Agenda of Ordinary Council - 18 September 2019

MINUTES

Ordinary Council Meeting

21/08/2019

PRESENT

Members:

Councillor Peta Pinson (Mayor)

Councillor Lisa Intemann (Deputy Mayor)

Councillor Rob Turner

Councillor Michael Cusato

Councillor Sharon Griffiths

Councillor Peter Alley

Councillor Justin Levido

Councillor Geoff Hawkins

Councillor Lee Dixon

Other Attendees:

Acting General Manager / Director Development and Environment (Melissa Watkins)

Director Corporate Performance (Rebecca Olsen)

Director Infrastructure (Dan Bylsma)

Director Strategy and Growth (Jeffery Sharp)

Governance Project Officer (Darryl Hancock)

Executive Assistant to the Mayor (Linda Kocis)

Communications Manager (Andy Roberts)

The meeting opened at 5.30pm.

01 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY

The Mayor opened the Meeting with an Acknowledgement of Country and welcomed all in attendance in the Chamber.

02 LOCAL GOVERNMENT PRAYER

Pastor Phil Brown from the Generocity Church delivered the Local Government Prayer.

03 APOLOGIES

Nil.

04 CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES

RESOLVED: Alley/Levido

That the Minutes of the Ordinary Council Meeting held on 17 July 2019 be confirmed.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

05 DISCLOSURES OF INTEREST

Councillor Justin Levido declared a Non-Pecuniary - Significant Interest in Item 10.17 - Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery - Community Consultation, the reason being Councillor Levido is the Principal of Port Macquarie Law Firm, Levido Law + Property. The Firm acts for one of the parties who lodged an expression of interest as to the potential sale or lease of Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery.

Councillor Justin Levido declared a Non-Pecuniary - Significant Interest in Item 15.01 - Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery - Negotiations with Interested Parties, the reason being Councillor Levido is the Principal of Port Macquarie Law Firm, Levido Law + Property. The Firm acts for one the parties who lodged an expression of interest and is negotiating with Council as to the matter.

The Mayor declared a Pecuniary Interest in Item 15.07 - T-19-36 (REGPRO T611920MNC) Supply, Delivery and Placement of Road Surfacing as her company who she holds shares in has lodged a tender via an external procurement agency - Regional Procurement, for various Councils.

06 MAYORAL MINUTES

Nil.

07 CONFIDENTIAL CORRESPONDENCE TO ORDINARY COUNCIL MEETING

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Turner

That Council determine that the attachments to Item Number 10.18 be considered as confidential, in accordance with section 11(3) of the Local Government Act.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

08 PUBLIC FORUM – MATTERS NOT ON THE AGENDA

The Mayor advised of requests to speak in the Public Forum - Matters Not On The Agenda from:

1. Mr Colin Creighton AM regarding the Lake Cathie/Lake Innes Estuarine Systems.

2. Mr Raymond Griffiths regarding Rural Roads Strategy.

3. Mr Jake Wadsworth regarding Climate Change.

4. Mr Steven Gates regarding Unsealed Roads Maintenance, Policy and new Community Association for Roads & Infrastructure.

5. Mr David Brown and Mr Roderick Mallinson regarding the Future and Relocation of the PMQ Aquatic Facility.

RESOLVED: Dixon/Hawkins

That the above requests to speak in the Public Forum - Matters Not On The Agenda be acceded to.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

08.01 Lake Cathie/Lake Innes Estuarine Systems

Mr Colin Creighton AM addressed Council in regard to the Lake Cathie/Lake Innes Systems and in particular, the Lake Cathie Ocean Entrance and Lake Cathie channels and answered questions from Councillors.

08.02 Rural Roads Strategy

Mr Raymond Griffiths, on behalf of the Rollands Plains Community Group, addressed Council in regard to a Rural Roads Strategy and spoke about new technology “Otta Seals”. Mr Griffiths tabled information on Otta Seals and answered questions from Councillors.

08.03 Climate Change

Mr Jake Wadsworth addressed Council in regard to Climate Change and requested Council make a Climate Emergency Declaration and answered questions from Councillors.

