Stephanie Quirk
Celebrate women at Nan Tien
Enjoy meditation, Tai Chi and a film screening at Nan Tien Temple
To mark International Women’s Day, join a Meditation & Tai Chi event, guided by the Venerables at Nan Tien Temple, where mindfulness meets kindness.
It’s a fundraising event for Women Illawarra, and a chance to immerse yourself in mindful practices like meditation and Tai Chi.
Engage in meaningful conversations with Women Illawarra staff, event supporters, and the monastics, as we work to inspire community over competition and prioritise health and well-being.
The event includes a special free screening of the international award-winning local short film Frances (35 min) by award-winning filmmaker Sharon Lewis, Vice Chair of Screen Illawarra. Sharon will be joined by Juliet Scrine, who stars as
Frances, for a heartfelt discussion on the film’s themes and its reflection of the struggles and resilience of women.
Show your support for women in need through this charity meditation fundraiser, so together we contribute to real-world change. Click to book tickets.
Seniors Festival Fun
Activities and workshops from 3-16 March
Wollongong Seniors Festival events range from free Botanic Garden buggy tours to the Lord Mayor’s Afternoon Tea Dance. Thirroul Library will have knitting, cards, games and a Story Time for grandparents and grandkids. Helensburgh Library will host a special Story Time and a classic movie screening.
Lord Mayor of Wollongong Councillor Tania Brown encouraged people to get involved, and to embrace this year’s theme of ‘Time to Shine’. “There are more than 85 events happening over a two-week period, with most of them free to enjoy, so there’s something on offer for everyone,” Cr Brown said. Find a program on Council’s website
Stephanie Quirk: Finding belonging through memory
By Amanda De George
STORY Cover
Achildhoodmemory of running through a clothesline full of freshly washed sheets was the inspiration for artist Stephanie Quirk’s entry into this year’s Sculpture in the Garden. The artist, educator and mother of two will be featured in the inaugural Ephemeral Prize, with finalists chosen for how their work responds to the Wollongong Botanic Garden site.
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Stephanie Quirk on Instagram
After completing a Masters of Fine Art 20 years ago, Stephanie said it took the birth of her children to return to creating art.
“Since having kids, I’ve really come back into my practice,” she said.
“Inspired by, I suppose, the way children see and experience the world. And that availability of joy and wonder and play and curiosity.
“My work is trying to explore ‘what is this experience of life’ and making immersive works that really elicit that feeling of joy and wonder and play.”
Her entry into the exhibition is an ephemeral installation consisting of a 13-metre bamboo pavilion and reclaimed, vividly coloured fabrics.
“I had this really vivid memory when I was kid and I’m sure you’ve had it too … when you’re walking or running through the clothesline of the the fresh sheets being washed and there’s that smell of the clean sheets and the sunshine coming through and it’s like a cubby house,” she explained.
“It’s like a scaled up version of that but the colours are very vivid and it really
“If
you’ve got ephemeral work you can really test and play and iterate and experiment with your concepts and the materials and how people interact with it”
– Stephanie Quirk
invites people to come in and make their own play experience.”
But more than that, the memory, which Stephanie believes crosses cultures and generations, was borne from a question she asked herself.
“I’ve always felt like an outsider in some ways so I was like, ‘Okay where do I belong?’ And then I thought about my memories and I thought I belong into my memories; there’s a really strong sense of ‘yes, they are mine’.”
After the show, the artwork will “just become another heap of material again”, Stephanie said. “It’s funny but actually the artwork won’t belong in that place either so it’s fine because I’m like, I don’t belong but also the artwork doesn’t belong, so it’s kind of this interesting paradox.”
There’s something special about experiencing art in the Wollongong
Botanic Garden. The garden – which hosts Sculpture in the Garden every two years – is well loved and the well-known benefits of being out in nature are highlighted in its ‘Go slow for a Mo’ nature wellness trail.
For Stephanie, it’s particularly exciting to see how her work will interact with not only the visitors but the environment itself.
“I see with materials like the sheets, they really react to people. So people move through it, they touch them, they pull them up, they twirl and then you’ve got this really nice interaction with the wind …
“And seeing how the fabric moves with the wind I have this sense of collaborating with nature.”
Sculpture in the Garden will be held from 1-30 April at the Wollongong Botanic Garden. Entry is free.
Photos: Brittany Hefren
WIRES advice in wild weather
By Tyneesha Williams
“I love to inspire people, especially the younger generation, to really care about animals. When I do talks with little kids, I’ll say ‘Who loves bats?’ and their hands will go up. When I do it with adults, the opposite is true”
– Alyce Mason
Localwildlife educator Alyce Mason says the key to helping Australia’s animals in any extreme weather, be it fire or flood, is to be prepared – and plant trees.
“I’ve always loved wildlife and animals, and I got curious about how to have a more active role in helping,” says Alyce, who joined Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service (WIRES) six years ago.
