Shared Pathways Update

After a cycleway audit conducted in conjunction with IBUG, Healthy Cities and ICS we have really good news. A major obstacle in the “path around the lake” has been removed as the Department of Housing has handed foreshore land near Gilba Rd aot the Lake Illawarra Authority. The LIA are now pressing ahead with plans for a cycleway all the way to Yallah Bay, instead of abruptly ending in the middle of nowhere!.

• ABC News Report
• LIA Update

What really happened about Tallawarra

Here is a summary from the Council Docs

Council recommended Tallawarra rezonings be supported with amendments.

In response to the public exhibition process thirty two (32) submissions were received, comprising twenty four (24) objections, three (3) submissions in support and five (5) submissions providing comments on the proposal. The objections included submissions from Concerned Residents for East Dapto (CRED), the Illawarra Escarpment Coalition (IEC), Neighbourhood Forum 4, Wollongong Against Corruption (WAC) and Illawarra Community and Environment Connection (ICEC).

The Member for Shellharbour lodged an objection to residential development at Tallawarra Point. The submission indicated that the community wants the Point treated as a coastal headland and reserved for green space.

The issues raised by the community include:
• Traffic generation;
• Adverse impact of road link through Haywards Bay;
• Adverse impact on environmental values of the foreshore site and the significant wetlands on the site;
• No demand for residential development;
• Adverse impact of residential development on the steeply sloping sections of the site;
• Unacceptable public infrastructure costs;
• Adverse impact upon Lake Illawarra;
• Insufficient ecological investigations;
• Asbestos concerns from the previous power station;
• Insufficient buffer to the power station;
• Residential height limit excessive;
• Insufficient provision of employment lands as required by the Illawarra regional strategy;
• Rezoning limits the provision of a pathway around the foreshore;
• Adverse visual impacts of residential development on Elizabeth and Tallawarra Points;
• Flood impacts;
• Loss of recreation opportunities; and
• Conflicting land uses with residential development close to the power station site.

The concept design submitted in support of the rezoning is not endorsed by the rezoning.

The DECC formally objected to the Tallawarra rezoning on the basis of the flood impacts. The submission also raised concerns relating to noise impacts, asbestos contamination, biodiversity impacts and Aboriginal heritage.

Land Use changes
Power Station 30 ha to 40 ha
Employment and Tourism 130 ha unchanged.
Residential 130 ha to 80 ha
Open Space 22 ha to 23 ha
Environmental Conservation 261 ha to 300 ha

So we still get houses on the Northern Slopes – apparrently Wollongong Council respects visual impacts for Shellharbour Residents but not Wollongong residents. Go figure.

Our hope is that the smaller scale along with DCP controls will make the whole thing unviable.

Zoning changes at Tallawarra

What’s been happening about Tallawarra

Over the next few weeks I’ll be updating this blog up to speed on whats happened leading up to, and since the Council’s consultation process.

The first thing to note is that 7 months ago, Sylvia Hale made an important speech supporting us, and out State Government’s response was to vote to adjourn the house!

WOLLONGONG LOCAL ENVIRONMENT PLAN

Page: 12229

Ms SYLVIA HALE [2.16 a.m.]: I understand that the Director General of Planning is currently considering whether to allow the draft Wollongong local environmental plan [LEP] to go on public exhibition. I believe that the draft local environmental plan should not go on exhibition at this time and that it should be returned to the council with an instruction to undertake a thorough and open investigation to ensure that any proposed rezonings have been put forward on the basis of merit and not on the basis of corrupt or partial dealings with certain Wollongong developers. I have good reason for concern about the way in which the draft local environmental plan has been put together. In July this year I was provided with information that Frank Vellar, the developer named by ICAC in its report on Wollongong City Council as engaging in “serious corrupt conduct”, had two currently empty mansions on the Illawarra escarpment at Corrimal recommended for retrospective approval as part of the draft local environmental plan.

It has been alleged that these mansions were built illegally on land zoned for environmental protection. A Wollongong council report found that the Vellar construction site contributed to damage to houses on land below the Vellar property caused by the 1998 Wollongong flood. Documents obtained by the Greens show that Wollongong council, rather than prosecuting Mr Vellar, spent nearly $140,000 of public funds repairing drainage problems on the escarpment caused by his illegal building works. Disgraced former council employee and Australian Labor Party member Joe Scimone was head of the council’s engineering department at the time the remediation work was undertaken at council expense. The recommendation to rezone the Vellar land to allow the houses was contained in a draft local environmental plan approved by the disgraced Wollongong council the night before it was dismissed.