08.04 Unsealed Roads Maintenance, Policy and New Community Association for Roads & Infrastructure

Mr Steven Gates addressed Council in regard to unsealed roads maintenance, policy and formation of a new Community Association for Roads & Infrastructure. Mr Gates answered questions from Councillors.

08.05 Future and Relocation of Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility

Mr Roderick Mallinson addressed Council, on behalf of Mr David Brown and himself, in regard to the future and relocation of the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility, raising their objections to the proposed Upper Oxley Oval site. Mr Mallinson answered questions from Councillors.

09 PUBLIC FORUM – MATTERS ON THE AGENDA

The Mayor advised of requests to speak in the Public Forum - Matters On The Agenda from:

Item 10.08 - Mr Jason Koenig in support of the recommendation.

Item 13.01 - Mr Denis Lane in support of the recommendation.

Item 13.01 - Mr David Pensini in opposition to the recommendation.

RESOLVED: Dixon/Cusato

That the above requests to speak in the Public Forum - Matters On The Agenda be acceded to.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDERS

RESOLVED: Cusato/Griffiths

That Standing Orders be suspended to allow Items 10.08 and 13.01 to be brought forward and considered next.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.08 Notice of Motion - Borrowing for Projects

Mr Jason Koenig, on behalf of Camden Haven Schools to Schools, addressed Council in support of the recommendation - Point 4 - Schools to Schools pathway and tabled a map on pathway priorities.

Mr Koenig introduced Mr Thomas Bates who also spoke in favour of the Schools to Schools pathway project.

Mr Koenig answered questions from Councillors.

RESOLVED: Levido/Intemann

That the General Manager bring back a Report to Council’s October 2019 meeting detailing an actual proposal, including implications, for Council to forthwith borrow, on commercial terms, or otherwise, raise the sum of $25,000,000.00 on the basis that the loan funds so borrowed be utilised and allocated for the following project purposes on the basis that all will see commencement (being commencement of design and/or other preconstruction requirements) during the first quarter of 2020, namely:

1. Carry out the upgrade of Boundary Street, Port Macquarie from its intersection with Hastings River Drive to the Port Macquarie Airport entry based on current investigations and planning in an amount of $15,000,000.00.

2. Carry out upgrade works to Bril Bril Road, Rollands Plains based on prior discussions and investigations with the local community in an amount of $6,000,000.00.

3. Carry out upgrade works to The Hatch, Blackmans Point based on prior discussions and investigations with the local community in an amount of $1,200,000.00.

4. Carry out further works with respect to the “Schools to Schools” project from Kendall Public School, Kendall to Laurieton Public School, Laurieton, with reference to the existing Strategic Alignment Study and in consultation with the School to School local committee, in an amount of $900,000.00.

5. Carry out further works with respect to the “Beach 2 Beach” project from North Haven to Dunbogan, with reference to the proposed Strategic Alignment Study and in consultation with the Beach 2 Beach local committee, in an amount of $900,000.00.

6. Utilise $1,000,000.00 with respect to undertaking investigative and/or construction works as to tidal improvements to that part of the Lake Innes and Lake Cathie Estuarine System from the Ocean Drive bridge in a westerly direction.

carried: 7/2

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido and Turner

Against: Griffiths and Pinson

13.01 Notice of Motion - Proposed Primary Airport Access Road Intersection with Oxley Highway

Councillor Cusato left the meeting, the time being 7.02pm.

Councillor Cusato returned to the meeting, the time being 7.07pm.

Mr Denis Lane addressed Council in support of the recommendation.

Mr David Pensini, representing residents in the Lady Nelson Drive area, addressed Council in opposition to the recommendation.

RESOLVED: Intemann/Turner

That Council:

1. Acknowledge the significant evident environmental and geological constraints associated with the proposed ‘blue line’ investigation area from Fernhill Road to replace the Clifton Drive intersection at the Oxley Highway.

