A SNAPSHOT OF OUR ACHIEVEMENTS J U LY - D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 5
A SNAPSHOT OF OUR ACHIEVEMENTS
THEME 1 C O M M U N I T Y, P E O P L E A N D C U LT U R E A healthy, safe, and diverse community that respects our history and celebrates our differences in a vibrant culture of learning.
Active Ku-ring-gai The Council’s low-cost recreation and fitness programs saw a boost to numbers during this quarter. Registrations for the Active Ku-ring-gai term program increased to 267 registrations. This represented the highest number of registrations since 2006.
A field of 1,300 crosses was created at Roseville on Remembrance Day 11 November. Over 200 people from local schools, the Roseville RSL sub branch and families of veterans attended and wrote messages on small wooden crosses laid into time for the commemorative service. The crosses were provided through the federal government’s Department of Veterans Affairs.
There was also a significant increase in walking program participants –from 67 at the same time last year to 117. There 85 registrations in the Junior Golf school holiday program (an average 10 children per day) and 171 registrations in Active Kids (average of 17 per day). A new walking group started at Queen Elizabeth Reserve, West Lindfield in mid-November, continuing on a weekly basis until December.
The reconstruction of Bicentennial Park’s war memorial in West Pymble, originally built in 1991, was completed in August - a century after the Battle of Lone Pine at Gallipoli in August 1915. The memorial has been moved from the rear of the Ku-ring-gai Fitness & Aquatic Centre to a position next to the West Pymble War Memorial Community Hall, with the support of the RSL sub branch.
Bookings opened in early December for the Active Kids school holiday program of activities, ranging from sports, drama, dance and yoga. The school holiday program will take place between 11 and 22 January (excluding weekends).
The Council also gave support for two concerts organised by the local professional musicians called War Letters. The concerts featured specially composed music based on letters written home from the front in World War One.
Ku-ring-gai Arts Centre Malcolm Carver ran a booked out workshop in August, called The Art of Seeing - Pen and Wash. The August/September Watercolour Exhibition was another highlight of the year, with an array of works from students and tutors. Guitar classes continued to attract high attendances and positive feedback. A free exhibition by two renowned artists Ingeborg Zotz and Rita Beale was held in October called the Power of Painting. In September the ever-popular annual exhibition by tutors and students was held with a focus on the art of mosaic and glass making. The review of the Art Centre continued, highlighting its important role in the arts and culture of Ku-ring-gai and its significance to the community.
Centenary of ANZAC During this quarter the Council offered grants of up to $2000 each to local residents and community organisations to commemorate the Centenary of ANZAC. $10,000 in grant funding was set aside for local commemorations of the contribution Ku-ring-gai residents made in the First World War. 1300 wooden crosses laid at East Lindfield Soldiers Memorial Park on Remembrance Day 4
General Managers Report
| July - December 2015
Art in the park at Tryon Road Lindfield
Community events
Older residents
The Guringai Festival ran until the end of NAIDOC Week in July as an annual celebration of indigenous culture and heritage. Events in Ku-ring-gai included a combined school concert called Children’s Voices for Reconciliation, as well as local walks, children’s activities, culture talks and a photo exhibition.
During this quarter activities in the Seniors in Action program continued, ranging from the popular falls prevention and basically backs classes through to excursions to various landmarks and places of interest. The Council also worked with NSROC to continue implementing aspects of the Northern Sydney Ageing Strategy, including information distribution, prevention of social isolation, community transport and more accessible bus stops.
In September, as part of the Activate Lindfield project, a small scale art project was held as a ‘pop-up’ event in the Tryon Road car park. A young artist was engaged to create an artistic vision for Lindfield to engage local people in their thoughts about the future of the area. Six citizenship ceremonies were held during this period and the Council welcomed a total of 470 new Australian citizens. Approximately 4000 people came to the Twilight Concert in Wahroonga Park in October. Popular cover bands The Diamonds and The Beatnix played some of the 60s most popular melodies. The concert was supported by sponsors Soames Real Estate, Crystal Productions and the North Shore Times. Planning was well underway for the Volunteers Christmas Party in December with over 200 organisations invited. Planning was also proceeding for the annual Australia Day celebration at Bicentennial Park on 26 January. The 2016 event will begin at 10:30am with a BBQ brunch prepared by local service groups. Live entertainment will include the popular children’s show Shaun the Sheep, local bush band Stringybark, Wuruniri Music and Dance Group, plus live animal shows, sheep shearing demonstrations and amusement rides. A community-based initiative for refugees supported by Lifeline, Rotary and the Migrant Resource Centre was launched in October. The Welcome Pack initiative is aimed at creating small hampers of household goods, toiletries and items for children suitable for refugee families expected to arrive in Australia next February.
