North Sydney Sun March 2022

Labor’s Catherine Renshaw profiled | Morgans reviewed | CBD owners unhappy

March 2022 Issue 11

News and views for North Sydney’s residential and business communities

www.northsydneysun.com.au

19 March 1932

Happy 90th birthday Sydney is gearing up to celebrate the 90th birthday of its iconic bridge on 19 March.

Sydney’s Harbour Bridge was built in the face of world wars and economic depression. As we endure a global pandemic and geopolitical instability, the bridge remains as an icon symbolising unity and vision.

For its birthday, there will be a light up show on the bridge pylons, a pop-up art gallery, music performances and more free public activities. There will also be vintage trains going over the bridge which the public can purchase tickets to ride on.

The light show will be beamed on both the eastern and western sides of the bridge from March 17 and continue over four nights. Vintage buses will run between North Sydney and Wynyard in the CBD on March 19 with Heritage return ferries operating every half hour from Campbells Cove to Luna Park.

As celebrations will take us back in time we reflect on the significance of the

Father of the bridge John Bradfield

Then North Sydney mayor Hubert Primrose

Harbour Bridge to the North Shore.

Since 1883 The North Shore had been connected by rail between Hornsby and Milsons Point with a ferry required for the final leg.

A harbour crossing had been anticipated for decades prior to construction.

Sir Henry Parkes, known as the father

Australian federation was the state MP for St Leonards now North Shore from 1885-1895. He was a supporter of the bridge project adopting the slogan 'Now who will stand on either hand and build the bridge with me'.

It was in 1912 then state government engineer John Bradfield first proposed

concepts for a harbour bridge crossing yet it was only later with the passage of the Sydney Harbour Bridge Act 1922 that funding for the project became available. This was mainly due to World War 1 and political fighting in the NSW government.

The construction saw a huge transformation of the North Shore to make way for the bridge and its approaches.

From 1924 to 1932, 500 houses and businesses were demolished, uprooting 3000 residents.

Demolition heavily impacted Milsons Point and North Sydney with commercial and residential sites particularly along Alfred Street removed.

Yet the destruction provided opportunities in places like Crows Nest benefitting from the diversion of traffic onto the expanded Pacific Highway, formerly Lane Cove Road.

Overall there was a sense of inevitability and acceptance of the demolitions.

Continued page 3

North Sydney Council to be 100% solar powered North Sydney Council said all of its operations, facilities and streetlights will soon be 100% powered by solar energy.

North Sydney Council is one of 25 councils opting to be powered by three NSW solar farms under a new deal between the Southern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils and electricity retailer, ZEN Energy Retail Pty Ltd. Most of North Sydney’s operations, major facilities and streetlights will move to solar power on 1 July 2022, with some small sites to move to solar power on 1 January 2023.

North Sydney Mayor Zoe Baker said: “The need to respond to the climate crisis is urgent and council is leading the way by moving to 100% renewable energy to power all our operations, including our library, pool, sport facilities, buildings, car parks and streetlights. Moving to 100% solar power is a significant step towards reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and protecting our environment for the future.”

An estimated 214 gigawatt hours of electricity will be provided per year to 25 councils across NSW, supplying

electricity to over 300 major council facilities, more than 210,000 streetlights and more than 3000 small sites managed by councils.

North Sydney Council has opted for 100% renewable energy under the agreement and, overall, 83% of all the participating councils’ total electricity supply will be covered by renewable energy from the Moree, Hillston and Nevertire Solar Farms, all located within NSW. The 25 participating councils collectively represent over 3 million people,

equivalent to 38% of NSW population.

The agreement commences in 2022 and runs to 2026 with an option to extend to 2030.

Other participating councils are: Bayside, Burwood, Campbelltown, Canada Bay, Canterbury Bankstown, Fairfield, Georges River, Hornsby, Hunters Hill, Inner West, Ku-ring-gai, Lane Cove, Liverpool, Mosman, Parramatta, Port Stephens, Randwick, Ryde, Singleton, Sutherland, Tamworth, Waverley, Willoughby and Woollahra

Liberals retain Willoughby but not without a scare Tim James has won the state seat of Willoughby for the Liberals, but was taken down to the wire by a massive 18% swing.

The final result of 53.3% for James against independent Larissa Penn on 46.7% could have been much closer but for the optional preferential system used for state elections.

Some 6,200 votes for other candidates exhausted, a significant number given the winning margin was just 2,500 votes. Of the 6,300 votes for other candidates that did register preferences, Penn picked up about 4,500 preferences.

In the 2019 election, former member Gladys Berejiklian received 71% of the final vote. In 2011, she received some 81% of the vote.

Penn was expected to perform most strongly in booths around the Northbridge and Cammeray area seen as most affected by roadworks on the Beaches Link tunnel, but she ended up gaining a double digit swing in every single booth.

Commenting on his win, James said: “I thank every local resident, community group and business owner that took time of their busy days to speak with me, share their views, to

Tim James offer feedback or encouragement during the campaign,” he said.

He said he will “work incredibly hard” for the electorate, and thanked the outgoing Berejiklian and premier Dom Perrottet, as well as his family.

“I also pay tribute to all the other candidates who ran in the by-election and advocated for this community, anyone who participates in this wonderful democracy deserves success.”

Penn congratulated James but also indicated she regards herself as in prime position to win in the 2023 general election next year.

“It will be up to Mr James to restore the trust that the community has lost in government decision making.

The shift in voter sentiment has grown

out of a rigidity around state government projects, a lack of transparency, an outdated and unsustainable view of planning and billions of dollars going into projects which have poor cost benefits,” Penn said.

“Trust is further eroded when development approvals are pushed through by opaque State Government planning panels, when little is done to match growth with amenity and when pork barrelling prioritises politics over the public good.”

“The first thing Tim needs to do to win the community’s trust is move into the electorate and live the current Willoughby experience; the first thing the NSW Government needs to do is to cancel the toll road tunnels in favour of the more sustainable and affordable alternatives such as a Chatswood to Northern Beaches Mass Transit Link.

It’s never too late to make good decisions in the public interest, particularly where costs outweigh benefits.”

Penn’s vote was the highest recorded by an independent in the history of the seat, but James’ performance is far from the worst by a Liberal in recent times.

That honour goes to Nick Greiner, a future premier, who in a 1978 by-

Final primary votes Liberal Larissa Penn Greens Reason Sustainable Australia Liberal Democratic

43.50% 29.66% 13.53% 05.91% 04.87% 02.53%

Two-party preferred vote Liberal 53.30% Larissa Penn 46.70% election, scored just 39.8% of the primary vote and 49.2% of the two party preferred vote, losing to Labor. At the following 1981 election, Peter Collins reclaimed the seat with a two party preferred vote of 53.7%.

Gladys Berejiklian almost lost in her first outing too, in 2003 replacing the popular Peter Collins, where her primary vote fell to just 36.2% and she fell over the two party preferred line with just 50.2%.

James’ performance ranks as the second best of the four last Liberal contenders in their first outings dating back over 50 years. He could take heart from the fact that his two predecessors considerably improved their vote on their second outing.

North Sydney challenger Kylea Tink launches policy platform Kylea Tink, the independent challenger for the federal seat of North Sydney, has formally launched her campaign with a 6-point policy program at a rally of several hundred supporters.

Tink re-iterated two of the main themes she has run on since beginning her campaign last year: commitment to more action on climate change and the establishment of a national integrity commission.

“You know it is not enough to just be the lucky country – you want us to be smart as well, and you want to see a plan that supports a forward-focused economy,” she told her supporters at the Longueville Bowling Club. She said she supported more research and development in innovation, education and targeted initiatives to attract skilled migrants.

“You believe everyone deserves respect and a fair go, no matter their background, and you want me to fight for equality for all,” she said, promising advocacy for more equitable paid parental leave, universal childcare, reconciliation with First Nations and fairer treatment for asylum seekers.

“You want someone to advocate for a holistic and coordinated vision for Australian families and communities,” promising action on more resources for aged care workforces.

“And finally, you want a national vision in place to enable us to reform and recharge our health services.”