Following the public exposure of this scandalous rezoning proposal, the council’s administrators withdrew the Vellar mansions site from the draft local environmental plan. That leaves unanswered the question that must be answered: How did the Vellar rezoning find its way into the draft local environmental plan in the first place? I have a very real concern that it was put there as a result of partial, if not corrupt, dealings involving Mr Vellar and officers of the council. There is the additional question concerning how many other proposed rezonings in the draft local environmental plan may be the result of inappropriate or corrupt dealings with developers. Consider, for example, the proposed rezoning of lands at Tallawarra. I raised this matter in the House in May and I do not believe that the issues I raised at that time have been addressed.

The background to the proposed Tallawarra rezoning is that in 2003, in a secret deal, the Carr Government sold to the company TXU Australia, for an upfront payment of $4 million, the publicly owned Tallawarra lands, which comprise some 600 hectares and nearly six kilometres of Lake Illawarra frontage. A further $11 million was to be paid later when a power station was operating on 65 hectares of the site. A condition of this bonanza for the company was that it build a gas-fired power station. In return, some of the remaining 535 hectares could be sold to provide further employment opportunities, and the rest was to be retained for environment conservation. I doubt whether anyone would be surprised to learn that TXU donated $11,000 to the New South Wales branch of the Australian Labor Party at around the time of its secret deal with the Government.

In 2005, the China Light and Power Company, known in Australia as TRUenergy, bought TXU and, with it, the Tallawarra site. We know from council documents that there was a cosy relationship between some Wollongong council officers and representatives of TRUenergy throughout this time. The proposed rezoning will allow for the development of a huge housing estate on the Tallawarra lands. The local environment study [LES] prepared by TRUenergy forms the basis for the draft LEP in relation to Tallawarra. I believe that the LES, prepared as it was on behalf of the proponent, is questionable and needs to be set aside. An LES undertaken independently of TRUenergy, as required by law, should be prepared before any rezoning proposal for Tallawarra is given further consideration. I believe that the draft Wollongong local environmental plan should be sent back to the council and an open and independent inquiry undertaken into all the rezoning proposals contained in that plan. The people of Wollongong have the right to know that any local environmental plan is drafted on the basis of what is best for the community, not on what is best for corrupt developers.

Community Engagement Resolutions

SUBMISSION TO THE NSW PLANNING FRAMEWORK (INQUIRY), PARLIAMENT OF NEW SOUTH WALES, FROM WOLLONGONG AGAINST CORRUPTION ON BEHALF OF THE PEOPLE OF WOLLONGONG

REPORT FROM A COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT CONFERENCE ON
WOLLONGONG CITY COUNCIL’S DRAFT LOCAL ENVIRONMENT PLAN 2009
HOSTED BY WOLLONGONG AGAINST CORRUPTION (WAC)
FRATERNITY CLUB, FAIRY MEADOW 28 FEBRUARY 2009

CONFERENCE CONCLUSIONS AND RESOLUTIONS

I. INTRODUCTION

1. In response to broad community concern across the Wollongong region, and involving a number of concerned local community groups and individuals, a ‘Community Engagement’ Conference was hosted by Wollongong Against Corruption at the Fraternity Club Wollongong on 28 February 2009. It was the purpose of the Conference to review Wollongong City Council’s (WCC) Draft Local Environment Plan 2009 (DLEP). The Conference was attended by 150 citizens of Wollongong.

2. The following Conclusions were drafted after the Conference by the Organizing Committee from minuted statements of speakers and participants; the Resolutions were voted on at the Conference and passed unanimously.

3. The current Report on the Conference and its Resolutions demonstrates the general case that must be made for developing a planning framework across the State that aligns with international best practice through putting into place community engagement from the start of the planning process as the essential criterion for good planning.

II. CONCLUSIONS

1. Apart from generic problems in both the Plan’s overall vision and general zoning provisions as applied to the whole Wollongong region, case studies revealed significant problems in specific developments either included within the current DLEP or still under review and awaiting final Council determination. The Conference concluded that these case studies were but examples of a wider and deeper malaise in the Plan and the planning process. Participants were concerned that the current Plan was formed essentially within the period that Wollongong City Council was demonstrably corrupt according to ICAC and identified as serving the illicit interests of developers. As the DLEP directly and negatively affects not only their own immediate neighbourhoods, but also national objectives of equity and democratic voice for all people, community-building, sustainable development and response to climate change, participants at the Community Engagement Conference were deeply troubled by the impact this flawed DLEP will have on their future.