The Council worked with Meals on Wheels Ku-ring-gai Hornsby to develop a leaflet outlining their services which was distributed in the September rates notice mail-out. To mark the International Day of Older Persons a free screening for seniors of The Intern was held at Events Cinema - Macquarie Centre in early October. Also in October a free talk on compulsive hoarding was held at Gordon Library. In November two free talks were held – one on complementary medicine and natural health remedies and the other a discussion on assistance for ageing family members.
Residents with a disability A Mental Health Awareness Month event was held in October. This brought together a team of experts to provide information and tips on how to prevent life pressures taking a toll on health and relationships. In support of R U OK? Day and Suicide Prevention Week in the same month, an internal awareness campaign for staff was delivered across Council. Work was also underway on developing a leaflet outlining Ku-ring-gai’s commitment to people with a disability which will be available in early 2016. Two free events were held during Carers Week; an introduction to acrylic painting and a seminar on life skills for carers. Bollards on Brown Road and Cecil Street in Gordon were widened to improve wheelchair access.
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Younger children Council-provided services for children including family day care, long day care, vacation care and immunisation have continued to be in high demand with several reaching capacity. Family day care has recruited new educators and increased the number of child care places available. A number of Ku-ring-gai Council’s Family Day Care children have been taken on regular visits to a group home for dementia patients in St Ives. This is part of an inter-generational initiative in partnership with Group Homes Australia, where the aged and young benefit from their shared experiences. The program involves Family Day Care children along with their educator visiting a nursing home where they spend time with dementia residents, reading their favourite stories, singing nursery rhymes together and talking. Thomas Carlyle Children’s Centre has benefited from the installation of new lighting and solar panels. In addition the Centre has upgraded access and security to require pin codes and swipe card entry. The Centre has continued to refine its mobile phone app for children’s documentation, reporting and communication with parents. Currently there are 223 parents and grandparents using the app. Vacation care continues to operate at capacity and planning has commenced to include another 55 place centre in the southern part of Ku-ring-gai to meet demand. All services are currently upgrading their quality improvement plans to meet regulatory requirements. Policies and procedures for all services are being unified into one manual and this project is nearing completion. Council conducted a one day joint workshop with the Office of the Children’s Guardian for all childcare providers in Ku-ring-gai.
Older children & young adults A range of skill development workshops for young people were hosted at the AWOL youth centre Gordon and Turramurra Library during this period. During the July school holidays Kuring-gai’s youth services team offered activities such as skating, live music performances, BBQs, kayaking and day trips. A lowcost talk on gaming and internet addition was held for parents and carers of teens in October. The Droppin Hammers skateboard and scooter competition was held in November for young local riders to show off their skills and tricks and be in the running to win great prizes. Categories included under 13s, under 16s and open. On Friday 18 December youth services will host an end-ofschool concert at the Gordon youth centre’s ‘secret garden’. David Taylor, a young Ku-ring-gai local musician has been working on his debut album for the past 8 months and will preview some of the new tracks with his band before its release. This event is hosted by Logan Byrnes from the TV show ‘The Laundry’.
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General Managers Report
| July - December 2015
Ku-ring-gai library services celebrated their 70th birthday in November
Library services Ku-ring-gai libraries delivered several author encounters and informational talks during this period. The highlight of the author encounters was the appearance of author and broadcaster Richard Glover with 187 people in the Town Hall. Free talks at the library included an introduction to Ku-ring-gai bird life and combatting osteoporosis. Book reading programs for the July and September school holidays were delivered as well as a series of HSC Lock-ins at Gordon Library. The lock-ins give Year 12 students a chance for exclusive study and are proving very popular. Library staff joined in the fun at the Medieval Faire for the second year and provided story times and library information during the two day event. The Libraribus was used to ferry people around the Showground during the Faire. Ku-ring-gai’s library service celebrated its 70th birthday on 24-26 November with a series of morning and afternoon teas, special story times and displays. Each Ku-ring-gai Library branch in Gordon, Lindfield, Turramurra and St Ives cut a birthday cake at a free morning or afternoon tea. The libraries mounted photographic displays documenting the history of Ku-ring-gai Library and had a birthday book for the community to sign. Not forgetting its younger book fans, Ku-ring-gai Library held special Teddy Bear Picnic story time sessions to celebrate the anniversary.
Capture Ku-ring-gai Over 350 entries were received in five categories for this year’s Capture Ku-ring-gai photographic competition held between September and October. The categories were Our active and creative community, Our buildings and architecture, Our Anzac history, Our people and the Youth category for under 18s.
A SNAPSHOT OF OUR ACHIEVEMENTS
THEME 2 N AT U R A L E N V I R O N M E N T Working together as a community to protect and enhance our natural environment and resources.
Regional park at Gordon Golf Course A report on the community consultation and a proposed concept for the masterplan for a regional park at Gordon Golf Course was reported to Council in early September. A site visit for Councillors was held in October. The Council is continuing to discuss the issue with community stakeholders before a decision on the site’s future is made.