2. Request the General Manager investigate and consult with Transport for NSW (TfNSW) regarding the feasibility of either:

(a) Upgrading the existing Clifton Drive intersection to serve the proposed Primary Airport Access Road; or

(b) Continuing to plan for a new intersection with the proposed Primary Airport Access Road onto the Oxley Highway, excluding the extension of any new intersection into the Fernhill area.

3. Request the General Manager report to the December 2019 Council meeting on progress in regard to Point 2 above.

carried: 7/2

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido and Turner

Against: Griffiths and Pinson

10.01 General Manager's Attendance & Participation in the Local Government Chief Officers Group

RESOLVED: Intemann/Turner

That Council approve the General Manager’s attendance and participation in the Local Government Chief Officers Group Meetings.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.02 Mayoral Discretionary Fund Allocations - 4 July to 7 August 2019

RESOLVED: Pinson/Hawkins

That Council note the allocations from the Mayoral Discretionary Fund for the period 4 July to 7 August 2019 inclusive.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.03 Request for Leave of Absence - Mayor Peta Pinson

RESOLVED: Intemann/Alley

That Council:

1. Grant leave of absence for Mayor Peta Pinson for the period 17 October to 3 November 2019 inclusive.

2. Note that in accordance with Section 231(3) of the Local Government Act, the Deputy Mayor will perform all duties of the Mayor during this period.

3. Allocate the Mayoral allowance to the Deputy Mayor during this period in accordance with Section 249(5) of the Local Government Act.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.04 Status of Reports From Council Resolutions

RESOLVED: Cusato/Alley

That Council note the information contained in the Status of Reports from Council Resolutions report.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.05 Councillor and Mayoral Fees - Categorisation of Council by the Local Government Remuneration Tribunal

RESOLVED: Turner/Griffiths

That Council note the information in the Councillor and Mayoral Fees - Categorisation of Council by the Local Government Remuneration Tribunal.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.06 Disclosure of Interest Return

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Hawkins

That Council note the Disclosure of Interest returns for the following positions:

1. Director Infrastructure.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.07 Notice of Motion - Proposed Motion for 2019 Local Governent NSW Conference

RESOLVED: Alley/Griffiths

1. That Council requests the General Manager to write to Local Government NSW asking that the following proposed motion be listed on the Business Paper for the 2019 LGNSW Conference:

- “That section 5. Building Regulation and Certification Position Statement, of the LGNSW Policy Platform, be amended by adding:

5.7 More affordable access to the full suite of Australian Standards for the Local Government sector and requests the NSW Government support that access.”

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

Item - 10.08 Notice of Motion - Borrowing for Projects - has been moved to another part of the document.

10.09 Digital Technology Project Status

RESOLVED: Turner/Hawkins

That Council note the information in the Digital Technology Project Status report and the progress made to-date.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.10 National General Assembly 2019 - Australian Local Government Association

RESOLVED: Alley/Turner

That Council note the information contained in the National General Assembly 2019 - Australian Local Government Association Report.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.11 2018-2019 Operational Plan - End of Year Report as at 30 June 2019

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Turner

That Council note the 2018-2019 Operational Plan - End of Year Report as at 30 June 2019.

Acarried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.12 2018-2019 Financial Statements Audit

RESOLVED: Hawkins/Alley

1. That Council refer to audit the draft Financial Statements as at 30 June 2019.

2. That the Statement by Councillors and Management be signed by the Responsible Accounting Officer, the General Manager, the Mayor and one Councillor as required by the Local Government Act 1993.

Councillor Dixon left the meeting, the time being 7.47pm.

carried: 8/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.13 Investments - July 2019

Councillor Dixon returned to the meeting, the time being 7.50pm.

RESOLVED: Hawkins/Alley

That Council note the Investment Report for the month of July 2019.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.14 Monthly Budget Review - July 2019

RESOLVED: Turner/Cusato

That Council:

1. Adopt the adjustments in the “July 2019 Adjustments” section of the Monthly Budget Review – July 2019.

2. Amend the 2019-2020 Operational Plan to include all budget adjustments approved in this report.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.15 2018-2019 Carry-over Projects

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Alley

That Council:

1. Adopt the 2018-2019 carry-over projects outlined in this report for inclusion in the 2019-2020 budget.

2. Amend the 2019-2020 one year Operational Plan to include all projects approved to be carried over as individual action items.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.16 Opportunities for Local Firms to do Business With Council

RESOLVED: Turner/Dixon

That Council note the information provided relating to the Tendering Local Preference Policy.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.17 Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery - Community Consultation

Councillor Levido declared a Non-Pecuniary - Significant Interest in this matter, left the room and was out of sight during the Council's consideration, the time being 7.54pm.