2. Based therefore on its informed review of evidence the Conference concluded that Wollongong City Council’s Draft Local Environment Plan 2009 is deeply flawed as is the consultation process that sought to facilitate public access to the Plan and general knowledge about it.

3. In terms of the content and conclusions of the DLEP, the Plan:

(1) is not based on a local community-generated or tested vision of what the people of Wollongong want for their own communities and living environments, but on a ‘one-size-fits-all’ philosophy of planning and an untested and unannounced assumption of the need for more highly concentrated urban development either because considerable employment growth in the Illawarra can be projected (at a time of major global economic recession), or because the region is planned to serve as satellite support for Sydney’s development and employment;

(2) does not support this higher density vision with any planning of associated infrastructure requirements or studies of impact on local residents and/or future introduced citizens and their lifestyles and community neighbourthoods;

(3) is fundamentally flawed because it misleads the public by communicating a ‘status-quo’ vision when major developments still under review are not included or referred to, for example, with respect to the cases of Corrimal and Bulli shopping centre developments, Talawarra Lands, and the Thirroul Excelsior Colliery Lands; this lack of comprehensiveness reflects a lack of regard for the transparency that is crucial for the citizens of Wollongong to make an informed decision;

(4) reflects a fundamental shift in the generic basis of planning for the whole region as demonstrated in new and more flexible ‘developer-friendly’ building restrictions within:

(i) new DA conditions across all zoning categories, for example, building heights, required land space and community facilities, in particular in reference to areas defined for low and medium density development;

(ii) the selection of areas chosen for rezoning for higher density development – in particular, in response to assumed but unsurveyed demand within the proximity of some railway stations, but not according to a tested vision of Wollongong’s overall community demand, economic and social needs, precinct-based quality of life and projected residential settlement patterns, and the city’s urban integrity;

(iii) the absence of any review of the impact of climate change, sustainability, economic and social needs, and aesthetic criteria across the Plan as a whole; and,

(iv) the inclusion of only four lines of text that take marginal account of generalized zoning requirements for the prevention of bushfires as have devastated extensive regions of Victoria in the last month;

(5) includes a number of specific cases of planning incompetence, illegality or unaddressed corruption in process that, on further analysis may be widespread, but at this point can be identified specifically in relation to,

(i) the absence of required environmental, climate change, impact statements, and infrastructure assessments across all zoning proposals, as specifically demonstrated in the Talawarra Lands Case considered by the Conference; and,

(ii) the inclusion of approved developments that have been tainted by previous corruption or illegal Council approvals as demonstrated in the Corrimal Vellar Mansions and Thirroul Excelsior Lands Rezoning Cases considered by the Conference.

(6) includes no detailed controls for exercising consent powers even though a wide range of land uses are permitted with consent under standard zones, so as a consequence, the community is being asked to accept the proposed land uses when no idea is presented of where and how they might be permitted – including directly adjacent to their own property.

5. In terms of the consultation process utilized by Wollongong City Council in communicating the DLEP to the public and gaining feedback, the Plan :

(1) as a whole was formed without broad ranging community consultations on what Wollongong people wanted for their own local neigbourhoods or for the city’s general future environment;

(2) is presented in a form that makes it virtually inaccessible to public understanding, specifically for example, as,

(i) no guiding vision or executive statement of the essence of the Plan is presented even though a ‘higher density’ assumption is carried through in details embedded in the entire Plan;

(ii) language and format of presentation is dense and bureaucratic rather than clear and user-friendly;

(iii) there are no assessments of impact and,

(iv) there is no way for a reader of the advertised Plan to identify what is different to the existing 1990 Council planning conditions except by the reader making a paragraph-by-paragraph comparison to Council’s existing planning requirements embodied in separate documents.

(3) has been presented to the public in a limited period of time commencing a fortnight before Christmas holidays through ‘information kiosks’ and availability of CDs that favor one-way presentation of detail rather than communication and assessment of vision and responsiveness to community concerns.