Waste services The Council was one of eight councils in northern Sydney partnering food charity OzHarvest in an innovative new agreement to reduce food waste. OzHarvest works with local restaurants and cafes to reduce the amount of food being thrown away and help feed those in need. Funding from the councils involved has resulted in the purchase of a new van to collect unwanted food from businesses across the local government areas and donated to those in need. The food is then distributed locally to charitable organisations including homeless shelters and assists many people in need. Local businesses are encouraged to get involved by calling OzHarvest on 1800 108 006 to donate surplus food.
Eight northern Sydney councils are partnering food charity Oz Harvest
The annual e-waste collection was held over two days in October and 22.86 tonnes of unwanted technology was delivered by residents to St Ives Showground and sent on for recycling. A new online recycling quiz has been developed to help educate residents about the most common recycling mistakes. A composting workshop was held in November where residents learnt about the benefits diverting food waste from landfill. During Recycling Week participating Ku-ring-gai schools received a visit from Keep NSW Beautiful with their workshops on recycling.
The Council is continuing to discuss the future of Gordon golf course with the community
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Natural areas management Council was recently named a finalist in the Local Government NSW’s Excellence in the Environment Awards for its bushland management program. Council utilises a bushland prioritisation matrix to guide investment in Council’s bush regeneration program. A bushland condition rating is then used to measure outcomes of the regeneration program and to demonstrate improved conditions of bush regeneration sites. Several remote cameras were located at nest boxes in Pygmy Possum habitat to map the occurrence of Pygmy Possums across Ku-ring-gai. Remote cameras have also been used to monitor the 2015 breeding season of a Powerful Owl Pair in Blue Gum Creek Reserve. Since July Council has treated 45 fire breaks, conducted 8 pile burns, conducted 2 hazard reduction burns and conducted one ecological burn. Fire trail surface works have been conducted at St Ives Showground. The Council has conducted 7 community fire education events attended by 513 people. Council currently supports 714 active Bushcare, Streetcare and Parkcare volunteers, contributing over 12,000 volunteer hours each year on bush regeneration activities at 165 sites. Ku-ringgai has the highest per capita involvement of residents in the Bushcare program in NSW. The Sydney North Regional Fox Baiting Program was conducted during August and September to protect native and threatened wildlife from foxes. Foxoff poison baits were laid in various sites throughout Ku-ring-gai.
Sustainability initiatives A Climate Change Policy and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan was adopted by Council following public exhibition in September and October. The Climate Change Policy provides a revised management framework for Council to respond to the observed and projected implications of climate change on Ku-ring-gai’s natural and built environment, community and economy. The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Action Plan supports the Policy by providing concrete actions to combat climate change and meet the 2020 GHG emission reduction target of 20% based on 2000 levels. The recently installed 41kW solar PV system at North Turramurra Sewer Treatment Plant became operational in October, bringing Council’s total solar capacity to 111.5kW – more than double compared with last year. The Council introduced sustainable tea, coffee and serving ware for, Council workshops and meetings.
Environmental education The popular native beehive placement program continues to expand, with 100 new hives placed throughout the Ku-ring-gai area during October and November, bringing the total number of beehives distributed to our residents to 530. The popularity of the program has seen a further 250 native bee hives sold or placed outside Ku-ring-gai and the development of an online shop, where bee hive accessories can be purchased.