“Not everyone has the time to volunteer for a group like WIRES. But there are things you can do in our everyday lives to help the animals around you. WIRES helps to teach people what they can do.”
WIRES is Australia’s largest wildlife rescue organisation, providing rescue advice and assistance for more than 130,000 animals annually.
Along with her husband, Alyce trained as a volunteer to help injured, ill or displaced animals. With a background in teaching, she later became the education officer for WIRES’ Illawarra branch.
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“I love to inspire people, especially the younger generation, to really care about animals,” Alyce says.
“When I do talks with little kids, I’ll say ‘Who loves bats?’ and their hands will go up. When I do it with adults, the opposite is true.
“Kids just have such a wonder and curiosity. I love to keep that alive.”
Wildlife rescue organisations play a
significant role during extreme weather.
“With flooding, they can get caught in floodwaters. They might get separated from their parents or washed away.”
In times of extreme heat or heavy rain, Alyce encourages locals to look out for animals who may be affected and contact WIRES for guidance.
“Be careful on the road and keep an eye out in your backyard,” Alyce says. “Keep a look out for animals that look like they’re waterlogged. If you see a bird or a possum that’s really wet and on the ground somewhere, it might be waterlogged.”
Locals can help restore natural habitats or provide shelter for wildlife.
“People can help by planting lots of native trees,” Alyce says. “You can create little places for shelter for our reptiles, for example. There’s lots of ways we can put back into nature what these extreme weather events take away.”
She recommends keeping a rescue kit in the car after extreme weather events. A box, a towel and some gloves could help you transport a distressed or displaced animal.
“In floods, sometimes trees come down, so you can check to see if there was any animals living in that tree, or a nest,” Alyce says. “We don’t encourage people to handle wildlife without the necessary training. We especially wouldn’t encourage anyone to touch a bat or a snake, for example.”
Visit wires.org.au or call 1300 WIRES.
Common Ground
Steel City Strings is collaborating with community gamelan ensemble Suwitra Jaya for part of this concert inspired by folk music traditions from around the world including Australian composers Peter Sculthorpe, Gerard Brophy and Christopher Sainsbury.
Bowral Memorial Hall, Sun 9 March 2.00pm
Wollongong Art Gallery, Sat 15 March 7.30pm Berry School of Arts, Sun 15 March 2.00pm
For bookings scan the QR code or go to: steelcitystrings.com.au/events-calendar/
Tickets $15 – $65 Group of 5 or more $40 per person
Helensburgh Community Rooms
Renovated and well-equipped meeting rooms and office space in the village centre. Enquire now for availability.
26A Walker St, Helensburgh Phone 02 4227 8181 wollongong.nsw.gov.au/centres
‘It’s
time to recharge our soul’
By Genevieve Swart
Forthe Syrian refugee community in Wollongong, 2025’s Ramadan celebrations are extra special. The dictator Bashar Al-Assad is gone, fled to Russia in December, and there are hopes of peace after 15 years of civil war.
Wafaa Izzeddin longs to return and show her children where she was raised.
“We suffered a lot,” she says. “Now we need freedom for everyone – Syria for every Syrian, regardless of the religion, skin colour, language or ethnic group.”
Her homeland is on her mind during the annual Islamic holy month of prayer, contemplation and fasting, which began on Saturday, March 1. For Wafaa, Ramadan is time to recharge her soul.
“Like we have food to charge our body,” she says, “when we think about our soul, we need to do something mentally to be more strong.
“Ramadan means to me – it’s time to recharge our soul and to think about
discipline more in our life. Ramadan means to me – think about others, and express your feelings, your love.”
“It is a celebration because we’ve been waiting all year to just recharge our soul. It is time to sit quietly and think about, as a human being, what’s the main reason for us being here and how we can improve in a better way.”
Journey to Wollongong
Wafaa is from a town 35 minutes drive from Damascus. Her eldest child was born in 2011, the year that civil war broke out and Assad’s regime began a terrible crackdown. More than 300,000 civilians died, millions fled the country. “We never expected it’ll escalate violently,” Wafaa says.
To get to hospital for the birth of her first child, Wafaa had to travel through 11 military checkpoints, with the possibility that her husband, a teacher,
MCCI’s Wafaa Izzeddin.
Photo: Cristina Sacco
could be arrested at any time. “I used to pray and look at my daughter, say, ‘oh, Allah, please, because of this newborn, let us survive this time.’”
Her husband was arrested twice, then escaped to Lebanon in a nine-hour trek through the mountains. Wafaa later followed, having her second child in a refugee hospital where staff criticised her choice to have the baby. “It’s something I never wish on any woman.”
In 2014 Wafaa and her family came to Australia as refugees and her third child was born in the safety of Wollongong. She left behind a career in banking and insurance, and became a community mobiliser at SCARF Refugee Support. Now SCARF has merged with the Multicultural Communities Council of Illawarra (MCCI) and Wafaa channels her empathy and experience into her work as an employment program officer.