4. Although the Wollongong Council Administrators have now extended the deadline for submissions by two weeks (on the eve of the currently reported Community Engagement Conference to which Council was invited but chose to not officially attend), this is not enough additional time for the average reasonable citizen to search out all relevant information, review options and possible impacts on their quality of life and interests – given that the Plan contains no such assessments, and present fully informed submissions, given the flawed nature of the current document and absence of adequate supportive studies.

III. RESOLUTIONS

Conference Participants agreed unanimously on the following Resolutions:

This Conference of concerned local residents:

(1) Fully supports responsible, ethical development and the generation of employment.

(2) Welcomes the advent of a new Local Environment Plan for Wollongong.

(3) Calls on the NSW Government-appointed Wollongong City Council Administrators however to order a Public Hearing under Section 68 of the Environmental and Planning Act to examine the wide-ranging concerns raised throughout this Community Engagement Conference and the need to re-start the planning process in order to develop a Plan for the people that is truly based on community aspirations, health, wealth and infrastructure requirements at both local and city level rather than untested bureaucratic population growth assumptions and a ‘one-size fits all’ philosophy.

(4) Calls on Wollongong City Council Administrators to immediately postpone the newly announced 31 March 2009 deadline for public submissions to a date which allows adequate time for initial submissions, for the Public Hearing to then take place, for the findings or report of this Public Hearing to be published (including details of all submissions received) and the community to have the right to respond to any amendments made by Council to the LEP after the Public Hearing.

(5) Demands the NSW Government conduct democratic elections for Wollongong City Council before the Plan is returned to community consultation in order for the peoples’ democratically elected representatives to guide the community consultation process at local neighbourhood levels and take care of local issues and the interests of their constituents.

(6) Calls on Wollongong City Council Administrators to therefore defer finalisation of the DLEP until after this Hearing is held, elections are conducted, and the concerns of the people detailed at this Community Engagement Conference are fully addressed.

(7) Demands that after the above conditions are met and when the revised DLEP is again released for public exhibition that the document,

(i) clearly states that the DLEP is a statement of standards rather than potentially flexible guidelines;

(ii) is based on full interactive community engagement;

(iii) is written in plain English;

(iv) includes associated infrastructure requirements and studies of impact on local residents, their lifestyles and their community neighbourthoods;

(v) clearly identifies changes in previous zoning definitions and zoning;

(vi) identifies all lands owned by developers who are likely to gain capital advantage from the zoning changes; and,

(vii) is exhibited along with its accompanying Draft Control Codes in plain English.

(8) Calls on the NSW Minister for Planning to monitor this review, consultation and revision process in order to ensure that the Wollongong DLEP 2009 is based on community engagement at local levels, takes full account of the wide-ranging and deep concerns raised by the present Community Engagement Conference, and is reformed in the context of a fully democratic process.

(9) Supports, in principle, the measures to protect native vegetation and the escarpment, but seeks to have climate change response, sustainability, biodiversity, bushfire prevention and maintenance of the integrity of local residential areas as focal aims of the Plan. An example of this is the Wollongong Futures Project which does not appear to have been effectively taken into account. We ask Council to take into account all relevant and appropriate research, Council and State commissioned studies including the Escarpment and Sandon Point Commissions of Inquiry.

(10) Considers that the provisions for residential areas generally should be modified significantly so that they enhance the characteristics and quality of existing areas, whilst allowing more intensive development of a reasonable scale in appropriate locations but not next to schools and dwellings.

(11) Considers the following specific proposals unacceptable and in need of full re-appraisal:

(i) Tallawarra Lands – to test the integrity of employment lands rather than residential, and the likelihood of their being developed as well as to ensure that all appropriate environmental and aesthetic considerations have been accounted for;

(ii) Vellar Mansions, Corrimal – Council should refuse the proposal to rezone the Vellar Land E3 in favour of the developer, order the demolition of the Vellar Mansions, and order the owner to restore the escarpment forest and fix the risks of land slip and flooding;

(iii) Excelsior – to require the environmental studies recommended by the Commission of Enquiry to be carried out before re-zoning;

(iv) Gwynneville East – to respect the single storey residential and flood prone environment;

(v) Keira/Kenny Streets – to use the land for residential, not industrial purposes; and,

(vi) Medium density proposals at Corrimal East and Woonona East to allow more respect for existing residential environments.

(vii) Council should refuse to rezone land next to the new Port Kembla School from Private Recreation to IN1 (General Industrial) and the old Port Kembla School site that was once zoned Educational to IN2 (Light Industrial). Both sites have dwellings adjoining them.

