Newsletter – September 2025

Clivea

The death of experienced surfer, Mercury Psillakis, at Long Reef on 6 September has shocked the community and our sympathy goes out to his family and friends. The NSW Government has consequently stopped the trial to remove shark nets on three beaches, including Palm Beach. The State government had announced a trial to remove shark nets on three beaches to examine alternatives to protect marine life without compromising human safety by installing more effective, non-lethal shark mitigation technologies. The Northern Beaches Council was asked to nominate a beach and they nominated Palm Beach. They have now withdrawn that nomination. The shark nets are normally about 150m long and 6m deep. They catch harmless and protected marine species such as dolphins, turtles, whales and rays. Possible alternatives are drone surveillance and/or a system of tagging and tracking sharks who can then be detected as they approach beaches. The fatal attack at Long Reef/Dee Why came after shark nets had been installed at 50 NSW beaches, including Dee Why, for the beginning of the spring and summer season. The net has been reinstalled at Palm Beach. There has been a shark sighting at Palm Beach during the last few weeks.

COUNCIL

APPOINTMENT OF DEPUTY MAYOR

At the NB Council Meeting on 16 September Councillor Candy Bingham was elected as Deputy Mayor in place of Councillor Ruth Robins who did not renominate. Councillor Bingham has been a Councillor for Manly Ward since the formation of Northern Beaches Council in 2017 and previously served as Deputy Mayor for four years.

CAREEL BAY – CLEARING OF VEGETATION

Work has started to clear the debris near Barrenjoey Road after flooding at Careel Bay. It will be continuing over coming weeks.

COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION PLAN

As reported in last month’s newsletter we made a submission to the 3-year review of community participation in planning proposals. As a result of a decision now taken by the State Government to introduce a single, state-wide Community Participation Plan, community engagement will now be standardised across all planning authorities in NSW. Northern Beaches Council has therefore paused its Community Participation Plan. This is a disappointing result. This Bill has yet to pass Parliament. If you would like more information please follow these links:

NSW Government’s media release https://www.nsw.gov.au/ministerial-releases/planning-system-reform-to-help-build-nsw-future

Copy of the Bill and the Minister’s second reading speech https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/bills/Pages/bill-details.aspx?pk=18807

OSPREY NESTING PLATFORM

Northern Beaches Council has installed an Osprey nesting platform at the rear of Hitchcock Park in Avalon to support the Eastern Osprey. The 23-metre high platform aims to imitate the natural nesting places for ospreys and provide a safe habitat for them. Co-funding with the NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment & Water has enabled this initiative and is part of Sydney’s drive to manage the decline of local species. Link

This is what we hope for!

PLANNING

LEGISLATIVE REFORMS TO CLASS 1 DEVELOPMENT APPEALS TO THE LAND AND ENVIRONMENT COURT

Councillor Rowie Dillon’s Notice of Motion (which was included in our last newsletter and you can read on our website) was discussed at the Council meeting on 16 September. We thoroughly support the motion which she introduced as follows at the Council meeting:

Madam Mayor & Colleagues, I bring this motion forward because our current planning and appeals framework is undermining both the integrity of the development assessment process and the confidence of our community. Right now, an applicant can take a Class 1 development appeal to the NSW Land & Environment Court just 40 days after lodging their development application. That’s barely enough time for council staff to complete a thorough assessment let along have meaningful dialogue with the applicant to resolve issues.

This short timeframe creates three major problems:

First, it forces our planners into a corner juggling court proceedings alongside normal assessment work which delays other applications and puts extra strain on resources.

Second, it encourages the use of Court as a parallel pathway rather than a last resort even though the Minister’s own target is 105 days for councils to determine applications.

And third – Every time council is pulled into unnecessary court proceedings, legal fees and expert costs mount up. That’s money that could – and should – be going into services for our community not fighting appeals that could have been resolved earlier through genuine engagement.

We also need to acknowledge the community’s growing frustration. Too often residents feel their voices are excluded from merit appeal processes especially when they’re shut out of ‘without prejudice’ conciliation conferences. This erodes trust in the system.
Our motion seeks three sensible reforms:

1. Reduce the number of ‘deemed refusal appeals by extending the timeframe and scope for these appeals
2. Require applicants to meet in good faith with the consent authority before heading to Court
3. Strengthen opportunities for public participation in Class 1 appeals

These changes aren’t about blocking development – they’re about fairness, efficiency and cost-effectiveness. They’ll give councils, applicants and communities the time and space to work together, resolve issues earlier avoiding litigation.

Councillor Miranda Korzy seconded the motion emphasising that residents and resident associations, who are most affected by the outcomes of DAs, also have no avenue of appeal to the court and the councils – and therefore residents – bear the costs of running court cases that could potentially have been resolved without litigation. The Notice of Motion was passed by Council and it is hoped it will be presented at the NSW Local Government Conference in November.