Tink also invoked the strong tradition of independent representation in the area in support of her candidacy.

Kylea Tink

“We are lucky to have a strong history of these people within our electorate. People like Ted Mack and Genia McCaffery, whose work and advocacy we all still benefit from today through our green spaces and public works; through to our current strong Independent leaders like Mayors Zoe Baker and Tanya Taylor; and most recently our NSW Willoughby ByElection Candidate, Larissa Penn.”

Tink also referenced her work heading the McGrath Foundation’s efforts to fund breast cancer nurses as evidence of her ability to achieve outcomes. “While the Sydney Pink Test is now arguably one of the most iconic

sporting events in the world, when I first pitched the idea to the Channel 9 broadcast team they told me that pink and cricket would just never mix. Area Health Services argued with me that the funding we were offering was better used on machines, and the Federal Government tried to pull the funding just three years in because the Minister thought he wanted “that money” to go somewhere else,” she recounted.

“Yet in the six years I was with the McGrath Foundation, we went from just three McGrath Breast Care Nurses to 100, who in turn were supporting over 30,000 families.”

“The federal electorate of North

North Sydney Sun | March 2022 | Page 2

Sydney is a vibrant, diverse community that draws in people from all backgrounds and all ages. We are the thinkers, the doers, the feelers, the leaders, the believers and the achievers,” she added.

“Yet right now, our voice is lost in a two-party system that thinks that by voting for them, and sending them to Canberra, we have completely delegated our democratic right to be part of the decisions that will shape our future.”

Tink has subsequently followed up her launch with a series of pub and club Q&A sessions across the federal electorate.

North Sydney gets its first pizza robot ALDI Corner Store customers in North Sydney will be part of history in the baking with the launch of Pizzabot, a first of its kind robotic vending machine serving up restaurantgrade pizza in just two minutes In collaboration with Bondi startup PlacerRobotics, Pizzabot is the first pizza vending machine to be designed and manufactured in Australia, and debuts exclusively at ALDI Corner Store in North Sydney.

Pizzabot delivers premium restaurant-grade woodfired pizza, cooked by a robot in just two minutes! It offers a choice of Pepperoni and Italiana pizzas priced from just $8.99.

The robot pizza maker — which can cook 450 pizzas a day or about 17 pizzas an hour — has a glass front, giving pizza-eaters a front row seat to the theatre of their pizza being cooked and packaged by the robotic machine.

To ensure a restaurant quality meal that can be enjoyed while shopping, the pizza bases are handmade and partially cooked in Bondi and topped with premium local ingredients. The pizzas are then chilled in Pizzabot’s precision temperature controller so they are ready to be cooked to order in a matter of minutes.

Pizzabot founder and managing

director Matt Lipski says: “To ensure we’re bringing restaurant quality gourmet pizzas to the ALDI Corner Store customers, we use the freshest, highest quality ingredients – including buffalo mozzarella, fresh basil, gourmet salami and 48-hour rise dough. Our vision was to give timepoor consumers restaurant grade pizza that is quick, delicious, healthy and affordable.”

Harbour Bridge turns 90

Continued from page 1 “There were certainly no uprisings and there were certainly no demonstrations that I recall, it was something that happened... people might not have had much say in matters in those days. It was a question of ‘do as your told’ or else... [the businesses] moved further north and would have amalgamated or got involved with people in Mount Street and those places,” local resident Victor Wills stated for an oral history interview.

Property owners were compensated but nothing was given to those who leased besides vacancy costs and the offer of a potential job on the bridge project.

After 9 years of construction the Sydney Harbour Bridge opened on 19 March 1932. 750,000 people gathered around the harbour for the official opening event.

On the south side of the bridge Premier Jack Lang was minutes from officially opened the bridge when Francis De Groot from right wing para -military group the New Guard galloped up to the ribbon cutting it with a sword. The New Guard had been established the year before to resist socialist influences in Australian politics and trade unionism.

This was an infamous moment in

Rogue ribbon cutter Francis de Groot Australian history yet what was happening on the north side of the bridge is often forgotten.

Mayor of North Sydney Hubert Primrose had organised his own ribbon cutting ceremony. Primrose was in fact also a member of the New Guard.

This was known to authorities and Premier Lang yet they decided to allow the municipal ceremony to go ahead.

So the New Guard opened both sides of the bridge. However it is unknown if Primrose and De Groot were in coordination.

Despite the controversies surrounding official ceremonies the day went on without any other hitches. It’s estimated 300,000 to one million people took part in the opening with the public allowed to walk across the bridge on the deck.

James Mullan

Introducing Labor candidate for North Sydney Catherine Renshaw Labor candidate for the federal seat of North Sydney Catherine Renshaw has a very simple reason for why local voters should prefer her to independent Kylea Tink at an expected May poll.

“The obvious answer to that is that a Labor candidate would be part of a future government,” she told the North Sydney Sun in an extensive interview. “They would be a voice in the party that holds power and can make decisions, whereas an independent in a Labor majority government, which on the current polling is what there will be, will just be a voice without any teeth or power to actually effect any change whatsoever.”

“The independents currently, they’ve proposed quite a few bills, none of them have turned into legislation. The reason for that is because they’re just independent, sitting on the crossbench there, being a voice. And I very, very strongly believe that’s what North Sydney does not need. We don't need a voice from the crossbench.”

Renshaw said that there is recognition in the Labor party that North Sydney is a key area for it. Lane Cove Council recently elected a Labor mayor and two Labor candidates placed second in both wards at recent North Sydney Council elections: the best performance of all the tickets that ran. Federal Labor frontbenchers are also supporting her campaign. “(Leader) Anthony Albanese came and launched my candidacy. (Climate change and energy spokesman) Chris Bowen was here talking about a community battery in Cammeray. (Deputy leader) Richard Marles came to Crows Nest and Greenwich because he’s saying, “There’s a lot of small businesses here and I’d like to hear firsthand what happens. Finally North Sydney’s getting the attention that it should always have had, I think. And I’m really excited about being part of that as part of a government. Independents can only do so much.”

Renshaw has been a resident of Northbridge since 2008, and is married to the youngest son of Labor legend Jack Renshaw who led the state party in the 1960s and served as the premier in 1964-5.

In her teenage years she attended Monte St Angelo in North Sydney, a school that is a veritable training ground for politicians having also educated former MPs Kerry Chikarovski, Robyn Read and Jackie Kelly.

Her three children all attended Northbridge Public School when younger and two are now completing high school in Hunters Hill.

But she says that it was her time spent overseas working with refugees that most informed her world view: she has a passionate belief in education and its power.

“I spent a year in my early twenties working in a refugee camp in Mozambique up in one of the homelands and my particular responsibility there was education. Keeping the schools going so that children, if there was peace in Mozambique, would be able to start a life again. That really was transformative for me about the potential for education. I saw these children and they didn’t have pens or paper, they were writing in the dirt. And I think I’ve carried that with me my whole life.”

“I practiced as a solicitor for about 10 years. I started at a big commercial law firm, Allens, because they train you very well as a junior solicitor, and then went to work for the Legal Aid Commission in Newcastle, which at the time was known for having one of the poorest demographics in the state.

I did that for a number of years and started teaching at the same time and fell in love with teaching. Did my PhD in international human rights law.

And my focus as an academic has always been on the real world impact of laws,” she said.

“It’s no good just having human rights as an ideal. It’s how these things are transformed into people’s lives on a daily basis. I do a lot of work in Myanmar, as an academic. For about 10 years, I’ve been going over there a number of times a year and doing field work. And that really transformed my idea of politics and what matters.

When I told my friends over there that I was running for office, they worried about my safety because politics there is a matter of life and death!”

This also informed what she said is a strong belief in strong, transparent, and fair institutions.

“I think I can make a contribution, particularly in North Sydney, where there are a lot of people who are really thoughtful, intelligent people who do have an eye to the common good, not just their own self-interest, and they don’t see their values being reflected at the federal level,” Renshaw said.

“It was not something I could say no to when it was put to me.”

Renshaw has been campaigning the old-fashioned way with door-knocking and shopping centre appearances.