A typical day in Ramadan
Along with much of Wollongong’s Muslim community – which numbers about 5600 people, or 2.6% of the city’s population – Wafaa and her family are now fasting from dawn to dusk.
Ordinarily, Muslims would pray five times a day and but in Ramadan the pace slows, Wafaa says. “We give more time for those five prayers. We sit more on our knees every morning.
“We wake up about four o’clock to have a meal called Suhoor. We try to make it as a breakfast – dates, yoghurt, sometimes leftover burek or rice, olives, cheese, hummus, some vegetables, egg.”
Her children love Suhoor, Wafaa says.
“They like it because it’s special. We never wake up all together, we never have this time together. So we have this meal, we pray all together before sunrise. Then our day starts.”
Wafaa says she’s not strict with her little ones as her parents were: “They have something at midday because they go to school and run around.”
Eating good, filling food is key, and so is talking to her children’s teachers and packing an emergency bag. “We all have a bag with a muesli bar, apple, Panadol and water. Because here it’s a long day, and the sun is so strong, sometimes it’s 40 degrees. So we all have a plan B.”
It can be hard to balance school, sport and fasting commitments – last year, for
example, her children’s swimming carnival was scheduled during Ramadan.
The Islamic calendar follows the lunar cycle, which is why holy month begins on a different date each year. This is also why the moon is a key feature in decorations. Wafaa’s children – now aged 13, 11 and 8 – have cut out moons and stars, and a lantern on her dining table pays a tribute to the lights of the old drummers waking people before dawn.
Served with love
Preparing dinner during Ramadan is an act of love, with Wafaa planning family favourites like soup, burek or fattoush.
“You start to think how it will make others happy when they break their fast – so we make it with love, honest love”
Along with the mezze, Wafaa will serve a deliciously sweet apricot juice, a taste that sparks memories of childhood. “The smell!” she says, remembering scents wafting through neighbours’ windows and the sound of cannon fire in the mountains signalling it was time to run home for dinner.
After Iftar, the day traditionally ends with a fifth prayer at a mosque.
“We have four local mosques: the new Omar mosque in Gwynneville, we have University of Wollongong, we have Bilal mosque for the Turkish community at Cringila and As-Salaam Mosque in Berkeley. And those four mosques will be very busy after 9pm.”
For Wafaa, the time of reflection inevitably brings on homesickness. She thinks of her sister, her late father-in-law and of her grandmother who loved having everyone at her table.
“Oh, on the first day we just cry when we sit,” she says. “I remember the people who died during war. I remember the people being arrested and who never came back… It’s very emotional. The children say: ’It’s okay, Mommy, enjoy. We are all fine now. It’s safe now.’”
After 30 days, Ramadan ends with the festival of Eid al-Fitr. Sweet treats like Ma’amoul and Ka’ak are popular dishes – Wafaa says her mum bakes the best ka’ak, with flour, ghee, coconut, syrup and cinnamon. It’s a happy time, as families and friends come together after the discipline of prayer and fasting.
“It’s just time to celebrate. We are heroes,” Wafaa says, smiling.
“Ramadan means to me – it’s time to recharge our soul and to think about discipline more in our life. Ramadan means to me –think about others, and express your feelings, your love.”
–
MCCI’s Wafaa Izzeddin
New business leader Coralie McCarthy ready to shake things up
By Jeremy Lasek
“It’s amazing, there’s so much positivity and momentum in the region and a real appetite to do things in new ways. This is a city of innovation, and we need to leverage that.”
– Coralie McCarthy
It’s been one month in the job for the new Business Illawarra boss, Coralie McCarthy, and she’s clearly loving it.
While it’s early days in the role as the most powerful business advocate for the Illawarra, Coralie is excited about the future of the region and the potential opportunities.
In her first weeks as director, Coralie has done plenty of listening and she’s found there’s a genuine mood for change.
“It’s amazing, there’s so much positivity and momentum in the region and a real appetite to do things in new ways,” Coralie said.
“This is a city of innovation, and we need to leverage that.”
Improving transport infrastructure, growing tourism and ensuring local industry benefits from a balanced energy transition are Coralie’s top three priorities.
“I look forward to spending quality time with our members, the local business community and key stakeholders to listen and better understand their priorities,” she said.
Last week her meeting with the region’s tourism sector left Coralie in no doubt there’s a hunger for much-needed growth and “new international product”.
“Our local visitor economy is one of the best in the country and we need to
ensure local businesses are poised to capitalise on our natural advantages.”
This will be music to the ears of Business Illawarra Regional Advisory Council President Ryan Aitchison, who said he looked forward to working side-by-side with Coralie “to ensure the Illawarra gets targeted investments to unlock our potential”.