(12) Calls on Wollongong City Council to immediately review the stalled Belmorgan Fairy Meadow development and order the developer to fix identified safety issues then complete or demolish.

120 unhappy Wollongongers

Get our LEP Documents here

120 Wollongong residents attended a Community Engagement conference at the Fraternity Club on Saturday. They came to voice their concerns about Wollongong City Council’s plans for the region. Former ICAC chief and planning expert John Mant explained the new planning system. He warned of the ways Council can use the system to allow developments that do not comply with their own rules. Planning consultant David Winterbottom outlined how the proposed LEP is a recipe for increased housing density right across Wollongong. He showed that most low density residential areas are being rezoned to R2. This zoning allows town house developments up to 11 metres (3-4 stories) high. Both experts agreed that the proposed plans are not sustainable. Mr Winterbottom said, “Our gift to the future will be a poorer built and natural environment. This plan encourages migration but not enough extra jobs to cater for residents”.

Speakers from groups including Concerned Residents of East Dapto (CRED), Corrimal Action for the Rehabilitation of our Escarpment (CARE) and KEG (Keep Excelsior Green) outlined concerns unique to their areas. Residents spoke of their disenchantment with Council, the lack of true community engagement and disgust over plans to allow the Vellar mansions to be rezoned, rather than demolished. The room fell into stunned silence when confronted with the planning disgrace of Grafton St, Fairy Meadow. Corrimal activist Rod Plant presented video showing the ugly shell of a failed Belmorgan development surrounding and overshadowing a lone, single story house. Ken Davis revealed how the proposed Tallawarra Lands development failed to meet a single criterion for sustainability.

The meeting unanimously accepted a raft of ten proposals, including a call for a public hearing and for Council to properly investigate the concerns raised by the groups. All requested Council to start the LEP process over again and this time to do it properly.

Minutes Public Meeting – 6th February 2009

Minutes of Concerned Residents of East Dapto (C.R.E.D.) held Friday 6th February 2009.
Present: Ken D, Ann S, Maureen M, Tony G, Ann H.
Apologies: Bob C, Doug P, Marie P,
Meeting opened: 7:05pm.
Introductions
WDLEP 2009
1. Letter from Gabrielle Kibble to Lylea: DECC will review previous studies. EAP will investigate lands for contamination. Tony to ask CLG, “Who is paying for new studies?”
2. David Winterbottom has written that “the illegalities in the LES render the LEP invalid”.
3. Tony discussed possible rate increases for residents on larger properties that have been rezoned. Council promised response within 10 days but have not replied.
4. Maureen raised issue of the impacts of rezoning on Dapto CBD, particularly the impact of high-rise. Questions need to be asked about the details of this proposal.
5. Wollongong Harbour survey revealed most residents want the Harbour to remain as it is.
6. Ken to send updated documents to Maureen and John Mant.
Publicity
7. Kirralyn from IM to write article on Draft LEP.
8. Ken, Ann and Ann will hand deliver leftover pamphlets.
9. Ken suggested a big “Handover Day” when all groups present their LEP submissions publicly.
10. CRED now on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/group.php?gid=47894917235 Ken is working to gain support from other Dapto Facebook groups to encourage united actions.
Council Issues – NIL
Pool
11. Council replied to South West Connect’s advocacy on our behalf. Stated they are willing to explore “learn to swim” costs but not general pricing policy. We need to argue that Corrimal has alternatives (2 sea pools) but we don’t. Also need to explore incidence of ear infections from Mullet Creek.
BMX Track – NIL
Education Centre
12. David Laing from Cardno, Forbes, Rigby has approached CRED for support regarding the proposed Education Centre in West Dapto. CRED will meet with him after March 13.
TRU CLG
Tony to raise:
13. Cause of “big noise” on start up.
14. What size will “large lot residential be”?
Coming events:
15. WAC conference on 28th February. Maureen to do humorous presentation on the folly of Tallawarra, Ken to discuss aesthetics and sustainability, Tony to discuss…WAC asked for financial help. Members voted to donate $100 from Rise and Shine.
16. Next Clean Up Australia Day – Sunday March 1, 9am. Target area, Brooks Creek behind Koonawarra School.
Meeting closed at 9:10pm

Next Meetings
• CRED to meet monthly on first Friday of each month. Next meeting 6th March, 7pm at Koonawarra Community Centre.
• Working parties Next meeting Tuesday17th February 7:30 pm at 56 Rushton Dr. Focus on preparing for WAC conference.