She said one of the main issues concerning local voters is “very deep concern about the treatment of older Australians in residential aged care.”

“In longer conversations with people, they all come back to it eventually.

They all come back to this idea that we all get older and that Australians who've paid taxes, raise their children and given so much to our society need to be treated as they should be, the first class citizens that they are, not left hungry and abused and understaffed and uncared for.”

“Childcare comes up a lot and

Catherine Renshaw (above) and with Richard Marles (below)

that’s a personal issue for me as well. I started practicing law in the mid nineties, and I had children not long after, but it was not a financial benefit to me to work when I was raising the children, because putting them in childcare meant that I was losing money.

And that comes up over and over again. And especially in Wollstonecraft, Crows Nest, St Leonards.”

“When you’ve got young families living in small apartments, they’re trying to do the best that they can for their families. Labor is going to reduce the cost of childcare.”

North Sydney Sun | March 2022 | Page 4

Marles told North Sydney Sun: “I reckon it’s really important for North Sydney that they send Catherine Renshaw to Canberra.”

“It’s not necessarily a seat that’s been contested before, but the sense I get of North Sydney is that people don’t want to be taken for granted.”

He continued: “The message it would send in terms of Catherine being elected for this area would be fantastic and I think it would see this area being given a whole new lease of life in terms of its place within the nation.”

Grahame Lynch & James Mullan

North Sydney CBD property developers claim changes make them guilty until proven innocent?

Technical changes to North Sydney Council’s planning regulations could lead to a situation where CBD high-rise developments are essentially considered guilty until they are proven innocent and could be blocked for simply creating one minute of shadow on one metre of a nearby property.

That was the claim made by Michael Rowe of Ethos Urban in a presentation to North Sydney councillors at their late February meeting, on behalf of what he said was a majority of landowners in the North Sydney CBD, namely Mirvac, Investa, Zurich, Winton, Third.I Group, GPT, AI Group, Marprop, Dynasty and Bilbergia.

Rowe’s pleas were ignored by the Council which voted 8-2 later that evening to implement the changes.

They are designed to streaming planning consent for building height variations through eliminating a clause which “represents a narrower set of matters for consideration which limits the consent authority’s discretion considerably.” Councillors Jilly Gibson and Alanya Drummond were the only dissenters on the motion.

Rowe told councillors: “The planning group proposal before you, seems fairly innocuous, because proponents,

as it’s reported, still have a pathway (for exceptions). But it represents an important shift in the mentality of council and its approach to its CBD. It’s the equivalent of changing from innocent until proven guilty, to guilty until proven innocent. It sounds similar, but it's actually a major change.”

Rowe said the clause which remained after streamlining for allowing exceptions was “rarely supported by council, and they present a high degree of risk and uncertainty for developers and investors. So, this change pivots the way that North Sydney’s CBD controls operate, where they go from facilitating additional employment where it doesn’t have material impacts, to one where you have to demonstrate there are exceptional circumstances that should allow you to build above the controls.”

Rowe explained that the basis for the current controls at Council were based on shadow impacts and not specific height limits.

“The specific purpose of the 2018 amendments to the CBD controls was to create an environment for greater delivery of employment in response to the Metro, and the strategic plans and aspirations for North Sydney. The map

height limits were increased based on over-shadowing principles at the time, and created a framework, where if you can demonstrate that you weren’t having additional shadow impacts in line with the principles of the plan, then you could go taller thereby effectively delivering more employment in the centre without having an impact.”

Rowe claimed that under the changed planning rules it could mean that a “development that fully complies with a height limit, and made commercial assumptions about the purchase of that land, but even one well below the height limit” could be blocked simply because it “results in one square metre

North Sydney Sun | March 2022 | Page 5

of additional shadow for one minute on the back of a terrace.”

“And that would be even though that development might be consistent with the height limit and ultimately sought to incentivise employment within the centre.” Adding that there had been no consultation on the changes, Rowe claimed that: “For buildings at the Southern end of the North Sydney CBD, if you think how close say are to those residential uses, this could effectively prevent a building even of a few stories from being able to be developed under the controls, and undermine the planning height framework for the North Sydney centre.”

Milsons Point finally gets its own commercial gymnasium Seven time Australian Power lifting champion Yani Zhao and fitness entrepreneur Ji Wang aim to fill a niche in Milsons Point by opening up the suburb’s only commercial gym: Steed Fitness at 30 Alfred St. Originally from China, Wang moved to Australia 12 years ago. He opened the gym’s first site in Chippendale three years ago after wanting to create a fitness community primarily for international students.

“We found a lot of Chinese students in Sydney. Often they don’t do too much exercise, they just sturdy or play online games. I wanted them to join the Australian culture and I know Australian people really love sports, exercise and the gym and I wanted to help them….. We wanted them to join the

community not just study. ” Yet as the global pandemic effected the Australia’s international student population, Steed refocussed its target market.

“We had to re strategise, where to take the business. So obviously it’s not only local students we wanted to target, but the whole Sydney community.” manager of the Milsons Point site Yani Zhao explained.

After moving to Lavender Bay, Wang saw a clear niche in the market for gyms around Milsons Point and Kirribilli, especially for independently run boutique gyms. The closest gyms to the area are Anytime Fitness in McMahons Point and in North Sydney.

Zhao said: “The way a lot of commercial gyms operate is they sell a lot

of memberships with the hopes most people don’t go. They just keep your membership running.”

“As an independent gym and as owners who are passionate about what we do, we want to build a community where we know every single member and all the members know us, to build rapport and support everyone in their fitness journey, not just someone who has a membership card.”

The gym is open to all ages and abilities, with an apparent focus on community building.

With the North Sydney Olympic Pool gym out of action until at least the end of the year, Steed hopes to establish a decent share of the market.

James Mullan Yani Zhao

Labor promises solar battery Labor candidate for the federal seat of North Sydney, Catherine Renshaw, says a Labor government would install a community solar battery in Cammeray for use by the local community should her party be elected to government.

Labor's Shadow Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen visited the electorate to announce the plan.

"This commitment will allow local solar households to feed power into the shared battery during the day, and draw from it at night - cutting electricity bills and emissions, and reducing pressure on the grid.

Importantly, the many households who are unable to install solar will also be able to draw from excess energy stored in the battery," Labor said.

Speaking with the North Sydney Sun, Renshaw said: "The plan is for 400 community batteries as a start, Cammeray is interesting because it doesn't have a particularly high uptake of solar, which is unique, so it was chosen as a real area to incentivise people to take up solar."

Renshaw speculated that Anzac Park School and environs may be the appropriate place to site the battery.

Outdoor dining fees waived North Sydney Council will waive fees levied on local restaurants and cafes for outdoor dining until June under a resolution proposed by Councillor Jilly Gibson and passed unanimously on Monday night.

The move provides over $50,000 of collective monthly fee relief for F&B establishments that allow customers to eat outside.

GM Ken Gouldthorp told the meeting that it was in the interests of council to assist these businesses so they could survive and pay fees in the future.

LETTERS Transport for NSW designs are fine Sadly, Joan Street’s and Helen Cox’s letters [North Sydney Sun, February 2022] decrying the planned linear cycle ramp at Milsons Point offer no alternative to solving the “problem integrating cyclists into existing congested local streets..”.

Transport for NSW has indeed addressed community needs— pedestrians young and mature, vehicular traffic, cyclists, the Heritage Council and ‘concerned residents’, if not local naysayers. We now await the proposed design detail for evaluation by the community.

It is inaccurate to state that TfNSW’s three ramp designs, which we have all had a chance to consider, will not be visually harmonious.

The best of the three provides the smoothest cyclist access at the Bridge and at landing in Alfred Street; is elegant, and sympathetic in design with existing art deco Milsons Point station, the Bridge walling, and the environment of Bradfield Park; features an all -weather safe surface, and balustrading with full length safety railing and mesh to provide the safest passage for all; is the safest, to protect pedestrians, avoids hazards to vehicular traffic, and improves cycle mobility; and is totally practical in its construction, using materials that will achieve longevity, maintaining empathy with its location with underground cabling, brilliant lighting and improved streetscaping.