Last year, in an address to Wollongong City Council, Ryan was critical of the lack of action and momentum, and he called on Council to be more proactive.
“Wollongong is walking when it should be running,” he said.
“Wollongong needs to do more than selling ice-creams to day trippers.”
Among Coralie’s other priorities in her first year in the job will be to develop a creative economy strategy for the region and a Business Illawarra events calendar.
“People want to know what’s going on. “I’m also hearing people asking can’t we go back to holding business after-hours networking events which used to be big.”
Coralie McCarthy has a background in small business and was the chair of Australian Regional Tourism for six years. She replaces Adam Zarth, who left the organisation in March last year after six years leading Business Illawarra.
A rare, majestic rainforest tree
By Emma Rooksby, coordinator of Growing Illawarra Natives
Pictured above: A collection of White Beech fruit, photographed in situ by Barry Ralley
The history of Illawarra since European colonisation is one of profound disturbance, affecting First Nations peoples and the plants and animals they lived with and cared for. I see this every time I walk on the escarpment, where it’s clear that most of the vegetation is still recovering from selective and then wholesale clearing.
The stunning rainforest tree White Beech (Gmelina leichhardtii) was particularly affected. This massive tree has been reduced to less than 100 mature individuals across the entire Illawarra area, dispersed widely between Royal National Park in the north and Berry in the south. So it’s worth knowing about this majestic giant in case you run across it around the place.
White Beech generally grows on the escarpment, in subtropical rainforest that is long undisturbed by fire or land clearing.
There are mature specimens around, including just off the Escarpment Management Track in Corrimal, and high up the escarpment in Thirroul. The tree in Corrimal can actually be seen from the coastal plain, because of its distinctive pale green foliage, grey-white trunk and very tall form.
Above is a picture taken a few years back by local photographer Anthony Wardle. The White Beech on the escarpment at Corrimal stands out proudly from its rainforest surrounds, due to its pale grey-white trunk and pale green foliage.
White Beech is often easiest spotted by the presence of its stunning large purple fruit on the rainforest floor. They are large (up to 2.5cm across) and often numerous beneath a fruiting tree.
Pictured at left is a collection of White Beech fruit, photographed in situ by Barry Ralley.
This tree also has stunning white and purple flowers, though these are often invisible because they’re so high up in the canopy!
The natural history of White Beech in this area is not well known. It was considered a high-quality timber tree by Europeans, but was not reported on as much as the Red Cedar (Toona ciliata), suggesting that it was not present locally in such high numbers. And it is much slower than Red Cedar to recover across the region, for various reasons, but probably because its large bulky fruit are not so easily dispersed around the place as the air-borne seeds of the Red Cedar. Here’s hoping it recovers eventually.
Growing Illawarra Natives
What will be our Energy Future? This election could decide
By Michelle Voyer and Ty Christopher at the University of Wollongong
“As we electrify homes, cars and industries, our electricity demand will grow. This transition is an opportunity –but only if clean, affordable energy is accessible to everyone.”
– Michelle Voyer and Ty Christopher
Lastweek, the Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Chris Bowen, announced a pause to the Illawarra offshore wind proposal, following a mutual agreement between the government and the sole developer who applied for a feasibility license. The reason? Uncertainty over the upcoming federal election, with the opposition pledging to scrap the plan if elected.
This pause is more than just a political moment – it’s an opportunity to take stock and consider a bigger question: What should the Illawarra’s energy transition look like? With a clear divide between major parties on offshore wind, the region stands at a fork in the road. This is a chance to make a choice, based on a clear understanding of our options.
Imagine an Energy Island
For a moment, let’s imagine the Illawarra as an energy ‘island’ – one that must generate enough electricity to meet its own needs but with potential to import or export power. This thought experiment provides a useful lens for understanding our energy landscape.
Currently, Australia consumes around 200 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity annually, with roughly a quarter of that used in NSW. Home to Wollongong, the state’s third-largest city, the Illawarra accounts for a significant portion of this demand. Using conservative estimates, the region requires around 2.5 TWh per
year. But as we move towards greater electrification, that demand is expected to double by 2050. So let’s take 5TWh as the target we need to reach to achieve a self-sufficient energy supply for our island.
So, what energy mix could power the Illawarra, both today and into the future?
The Building Blocks
There are a number of options for achieving our 5TWh target. We have been conservative on the hypothetical target we need to generate and generous with the projected contributions of all these options. Figures are estimates for illustrative purposes only – actual contributions will vary according to a range of factors and variables.
1. Rooftop Solar – A Strong Start
Solar is already playing a major role in the energy transition. Roughly 40% of the Illawarra’s current energy needs are met by solar, and we have room to grow. As we wrote in The Conversation last year, we estimate that if all 130,000 homes in the Illawarra had solar panels, they could generate a theoretical maximum of 0.95 TWh per year. However, much of this power is consumed in the home rather than exported to the grid. But for simplicity, let’s assume rooftop solar could provide this theoretical maximum, which is nearly half of our current energy demand and about 19% of future demand.