The Governance Project Officer tabled a petition from Tender Funerals Mid North Coast against the privatisation of the Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery which was received by Council on 21 August 2019.

MOTION:

MOVED: Alley/Intemann

That Council:

1. Note the information provided in the Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery Community Consultation report.

2. Thank the community for the feedback received during the recent consultation period regarding Innes Gardens Memorial Park.

3. Note that burial places and ash internments hold deep significance for families with loved ones buried or cremated in the area and that Innes Gardens Memorial Park can help offer a space that brings comfort to families as they struggle with their grief while remembering loved ones.

4. Discontinue the current expressions of interest / tendering for the sale and/or lease in Innes Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery.

5. Request the General Manager explore different business models for the operation of the Memorial Gardens, the Lawn Cemetery and Chapel, with or without the operation of the Crematorium.

FORESHADOWED MOTION

MOVED: Hawkins/Griffiths

That Council:

1. Note the information provided in the Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery Community Consultation report.

2. Note that burial places and ash internments hold deep significance for families with loved ones buried or cremated in the area and that Innes Gardens Memorial Park can help offer a space that brings comfort to families as they struggle with their grief while remembering loved ones.

3. Thank the community for the feedback received during the recent consultation period regarding Innes Gardens Memorial Park.

THE MOTION WAS PUT

MOTION: Alley/Intemann

That Council:

1. Note the information provided in the Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery Community Consultation report.

2. Thank the community for the feedback received during the recent consultation period regarding Innes Gardens Memorial Park.

4. Discontinue the current expressions of interest / tendering for the sale and/or lease in Innes Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery.

5. Request the General Manager explore different business models for the operation of the Memorial Gardens, the Lawn Cemetery and Chapel, with or without the operation of the Crematorium.

lost: 2/6

For: Alley and Intemann

Against: Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Pinson and Turner

RESOLVED: Hawkins/Griffiths

That Council:

1. Note the information provided in the Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery Community Consultation report.

3. Thank the community for the feedback received during the recent consultation period regarding Innes Gardens Memorial Park.

carried: 8/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.18 Legal Fees

Councillor Levido returned to the meeting, the time being 8.13pm.

RESOLVED: Cusato/Alley

That Council note the information in the Legal Fees report.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.19 Glasshouse Biannual Report and Update on Strategic Plan Recommendations

RESOLVED: Turner/Hawkins

That Council note the information provided in the Glasshouse Biannual Report and Update on Strategic Plan Recommendations report.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.20 Development Activity And Assessment System Performance

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Alley

That Council:

1. Note the Development Activity and Assessment System Performance report for the fourth quarter of 2018-2019.

2. Note that no determinations were made by staff under Clause 4.6 of the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Environmental Plan 2011 for the quarter.

Councillor Hawkins left the meeting, the time being 08:16pm.

carried: 8/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

10.21 IPART Rating Review Submission

Councillor Hawkins returned to the meeting, the time being 8.19pm.

RESOLVED: Intemann/Alley

That Council:

Endorse the submission to the IPART Review of the Local Government Rating System included in this IPART Rating Review Submission report with the response to Question 1 be expanded to include the following prior to a final decision being made by the Government:

(a) (that further information be made available on the unknown impacts, and assumptions that have been made in this submission; and

(b) further consultation to occur with Councils following the provision of this additional information.

