The Bugle 22 April 2017
A fortnightly celebration of people and places on the Upper South Coast of NSW
Serving the communities of Kiama, Gerringong, Jamberoo, Kiama Downs, Minnamurra and Gerroa and now at www.thebugleonline.com
Ambulance move hastens Arts Centre Kiama Ambulance Station is to move to a site next to the Fire Station, at the Highway end of Terralong St. The move from its current Terralong St site has been long anticipated, and is expected to proceed with haste now the decision has been made. The relocation will free up two sites adjacent to the Old Fire Station Art Gallery, for the construction of an arts centre for Kiama. The first step in allowing
this to happen involves negotiations for Council to sell the land at the end of Terralong St to the Area Health Service, and buy both ambulance properties adjoining Hindmarsh Park (one is in Shoalhaven St). The DA for the new station is expected to be lodged as soon as the acquisition of the site from Council is finalised. NSW Health Infrastructure is keen for this to happen by mid-June. The site near the Fire Sta-
tion is currently used as a carpark for netball players, and initial concerns by the Kiama Netball Association have been overcome through talks with Gareth Ward, and Kiama Council, Health Infrastructure and NSW Ambulance working through the issues. The negations have resulted in commitments to improve safety and parking organisation. The move will bring all of Kiama’s emergency
response teams (fire, ambulance and SES) to a location where they can quickly service the whole LGA. The relocation is part of the NSW Government’s Rural Ambulance Reconfiguration Program, which is investing $122 million to ‘reorganise and enhance NSW Ambulance stations and service models to meet the future needs of communities across rural and regional NSW’. Without a timeframe for
the ambulance move, draft planning for the Kiama Arts Centre has until now factored in a staged process, to allow for the expansion to initially involve just the temporary toilet site without being dependent on the whole site being available. After extensive community consultation, architects recently presented a draft floor plan to the Kiama Cultural Board. “It is very early days with the design, but we are very excited about the possibility of the Centre happening sooner rather than later,” says Nick Guggisberg, Manager of Community and Cultural Development at Kiama Council. “The opportunity to design and build the site as a whole will make a real difference.” He says consultation has shown clearly that people want the Arts Centre to be multifunctional, and include performance spaces, gallery space (to regional gallery standard), workshop areas, equipment and more. “It needs to be a building building’s heritage value, that adds to the streetscape the number of car spaces, as well as adding to Kiama’s and lack of sufficient inforcultural life and health. mation to ensure compliance “It will not only encourage with a number of planning local artists but attract exhirequirements. bitions and performers.”
Inside this issue What’s on at this year’s KISS Arts Festival p 7-10
Gerringong Co-op gets new life p 3
Redevelopment too grand? The redevelopment of the Grand Hotel has been rejected by Council, following the Salim Group’s decision to seek approval higher up. Rather than respond to the queries of Council planners, the owners of Kiama’s Grand Hotel in Manning St deemed the process a refusal and chose to go to the Land & Environment Court to seek approval for their DA. Subsequent to this action, Council has formally refused the development, citing a number of reasons for this move. The ambitious plans for the $7.5 million redevelopment, outlined in The Bugle
last October, would see the accommodation move to a new four storey block at the rear of the old building and the old hotel’s verandahs restored as part of a reorganisation which would
result in new bars, a bistro, function rooms and the like. Amongst other things, Council has concerns about breaches of the height limit and the floor space ratio, negative affects on the
Continued page 12
Opportunity for local creatives p4 Lagoon may get crossing p6
Panel to investigate Golden Valley Rd p 6
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