2. Industrial Solar – A Modest Contributor
A 100 MW industrial solar farm can generate approximately 0.2 TWh per year, but land availability is a challenge. Each farm requires 200 hectares (about 285 rugby fields), and while space for large scale solar farms in the region is limited, industrial rooftops present an opportunity. Based on recent research, we can assume that, with some effort, we could likely generate around 0.6 TWh per year from industrial solar (about 12% of future demand).
3. Gas – A Short-Term Firming Solution
The 765 MW Tallawarra gas plant plays a firming role, providing backup power during peak demand or when renewables aren’t generating. Gas is a fossil fuel and retaining it in the energy mix won’t drive deep decarbonisation, however, it remains part of the short-term energy mix. And with sufficient power, there is capacity to transition to the use of hydrogen in this facility in the future. There are a lot of variables that will influence the output of this plant, including fluctuations influenced by factors such as operational demand and maintenance schedules. We are assuming an average annual output of 1 TWh –approximately 20% of future demand.
4. Onshore Wind – Land Constraints
A 1 GW onshore wind farm can generate 3 TWh per year, but only the largest wind farms in Australia are around this size. This is because these wind farms require substantial land – between 150 and 300 hectares (215 to 430 rugby fields) per gigawatt. While Maddens Plains is often suggested, and worthy of consideration, much of the area is highly sensitive upland swamp and protected under national parks and environmental conservation zoning. So onshore wind could contribute, but its potential in the Illawarra is limited – let’s assume we can find space for around 0.5GW, or 1.3TWh – about 26% of future demand.
6. Nuclear – An energy import
The federal opposition has suggested building two nuclear reactors in NSW. A 1 GW nuclear plant could generate 7.4 TWh per year. Two plants of this size would therefore contribute approximately 30% of the state’s current energy needs but would still not be enough to supply the state’s peak demand
needs. No nuclear power plants are proposed for the Illawarra, so for our energy island we would need to import nuclear energy from the Hunter. Let’s generously assume 10% of our future energy needs might come from nuclear (0.5 TWh). It should be noted that nuclear energy is not currently legal in Australia, so we cannot bank on this being part of our energy mix for at least 15 to 20 years.
7. Offshore Wind – an energy export
The proposed 2.9 GW offshore wind zone could generate up to 12 TWh per year, more than double the amount required to meet the Illawarra’s projected energy demand, with enough left over to support industrial decarbonisation or green hydrogen production. Unlike onshore wind, offshore wind has higher capacity factors and is less constrained by land availability so turbines can be bigger and there can be more of them.
However, they are still likely to be constrained by environmental, cultural and economic requirements. Therefore, whilst we assume the Illawarra offshore energy zone will be able to operate to its full capacity, whether it can in practice would depend on a range of environmental, technical, socioeconomic and cultural assessments.
How do the options stack up?
Once we consider all the pieces of the puzzle – the contrast between the two options before us becomes clear.
The nuclear option – coupled with a moderate-sized onshore wind farm, industrial and rooftop solar, and the continued use of gas in the Tallawarra power plant – gets us to about 87% of the future energy needs of our hypothetical Illawarra energy island. The remainder of our energy needs would have to be supplied from elsewhere, either through continued use of coal, scaling up of gas or relying on our neighbours to host onshore wind and solar farms in surrounding regions.
The offshore wind option – which does not include any onshore wind component – would mean we are not only self-sufficient as a region, but energy becomes part of our economic contributions to the state, with a potential surplus of over 9TwH to offer to the grid.
“The pause on offshore wind gives us time to consider our options, but not forever. The Illawarra has a choice: Take charge of its energy future — or let external forces decide for us.”
Photos: Anthony Warry. Graphic: Freya Croft
New Council to decide on skydiving future at Stuart Park
Words & photos by Jeremy Lasek
Thefamiliar sight of skydivers dropping into Stuart Park at North Wollongong is under review as a part of Council’s consultation process for the best uses of the city’s popular waterfront area.
In recent months, Wollongong City Council has sought community views on what should happen in the coastal strip between Fairy Meadow and Wollongong Golf Club. With the consultation period over, Council will review feedback in finalising its new Wollongong City Foreshore Plan of Management.
As part of that plan, Council will determine which activities and developments should be allowed on Council land and forwarded to the Minister for approval.
Wollongong has been a haven for skydiving since the late 1990s and over the years Council has been supportive of the business.
In April 2015, Council voted 8-4 to directly negotiate with Skydive the Beach over the future lease of Stuart Park rather
than opening up for a competitive process that would allow other businesses to express an interest. This went against the recommendation of Council officers at the time who felt skydiving should go to open tender.