Note – In NSW the fastest Council in handling DAs is Wollondilly which averages 61 days and the slowest is Georges River which averages 289 days.

DEVELOPMENT CAREEL HEAD/BARRENJOEY ROADS

The Development Application to build a Childcare Centre above a Dan Murphy’s liquor store has been approved by the Land and Environment Court even though there has been considerable opposition to the proposal including from the NSW Department of Health. Avalon Preservation Assoc. and Careel Bay Residents Association are extremely perturbed and we agree that it is an inappropriate site for a liquor store (there are also several in the local area already) particularly so close to a Childcare Centre. There are also considerable implications for traffic in the surrounding streets and the local residents have requested involvement in planning the traffic flow. When an application is made for a liquor licence we will have a further opportunity to make representations.

We understand that the approval has been given only for the building to include a Childcare Centre with three retail premises beneath.   A separate application will be made for a liquor store as part of the retail premises.

DEVELOPMENT AT INGLESIDE

Development at Ingleside has been discussed for some years. The Ingleside Place Strategy which envisaged building 3,400 new homes was cancelled in June 2022 over concerns of bush-fire risk and the costs of necessary infrastructure. There are now plans for building 536 new homes in a proposed Wilga Wilson Precinct development by Mirvac Homes and the Truslan Group and a Planning Proposal has been put forward to rezone the site from rural to medium density amongst considerable local opposition. If approved, this will go some way towards meeting the new target housing for the Northern Beaches LGA (as yet unspecified) although considerable additional infrastructure would without doubt be required. It would go through as a State Significant Development.

WHALE BEACH POOL

Work has started on the renovations to Whale Beach pool. The pool is closed at present. We have been told the work will be completed by November – in time for the Christmas holidays!

GOVERNOR PHILLIP PARK

At the next Council meeting Councillor Miranda Korzy will put forward a motion as follows:
That the Council

1. Note the draft Governor Phillip Plan of Management is in the final stage of development
2. Establish a Governor Phillip Park Community Working Group in preparation for adoption of the Plan of Management to advise Council in developing concept plans for future community infrastructure and identifying environmental priorities and opportunities
3. Staff brief Councillors on proposed terms of reference for the working group, including proposed membership, as part of the future briefing on the draft Governor Phillip Park Plan of Management

The Association has recently met with Jeremy Smith, Park Assets and Project Manager at Northern Beaches Council, Barrenjoey Alliance for Arts & Culture, the Mayor and Councillors Korzy and Dillon to discuss the needs of Governor Phillip Park. Council staff would support the formation of a new Working Group with its name, terms of reference and composition to be agreed if the Council approves Miranda Korzy’s motion. On behalf of the Association, Virginia Christensen made a submission in support of Councillor Korzy’s motion at the last Council meeting which can be read on our website. Link

The new Plan of Management for the Park will proceed for Gateway Clearance by the State Government in October but it will not be available for consultation with the community until April or May next year. The Master Plan which is normally issued with the Plan of Management will not be produced. The Council will have a working document but this will have flexibility, providing guidelines but not formalised detail. The budget for the Park for 2026/27 is $2.3m. although it is realised that this sum is unlikely to cover the necessary upgrading. One of the urgent needs is an additional toilet block but also it is essential to improve the condition of the roads and car parks as well as the grassed and planted areas.

There are many demands on the Park as well as the daily flow of visitors such as private parties and get-togethers, filming, events held in the restaurants, Urban night sky.

Have you seen the new sign in the Park?

NRMA have named Governor Phillip Park as one of NSW’s Ultimate Star Gazing Spots in their current edition of ‘Open Road’ magazine

Members may have noticed that there has been a considerable increase to the rabbit population in the Park. We have reported this to the Council.

E-BIKES

A delightful young man let me photograph his very smart bike. He was wearing a helmet and responsibly wheeling his bike in the congested area near the Community Centre in Avalon. We need more riders like him.

Following last month’s community forum on E-Bikes, Dr Sophie Scamps, Federal MP for Mackellar, has introduced a Private Members Bill to ensure that E-Bikes are safe and fit for purpose and conform to international safety standards. Currently, there are no mandatory standards for imported bikes as they are not considered road vehicles and there are divergent standards at State and Federal Government levels. This has led to confusion and little action by police on illegal bikes. Legally, in NSW, there is an overall speed limit of 25k/h for bikes but this can easily be adjusted on the bikes themselves and many riders are achieving speeds far in excess of this even with more than one person on the bike. Recently, groups of young people have arranged ‘ride outs’ with large numbers of bike riders riding at dangerous speeds in suburban streets on the Northern Beaches. We continue to press our MPs for appropriate regulation and education of young riders.