In the same issue, George Gallagher’s suggestion while professionally illustrated (if we don’t mind destroying Lino’s La Capannina), would have cyclists continue to congest with Kirribilli Market folk at Burton Street—when the basic aim is to separate cyclists keeping them safely north of our Milsons Point station entrance, eliminating danger and congestion.

Let us impartially with fairness and wisdom consider TfNSW’s forthcoming design and get this fine show on the road for the benefit of all.

Fergus Maclagan, Milsons Point

Ramp supporters fail to make case Ramp supporters have failed to make their case that the ramp is a piece of essential infrastructure. Not since 2014 has there been 2,000 cyclist and the most recent numbers show there were about 1300 cycle trips or 650 cyclists a day. Local counting has shown that this number has declined further. TfNSW stopped collecting cycle numbers in 2020 as the numbers of users dropped precariously and are unlikely to recover.

If cyclists were genuinely a problem the community would rally to address the problem.

However, to lose 7,000 square meters of Park Land, approximately 40

Proposed Milsons Point bike ramp ignites opposition Up to 300 residents turned out February 18 for a community rally in Milsons Point in protest against plans by Transport For NSW to build a linear cycling ramp from the deck of the Sydney Harbour Bridge down to Bradfield Park North. Organisers Joan Street and Ian Curdie outlined to the assembled residents a litany of concerns with three proposed designs for the ramp, including the loss of space, heritage and amenity. They are instead pushing an alternative design, created by local resident George Gallagher, with a smaller circular footprint that would descend into Bradfield Park Central.

North Sydney councillors Jilly Gibson, Shannon Welch, deputy mayor William Bourke and mayor Zoe Baker attended along with federal MP Trent Zimmerman. Street and Curdie asked the assembled to email state active transport minister Rob Stokes and ask him to direct Transport for NSW to halt the linear ramp design process and develop a concept plan along the lines of their preferred circular central design. The issue is certainly polarising. The rally attracted the imprimatur of North Sydney Council who promoted it on their social media page. This generated vociferous commentary from ramp supporters, who say the residents have an agenda to perpetually delay the construction of more cycling infrastructure under the guise of seeking a more optimal solution. car spaces and the beautiful vistas of the bridge and harbour to address a wild exaggeration of cycle numbers is a tragedy. The Milsons Point community is more discerning than this.

Peter Noble

Designs will obstruct views The three designs being considered for the cycle ramp will obstruct views to the Sydney Harbour Bridge and to Sydney Harbour, will dominate the forecourt to the Kirribilli Station entrance, and cause severe detrimental impacts on northern Bradfield Park.

The option proposed by the Milsons Point Community Group is minimally intrusive and satisfies the objectives of the cycle ramp project and is worthy of inclusion in the final set of designs being considered by TfNSW. The central Bradfield Park option realistically and equitably balances the needs of cyclists, pedestrians, residents, road users, Kirribilli Market stall holders, market attendees and tourists. In doing so TfNSW will have an opportunity to rebuild goodwill with the residents of Milsons Point, Kirribilli and McMahons Point and signal they are responsive to public sentiment.

Milsons Point residents gladly share their suburb with visitors to the area (including Kirribilli and McMahons Point). Milsons Point is the gateway for cyclists crossing the Sydney Harbour Bridge and also for a wide range of visitors. International and domestic visitors (including Sydney-siders from other suburbs) will pass through Milsons Point to key attractions.

The Kirribilli Station entrance, forecourt, is a popular meeting point for bush-walkers and other leisure walkers heading toward Balls Point, Berry Island Reserve, Neutral Bay and beyond. Milsons Point is also a popular site for wedding ceremonies. Milsons Point Ferry terminal is a popular hop-on and hop-off point for visitors heading toward Circular Quay, Barangaroo and Balmain East. Milsons Point and Kirribilli are points on the Bondi

to Manly Walk developed and actively promoted by Destination NSW. Destination NSW sourced figures for the year ended December 2019 indicate 4.1 million international and 12 million domestic visitors came to Sydney. In 2018, 3,000 pedestrians and 1,900 cyclists crossed the Bridge daily. (Sydney Morning Herald).

Dennis Ngan, Milsons Point

Spare Bradfield Park North My partner and I have enjoyed living in Milsons Point for over 19 years.

Bradfield Park North has brought us great joy especially when our little dog was alive allowing us the perfect spot to walk him daily and meet with our fellow dog owners. The schemes proposed by the TfNSW will cause loss of open, green community space and loss of the iconic heritage elements of Milsons Point.

These proposed schemes are in the worst possible location, causing maximum impact to our highly valued open space which is so limited as it is, as more and more building construction takes place. We have no opposition to having a bike ramp but if this ramp is to be built, it needs to be positioned south of Burton Street in Bradfield Park Central.

Maureen & Peter Van Metter Milsons Point

Kline camp disputes polling I saw the article in your February edition of the North Sydney Sun about the polling figures for North Sydney (Ed: They suggest New Liberal candidate Victor Kline is polling at 1.5%).

I wanted to draw your attention to it because I feel it's not representative of the real figures. The poll was produced for the Australia Institute by uComms, a company that is owned by the unions and has a history of misrepresenting figures, particularly in favour of Labor: This recent poll shows a two-party preferred victory to Labor in North

North Sydney Sun | March 2022 | Page 7

Sydney, which 120 years of electoral history shows us is extraordinarily unlikely. It's worth noting the 850 respondents they contacted were reduced to 680 in the weighting process, and my requests to see the unweighted data have been refused.

We believe our position in the poll has particularly been misrepresented, as our internal figures have us several points above that. Labor has trolled and attacked us in many ways over the last two years since we formed, and their recent announcement of Catherine Renshaw as their North Sydney candidate (who was an assistant to Victor on his Refugee Law Project) shows how serious a threat they consider us, and that they fear losing votes to us on progressive issues like this. But with Labor's record on refugees, running a human rights lawyer in a seat in which she has no chance to win is virtue signalling of the most hypocritical kind.

Our support is growing all the time, and Victor is by far the hardest working candidate - he is the only candidate out there on the hustings every day, talking to people. We have the largest army of volunteers in the electorate, and I believe we are currently right where we want to be in order to win this seat in May. Steven Hopley, New Liberals

A fan As a Neutral Bay local for over 25 years, I wanted to thank you publishing The North Sydney Sun. We happened to receive the February 2022 issue recently, and it was nice to read about local news. I particularly enjoyed the restaurant review article by Jilly Gibson, showcasing the opening of Loulou Bistro in Lavender Bay. I thought Jilly did such a wonderful job; I never realised she had such writing talents, it was fun and easy to read, and it was just nice to hear about local businesses, restaurants, particularly after the tough couple of years all have had. I hope to read more such local reviews and lifestyle type articles.

Ray Djani, Neutral Bay

LOCAL ANALYSIS & OPINION The Sun Says With the Willoughby by-election out of the way, local voters are now gearing up for a keenly contested federal poll.

We’re betting on 14 May as the likely date, a mere two months away as this goes to press.

Liberal MP Trent Zimmerman scored over 59% of the two party preferred vote at the last election.

But early signs are the coming poll will be much tighter.

One of the key take-outs from recent local and state elections is a swing to the centre-left.

In last year’s local government elections, centre-left parties were the real success stories.

Labor scored second position in both wards, scoring between 16% and 17% of the vote across the LGA. The Sustainable Australia Party wasn’t far behind with around 13% of the vote.

To be fair, some of their success came at the expense of the Real Independents, who lost about one third of their vote compared to the prior election. But RI still scored around 20% of the vote.

That’s a fairly solid 50% for three centre-left groupings, who now control the Council. Two Liberal aligned independents Jessica Keen and Stephen Barbour, both highly regarded, lost their bid for re-election.

In the recent Willoughby byelection, centre left candidates scored about 54% of the vote and the two centre right candidates about 46%.

The commentary afterwards attributed the swing against the Liberals to the specific issue of

loss of parkland caused by the Beaches Link tunnel construction.

But we are not convinced that’s the main reason, given the significant leftwards local government swing months earlier when the tunnels weren’t as big an issue.

