A FORMER Ipswich City Council executive who served during a period marked by significant financial losses for council-owned companies has taken up a senior leadership role at the City of Moreton Bay.
Andrew Roach, who was Chief Financial Officer at Ipswich City Council until 2018 and a director of four council-owned companies, has been appointed General Manager – Commercial Services at Moreton Bay.
Mr Roach resigned from Ipswich Council in mid-2018 – stepping down as both CFO and as a director of Ipswich City Properties (ICP) and other council entities – around the time questions were raised about the financial performance of the city’s high-profile CBD redevelopment.
Mr Roach held senior roles in several council-owned companies during the period leading up to their closure in 2018, including directorships on Ipswich City Properties, Ipswich City Developments, Ipswich City Enterprises, and the Ipswich Motorsport Precinct at the time of his resignation.
Months later, a forensic investigation commissioned by interim administrator Greg Chemello and conducted by McGrath Nicol found that ICP had incurred a net loss of more than $78 million under council ownership, despite spending more than $84 million on property acquisitions. The company, established in 2009 to lead the city centre transformation, was left with assets worth just $42.82 million.
The report concluded that the council would likely have saved millions by managing the redevelopment internally rather than delegating it to a separate corporate entity with limited oversight. The findings did not attribute responsibility to any individual directors.
Mr Roach’s LinkedIn profile lists a three-year, seven-month tenure at Ipswich.
In his new role at Moreton Bay, Mr Roach will oversee council’s commercial operations. He announced the move on LinkedIn in March, describing himself as a “strategic community leader” and highlighting achievements including four surplus budgets at Ipswich and a halving of city debt.
There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Mr Roach, and no findings were made against him personally.
Mr Roach was a director of Ipswich Motorsport Park Pty Ltd during this period.
Ipswich Motorsport Park Pty Ltd – the council-owned company established to develop a motorsport precinct – was formally wound up following strategic changes and mounting financial losses.
A council-commissioned review found the company had suffered from governance deficiencies. According to official records, board minutes were unsigned, no budget was produced, and there was insufficient documentation supporting expenditures. No individual directors were singled out in the report.
He has previously worked with John Tetley, former owner of Queensland Raceway in Ipswich, and current leaseholder at Lakeside Raceway.
The Tribune understands that Mr Roach is the lead delegate in negotiations between Moreton Bay Council and residents around Lakeside Raceway, following complaints of drag racing at the site and breaches of noise limits.
In 2011, Mr Roach was sacked after 2.5 years in the job as General Manager at Port Macquarie Hastings Council after complaints against him were investigated.