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General Managers Report
| July - December 2015
The Council’s native bee hive program has attracted national media attention
The success of the program is attracting national media coverage, with ABC Radio profiling the program in November. Since July the Council’s Loving Living Ku-ring-gai program delivered 19 community events, including a cheese and yoghurt-making workshop, talks on solar power and storage, green roofs and walls, water sensitive urban design, native plant identification, ibises, microbat and ticks, productive gardening, kombucha, kefir and sourdough bread making. Other events included National Tree Day, a welcome bus tour for new residents and a speed date a sustainability expert event attracting 800 participants. Through the Compost Revolution program, 173 residents were engaged via the websites and its tutorials, while 9 worm farms and 12 compost bins were distributed to Ku-ring-gai households. Through the Smart Homes Guide, Ku-ring-gai residents have a new one-stop-shop for advice on sustainable renovating and building via the Council website. The Smart Homes guide launched in August helps residents make informed choices about housing design, features and fittings to reduce costs and their carbon footprint. The number of subscribers for Council’s monthly Sustainability Enews stands at 2037. Council’s Envirotube YouTube channel has 508 subscribers and has now registered more than 188,000 total video views. The Loving Living Ku-ring-gai Twitter account now has 318 subscribers. The Loving Living Ku-ring-gai Facebook page has 2246 followers. Council’s popular Water Smart program continues with rebates available to Ku-ring-gai residents who install new rainwater tanks, or connect new or existing rainwater tanks to toilets, washing machines or irrigation systems. Since July six rebates have been given to Ku-ring-gai households which collectively
installed 38,425L in rainwater tank capacity. The second round of the Energy Smart Savers pool pump rebate program was launched this month for Ku-ring-gai households that replace old inefficient pool pumps with pumps rated at 7 stars or higher. Since July Council’s Climate Wise Communities program has facilitated six community workshops and participated into two community events, to assist residents to improve their preparedness and resilience to extreme weather events in response to a changing climate. These events attracted over 250 participants. Round 17 of the Environmental Levy’s Community Small Grants Scheme has been awarded to fund activities such as bush regeneration, habitat creation, native wildlife protection and sustainability projects at local schools. A total of 14 local environment projects worth $41,779 were funded through this round of grants. One of the loveliest public gardens in Ku-ring-gai held an open day on Sunday 13 September. Swain Gardens in Stanhope Road Killara was created by Sydney bookseller Arthur Newling Swain in the 1940s. The result is a 3.4 hectare oasis of native and exotic plants in a bushland setting. The gardens are cared for by Council staff and dedicated volunteers and are open daily between sunrise and sunset. They are available to hire for weddings and special events. The Council participated in Graffiti Removal Day on 18 October. The aim of Graffiti Removal Day is to encourage people to volunteer their time in the removal and prevention of graffiti. This year’s event in Ku-ring-gai saw Council staff and Councillors, residents and local Rotary volunteers remove graffiti from Gordon Railway Station and St Ives Village Green.
Ku-ring-gai’s bushland rating system was a finalist in the NSW Excellence in Environment Awards
Companion animals Ku-ring-gai was successful in gaining two Office of Local Government’s Responsible Pet Ownership grants to further develop community education campaigns on responsible pet ownership. The first grant was a joint initiative with Pittwater and Warringah councils focusing on cats. A large community cat event was held on Sunday 26 July 2015 at the Animal Welfare League Ingleside, along with a desexing project and several discussion forums. The second grant is for behavioural classes for dogs involved in dog attacks and an education campaign relating to dogs. In October 15 dog owners known to Council through minor dog attack incidents or identified as owning dangerous or menacing dogs were invited to attend the free 5 week course once a week at St Ives Showground. The dogs that participated were all loved companion animals and their owners committed to modifying and managing their dog’s behaviour to ensure the community is kept safe. Excellent feedback was received about the course from participants and the Council will consider running similar courses in the future. The campaign to raise awareness of behavioural issues continued during November and December with production of a leaflet and advertising.
Rotary volunteers and Council completed another successful Graffiti Removal Day in October
The Council won a grant from the NSW government to conduct behavioural classes for dogs and their owners
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A SNAPSHOT OF OUR ACHIEVEMENTS
THEME 3 P L A C ES , S PA C ES & I N F R A S T R U C T U R E A range of well planned, clean and safe neighbourho ods and public spaces designed with a strong sense of identity and place.
Planning policy
Development applications & consents
An indirect development contributions plan was adopted by the Council after being publicly exhibited in September and October. Indirect contributions are levied as a percentage upon new developments built in council areas above a certain value. The contributions pay for community infrastructure to take account of increased demand.
The processing time for all applications from July to November 2015 was a median of 57 days. This is a decrease compared to 60 days for the previous quarter and well below the performance target of 80 days. There was a significant increase in undetermined applications compared with the previous quarter (251 vs. 320) attributable to a cyclical surge of development activity in the lead up to the holiday season.
The new draft plan will seek to bridge the gap between the cost of providing smaller scale local infrastructure and the value of developments in Ku-ring-gai. Indirect contributions will complement the main contributions plan for work that would otherwise be unfunded, such as improvements to local shopping centres, road intersections, and upgrades to local parks. Indirect development contributions will be levied on new developments between $100,001 and $200,000 at an amount ranging from $500 to $1000. Small scale developments under $100,000 will be exempt. Developments of $200,001 and above will be levied 1% of the development cost.
Reclassification of Council land The reclassification of Culworth Avenue carpark was submitted to the Department of Planning in September 2014. The reclassification of four local centres sites was submitted to the Department of Planning in December 2014. Three of the four sites outside the local centres that were adopted for reclassification were submitted to the Department of Planning in June 2015. All these sites remain with the NSW State Government awaiting gazettal. They are: the residual area of the Culworth Avenue carpark that was not sold to Transport for NSW; Pymble Town Hall at 11861188 Pacific Highway Pymble; the current Council Chambers and adjoining car park at 818 Pacific Highway Gordon; 2-4 Moree Street Gordon; a piece of land attached to Memorial Park at 62 Pacific Highway Roseville; Part 56-58 Koola Avenue East Killara; 97 Babbage Road Roseville Chase and 136A Junction Lane / Morris Avenue Wahroonga. The Morris Avenue property is to be retained as an unformed road, being a pedestrian extension of Morris Avenue. The future of the remaining sites will be the subject of further Council reports.