Sustainability in the WDLEP 2009

Main WDLEP 2009 info

Ken Davis from CRED will be speaking on Sustainability and Aesthetics at the CommunityEngagement Forum at the Fraternity Club on Saturday 28th February. Believe it or not, Wollongong City Council claims to believe that Illawarra’s scenic beauty is critical to our future. Believe it or not – the Draft LEP is full of references to sustainability. They know we cannot keep borrowing from the future to fund our present lifestyles. Yet the proposed zonings, and many proposed developments in the WDLEP are not sustainable. They also detract from the areas natural beauty. CRED have prepared a document highlighting statements about sustainability and aesthetics in Council documents to help residents comment on the WDLEP 2009. Get it here:  sustainibility-in-the-wdlep-2009

Voice concerns while you can, East Dapto

Shellharbour Advertiser Article Feb 12 2009

Ken Davis wants residents to take the opportunity to comment on the Wollongong Draft Local Environment Plan 2009 before it is too late.

The secretary of Concerned Residents of East Dapto (CRED) said it was -vitally important” that residents responded by the March 13 deadline.

He added that CRED had made it easy for residents to respond. Its website http:/ /eastdapto,wordpress.com has a downloadable response form, links to documents and a poll about Tallawarra Point.

“Whether or not you agree with us on the issues, we want you to have your say,” Mr Davis said.

-Years of neglect and corruption have led people to believe that politicians don’t listen and will just do what they want no matter what the public says. 1 believe that there are signs of a change in attitude.

-Wollongong City Council recently listened to residents about developments at Fairy Meadow and Bulli.

—Weneed to make them listen to Dapto as well.–

Mr Davis said residents needed to check that their properties had not been rezoned to higher densities, allowing higher rates charges. They also needed to check that public lands and areas zoned residential protection had not been changed.

—Theyshould also check

to see whether industrial or business zonings have appeared near their properties. The new environmental protection zonings E3 and E4 also allow residential development,” Mr Davis said.

He added that a glaring omission from the LEP was that there was no list of what changes were proposed.

—Tofind out how zonings are changing, residents need to find the original zonings in other council documents and compare them with the LEP,” Mr Davis said.

More information about CRED and issues affecting east Dapto is available from co-ordinator Maureen Magee on 42611392.

WAC Conference – Northern Leader Article

from http://www.northernleader.com.au/article/impact_of_lep_in_focus/

Maureen, Ken and Tony from CRED will be speaking.

Wollongong City Council is encouraging the community to have their say on a revised set of planning rules for the city and the draft LEP 2009 is now open for public exhibition.

“The draft plan incorporates new strategies for residential, retail and industrial development, as well conservation of the Illawarra Escarpment,” council director of planning and environment Andrew Carfield said.

However, Mr Robinson said the majority of residents were unaware of the potential impact of the plan, or were experiencing difficulties in understanding the LEP document.

“There is a lot of concern out there, particularly with the possible high-rise and single-storey develop-ments around the railway stations,” Mr Robinson said.

“The document is difficult to understand … council needs to delay implementing it and extend the time period for exhibition.”

Community groups have also identified other sites that could potentially be affected by the new plan, including Cabians at Bulli, the Bulli Bricks site, the Thirroul Excelsior and the zoning of the Bulli township.

Mr Robinson encouraged all community members to attend Wollongong Against Corruption’s community conference at the Fairy Meadow Fraternity Club on Saturday, February 28. The conference will run from 10am to 4pm and will feature several guest speakers.

He said this would be an invaluable way for those throughout the Illawarra to discuss how the LEP would affect those in different parts of the area.

“The time period and kiosks that they’re (council) hosting now are not adequate,” he said.

A council spokesperson said any resident with concerns regarding how the plan may affect them or their area should contact the council directly or attend one of its community information sessions.

These will be held at Wisemans Park Bowling Club, Gwynneville, on Monday (February 16) from 4pm to 7.30pm and at Wollongong RSL Bowling Club Function Room on Tuesday (February 17) from 4pm to 7.30pm.

Neighbourhood Forums

Council have kept their word and are holding a Neighnourhood Forum Information Session. Tough luck if you work in Sydney. Come if you can.

Location – Dapto Ribbonwood Centre, Princes Highway
Begin Thursday 26/02/2009 6:00 PM
End            26/02/2009 7:00 PM

Contact Community Engagement on 4227 7096