The question is whether the electorate is swinging sufficiently far to the left that even a moderate such as Trent Zimmerman might be swept away. After all, he is no Tony Abbott.

It certainly makes for an interesting contest, especially given that Labor have put forward one of their strongest candidates in living memory and there is also a strong campaign underway from Climate 200-backed Kylea Tink.

Lack of tight preferencing between centre left candidates arguably helped the Liberals keep Willoughby. Will the same phenomenon save Trent Zimmerman?

Why there is no need to duplicate the North Sydney CBD in Neutral Bay From time to time over past decades there have been good delis in Neutral Bay. There was a much-valued fruit and vegetables shop too.

But three mega supermarkets put paid to the small sellers of fresh produce. Like any market place, Neutral Bay shops reflect the trends of time and place.

Now it’s cafes galore, restaurants and takeaways; an Asian and an Indian supermarket; a few Japanese amongst the many hairdressers; health foods and gyms galore. The banks are closing one by one but luckily the cubby hole bootmaker hasn’t gone yet.

Despite the changes, the centre has managed to maintain the semblance of a local centre divided as it is into 4 or 5 smaller separate precincts clustering on either side of the brutal river of Military Road.

In January two weeks after the new North Sydney Council first met, an extraordinary general meeting was called.

One item was to reject, by 8 votes to 2, the proposed rezoning of parts of Neutral Bay shopping centre for 6 to 12 storey developments. The previous mayor’s promotion of that rezoning had led to the community based “We’re Jack of Jilly” campaign.

The Council now intends to oppose these spot rezoning for high-rise but it still has to contend with two sets of pressures.

Firstly, the State government will continue its pressure to increase both residential densities and the capacity for commercial development. The Neutral Bay Corridor Study which gave rise to these spot rezonings was in response to the State insisting on an increase in workforce capacity.

Given the recent experience with Covid-19, it seems likely that in the not too distance future the configuration of workforce dynamics will change.

There will possibly be more work from home, a wider spread of peaks and therefore more shared use of existing office space. Workforce capacity in Neutral Bay may well be superfluous.

The point of having a major CBD in North Sydney is to centralise tertiary employment near well-developed transport links.

Opening up opportunities at Neutral Bay away from major rail and bus routes and along an already overworked road (Military) makes no logical sense.

The second reason pressure might come on the council is the desire for an enhanced centre by replacing the current Woolworths car park with a plaza and building a better community centre and a new sporting facility.

Indeed, at the emergency meeting

Opinion by ROBYN READ, former state member for North Shore (1988-1991) and North Sydney Council alderman (1970-77, 1987-91). Sometime CEO, journalist.

councillor Gibson made the claim that in the absence of a council planning policy, the owner of the Woolworths Neutral Bay site was free to add another four or five stories with no mitigating concessions such as an enhanced solar footprint or a new plaza.

This assertion can easily be dealt with. It shouldn’t be too hard for council to articulate a new planning policy which will keep the centre at a human scale and make provision, through a local loan rate or a special budget allocation, for other community benefits.

Traditionally that’s how civic improvements have been made, Nor is there anything stopping council using developer contributions towards these enhancements.

I have long been an advocate for turning the Grosvenor Street Woolworths parking area into a plaza with parking underneath.

Initiatives such as this help create communities. This could be financed by developer contributions resulting from an increase to a five-storey mixed use height limit compatible with the adjoining Waters Road building.

How greedy can the developers be?

They will already have a windfall capital gain from any rezoning.

Twelve storey towers on a few sites would overlook, overshadow and destroy the human activities of a street level plaza.

Similarly, with some contribution from council for community facilities (which is after all part of their job) the other blocks identified for spot rezonings might be similarly increased to a height which fits in with surrounding development.

All the inner areas of the great cities of Europe rarely exceed 5 stories.

North Sydney Sun | March 2022 | Page 8

Inner Sydney town plans promote a village “feel” so important in an increasingly alienating world; If you look at successful village areas close to the Sydney CBD - Glebe, Newtown, Annandale, Darlinghurst etc. - you will see the none of them have relinquished their original architectural qualities or human scale in pursuit of high-rise solutions.

Neutral Bay still clings to a village character. High rise zonings would totally destroy what is left of that and result in yet another characterless concrete and glass streetscape.

There will be pressures on council, not least from within. Again, we can learn from history.

Almost 50 years ago, the then council was in final contract negotiations with a developer to hand over the existing and current council chambers and library, including what is now the Ted Mack Plaza.

In return the developer was going to build one high-rise commercial building and provide council with new council chambers and Stanton Library spread across a number of floors.

When I was elected at a byelection all councillors supported the proposal.

I spoke and voted against it.

Slowly a resident action group emerged and votes started changing.

Finally, when a new Council was elected, the majority rejected the proposal. A little like what had happened with the current Neutral Bay plans.

The point of that piece of history is to show what is possible if council digs its toes in comes up with the right planning policy and strategy.

It can save and enhance Neutral Bay centre and provide better amenities and street scapes for the residents.

LOCAL BUSINESS

I.T Lady brings friendly focus to male dominated industry Louise Ridlen is a 30-year tech sector veteran, but is far from a traditionalist.

Her new business, The I.T. Lady. seeks to create a more approachable computer repair and education service and has chosen to start up on the North Shore. Ridlen started her career as a piano teacher but caught the IT big early..

“These new fancy type writers had just come out with bits of memory, so you could type two lines of text into the memory and correct it and print it.

My job was to go with the sale person and demonstrate how to use the typewriter,” she recalled.

Societal and industry expectations for women were very different when Louise started, “I was the pretty girl to go along with the guys to demonstrate how to use this typewriter. If the customer bought it, then I would teach them how to use it.”

As personal computer technology improved and grew in popularity, Louise worked as an I.T consultant.

From teaching Word Perfect and Lotus 123 to the original versions of Windows Word and Excel programs, she has really seen it all in the computing world. “I was a single Mum with two young kids as it was super flexible. I could kind of work my own hours. But I always knew I wanted to take what I did to a broader audience.”

Ridlen’s opportunity to run her own business and reach that broader audience ironically came when her kids, now adults, had more time at home due to the pandemic. “We had a meeting around our dining room table and I said this is what we are doing.

This is I.T. Lady, and we need to set our brand vision and our goals, and you’re all going to help me.” As a tea lover, the inspiration for the name has a creative backstory. “In the old days you had the tea lady used to come along and bring your tea and biscuits and everybody would take a break for a minute and relax. So I.T. Lady was perfect, it’s technology but the idea behind it is really take a breath.”

The business spent its first year running out of Ridlen’s home in Waverton and with no formal marketing managed to become popular enough to warrant a physical site.

With a stronger than ever reliance on technology for work and life Louise hopes to address negative perceptions of I.T. “I hear it every day, I’m a computer technophobe or a dinosaur or the other day somebody said “I’m the Bermuda triangle when it comes to technology”, every single person says that to me and it kind of upsets me.”

Providing a friendlier, client focussed service is highlighted as one of their main points of difference.

Yet it is the businesses' commitment to women in I.T. that was one of the central reason for launching. With only 16% female participation in the industry, males are disproportionately over-represented. As to why this is the

case, Ridlen believes it is the ‘nerdy and geeky’ reputation that is discouraging women from entering the sector.

“Tech companies call themselves I.T. Nerds or Geeks for You, they project themselves as the geeks, so they can fix it because you can’t fix it yourself because you’re not a geek.”

“For girls getting into I.T. it’s seen as such a geeky man job and I want to change that and that what our chain will be about.” The company has struggled to find female staff in the tech space and will look to introduce specific accreditation courses.”

They also hope to pro- vide seniors specific classes in the coming year after the success of their workshops for children.

Additionally, supporting disadvantaged people access technology is an initiative I.T. Lady wants to introduce.

I.T Lady’s doors are open for business to anyone in need of tech support at 38 Alfred St Milsons Point.

James Mullan

Intern Anisha Guitam with I.T. lady founder Louise Ridlen

WHAT’S ON IN NORTH SYDNEY Until April 6 French Film Festival 2022 Venue: Hayden Orpheum Theatre, Cremorne You can catch the very best of French Cinema comes to Cremorne at the Orpheum. For just under a month the cinema will be screening French films from all genres most days and every evening.