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General Managers Report
| July - December 2015
A total of 675 applications were determined year to date, a 15% increase compared to the same period in 2014. Council’s pre-DA service is proving very popular with 110 applications processed while another 42 are under assessment.
Lindfield Community Hub Option 2 of four proposed designs for a major redevelopment of Lindfield’s centre in the Woodford Lane car park was approved by the Council in October. Key features of Option 2 include: • A new Lindfield branch library • A new community centre • An underground supermarket with high quality retail shops • Residential apartment buildings with a seven storey height limit • A large public park • A town square with restaurants and cafes • Basement car parking for commuters, visitors, residents and shoppers The Community Hub aims to be a vibrant precinct in Woodford Lane behind the Pacific Highway shops, delivering a range of shopping and housing options with cafes and restaurants, underground car parking and new community spaces.
North Turramurra Recreation Area The new 18-hole golf course opened for play in September. The redeveloped course includes new practice putting greens, chipping greens and practice tees. Construction of the new cricket pitch and three new multipurpose sportsfields is well
underway. The current golf professional has relocated to a temporary pro-shop near the new practice putting and chipping areas. New course cards have been printed displaying new holes information. A video promoting the new course was in production and planning for a new web page was also undertaken during this quarter. New directional signage and flags are being prepared for installation on all holes.
Ku-ring-gai Fitness & Aquatic Centre In July the centre held a family fun day with a BBQ, face painting, pool inflatable, kinder gym and music. The day saw a 72% increase in attendance and a 50% increase in centre revenue when compared with the previous two weekends. The Centre also celebrated its first birthday on Sunday November 8 with a Family Fun Day. Activities on offer included pool inflatables, face painting, novelty races, BBQ, fitness challenges and music. A gold coin entry fee was charged with all proceeds going to YMCA Brightside, a fitness program designed to help make a positive difference in the recovery for people with mental health issues. Attendances continued to grow coming into spring with 16,848 attending in September. Membership numbers have reached a milestone with 1,507 as of September. All other membership numbers have increased coming into spring with 191 family memberships, 213 aquatic memberships. Pryme memberships for the over 50s have reached 400. The centre’s swimming lessons enrolment numbers saw an increase (93 students) with 1,424 enrolled compared to a budget of 1,250. A new removal fence was installed around the outdoor learn-toswim pool which will allow the pool to be closed off in the cooler months without having to employ lifeguards to patrol. A new boiler has been installed for heating the 50 metre outdoor pool.
St Ives Showground The Council is working closely with the Mini Wheels Club to develop a new training and practice area at the HARTS driving school before the expiry of the club’s lease in March 2016. A new event at the Showground – the Back to the 50s Festival – took place on 31 July and 1 August. The Festival included vintage market stalls, music, films, food trucks, fashion parades, dance workshops and a classic vehicle display all with a 1950s theme. Around 1500 people attended in spite of inclement weather. A promotional video was produced of the Showground and Wildflower Garden as well as a new web page. On 19 and 20 September the second St Ives Medieval Faire was hosted at the Showground, with an increased number of stalls and participants. Approximately 10,000 people attended in spite of wet weather during the weekend. New attractions included a sumptuous medieval feast which attracted over 200 guests and a guest appearance and book signings by the author of the Rangers Apprentice series John Flanagan. Media coverage extended as far as China. A polo spectacular was held in late September at the Showground. Again inclement weather reduced attendances, but overall the event was a success and attracted around 1000 people.
Ku-ring-gai Wildflower Garden As part of this year’s annual Wildflower Art and Garden Festival in August a sculpture walk was installed at the Senses Track. Artists and sculptors were invited in April to apply to have a sculpture included, with prizes worth up to $3000 for those judged to be the best pieces submitted. On Sunday 30 August the Wildflower Garden came alive with music, art, food and of course flowers and plants. Children’s entertainer Jay Laga’aia from ABC-TV’s Playschool was special guest with other activities including a trackless train, stilt walkers, face-painting, story reading and a native wildlife display with live animals. The Council won a $54,000 grant from the NSW Office of Environment & Heritage to protect the rare orchid known as Bauer’s Midge Orchid which is found at the Wildflower Garden. The grant will fund actions that include surveying & monitoring; seed banking and re-planting; pest & weed control; private land conservation; ecological burns; education and signage and managing access to sensitive sites. A way finding sign program has been prepared with installation of the signs to be completed by the end of the year. A new five-week course on mindfulness and meditation was held at the Wildflower Garden during October and November. Another successful Bush Kids school holiday program was held between 23 September and Friday 2 October with most activities booked out.