WAKEHURST PARKWAY

Work is slow to proceed on Wakehurst Parkway. There are two separate projects and attempts are being made to co-ordinate them.

One, funded by Northern Beaches Council, is to provide flood mitigation (urgently needed as was evidenced by the tremendous amount of rain during the last few months) on the areas beside the road and the other project is to widen and upgrade the road itself and enable it to remain open for all but one or two days a year. This will be funded by the State and Federal Governments. We are being updated on their progress.

AVALON COMMUNITY LIBRARY

Sarah Yates from Avalon Library recently spoke to members of the Association at a Coffee Morning meeting about the many services offered by Avalon Community Library. It is unique as, although it is a Community Library, it is connected to the Northern Beaches library system so that we are able to borrow material from any of the six Northern Beaches libraries as well as Avalon. The Council only provides one paid staff member, the Library Coordinator, and all other people we see working in the library are volunteers. It is open every day, Monday to Friday 10am to 5 pm, Saturday 10am to 1pm, Sunday 2pm to 5 pm.

What Avalon Community Library offers us:

• Books, DVDs, Newspapers and magazines and a comfortable place to sit and read or work
• Free wi fi
• 2 Computers and a printer to use at a modest cost
• Photocopying and scanning to a usb
• Children’s story times – Author talks. Sign up for an email alert on the library web page: https://www.avalonlibrary.org.au/
• You can also put the Northern Beaches Library app on your phone to keep track of your loans, search all Northern Beaches library holdings and reserve any item to be sent to Avalon for collection. The Northern Beaches Library app can be downloaded free from the App Store.
• E-Resources With your library card you can access research databases, language learning courses, study help E-books, E-audiobooks and E-magazines through apps BorrowBox and Libby. Northern Beaches library website offers access to the fascinating local history resource History Hub.

The Library Coordinator or friendly volunteers are happy to help.

Are you interested in being one of the volunteers? Drop in and talk to the Library Coordinator!

The library has an exhibition at the moment. Why not pay them a visit?

THREATENED SPECIES DAY

Tasmanian Tiger

On 7 September 1936 the last Tasmanian Tiger died in captivity and now each year 7 September marks Threatened Species Day across Australia raising awareness of plants and animals at risk of extinction. NSW could lose 1000 of our precious native animals and plants and since 2016 the NSW Government has invested more than $175m in the conservation of threatened species. Land clearing, pollution, the introduction of foreign species and climate change all contribute as human populations grow. Find out more here.

CURRAWONG WHARF

Currawong Beach Wharf is to be upgraded. It forms part of the Currawong site which is listed on the State Heritage Register and the work is being done in association with the Office of Environment and Heritage. The wharf will be extended by 33.6m. through a series of fixed ramps and landings to provide ferry access at all levels of tide and constructed in timber to match the existing wharf and the history of Pittwater. The upgrade will improve accessibility for visitors and the local community. If you would like to comment you may do so under Have Your Say: https://yoursay.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au/currawong-beach-wharf-upgrade

COFFEE MEETING WITH JACQUI SCRUBY

Our Pittwater State MP, Jacqui Scruby, was generous with her time and we covered a number of subjects during this coffee meeting with members. After welcoming her, the President said that the greatest concern to local residents at the moment was development in the area. She gave some background to new planning regulations. The Labour government and the Coalition have joined forces so the changes will go through without opposition. There will be fewer cases before the Land & Environment Court as amendments will be easier to get through. The Planning Department feel that since a number of government agencies currently pronounce on developments this has meant that there is often conflicting advice, causing confusion and delay. They propose now to have one body to combine these agencies in the planning process. How much community consultation there will be is yet to be determined but it is likely this will decrease. There would be more CDCs rather than DAs. CDCs are Complying Development Certificates which are a streamlined fast-track approval process for straightforward developments and serve as a combined planning and building approval allowing developments that meet specific standards and legislative requirements to bypass the traditional DA process. This, in Jacqui Scruby’s opinion, will totally flip the way in which planning is done in NSW. It is difficult to see the opportunity for much affordable housing in our area. In Frenchs Forest Michael Regan is tackling the need by lobbying for Essential Workers’ Housing to provide housing for workers who are so needed in the area. Jacqui Scruby emphasised that the Premier’s priority was to build more houses at all costs. She would continue to fight against the changes to the planning policy but encourage the concept of appropriate development.

Miranda Korzy felt that we needed to build up community resistance to these new controls. The President described how the current system where developers went to the Land & Environment Court immediately after 40 days and a deemed refusal meant that we were quickly into a situation where objectors had no further input. Submissions were ignored and there was no opportunity for members of the public to present to the Court. On site Conciliation Conferences were token gestures and seemed to have no effect on the outcome. It was suggested that to include Planners as well as Lawyers on the Land & Environment Court might produce a better result. Both Jacqui Scruby and Richard West emphasised the importance of conservation zones and the need to keep them in place.