Sat 12 March, 8:00PM Sydney Comedy Club Venue: Amphora at Luna Park Returning to Luna Park with 5 Comedians a night, they are bringing the laughs back to everyone in a safe and welcoming environment. The Sydney Comedy Club features global top class comedians in Sydney’s most spectacular harbourside setting. A cts include Darren Sanders, Jarred Keane, Suraj Kolarkar & more.

Grammy Award winner Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble.

Thur, 17 March, 1:00PM Writers @ Stanton: Julianne Schultz - The Idea of Australia Venue: Stanton Library Tickets: Free The Idea of Australia Julianne Schultz challenges our notions of what it means to be Australian and asks timeUntil 23 April ly and urgent questions about our naDavid Williamson’s Closer to God tional identity. What is the 'idea of Venue: Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli Wed, 16 March, 7:30PM Australia'? What defines the soul of Bjorn Again are coming to Norths With his trademark wit and sharp ob- SRV & Friends our nation? Are we an egalitarian, servations, David Williamson exposes Venue: StreetMarket Asian Tapas Bar generous, outward-looking country? the abrasive personalities of revered Crows Nest Or is Australia a place that has reand insular? scientific giants – even geniuses are The SRV and Friends Show is a tribute treated into silence and denial about not infallible! to the music of blues guitar legend and the past and become selfish, greedy Thur, 17 March, 6:30PM Sunset Cinema: SPENCER (2021) Rated: M Venue: North Sydney Oval Lady Diana graces the hallowed turf of North Sydney Oval in this edition of the sunset cinema. Spencer dramatizes the princess as she grapples with her falling out of love with Prince Charles during the Christmas of 1991.

Thur, 17 March, 8:00PM Sugar Bowl Hokum Venue: StreetMarket Asian Tapas Bar Crows Nest Sugar Bowl Hokum have gone way back to the dawn of recorded music to create their vibe. Driven by their love of obscure songs from the 1920s 30s & 40s, Sugar Bowl Hokum scour the crackly grooves of old 78's to find the best forgotten blues gems of the era.

Fri, 18 March, 6:30PM Sunset Cinema: DEATH ON THE NILE (2022) CTC Venue: North Sydney Oval Agatha Christie’s ‘who done it’ 1937 crime mystery novel comes to life on the big screen. A river steamer turns into a terrifying search for a murderer when a picture-perfect couple's idyllic honeymoon is tragically cut short.

Fri, 18 March, 8:00PM - Jon Stevens - The Noiseworks & INXS Collection Tour Venue: Hayden Orpheum, Cremorne Tickets: $75 The Tour brings hits Take Me Back, New Sensation, Touch, Don’t Change, Hot Chilli Woman, Never Tear Us Apart, No Lies and more. This show is an assault of the senses, with nothing but relentless hits! A visceral charge of emotion that will transport you back to 1987 and beyond including the INXS songs that were such a huge part of the soundtrack of our lives.

Fri, 18 March, 4:30PM Twilight Food Market Venue: Ted Mack Civic Park Sydney based acoustic trio Jets Music will be bringing their smooth stylings to the twilight markets. Enjoy the music and indulge in a range of flavors including; Authentic Turkish Gozleme, Bamboo Story, Gelato Man, New Mandras Cuisine, Ola Lola and Pizzeria on the Road Cuisine.

WHAT’S ON IN NORTH SYDNEY Fri, 18 March, 7:15 - Bjorn Again Mamma Mia! We are Back Again Venue: North Leagues Tickets: $45 Bjorn Again are back playing all of ABBA’s biggest hits in an actionpacked, highly-entertaining concert that is ABBA-SOLUTE fun for the whole family. Here we go again!

Fri, 18 March 2022, 7:30 PM Robert Susz BoOgALoO Party Venue: StreetMarket Asian Tapas Bar Crows Nest Robert Susz will perform for his collection of originals, Blues & Soul classics. As a core member of The Mighty Reapers, this band opened for BB King, Buddy Guy, Albert King on their Australian tours, and were the band of choice to back solo artists Lucky Peterson, Louisiana Red, Hubert Sumlin (Howlin’ Wolf's longtime, genius guitarist) as well as Big Jay McNeely (honkin’ saxophone legend) & Margie Evans (powerhouse Soul, Blues, Gospel singer) both of whom the Reapers recorded albums with.

Sat, 19 March, 6:30PM Sunset cinema: SING 2 (Rated:PG) Venue: North Sydney Oval Buster Moon and his friends are back to light up the oval. This time around the crew must persuade reclusive rock star Clay Calloway to join them for the opening of a new show.

Sat 19 March, 8:00PM Sydney Comedy Club Venue: Amphora at Luna Park A night of stand up comedy featuring Matty B, Sam Silla, the UK’s JJ Mullard and Garry Who from Housos, Fat Pizza and All Together Now, plus many more.

Sat, 19 March, 7:30PM The Everly Brothers & Rock ‘N’ Roll Legends of the 50s 60s & 70s Venue: Hayden Orpheum, Cost $59 For the first time in Australia Rock n Roll fans will embrace & celebrate all the classic No 1 hits of these Music Legends of all time. The magical sounds of The Everly Brothers come alive again with Internationally Renowned and one of Australia’s most successful vocal duos The Williams Brothers. Supported by their own multi-award winning band The Shy Guys this show is a non-stop journey through the greatest songs of all time.

Sat, 19 March, 8:00PM Sydney Comedy Club Venue: Amphora at Luna Park A night of laughter by the harbour starring Brett Nicols, David Truong, Christina Van Look and the ABC’s Peter Berner plus more!

Sat, 19 March, 7:30 PM Sonic Diva Venue: Street Market Asian Tapas Bar Crows Nest If you want to escape the grey and

feel the best Soul, Funk, Dance music live, then don’t miss out on joining-in on the good vibes, at our next gig.

From Lyn Collins to Jamiroquai to Chaka Khan to Grace Jones, Sonic Diva encapsulates and delivers a unique blend of the best grooves and sounds ever created on earth.

Sun, 20 March, 11:00AM North Sydney Bears Fan Day Venue: St Leonards Park, North Sydney Come along for some footy fun, meet & greet plus Q & A with our senior men's and women's players, NRL skills clinic, face painters, Bears temporary tattoos, Merchandise, Mem-

bership and food stalls. PLUS all Bears 2022 Members receive a free sausage sizzle when you flash your members card.

Wed, 23 March, 7:30PM The Vandenburg Concerto Venue: Street Market Asian Tapas Bar Crows Nest The Vandenberg Concerto, led by jazz vocalist Sarah Vandenberg, is an exciting new quintet with some of the most promising musicians at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. The Vandenberg Concerto's set is full of the traditional jazz sound, with a slight flavour of modern fusion.

Thur, 24 March, 6:30PM Sunset Cinema: UNCHARTED Venue: North Sydney Oval Thur, 24 March, 7:30PM - Diesel Greatest Hits & Sunset Suburbia’ Solo Tour Venue: Norths Leagues Tickets: $45 Australian hit machine Diesel has expanded his Sunset Suburbia Tour, adding new solo shows around the country. Having announced the release of 3 separate EP’s leading to an album Sunset Suburbia, Diesel will hit CONTINUED ON PAGE 13

NORTH SYDNEY WELLBEING

How to maximise employee wellbeing By Chuck Anderson With this being the first edition of the my wellbeing column I think that it’s important to briefly introduce myself.

My name is Chuck Anderson and I live in Milsons Point with my partner Eric and our adorable 14-year-old Silky Terrier Buddy.

We moved from the U.S. in 2014, have become citizens, and travelled all over Australia loving every bit of it.

Late in 2021 my partner and cofounded a workplace mental health and wellbeing consulting company called Living to Thrive. I have a background in Psychology and Positive Psychology, and I am the principal consultant for Living to Thrive.

You can read more about our company, what we do and my background at www.livingtothrive.com.au.