Koola Park Killara Council has begun work on a major upgrade of facilities at the park in Koola Avenue in East Killara. The works are part of planned improvements for the park outlined in the Koola Park Landscape Masterplan. The first stage of the work involving installation of a stormwater harvesting system and four new cricket nets was completed last year. Further stages of the work are now underway and expected to be finished by March 2016. Key improvements include: • Reconfiguring the existing three sportsfields to add an additional field, bringing the total number of fields to four • Extended car parking including a drop-off area • Targeted field lighting, landscaping and improved fencing • Outdoor exercise equipment and a new playground • A one kilometre shared pathway around the perimeter of the park for cyclists and pedestrians
Cameron Park, Turramurra As part of its adopted Open Space Acquisition Strategy, Council purchased four residential properties in Gilroy Road Turramurra adjacent to Cameron Park. The properties were purchased to provide additional public open space using funds generated through the Ku-ring-gai Section 94 Development Contributions Plan 2010. Approximately 2,600sqm of land has been acquired, which will effectively double the size of Cameron Park to provide over 5,500sqm of public parkland.
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Construction has started on the extension of the park and features include open sunny grass areas, shade trees, waterwise gardens and a multipurpose paved area with outdoor table tennis and picnic facilities. The park’s popular play facilities, sculpture and bicycle path will also be upgraded. Works are expected to be complete by early 2016.
Echo Point Park, East Roseville The playground at Echo Point Park at Middle Harbour was refurbished in June with existing playground equipment completely renovated by Council staff. The playground has a pirate ship and swings, electric BBQ, toilets and picnic shelter and is located off Babbage Road in Roseville. In October work on reconstructing the sea wall at Echo Point Park was completed. The $130,000 reconstruction was of a section of seawall at Echo Point Park on Middle Harbour which was collapsing. The sea wall was originally constructed as part of the land reclaimed to build the second Roseville Baths on the site in 1933. As recommended by a heritage impact statement, a photographic record of the seawall was made before reconstruction.
Warrimoo Avenue shops, St Ives Chase Public consultation began in October on a concept plan for a comprehensive upgrade to the Warrimoo Avenue shops. Among the improvements proposed are: • An accessible link between the park and shops and an accessible car space • Upgraded footpaths along shopfronts including new pavers • New signage and furniture • New landscaping, fencing and walls along the park edge to street and shops • Improvements to the park including a picnic shelter, bubbler, fencing and creation of a ‘village green’. Once public consultation has been completed work will start early next year to be finished by mid-2016.
Warrimoo Avenue playground St Ives Chase The playground at Warrimoo Avenue was upgraded to include a climber and slide, a small swinging bridge, a spring ride and a jeep for children aged from 2 to 10 years old. New rubber soft fall was installed, an additional seat and landscaping including shade trees. The existing swing set was retained. Work on the playground upgrade began in August and the Council was successful in applying for $30,000 grant funding for the playground project through the NSW Department of Sport & Recreation and Community Building Partnerships Program.
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General Managers Report
| July - December 2015
Canoon Road netball courts A draft plan of management for the Canoon Road netball courts was placed on public exhibition in June for public comment until 7 August. The new plan was prepared to manage the increased use of the site and rising demand, as well as nearby residents’ concerns over parking and traffic. The plan recommends the installation of floodlights on up to nine of the 21 courts to allow netball organisers to move games from Saturdays to Friday evenings initially and Thursday evenings depending on future growth, alleviating traffic congestion on Saturdays. The lights would also allow tennis court hire during the week. Time restrictions would apply to the floodlights if installed. In November the Council considered the results of the public exhibition and decided to approve the management plan. A consultative committee of local residents and netball representatives will oversee timetabling and the location of the lighting.
Other upgrades A total of 1.2 million was approved in August by the Council for a series of upgrades to local centres and shopping areas over the next two years. $741,000 has been set aside by the Council in this year’s budget for upgrades, including $242,000 for the Warrimoo Avenue shopping centre at St Ives Chase.Just over $570,000 has been allocated in the 2016-2017 budget for more improvements such as an upgrade to the Babbage Road shopping centre at Roseville and heritage signage at the Moore Avenue centre in West Lindfield. Cherrywood Reserve in North Wahroonga has received a facelift, including upgrades to existing play equipment and installation of a new see saw, spring toy and toddlers castle. The Council provided funds and manpower during this reporting period to assist the Rotary Club of Roseville to complete a new playground at Malga Avenue Roseville. The land on which the new playground was built was formerly vacant road reserve. The Council provided $50,000 funding for the project and assistance with the construction. During this period works were completed on the refurbishment of the Turramurra Memorial Pavilion and Kent Oval Amenities. The Turramurra Pavilion has been given new life by receiving a new roof, gutters and down pipes, new storm water services along with new footpath. The building has also received a fresh coat of paint both internally and externally with the look and feel of its former heritage styling. Kent Oval is being upgraded with new internal fixtures and fittings to improve the conditions and usage of this facility. The Boonah Centre public toilets at West Pymble Mall received a new coat of paint, partitions and tiling to give this busy amenities a simple but effective make over. St Ives Library / Childcare / Neighbourhood Centre saw the Council working with the St Ives Shopping Centre to replace roof sheeting that had reached its end of life creating issues with water leakage and air conditioning problems. All issues have now been resolved thanks to this replacement program.