Request the General Manager lodge the submission referred to in Point 1 above to the Office of Local Government by the due date of 13 September 2019.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

11.01 Notice of Motion - Welcome Scroll Project

RESOLVED: Pinson/Alley

That Council:

1. Join the Welcome Scroll Project.

2. Grant permission for the Mayor to provide Council’s logo and electronically sign the Welcome Scroll on behalf of Council.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

11.02 Grant Applications Quarterly Report

RESOLVED: Cusato/Dixon

That Council:

1. Note the third quarterly Grant Application Report, providing an update on grants applied for or obtained for the 2018/19 financial year.

2. Agree future reports on Council grant applications be presented on a biannual basis in February and August each year.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

11.03 Port Macquarie New Year's Eve Fireworks

RESOLVED: Turner/Griffiths

That Council:

1. Note the number of firework displays around the Port Macquarie foreshore usually shown over the Festive/New Year period.

2. Support the delivery of the 2019 Port Macquarie 9.00pm New Year’s Eve Firework display.

3. Determine future fireworks support following the proposed engagement on Community Events, to be completed later in 2019.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

11.04 Bicentenary Projects 2021

Councillor Cusato left the meeting, the time being 08:27pm.

Councillor Cusato returned to the meeting, the time being 08:29pm.

RESOLVED: Turner/Hawkins

That Council:

1. Endorse the following proposed 2021 priority Bicentenary projects:

(a) Bicentenary Event 10 -18 April 2021;

(b) The Flagstaff Hill redevelopment; and

as recommended by the Bicentenary Working Group of Council’s Cultural Steering Group.

2. Request the General Manager add a new action to the 2019/2020 Operational Plan, relating to ‘the development and delivery of 2021 Bicentenary projects’.

3. Note that the Flagstaff Hill redevelopment project is proposed to deliver the new, additional, John Oxley memorial to commemorate 200 years since his expedition, as resolved by Council on 21 February 2018.

4. Note the Cultural Steering Groups support for the priority projects.

5. Request the General Manager prepare a report for the September Council Meeting to determine resourcing to deliver the agreed priority projects for the 2021 Bicentenary.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

Item - 13.01 Notice of Motion - Proposed Primary Airport Access Road Intersection with Oxley Highway - has been moved to another part of the document.

13.02 Notice of Motion - Parking Strategy - Review

RESOLVED: Hawkins/Alley

That the General Manager bring back a report to Council’s October 2019 meeting detailing the timing and scope of the proposed review of the Parking Strategy.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

13.03 Attendance at 2019 National Local Roads and Transport Congress - Hahndorf, South Australia

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Pinson

That Council grant approval to Councillor Sharon Griffiths to attend the 2019 National Local Roads and Transport Congress to be held in Hahndorf, South Australia, from 18 to 20 November 2019.

carried: 8/1

For: Alley, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Cusato

13.04 Acquisition of Easement for Water Supply and Easement to Drain Sewer at Scarborough Way, Dunbogan

RESOLVED: Intemann/Turner

That Council:

1. Pay compensation in the amount of $4,000.00 (GST Exclusive) to the owners of Lot 32 Deposited Plan 1213619, A & J Creative Pty Limited, for the acquisition of an easement for water supply 4 metres wide and an easement for the drainage of sewage 4 metres wide, depicted (A) & (B) respectively, in the unregistered survey prepared by Hopkins Consultants Pty Ltd reference 7366 dated 17 April 2019.

2. Pursuant to Section 59 of the Land Acquisition (Just Terms Compensation) Act 1991, pay the legal costs reasonably incurred by the owners of Lot 32 Deposited Plan 1213619 associated with the acquisition of the easement.

3. Pursuant to Section 377 of the Local Government Act 1993, delegate authority to the General Manager to execute, electronically or otherwise, all documents including, but not limited to, any authorisation form as required associated with the acquisition in accordance with the Electronic Transactions Act 2000.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

13.05 Federal Funding to Seal The Hatch Road

The Mayor tabled correspondence from Mr Pat Conaghan MP, Federal Member for Cowper, regarding funding for The Hatch Road.

MOTION: Pinson/Griffiths

That Council:

1. Note the Unsealed Roads Dust Monitoring completed by AM Enviro Services did not detect any airborne respirable crystalline silica or any other contaminants above the relevant exposure standards on The Hatch Road.

