also apply to join Holdfast Bay's roll.

Enrolment closes Monday 4 January 2027.

Check My Enrolment

Join the team

Whether it's letterboxing, joining Martin at a stand-up, sharing on social media, or putting up a window poster or yard corflute, every bit of help counts.

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Donate

Campaigns cost money — letterbox materials, signage, and getting our message out. Every contribution, large or small, helps us reach more of our community.

Get in Touch

Follow & share

Martin shares regular videos and updates on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X. Follow to keep up with the campaign as it happens, and help spread the word.

How and when to vote

Council elections are conducted entirely by post. Voting papers will be mailed 11–17 March 2027, and voting closes 5pm Wednesday 7 April 2027. Whether you're a business owner, homeowner or renter, make sure your voice is counted.