The intent of my well-being articles will be to engage and support the community with evidence-based mental health and wellbeing insights, resources and tips. I want the monthly topics to be relatable, authentic, insightful and maybe even inspiring.

Your feedback on the content is welcomed as well as considerations for topics of interests for future articles.

Additionally, it is important to note that the information published in the well-being articles are not a substitute for professional mental health support. If you are in-need of mental health support, please contact your GP for guidance or Lifeline via their 24/7 hotline at 13 11 14 for immediate support.

To kick-off our first edition, I will be discussing workplace mental health related to how employers can support their staff against the two biggest mental health risk factors associated with COVID-19. First let’s take a brief look at the stats on mental health in Australia.

The ‘Australian Bureau of Statistics’ published a 2018 report showing statistics about psychological distress, mental and behavioural conditions and its prevalence in Australia between 2017-2018. The report indicated that 20% or 4.8 million Australians had a mental or behavioural condition, an increase from 18% in 2014-15, 13% or 3.2 million Australians had an anxiety-related condition, an increase from 11% in 2014-15 and 10% had depression or feelings of depression, an increase from 9% in 2014-15.

In response to COVID-19, ‘Australia’s Mental Health Think Tank’, consisting of an independent group of world-leading researchers, health clinicians and human rights experts, published a September 2021 report outlining the currently known mental health impacts of COVID-19

across Australia. The report states that so- cial isolation and financial stresses are the leading risk factors related to mental health challenges.

There are several resources and initiatives that can be easily deployed in your organisation to minimise the impact of social isolation and financial stresses on employees.

Supporting the social connections between employees can be done through developing mentoring programs, recurring coffee with peers/ teams, interactive games and competitions and even short weekly group guided meditations. Leadership training to educate management on the significance and practice of building social connections would be a valuable topdown approach. Hiring a consultant to support the development of such programs and initiatives is advantageous if funding is available. Additionally, encouraging staff to maintain social connections with family and friends outside of work is also key to maintaining their mental health.

Helping your employees understand effective money management strategies is a little more complex.

However, simply starting the conversation on the importance of financial management would be impactful. Having senior management involved in

these communications would be essential for an effective top-down approach.

Employee Assistance Programs services offer financial counselling sessions that should be promoted and utilised to the fullest. An employee onboarding and off-boarding process should provide information and resources on financial planning and wealth management. Additionally, hiring a consultant that specialises in facilitating financial management workshops is optimal.

Lastly, creating a mentally healthy workplace takes more than simply offering employees webinars and

handouts.

There should be a visible and authentic concern from leadership seen in company policy, strategic initiatives, learning and development and most importantly, culture, that extends a feeling of trust, safety and a genuine investment in the well-being of its employees. There is no such thing as a perfect organisation and some employers will struggle to achieve such high standards. Equally, taking small steps towards building a more mentally healthy workplace is possible and will ensure both a thriving business and highly motivated employees.

If you have a need for mental health and wellbeing support in your workplace, please contact me via ChuckAnderson@LivingtoThrive.com.au. Also, check out the “We Not Me” (Ep. 15) podcast where I was a recent guest discussing workplace mental health from a different angle.

North Sydney Sun | March 2022 | Page 12

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE

Meet me at Morgan’s $30.00 mark and are accompanied with interesting sides. For example, the Pan Fried John Dory ($32.00) comes with pumpkin velouté, roasted pumpkin, apple and wild mushrooms.

Yum. All this is interesting, but I know you’re waiting for Don’s recommendations: The snapper pie ($32.00) comes in at #1. Absolutely delicious with large chunks of fresh snapper, creamy sauce and crispy hand-made butter puff pastry. Don then makes me blush by suggesting his regular side dish of Paris mash ($6) is better than sex. I remind him that North Sydney Sun is a family newspaper and that we’re discussing dinner, not what consenting adults may do afterwards! I quickly change the subject to dessert. Don’s recommendation is the Liqueur affogato which we agree is a wonderful alternative to dessert and well-priced at $13.

My recommendation is the Linguini Sicilian (I order mine without chorizo). This dish is a winner, full of juicy prawns and a robust sauce. I find the red cabbage side the perfect foil.

Make sure you say hi to Aaron who runs the kitchen. He arrived from Lagos in 2019 and credits his mum – who is an amazing cook – for his culinary skills. Aaron is up at the crack of dawn to ensure the Snapper, John Dory and Salmon are delivered fresh every morning. At the hotplate most nights, Aaron maintains a gastronomic consistency that most restauranteurs would envy.

Hot tip: Don’t bother to BYO, the wine list has a lot to offer with minimal mark-ups.

Hotter tip: Leave home 30 minutes early and have a pre-dinner drink at Bamfords on Fitzroy.

Hottest tip: Give up home cooking for the month of March and eat out locally every evening. Our restaurants need your love and support.

See you ‘round the village Jilly & Don

By Jilly Gibson “Meet me at Morgan’s” I texted Don. Don is one of my cappuccino companions at the Burton St Plaza in Kirribilli. Since the plaza opened in late 2021, locals have been enjoying extended coffee breaks either at Morgan’s or across the painted plaza at San Antonio Bakery. Don McDonald happily resides at James Milson Village and strolls up to enjoy breakfast, lunch or dinner in our food hub.

Don is the perfect village voice to help me write this ‘tell all’ about Morgan’s. And there’s plenty to tell.

As we enjoy coffee and a few jokes with the locals we chat about the essence of this much-loved community hangout. Firstly, the coffee. 10 beans out of ten we agree. Morgan’s roast their own special blend of beans then Alex works his Barista magic to produce a cup that would please Goldilocks. Not too hot, not lukewarm, not too strong, not too milky, rich in flavour but never bitter. Just right.

At this point the chat gets a bit tricky because Don and I both reckon Alex is a superior barista to his boss Tony! We whisper as Tony is within earshot. Alex hales from Bharatpur south of Kathmandu, Nepal - but for the last decade has lived in North Sydney and worked at San Antonio.

His love of food and cooking started at an early age; he was cooking family meals from ten years old.

He truly is a much-loved local who has perfected his skill through training and practice. Some Saturdays over 700 perfect cups of coffee slide across his wooden counter. Each one served with a smile and a warm greeting. To munch Don swears by the almond croissant while I prefer freshly baked toasted sourdough with vegemite. My grandson Monty recommends warm

Jilly, Don, Alex and local resident Hilary banana bread with a double serve of butter.

Chat drifts from caffeine to the vibe of Tony’s empire which frames the Plaza. Don and I agree the colourful plaza has a Mediterranean feel with the new blue features creating a relaxed family friendly atmosphere.

Twinkling fairy lights are magical after dark. La Niña has ensured the plantings are not just surviving but thriving.

Tony has a special talent for securing fabulous staff and retaining them.

This is no mean feat as the food and beverage industry is still struggling with staffing levels. I reckon in a world where we face dramatic change daily there’s something grounding when your local café has a high degree of consistency. Monday morning Alex is there with his calm demeanour and great coffee. Ditto Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. How comforting it is in this crazy world when some things stay the same!

Now Don let’s discuss dinner.

The menu appeals to a wide range

of locals. The food is fresh, the servings generous and the price-point very reasonable…wait, I forgot to mention the service is slick…this is important when you’re hungry after a long day in your home office and need food right now!

There’s lots to choose from - old favourites plus weekly specials. Morgan’s has retained its focus on fresh seafood from the Garfish days + some hearty meat dishes to please the carnivores. The wine list is not overly complicated or overly expensive. If your dinner reservations include children or grandchildren the battered snapper with crunchy chips lemon and tartare sauce ($22.00) is a winner. If they’re still growing and need extra energy fill them up with garlic or pesto bread which will only set you back another $5. If you’re craving something vegan or super healthy pick one of the four salad mains. I love the beetroot with walnuts and spinach but always blow out the kilojoule count by ordering a side of chips with aioli ($6). The market fish specials are all around the

WHAT’S ON IN NORTH SYDNEY From page 11

Spots are filling fast so get your tickets now to support the Shorman and Sirens as they head into another great season of footy.

interviews with him – the last that he gave – as well as unfiltered access to the road in 2022 to showcase new his extensive trove of personal papers. songs from the EP along with playing It features new interviews with more all his classic hits spanning a multithan 100 people who knew and worked platinum career.