Work on Wakehurst Parkway was unlikely to start until next year and the environmental studies had not yet been completed.

Large developments in Whale Beach were providing real difficulties for people trying to use the roads and dangerous situations as works’ vehicles parked inappropriately. The Council was not enforcing Traffic Plans and the Ward Councillors were asked to bring the matter up in Council.

The NSW Health team continues to work at Northern Beaches Hospital to prepare for the takeover. At a meeting with Jacqui Scruby and Michael Regan concern had been expressed by private specialist doctors that private services might be reduced, to the detriment of both public and private patients. Talks are continuing to ensure a smooth handover. Richard West felt that Pittwater residents should not have to go to Royal North Shore Hospital to access Level 6 treatment and that Northern Beaches Hospital should be upgraded to Level 6 at the time of the takeover.

Following a number of recent emergency evacuations from Barrenjoey Headland, one very recently, the Association stressed that there should be a formal plan to handle such events. Jacqui Scruby agreed to investigate this and the delay in setting up the Community Reference Group agreed to at the time of our rally to protect the Headland from short term rental accommodation three years ago.

The 50 k/h limit on Barrenjoey Road from Newport to Palm Beach has produced a mixed reaction, the main area of contention being Newport hill. There was a nursing home on the hill but Jacqui would look into accident rates to see if there was a case to increase the speed limit there to 60 k/h.

Potholes were also a major concern after the winter rains. She believed that the contractor who logged potholes on Barrenjoey Road for the State Government could do so more efficiently with systems currently available and would ask the NSW Auditor General to investigate.

Funds allocated by the Council for improvements in Governor Phillip Park over the next two years would not cover the work needed and Jacqui agreed to look at the possibility of additional State Government grants. Robert McKinnon outlined a plan to divide the park into two and the planted area along the ridge which divided North Palm Beach from Pittwater should become an area showcasing Australian native coastal plants, possibly with the assistance of the Botanic Gardens. Management of the area would need to be discussed but possibly community groups would be prepared to take on maintenance when the area had been set up. We will be discussing this further.

Most of the E-bikes currently being ridden on the roads are illegal since their maximum speeds have been adjusted and some are not pedal assisted. The NSW Government will be issuing an E-Mobility Masterplan in the next sitting of Parliament. The Police are now playing a bigger role in enforcement of the rules. The Association feels that registration of bike owners is necessary.

Vapes are illegal unless they are on prescription. The State Government is now getting involved as it has become clear just how many shops are selling vapes illegally. This is being spread by organised crime syndicates as possible revenue is considerable.

The NSW Government has introduced a new bill to reform workers’ compensation into the Legislative Assembly. The first bill passed the Lower House in June but is now blocked.

Jacqui is investigating the future of shark nets after the death of Mercury Psillakis at Long Reef.

MONA VALE ROAD WEST UPGRADE

ART ON THE NORTHERN BEACHES

Annual Art Awards

Barrenjoey Artwalk is returning for its second year from 29 November to 14 December. Retailers and businesses throughout Avalon will be showcasing artworks in their shopfronts. They are all available to buy and a portion of the proceeds will go to Barrenjoey High School. This year the Artwalk is collaborating with The Deep North Project which celebrates art, culture and community across the Upper Northern Beaches. Look for the bright yellow dots from 29 November and follow Barrenjoey Artwalk on Facebook or Instagram for everything you need to know.

LIVING OCEAN

Living Ocean are holding a Surfboard Auction ‘Art for Oceans’ on Saturday 18 October at Club Palm Beach with Ben Quilty as special guest. The 20 surfboards have all been decorated by prominent artists and it is a fund-raiser for the expansion of Living Ocean’s flagship whale research programme.

AVALON BEACH SURF LIFE SAVING CLUB

This is the centenary year for Avalon Beach Surf Life Saving Club and next weekend (4-6 October) they will hold an exhibition of rare photos and historical rescue equipment. The centrepiece will be the first inflatable Rescue Boat that has transformed surf lifesaving around the world.

CHRISTMAS PARTY

Our annual Christmas Party will be held on Sunday, 7 December at Dunes Restaurant from 6-8.30 pm. Please reserve the date.

OTHER DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Next Coffee Morning – 10.30 am Monday 27 October at the Pacific Club. The Speaker at this meeting will be from AvPals

Next Committee Meeting – 7 pm on Monday 13 October at the Pacific Club

Please do not hesitate to contact PBWBA with any questions, concerns and thoughts.

Email: info@pbwba.org.au

Professor Richard West
0407 942 941