At a public meeting hosted at the Council in February, community members questioned why ongoing Skydive the Beach activities at Stuart Park were still proposed after more than a quarter of a century of exclusive use.
Their principal concerns were that a popular area of community open space and a parking area had effectively been locked up to allow skydiving activities seven days a week. Questions were also raised about whether Council and ratepayers were receiving appropriate financial return for this commercial activity because rent had been set by staff and not by registered valuers.
Calls for the park to be returned for community use
‘Their
principal concerns were that a popular area of community open space and a parking area had effectively been locked up to allow skydiving activities seven days a week’ – Jeremy Lasek
Over many years the community group Neighbourhood Forum 5 (NF5) has called on Council to return Stuart Park to the community and relocate Skydive the Beach to a large area of Council land approved 20 years ago, and used by the company as an alternative site to the north of Fairy Meadow Surf Club.
In its submission to Council’s consultation on the Foreshore Plan of Management, NF5 says the area currently being used by Skydive the Beach “was gazetted about 140 years ago as a public park” and it claims the current operations “contravene case law, legislation, the plan of management (2000 and 2008) and licence conditions...”
The submission says the Stuart Park Master Plan, which was adopted by Council in March 2023 after feedback from about 1200 people, “makes no provision for continuing skydiving in the park.”
Referring to correspondence from Crown Lands and Ministerial approval in 2000, NF5 says: “Skydiving activities on Stuart Park oval were to cease by December 2005, and the oval returned to a village green, providing unrestricted access and use by the public.”
Has Council been getting value for money?
Concerns have also been raised about the annual ‘peppercorn’ rental charged for the use of Stuart Park over the past 20 years, and it is claimed revenue for Council has been set at about $25 per jump less than for similar commercial operations elsewhere in Australia. It is
claimed that over the years Council has foregone hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue that could have been used for improvements for the parkland.
A Council spokesperson has denied any problems with the ongoing operation of skydiving at Stuart Park but confirmed that in future there will be a competitive process to ensure Council gets best value for money.
“The skydiving activities at Stuart Park operate under a lawful Development Consent and are a permissible use of community land under the Wollongong City Foreshore Plan of Management (2008). The draft POM … lists proposed permissable uses of the community land to include existing commercial recreational activities. This includes activities like skydiving and personal fitness training.
“Skydive the Beach is on a holdover lease agreement for the cottage and separate licence agreement for the landing area located at Stuart Park. Subject to finalisation and adoption of the draft PoM, consideration will be given to granting a longer-term lease over the site. This would occur via an open market tender process and include a market valuation undertaken by an independent valuer to ensure market rental income is being achieved.
“Landing areas at Dalton Park and part of Puckeys Estate are also subject to a holdover agreement. Council will review the strategy for that site concurrently with any tender process.”
Journalist Jeremy Lasek is a member of NF5 and in 2001 he successfully Skydived the Beach
AUSTI. launched the Illawarra Moving Arts Hub on Friday, Feburary 21 at Coalcliff Hall. Photos: Tyneesha Williams
THE MOVING ARTS HUB
With its new sprung floor ready to support dance, yoga and Pilates classes, Coalcliff Community Hall is now officially the Illawarra’s Moving Arts Hub. AUSTI. Dance & Physical Theatre hosted a celebratory studio launch at the hall on Friday, 21 February, with the Member for Heathcote, Maryanne Stuart, as the special guest. Maryanne helped AUSTI secure $25,000 towards the portable sprung floor through the Premier’s Discretionary Fund.
Resident says e-bike risk is now out of control
By Jeremy Lasek
These days, everyone it seems has a story to tell about a close encounter with e-bike riders who appear to be climbing aboard bigger, heavier and faster bikes each year.
In preparing to write this story I was brushed twice this past week by e-bike riders travelling at speed along the popular Blue Mile at North Wollongong.
People, especially young children, and pets, seem to be at greatest risk of injury.
Our neighbour’s pet dachshund was run over by an e-bike last year. Its back was badly broken and despite every effort and large vet bills, the dog wasn’t able to recover.
It’s
too dangerous
Keiraville resident Arnold McLean, an active member of community advisory group Neighbourhood Forum 5, says he no longer walks his 13-year-old kelpie ‘Andreous’ on footpaths because “it’s just too dangerous”.
“Footpaths are no longer safe places for dogs who wander from side to side putting themselves at risk of being hit by high-speed cyclists.”
The retired engineer, UOW academic and himself a keen bike rider recently met an accident-victim who was seriously injured while walking near the Beaton Park Leisure Centre where she works.
Keiraville’s Arnold McLean with his 13-year-old kelpie ‘Andreous’. Photos: Jeremy Lasek
“Her injuries were inflicted by a penniless university student riding at speed down Mercury Street in Wollongong,” Arnold said.
The woman suffered serious leg injuries and Arnold said her medical bills now amounted to around $20,000, not including lost wages.