Fri, 25 March, 1:00PM with Hawke, including his family and Writer @ Stanton: Troy Bramston friends; political and union colleagues, Fri, 25 March, 7:00AM Bob Hawke: Demons and Destiny and rivals; advisers and public servNorths Rugby Season Venue: Stanton Library ants; and journalists.

Launch Golf Day Tickets: Free Venue: Long Reef Golf Club Troy Bramston introduces his book Fri, 25 March, 7:00PM Northern Suburbs Rugby Union launch Bob Hawke: Demons and DestiUB40 their 2022 campaign with breakfast, a ny. This unprecedented biography of Venue: Luna Park Big Top day of golf and a season launch lunch. Hawke includes an exclusive series of Cost: $95 North Sydney Sun | March 2022 | Page 13

One of the world’s most successful Reggae outfits are coming to the North Shore. UB40 have over forty top 40 hits in their native Britain and sales of over 100 million records, including classics like ‘I Got You’, ‘Red Red Wine’ and ‘Kingston Town’.

Please check venue websites or social media to confirm these events. Weather, COVID-19 and human nature can intervene and upset the best laid plans.

AROUND THE COMMUNITY

Kirribilli Deli says “antío kai efcharistó” after 22 years.

Before IGA, Woolworths or QE Foods moved in, the Kirribilli Deli essentially stood alone in providing fresh produce for the local community. 22 years on, owners Tom and Georges Kokoris are closing the doors and fare welled the community.

“We were virtually the only one that was fitted out properly and the deli, the continental value that we had, the organic products, the specialist products.” owner Tom Kokaris told the Sun. When the deli opened for trade in 2000 it’s current site was a backyard behind a row of shops. Originally there used to be three little shops just

off street level at Broughton St. After 4 years on the street front, the deli moved down to its long term shop after the owner redeveloped the site.

The business was a family affair from the beginning. The founding partners comprised of siblings Tom, Con, George and Theodora with papa (father) Georgio as well as Nicki Syros.

“Everything in this space here was put in place by my brother, he is a builder. I’m an electrical contractor, an electrical engineer by profession and we started fitting the shop out and while waiting for the DA through council we had sufficient time to build

it. It took us 6 months.”

The Kirribilli site was the first the family had built from scratch, having owned other Friendly Grocers in Narraweena and Waitara. Over their 22 years the deli played an important role in the local community with few similar alternatives in the area. The business enjoyed great rapport throughout the community. When news of the closer spread around social media and by word of mouth, there was a huge response from local customers.

Korkoris was humbled by the out pouring of support and gratitude.

“The response that I read on Facebook from the local community, some

of those comments made me cry. One lady came in this morning, and she brought me a poem that she wrote, that was quite nice.”

Community sentiment also appeared to blame bigger supermarkets for the demise of this independent local business. Kokoris previously served on the board of Friendly Grocers, he noted, “This has been the hardest hit (Friendly Grocers) store over the last 3 years with all the new stores opening up.” He believes the recently opened IGA and QE Foods did not impact business significantly likely due to their location. However, the same cannot be said about the Woolworths Metro which opened one blocks up from the deli on Burton St in 2019. The chain supermarket undoubtedly took a lot of business away.

With growing competition, increased operating costs and difficulties negotiating with their landlord, Kokoris decided to call it a day and retire. Now 67 years old, Kokoris wants to enjoy his retirement. “I don’t want to continue working, I’m going to go do a bit of bike riding, follow the Tour de France for one summer. Just enjoy life, that's your priority in life, you gotta enjoy it.” Originally from the Pelopennese region of Greece he also hopes to spend more time there.

James Mullan Copyright Decisive Publishing.

All rights reserved.

ACN 065 084 960 Responsibility for election comment taken by G Lynch Office address: Unit 3 20 Cliff St Milsons Point NSW Australia 2061 Phone: 02 9061 7048 URL: www.northsydneysun.com.au Email for editorial: grahamelynch@northsydneysun.com Founding editor and Decisive CEO: Grahame Lynch Associate publisher: James Mullan james@northsydneysun.com.au Advertising information: Amy Carswell amy@commsdaymail.com Distribution inquiries: Linda Salameh linda@commsdaymail.com Payment inquiries: Sally Lloyd sally@commsdaymail.com Printer: Spotpress, 24-26 Lilian Fowler Place Marrickville NSW 2204 15,000 copies circulated to homes and businesses in the North Sydney LGA Printer statement available on demand

AROUND THE GROUNDS

Stability key to Norths success in Shute Shield Since winning the Shute Shield in 2016, Norths have been one of the consistent elite teams. In all of the past 5 seasons, the Shoreman have finished in the top 4.

Most of this success has come under the leadership of coach Zak Beer.

A North Shore local, Beer grew up on Young St Neutral Bay and attended Marist North Shore. After working for Manly Marlins for 9 years, he returned to Northern Suburbs for the 2020 season.

Beer believes the players are hungrier than ever for this season.

“There’s a real sense of excitement and anticipation. The guys are just desperate to get back on the field for the first time since June last year.”

“Over the last two years we’ve had some good success, we haven’t managed to finish the job and win the premiership, which is always our goal.”

In 2020 the club missed the grand final by an extra time penalty goal.

Before the 2021 season was cancelled, the team was on fire, registering 8 straight wins, one shy of a club record.

This run was highlighted by a dominant round 3 win against rivals Gordon in front of a record home crowd.

GM Jack Burey explained to the Sun: “Everyone was disappointed the season ended the way it ended because it could’ve been so good. It's made the coaches players so much hungrier now with that benchmark.

We’ve got to do it again and do it again better.” Burey believes the club has maintained its strong position.

“We are so stable, from the players to the staff. There’s been a lot of turn over at other clubs.”

The club has managed to retain its entire Shute Shield squad from 2021.

Norths also have 20 colts joining their grade teams this year which is up from the average 6 to 8 players that typically graduate from colts.

Burey explains there is a unique reason for the injection of young talent. “Funny enough the global travel situation has meant a lot of the colts don’t go away on European holidays, so they are staying and playing local which is good.”

Joining the youth wave is a solid list of new recruits. Throughout lockdowns, Norths turned its scouting focus to the UK, Queensland and ACT (John I Dent Cup) with NSW competitions suspended due to the pandemic.

Jamie Mazarole-Kots has agreed to move north after leading the ACT competition in try scoring. Back rower Kalaveti Kunatuba who has been training with the Brumbies will also head up the Hume. Front rower George Thornton has made the move down under. The Scot previously playing in Britain’s top division for Wasps and for Glasgow Warriors.

Coach Beer says Thornton is loving life in Sydney: “Unfortunately we couldn’t cover his sun cream bill, but

his certainly made himself known at Balmoral Beach.”

21 year old Inosi Nadolo will join the club from Brothers Club (Brisbane) after featuring for Montpellier’s 7s squad.

Norths’ biggest signing of the year comes from West Harbour. Winger James Turner has been playing with the NSW Waratahs in preseason games and is expected to feature in the full time squad this season after leading the Shute Shield in try scoring in 2021.

The club has had a strong focus on

retaining players. “We’ve recruited guys as far back as 2016/17/18 that are now getting up to 80-90-100 caps for the club. They’re coming, they’re loving it, and they’re sticking around and that’s really important for us because we don’t have to keep recruiting year-on-year. The successful teams keep people together for a long period of time, that’s really the key for us.”

Captain Harry Burey (85 caps), Angus Sinclair (95), Nick Duffy (54), Declan Carrol (98) are closing in on 100 games for the club. Burey has starred for Norths and has experience

at the Waratahs and Australian 7s team.

Norths will Zak Beer launch their 123rd season on Friday, March 25th at Long Reef Golf Club. with round 1 kicking off on Saturday, April 2, away against Easts at Woollahra Oval. The Shoremen’s first home games are on Round 3 Saturday April 16th vs Southern Districts and against competition favourites Sydney Uni, round 6 Saturday, May 7th.

James Mullan