Keeping things tidy

Kiama Council’s waste crew has completed another busy summer-holiday season of work. We caught up with Darren Brennan, who has worked at Kiama Council for 26 years and leads the Waste Services team. What does your team do?

My team has many roles. We drive Kiama’s waste trucks and conduct waste services such as keeping all parks, headlands and reserves clean of litter.

We also clean all public toilets – Kiama has around 30 toilet blocks, which stretch up our coastline all the way from Gerroa to Minnamurra and out towards Jamberoo.

In addition, we keep the streets tidy with blowers, and collect all the debris such as leaves and rubbish with our street sweepers. And we pick up any illegal dumping.

We clean the facilities owned by council, including our offices, libraries, The Pavilion, Kiama Leisure Centre and community halls. Plus, we work with our events coordinators and tourism team to provide waste services to major events such as the NYE fireworks, Kiama’s Winter Festival and many other wonderful events throughout the year.

Any standout events?

The highlight of the summer/Christmas period was the fireworks. We also loved IGNITE Winter Festival and seeing the number of people return to enjoy our wonderful town post-COVID. Even though it increases our workload, it’s so nice to see the town alive again with people.

Give us some stats?

This season we used a record amount of materials such as around six pallets of toilet paper and probably 30 boxes of hand soap. We placed an extra 85 bins throughout our parks and main streets over the summer period.

What’s the best thing about your job?

I like the early start, which is 4am, and the 1pm finish. I love working outside with such wonderful views of the harbour, headlands and seeing the sunrise every morning.

And the challenges?

The challenges we face are mostly weather related and dealing with members of the public on some occasions.

Any amusing anecdotes?

Some of our funny stories come from locals and tourists, such as being asked “What time will you be turning on The Blowhole?” And every now and again, we run into locals at 4am on a Saturday or Sunday morning a little worse for wear. Seeing them a few days later, you just smile and nod at each other.

Final words?

The last thing I’d like to add is I can’t thank my team enough for getting us through this very busy period. Our workload might have doubled, even tripled, but it was wonderful to come into town and see the place kept spotless and tidy as usual. It makes me proud to be part of our team.

And we have many events coming up including Rugby Sevens, the Jazz & Blues Festival and we can’t forget Easter. We’re getting ready to do it all over again!

Kiama Council is mourning the loss of our respected and much loved Manager of Waste Services, Tony Hardy, who passed away this month, aged 70. Tony had reached his 50th year working for us and will be greatly missed by all at Kiama Municipal Council and in the community.

Trash or treasure?

Inspired by our waste services team to do a declutter? During March, we’re hosting two events that will help you clean up and bag a bargain.

First up is our giant community car boot sale – Second Hand Saturday – on 4 March. Registration is now open for stallholders, and everyone is welcome to simply show up to shop!

Our Household Bulky Waste drop-off event runs for a week from 11-19 March and we accept all sorts of household items to be recycled, re-distributed or sent to landfill. Registrations are essential and will open 20 Feb.

www.kiama.nsw.gov.au/Events/Events-Waste

Home Composting Workshop

We’re running our popular Home Composting Workshop again this month. The free workshop teaches Kiama residents the basics of successful composting in your own home. No yard? No worries! There is a composting method to suit every situation. The Home Composting Workshop will be held on Saturday 18 February from 1-4pm in the Kiama Community Garden at Havilah Place. Register here: www.kiama.nsw.gov.au/Home-Composting-Workshop

Have your say on playgrounds

We are asking you to have your say on our local playgrounds, public spaces and reserves. Tell us which parks, playgrounds and reserves you use, what you love and what you think we can improve. Scan the QR code to complete the online survey by 19 February or visit www.kiama.nsw.gov.au/Council/ Your-say/Open-Spaces-and-Recreation-Strategy

We want to hear from you!

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On Saturday 25 March this year, we will be electing the 58th Parliament of NSW. This will be hotly contested for the seat of Kiama and is a really big deal for us as a council.

You see, all councils are creations of the State Government. This is so that we can do locally, those things that would be difficult or impossible for a State Government to manage from Macquarie Street.

Our requests below are just the tip of a long list of what the 58th Parliament could do to help us to help them do what needs doing:

• Make a commitment to democratically elected councils being empowered to make decisions about development that affects their communities

• Make urgent improvements to address issues with the operation of the Planning Portal and commit to ongoing funding to councils to implement it.

• Either boost road funding

Neil Reilly talks directly with residents and ratepayers significantly to respond to unprecedented damage to Jamberoo Mountain Road, or take back responsibility for this vital East-West Corridor and others that suffer washaways, landslips and potholes as a result of severe flooding and ongoing climate change.

• Lift the caveat on our local government land to provide much-needed housing relief.

• Provide funding to support Kiama Council to implement the Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Toolkit.

• Distribute more arts and culture funding in our area.

• Increase funding for Kiama LGA’s specialised youth well-being and mental health services.

• Commit to incentives (such as scholarships, cadetships, wage subsidies) to address critical local government skills shortages.

• Provide Jamberoo with the same water and sewerage infrastructure as other towns.

• Sign an intergovernmental agreement between the Premier and the Local Government NSW President, setting out key principles for an equal partnership between the two spheres of government to improve outcomes for communities across NSW.

On another note altogether, it is with great pleasure that I congratulate several of our Kiama Municipality residents on receiving a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) at the 2023 Australia Day Honours for their outstanding service to the community of the Kiama.

Mr Gary McKay received an OAM for service to military history and to veterans.

I know Gary as the president of the Kiama Jamberoo RSL and the author of a good number of nonfiction and historic books on the topic of war, as well as a few rip-roaring fiction books.

Gary was awarded the Military Cross in 1972 for gallantry on active service in Vietnam. Gary has also led many tours to Vietnam.

Darrell Shepherd’s service to softball has earned him an OAM, umpiring 334 national championship games since 1980, and 92 international games.

Darrell has also been a National Umpires Staff Member of Softball Australia since 2016 and won the Australian Sports Medal in 2000. Unsurprisingly he is a life member of Softball NSW, its Umpires Association, the Illawarra Softball Association and Dapto Softball Club.

The late Peter Bowman, a former close colleague and Councillor 2008-2012, was awarded an OAM for service to sports administration. Peter had an extensive background in senior coaching and administrative positions at the Australian Institute of Sport, Illawarra Academy of Sport, Athletics Australia and the Australian Track and Field Coaches Association.

Foxground local Maura Cato has been awarded an OAM for her service to the community through charitable organisations.

Mrs Cato’s contribution to the community is part of her everyday life. To date she has volunteered in soup kitchens, produced gift hampers for Christmas and raised funds through events at her property in aid of a clinic in East Timor.