A SNAPSHOT OF OUR ACHIEVEMENTS
THEME 4 A C C ES S , T R A F F I C & T R A N S P O R T Access and connection to, from and within Ku-ring-gai provides safe, reliable and affordable public and private travel, transport and infrastructure. Cycling
Turramurra local centre
The Council hosted a very successful Ride to Work day on Wednesday 14 October! Over 200 riders came to Gordon Recreational Reserve for a free breakfast including pedalpowered smoothies, bike tune-ups and for advice about how Council is working to make Ku-ring-gai more bike-friendly.
As part of the master planning process for Turramurra meetings are continuing with Transport for NSW regarding planning for commuter car parking and Sydney Trains regarding the rail corridor.
Roads & footpaths Over 764 metres of new footpath were installed in Ku-ring-gai during the period and a further 850 metres are scheduled to be constructed to June 2016. Key areas include Warrimoo Avenue and Mawson Street in St Ives, Ridgeland Avenue in Killara, Munderah Street and Westbrook Avenue in Wahroonga and Lofberg Road and Inverallan Avenue in West Pymble. Over $4.5 million has been spent in the period on Ku-ring-gai roads. This includes $300k in RMS grants and $850k from the federal Roads to Recovery grants program.
Lindfield local centre Investigations and discussions are continuing with Transport for NSW regarding the option of splitting the proposed 240 commuter parking spaces at Lindfield (Transport for NSW) across the Lindfield Community Hub site and the Lindfield Village Green site. New traffic signals at the intersection of Lindfield Avenue and Tryon Road are being included by consultants as part of the Lindfield Village Green concept plans. A new road link between Bent Street and Beaconsfield Parade is also included in the Lindfield Community Hub concept plans.
Road safety A free child restraint and car seat checking day was held on 17 September for Ku-ring-gai residents. Child car seats, harness and booster seats were checked for safety and fit by an authorised fitter.
Gordon link road A master plan is progressing for Gordon Town Centre of which traffic and transport reviews will be a major component. Traffic and transport consultants have been engaged and traffic counts were completed during August. Construction of the new link road between Dumaresq Street and McIntyre Street in Gordon is almost complete. The new name for the road is Beans Farm Road which was approved by Council in October.
Over 200 cyclists dropped in for free breakfast at the Council’s Ride to Work event at Gordon Ku-ring-gai Council
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THEME 5 LO C A L E C O N O M Y & E M P LO Y M E N T Creating economic employment opportunities through vital, attractive centres, business innovation and technology.
Activate Lindfield Three alternative concept designs have been developed for the Lindfield Village Green. These were exhibited for public comment during April and May and Council adopted a preferred option in June. Four concept designs have been produced for a new park on the western side of Lindfield associated with the Lindfield Community Hub. Option 2 was chosen as the preferred design for the Lindfield Community Hub in Woodford Lane. Key features of Option 2 include: • A new Lindfield branch library • A new community centre • An underground supermarket with high quality retail shops • Residential apartment buildings with a seven storey height limit
• A large public park • A town square with restaurants and cafes • Basement car parking for commuters, visitors, residents and shoppers
Activate Turramurra Concept designs were prepared and rigorous market testing conducted by two independent consultants during this period for the redevelopment of the Turramurra shopping centre. Further consultation with the key community stakeholders was also undertaken. A report on the proposed designs and market testing will be presented to Council in December with a view to a public exhibition early next year.
Local markets The Council continued to provide marketing support to the new community market at East Lindfield. In August the market extended operations from the community hall to the grassed area. The Council provided sponsorship for the Wahroonga Food and Wine Festival held in October. Work continued on the organic food market at the old school site at St Ives.
Helping small business A new program of seminars and events was planned during this quarter commencing with a free business breakfast on leadership held on 13 August at Warrawee function centre, supported by Wahroonga Rotary. Around 70 local businesspeople attended and heard from keynote speaker, Jeremy Carter of Rapport Leadership International about the importance of leadership in running an effective business. The NSW Small Business Commissioner’s Small Biz Bus visited St Ives on 10 August. The Bus gives local businesses free access to small business advisers providing advice about all aspects of running a small business. The visit was widely promoted and fully booked with business advisors assisting small business all day. A free workshop for businesses on continuity planning and risk management after a disaster was held in July at the Council Chambers. It was presented by a business advisor from KPMG, who gave practical tips and advice on how to 14
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keep business running in the face of a disastrous event. These could range from flooding and fire, technology meltdowns and personal trauma such as a death in the family or marriage breakdown. The Better Business Program recruited 36 new local businesses into the program during the period. A total of 178 Ku-ring-gai businesses are now actively working with Council to improve their sustainability performance. A further $7 million in funding to assist 26 NSW Councils and organisations help small-to-medium businesses increase recycling, reduce waste and lower costs was announced in September. The Better
Business Partnership funded by Ku-ring-gai, North Sydney and Willoughby City Councils was one of the 26 organisations successful in securing funding.