Insurance is needed
With more people suffering collision injuries, Arnold believes all electric bike and scooter owners should be required to have third party personal injury compensation insurance.
He said the injured woman considered pursuing legal action against the student to recover her costs but being quoted $30,000 by lawyers, she decided not to.
“Some electric bikes are built like tanks,” Arnold said. “Some seat up to three teenagers and appear to be able to travel at 50km/h. This is much too fast for travel along footpaths.
“It won’t be long before a fatality will occur in Wollongong and, sadly, this fatality will probably involve a senior pedestrian.”
‘Nobody reads signs’
“It’s disappointing Wollongong Council didn’t realise this problem would arise long ago. Council is encouraging active transport, but most footpaths are now dangerous places to be. Council has introduced some temporary signs but nobody reads signs.”
Recognising the increased number of incidents involving e-bikes and e-scooters, a NSW Parliamentary
Committee released a comprehensive report to look at the growing popularity of e-bikes and e-scooters as a mode of transport.
The report admits “their rapid uptake has meant our laws and infrastructure haven’t kept pace”.
Maximum speed 15km/h
The report’s 34 recommendations include allowing the e-scooters and e-bikes to be legalised and permitted on footpaths with a maximum speed of 15km/h, and with riders having to give way to pedestrians at all times.
Arnold McLean isn’t impressed. “I thought they were a bit pathetic and a bit optimistic. They don’t go far enough and they don’t mention insurance.
“Really, the speed limit on footpaths should be walking pace. Travelling as they do now at up to 50km/h, human beings and pets will always come off second best.”
Cathy Martin, a supporter of the Keiraville Resident Action Group, shares Arnold’s concerns, and she believes attempts by governments to get more people involved in active travel on bikes and scooters could backfire if walkers decide it’s no longer safe to use footpaths for fear of being bowled over.
Wollongong Council is currently trialling the use of e-scooter hire and in its first year of operation there were 165,000 trips recorded, travelling over 317,000km.
In 2021 the rules changed and children up to the age of 16 in NSW can now legally ride a bike on footpaths.
“It won’t be long before a fatality will occur in Wollongong and, sadly, this fatality will probably involve a senior pedestrian.”
– Arnold McLean
The masks we wear
By Andy Lawrence
“I think these masks are a learned strategy for thriving, or at least surviving in the world.”
– Andy Lawrence
I’vebeen thinking a lot lately about the different masks we wear.
We like to think of ourselves as ‘whole’ people who walk around being our authentic whole selves all the time, or at least we aspire to. But really, I think we have different faces that we wear depending on who we’re with, where we are, what we are doing and what stage of life we find ourselves in.
Far from being a negative thing, I think these masks are a learned strategy for thriving, or at least surviving in the world. We may have a work mask, a mask we wear at Christmas time around our extended family, a ‘mum’ mask that slips the instant we look across the room at our partner above the heads of the screaming children and silently stage whisper, “WHAT THE F**K?”
I used to have a great propensity for using the masks that gained me academic success. My research scientist mask allowed me to push through my discomfort and speak in front of hundreds with a confidence I neither felt nor understood. I simply donned the mask and became that smart, funny and passionate presenter. I loved that mask. The ability to become something shining in the outside world while hiding away my insecurities and timidity within my internal landscape. This mask is what helped me to finish my PhD.
Another mask I was fond of was the one that would allow me to swallow my fears and do the risky/scary/new thing. Years ago, propelled by a breakup with a past boyfriend, I used this mask to finally get my motorbike licence. I was terrified, but I put on this fearless mask and did it anyway, sweating and shaking through the test until I rode out, victorious. Lately, I have wondered where those masks have gone.
Since having kids it feels like they are out of reach, hidden away in the attic of my personhood, too dusty and irrelevant to be brought downstairs. A few times I have tried on the scientist mask, but it doesn’t seem to fit anymore. I’ve tried to bring out the fearless mask, but it is difficult to muster the energy required to wear it.
A year ago, I embarked on a business coaching course to create a brand for my business. I fell short on the final frontier: bringing the visual brand out of my computer and into the world. I tried on my fearless mask but found I simply had no hands to grasp it. So I sat staring guiltily at the unused mask before folding up my ego and moving along with the rapid pace of life with small kids.
I realised that perhaps our ability to exist in our different masks is directly proportional to the level of our capacity to wear them. As parents, all of us live in
a continual state of moderate discomfort, the relief from which is fleeting and cherished. So, in what world would we seek more discomfort by donning a mask and pushing ourselves to do something uncomfortable, risky or outrageous?
As my kids get older, I feel the return of some masks and new ones growing too. I feel a new mask growing that gets worn when I see my mum-friends. This mask is honest and caring, funny and occasionally ridiculous.
