6 minute read
COUNCIL NEWS & MARJORIE O'NEILL, MP Member for Coogee
WOOLLAHRA WAVERLEY RANDWICK
Have your say on housing and local character
Council is seeking community feedback on its Draft Woollahra Local Housing Strategy 2021 and Draft Woollahra Affordable Housing Policy 2021, which set out objectives and actions for housing across Woollahra.
Ensuring housing reflects local character is critical to the liveability of our LGA, so to help us update and strengthen our local character provisions, we also want to hear what’s important to you about local character in your area, by sharing your views on our Local Character Discussion Paper.
All submissions on these important documents must be received by October 1, 2021. For more information, visit:
yoursay.woollahra.nsw.gov.au
Woollahra Garden Awards
While the COVID-19 pandemic has been a challenging time for us all, Woollahra Council still wants to recognise the hard work our residents, community groups and schools have been putting into their gardens, which have both enhanced our local area and helped lift peoples’ spirits during lockdown.
Share your creativity and sustainable gardening practices by entering the 2021 Woollahra Garden Awards, for the chance to win some fantastic prizes.
Entries can be submitted in four categories: Best Sustainable Garden (including school and community gardens), Best Small Garden (including balconies, courtyards and townhouses), Best Large Garden and Best Verge Garden.
Applications close on October 15. Visit woollahra.nsw.gov.au/gardenawards for more info.
Download the new Woollahra Council App
Our new App provides fast, free, easy access to Council services anytime, anywhere, the ability to track the progress of your service requests and attach images and use geolocation technology, increasing the efficiency of our service delivery. You can use it to place requests for: • Waste and recycling pick-ups • Street cleaning • Tree management • Road and footpath maintenance • Free e-waste collection • Payments for some services Plus much more.
Visit the App Store or Google Play to download.
Call for upgrade of Mall
Three Liberal councillors are urging a revitalisation of Bondi Junction’s Oxford Street Mall, calling on Council to provide staff and resources to give the pedestrian thoroughfare a serious makeover.
Former Mayor Sally Betts and fellow-Liberals Angela Burrill and Tony Kay put forward a motion whereby plans to refurbish the Mall would be brought forward. The upgrade should start with replacement of shade structures. They said the Mall “is looking very tired and overdue for an upgrade.”
The three believe the ailing precinct would spring back to life if Council gave it the necessary facelift. “With access to the bus and rail interchange and proximity to Westfield shopping centre, Oxford Street Mall is the natural open-air shopping, dining and cultural centre of Bondi Junction,” they stated in their motion. “Over 50,000 people pass through the Mall every day, so to beautify and invigorate this area should be a priority.”
However, the motion was defeated and it looks as though the community will have to wait another three years for the mall’s makeover. Sharon Cassidy, Acting Director, Community, Assets and Operations noted that the Mall was upgraded in 2004 and will not be due for another upgrade until 2024.
In the meantime, replacement of shade sails and other routine maintenance is covered under an existing budget of $1 million a year.
No immediate remedy for beach short cut chaos
Bad news for residents of Boonara Avenue, Bondi – Transport for NSW has rejected Waverley Council’s request for a ‘No Right Turn’ sign to prevent drivers taking a short cut to the beach.
Residents had petitioned the Council, citing “many near-misses, aggressive driving and serious congestion” as motorists turned right from Boonara Ave into Bondi Road.
The Council called on TfNSW to ban right turns at the problem intersection. But the state government authority said ‘no,’ saying the move would only shift the problem to the intersection of Imperial Avenue and Bondi Road. It has suggested Waverley Council submit a fresh application to prohibit right turns at both intersections. Council officers will now investigate this option.
Cnr Bondi Rd and Boonara Ave
Kingsford and Kensington are the biggest dumping grounds for illegal rubbish in the Randwick Local Government Area.
Houston Road, Kingsford has the dubious distinction of being the most popular location for dumpers. Randwick Council responded to 323 requests to remove illegal rubbish from its footpaths and verges in the 2020-21 financial year. In second place is Kingsford Meeks Street, with 290 requests, while Boronia Street, Kensington, came third with 217 requests.
The figures were revealed in a report by to Council on the feasibility of using mobile closed circuit TV cameras to deter and catch illegal rubbish dumpers. These would be rotated around different locations.
“Council has identified Houston Road as the initial location for this technology to be utilised to address ongoing illegal dumped rubbish in the west ward,” said the report from Mark Bush, Manager Waste and Cleaning Services.
The cameras would be operated under an agreement with the NSW Environment Department’s Regional Illegal Dumping (RID) squad program. One of the RID team’s trailer-mounted, solar powered CCTV units has recently been trialled in Wassel Street, Matraville – described in Mr Bush’s report as another “hot spot for illegally dumped household clean up waste.”
Council fires broadside over ferry plans
Randwick Council has raised a raft of concerns about state government plans for a ferry between La Perouse and Kurnell.
Councillors voted in favour of a Greens motion opposing the project because of the significant impacts it would have on the environment and amenity.
An urgent meeting of Council’s Environment Committee will now be held “to assess the likely impact of the proposal on the ecology of Botany Bay and to report back with recommendations to Council.”
Active involvement will be sought from recreational fishing bodies, UNSW ecologists and local stakeholders including the La Perouse Aboriginal Land Council and La Perouse Precinct Committee.
Marjorie O'Neill MP
MEMBER FOR COOGEE
Hello Everyone,
The past month has been extremely difficult for all of us, but especially for our businesses, families and community organisations. We applaud the resilience and strength of our community in responding to the extended stay-at-home orders, and we are pleased to see many of you have been proactive in seeking out COVID-19 vaccination. We ask that over the coming weeks you continue to take every possible precaution to keep yourselves and your loved ones safe.
As you may be aware, Parliamentary sitting in August was cancelled due to COVID-19 but we hope to be able to sit again in September. An important piece of legislation that will be coming up is the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill, and we will continue to welcome community feedback on this issue until the bill is introduced.
You may also have heard of the recent Development Proposal for the Coogee Bay Hotel. We have been working hard to ensure the community’s voice on this proposal is heard, and have been able to extend the deadline for submissions to Randwick City Council by two weeks.
We encourage all who are concerned with this proposal to make a submission to council before September 11. You can sign our petition to Save Coogee
Village here: https://marjorieoneill.com. au/campaigns/save-coogee-village/.
COVID-19 EMAIL LIST
Due to the ongoing stay-at-home orders in Greater Sydney, daily updates regarding COVID-19 community transmission and public health guidelines have become imperative.
We are sending out a daily digital newsletter with the number of new cases, locations of active cases and exposure sites in our community, as well as any new restrictions. We also provide information on financial support being announced for businesses and individuals affected by COVID-19. You can sign up to my email list by scanning the QR code below:
OFFICE CONTACT DETAILS
If you have any issues relating to the NSW Government, or you are not sure where to go to for help, please contact my office on (02) 9398 1822 or by emailing
coogee@parliament.nsw.gov.au.
Food items may be dropped off at 15/53-55b Frenchmans Road, Randwick.
