See

Page 3 22 December 2021 NEWS Hart listens to Ourimbah residents and defers plan

Ourimbah Region Residents’ Association (ORRA) have convinced Central Coast Council Administrator Rik Hart to send a draft masterplan back to town planners for further work.

A support group of residents applauded from the Council gallery when Hart agreed on December 14 to defer the masterplan which has been in draft since 2016.

Two members of the community spoke at the Council meeting telling Hart he should be voting on what was actually contained in the plan, not what staff were advising him was in the plan.

Hart said he had the opportunity to read the papers and he asked quite a lot of questions.

He said he liked to see a paper complete and covering all the aspects it should.

He thanked the two speakers for submitting their written presentations early which meant he had time to read them before the meeting and that was invaluable.

He then resolved to defer the strategy and asked for a further report in 2022 which would take into account the draft regional plan and some of the comments made by the two speakers.

ORRA member Brian Davies recommended Hart visit Ourimbah to understand the issues that the community were raising that made the proposed plans dangerous and unworkable.

He said ORRA wanted a masterplan which had a coherent vision for the future of Ourimbah; that reflected the community values of the residents of Ourimbah; and that provided certainty for any Local Environment Plan and Development Control Plan changes.

The second speaker, Greg McGill spoke about the issues and included a powerpoint to show the extent of fire hazard and flood prone land.

He said the masterplan did not reflect the community consultation held after the Councillors in 2019 outlined building height limits and heritage issues.

ORRA had conducted a survey across the whole Ourimbah area to present a community consensus at a meeting with Council after that decision.

“There has been a total lack of community consultation since the public meeting back in February 2020,” McGill said.

“At that meeting a list of 20 desired outcomes was presented to Council staff for consideration from which we were expecting to receive feedback and further consultation, yet here we are tonight with a final plan.

“There are countless other concerns and issues included in this plan that we the residents of Ourimbah believe are erroneous, not feasible or are detrimental to retaining the character of the Ourimbah village and surrounding area.

“We liaised with Council staff and elected Councillors over a period of months and believed we had achieved a result that would suit all parties.

“None of this consultation is mentioned in the plan and most of the community feedback has been ignored.”

Member for The Entrance David Mehan had earlier the same day issued a press release saying he shared ORRA’s concerns.

“On April 27 2020, the then elected Councillors unanimously resolved to support the concerns of the Ourimbah Region Residents Association about the Masterplan by limiting building heights and protecting the heritage of the area,” he said.

“Surprisingly, the April resolution was not referred to in the six page report prepared by Council staff for tonight’s meeting.

“Ourimbah residents are rightly concerned that Council staff are seeking to ignore a legal resolution and direction made by the elected Council about the Masterplan.

“The Administrator should not adopt the staff recommendation without referencing the April resolution and confirming its continuing application.”

The reworked Masterplan will be considered at a Council meeting some time in 2022

Greg McGill and Brian Davies pictured in front of heritage houses at Ourimbah both addressed the administrator.

Merilyn Vale

Caring for families since 1843

Enquire for an obligation free prepaid funeral arrangement quoteE

The friendly team at Creightons Funeral Service offer affordable prepaid funeral services to lock in today’s price and document your wishes. Call today to book an appointment at one of the conveniently located Central Coast offices or in the comfort of your home with a mobile representative.

100% Locally owned and operated, know you are in safe hands with the team at Creightons Funeral Service.