Perhaps the word ‘mask’ gives the wrong impression. The masks are actually just the different facets of our ‘selves’ that create our wholeness as we cycle through them like a revolving door. And perhaps the level to which they feel like a mask is dependent on:
a) how much we still resonate with a particular mask or facet and,
b) what our capacity is to embody that mask, particularly in early parenthood or any great life transition.
It reminds me of when I was three days postpartum with my youngest baby. Every mum knows that day three is BIG. Milk is usually coming in, and a massive hormonal shift creates a tidal wave of emotion. On this particular day, one of my husband’s colleagues (whom I had never met) decided it would be appropriate to invite themselves in to ‘see the baby’. It felt so intrusive because I had no capacity to don the polite, meeting-a-
stranger mask. It felt as if I had no skin. My insides were showing. My deepest, most vulnerable self was on that couch…
“Why are you in my house?
“Why are you touching my baby?
“Why are you here, stranger?
“I don’t know you and I don’t want you here with my milk dripping out of my bra. I don’t want you here with this fragile new mother, this fragile new baby. Get out, please.
“Who gives you the right? Don’t you understand the space you are entering? Don’t you understand that I am a wild animal? It’s not safe for you. Because your presence is threatening me.
“Get out.”
So, if the masks we wear are the facets of our personhood, I’d bet that they shift and change with us throughout life. And perhaps it gets harder and harder to put the old masks on once we’ve outgrown them. And perhaps some stay, relatively unchanged by time, simply waiting for us to have the energy to reach for them. And maybe sometimes, we are not meant to wear a mask, or embody any facet, except our naked, raw, animal selves.
Maybe the old version of my scientist mask has become redundant and has mutated into a new skin, one that is more wholesome and integrated, less pretentious. And the fearless mask, that one is still there in great condition, just waiting for me to grow my hands back.
SOLD
Cleary Bros
By Jeremy Lasek
STORIES OUTSIDE
Next week Thursday 13th, Wollongong City Libraries are hosting Stories in the Park at Bulli Beach Reserve Playground. Meet to the south of the surf club at Bulli Beach Reserve Playground. Don’t forget to bring along your hat, sunscreen and picnic blanket. Free, no bookings required, just turn up!
Marking the end of an era in local business, one of the region’s oldest and best-known companies, the iconic construction service and supply company Cleary Bros, has been sold after nearly 110 years. The sale price was $172 million.
The new owner is the Maas Group, based in Dubbo and owned by former South Sydney rugby league player Wes Maas. The Maas Group was started 23 years ago when Mass retired from football with a single bobcat and $14,000. It now has an estimated worth of $1.5 billion.
A spokesman for Maas confirmed to The Illawarra Flame that the famous Cleary Bros name and strong branding would continue.
Click to read more
Earth Walker & Co: From cafe to cultural haven
By Emma Maggs
“It’s essential to offer something more than just a meal. It’s an opportunity to celebrate diversity, creativity, and the richness of our local culture.”
– Ciara Kulmar
Photos: Amber Cree Photography
Acafein the heart of Coledale, Earth
Walker & Co. is embarking on an exciting new chapter under the creative vision of founder Ciara Kulmar. Many locals in the area have borne witness to the changes and are enjoying the new energy it brings.
“It’s essential to offer something more than just a meal,” Ciara says. “It’s an opportunity to celebrate diversity, creativity, and the richness of our local culture. We want to be a space where people feel inspired, connected, and part of something bigger.”
With a new look, this beloved eatery is becoming a vibrant cultural and community hub. Now open on Friday nights, Earth Walker & Co. invites locals and visitors to enjoy the warmth of open-fire cuisine, bespoke cocktails, and live entertainment that sets the perfect tone for coastal evenings.
This evolution reflects Ciara and her team’s passion for celebrating connection, showcasing fresh, locally inspired flavours, and creating spaces where people feel welcome and connected.
Alongside its Friday night gatherings, Earth Walker & Co. is reviving the charm of a traditional general store, offering locally grown produce, baked goods, and artisan products, many ingredients from the family farm. By showcasing the best
of the region, the venue not only supports local growers and makers, but also deepens its commitment to sustainability.
When chatting with Ciara, it’s obvious that she feels strongly about this. “My passion for fresh, local, and seasonal food comes from a deep connection with the land and the cycle of nature. Working with what’s available, at its peak, feels like honouring the true essence of the ingredients.”
Ciara also helps train and mentor young staff. “By nurturing their skills and supporting their growth, we create a strong foundation for the future of our business and the wider food industry,” she said.
For day-trippers exploring the South Coast, Earth Walker & Co. is more than just a destination – it’s an experience. With its stunning location, inviting atmosphere, and values-driven approach, the venue offers not only delicious food but also the joy of supporting a business committed to sustainability and community.
And don’t be surprised if you happen to see members of Ciara’s family working alongside her: “It’s a source of pride, and it adds a personal touch to the experience we offer. It’s not just a business; it’s a shared passion and vision for something we all care deeply about.”