Digital services Web Map has been developed by Council to staff as an easyto-use online mapping service open to the public. The system works through a series of map overlays utilising Google Maps showing various features of a property or site. Functions include: • Land parcel mapping and legal descriptions • Property related information • Aerial photography taken in 2014 • Find a facility – schools, childcare, playgrounds, parks, dog off leash areas etc. • Heritage items and areas • Planning zones, development standards, topography, bush fire prone land, vegetation etc. • Federal, state and local government electoral boundaries • Measurement and printing tools • A link to Google Street View The Web Map tool is located on the Council website under the ‘About Ku-ring-gai/Land and Surrounds/Web Map – Online Mapping Tool’ link. At this stage Web Map is PC-based only but there are plans to launch a smart device enabled version next year.
36 new businesses in Ku-ring-gai joined the Better Business Partnership to learn how to reduce waste Ku-ring-gai Council
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THEME 6 LEADERSHIP & GOVERNANCE Ku-ring-gai is well led, managed and supported by ethical organisations which deliver projects and services to the community by listening, advocating and responding to their needs. Fit for the Future
Equal Employment Opportunity Plan
The NSW Government’s assessment of Ku-ring-gai Council’s submission on Fit for the Future was announced by IPART on 23 October. Along with over 70% of NSW councils Ku-ring-gai was found to be ‘unfit’ on its failure to meet the ‘scale and capacity’ criterion imposed by the government.
During this period a review of our current EEO plan has been undertaken to ensure Ku-ring-gai Council is a diverse workplace with opportunities for individuals irrespective of their background . A working group is being established to ensure the new EEO Plan reflects a fair opportunity for all, with a final draft to be completed by the end of the year.
Although scale and capacity is yet to be publicly defined by the government or IPART, it is widely believed to mean a population target of 250,000 residents. Ku-ring-gai Council met or exceeded all other criteria including financial strength and capacity to deliver a wide range of projects and services. All NSW councils found to be ‘unfit’ by the government were given 28 days to respond to the findings by submitting a voluntary merger proposal. The Council resolved on 18 November to reject the government’s findings and not submit such a proposal. The Baird government is now expected to make a further announcement on council mergers before the end of this year.
Ku-ring-gai community grants Between June and July 2015 the Council offered up to $5,000 in grants to community groups and local businesses through the Ku-ring-gai Community Grants program. A total of $90,000 in grants was on offer. The grants program commenced with a Grants Writing Workshop attended by representatives from 53 local organisations. For the first time applications will be submitted electronically using the Smarty Grants software and this will assist Council in more efficiently administering the grants program.
Organisational values Since the official launch in July, staff have been given materials and resources to help integrate the new values into the way they work. In October new lanyards with the values printed on them were distributed, and the values are now prominently displayed around common staff areas and on every PC. Directors, managers and supervisors are actively discussing the new values with their staff and ways they can be incorporated into their daily work.
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Performance management for staff A new performance management system was introduced in August 2015 with the intention of making the process of measuring performance easier for staff and managers with a ‘no surprises’ focus. The Perform system was developed through extensive consultation and collaboration and the new process has been well received by staff. Performance objectives were completed for all staff by the end of September. The next part of Perform will include optional sessions in November and the formal mid-year review in January and February next year.
New phone system In August the Council switched to Telstra as its phone provider, which has improved cost savings and reception. A new phone system was also installed which provides the latest features to improve communication with our community and deliver a reduction in call costs. Network equipment and link replacement was completed as part of PABX installation, providing faster and more reliable links between all Council sites for both voice and computer networks.
Integrated planning & reporting The review of the Council’s operational plan for 2014-2015 was reported in August 2015. The report advised that Council had achieved an 81% completion rate for 2014 – 2015 tasks in the Plan, a very sound result despite significant staff resources being focussed on Council’s responses to the State Government’s Fit for the Future initiatives during 2014 – 2015. Inclement weather also affected some community events and the completion of some capital works.
STEP Track bushwalk, South Turramurra
Ku-ring-gai Council 818 Pacific Highway, Gordon NSW 2072 Locked Bag 1006, Gordon NSW 2072 P 02 9424 0000 F 02 9424 0001 E kmc@kmc.nsw.gov.au www.kmc.nsw.gov.au