2. Note the Federal funding of $370,000 to seal The Hatch Road is not sufficient to seal its entire length.

3. Note the correspondence from the Federal Member for Cowper, Mr Pat Conaghan MP, stating there is no requirement for Council to contribute 20% of the funding.

4. Request the General Manager to undertake detailed geotechnical surveys, pavement design and boundary surveys for The Hatch Road to determine scope of works and costing involved.

5. Request the General Manager to write to the Federal Member for Cowper outlining the finding of the investigations and costings of works for The Hatch Road, with a view to seeking further funding, if required.

6. Submit the Project Proposal Report for sealing of The Hatch Road to the Department of Infrastructure.

FORESHADOWED MOTION: Levido

That Council:

2. Note the Federal Funding of $370,000 to seal The Hatch Road is not sufficient to seal its entire length.

3. Note that there may be a funding condition for Council to allocate 20% of the funding, being $74,000, towards The Hatch Road sealing.

4. Request the General Manager to submit a further report to the November 2019 Council Meeting regarding the funding for The Hatch Road sealing project.

THE MEETING ADJOURNED AT 9.20 PM AND RESUMED AT 9.25 PM.

THE MOTION WAS PUT

RESOLVED: Pinson/Griffiths

That Council:

2. Note the Federal funding of $370,000 to seal The Hatch Road is not sufficient to seal its entire length.

3. Note the correspondence from the Federal Member for Cowper, Mr Pat Conaghan MP, stating there is no requirement for Council to contribute 20% of the funding.

4. Request the General Manager to undertake detailed geotechnical surveys, pavement design and boundary surveys for The Hatch Road to determine scope of works and costing involved.

6. Submit the Project Proposal Report for sealing of The Hatch Road to the Department of Infrastructure.

carried: 6/3

For: Alley, Dixon, Griffiths, Intemann, Pinson and Turner

Against: Cusato, Hawkins and Levido

13.06 Ocean Drive Duplication Project

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Pinson

That Council:

1. Note the current estimated Total Project Cost (Out Turn Cost) for the Ocean Drive Duplication is $72.6million.

2. Note that the current project budget deficit of $7.1million requires one or more funding sources allocated to enable approval of the Business Case by the Roads & Maritime Service (RMS) and subsequent release of committed project funding from the NSW Government.

3. Note the General Manager’s letter to the Member for Port Macquaire - Leslie Williams MP of 8 Aug 2019 indicating Council’s preference for the RMS to deliver the construction phase of the Ocean Drive Duplication project.

4. Request the General Manager write to the RMS Director Northern Region to outline Council’s preference and support for the RMS to deliver the construction phase of the Ocean Drive Duplication project.

5. Request the General Manager table a report at the September 2019 Council meeting, detailing funding sources (Council and other) for the additional funding required for the completion of the Ocean Drive Duplication project.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

13.07 Petition for Second Entry/Exit to Crestwood Estate

RESOLVED: Turner/Alley

That Council note the information presented in this Petition for Second Entry / Exit to Crestwood Estate report.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

13.08 Lorne Road Works as Material Public Benefit Revised Application

RESOLVED: Intemann/Alley

That Council:

1. Note the existing Works in Kind agreement entered into between Council and the Developer for Lorne Road, Kendall provides for a roads contributions offset of $67,387.95.

2. Note that the existing Works in Kind agreement can be varied via a resolution of Council.

3. Approve the revised application to undertake construction of road works in Lorne Road, Kendall to the total value of $92,290, on the basis that the work will provide material public benefit pursuant to s7.11(5)(b) of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (as amended).

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

13.09 Community Consultative Committee - Port Macquarie Transport Network & Orbital Road

RESOLVED: Turner/Griffiths

That Council:

1. Endorse the change of name from the “Orbital Road Community Consultative Committee to the “Port Macquarie Transport Network Community Consultative Committee”.

2. Adopt the Charter for the Port Macquarie Transport Network Community Consultative Committee.

3. Call for expressions of interest from the community to apply to be members of the Port Macquarie Transport Network Community Consultative Committee.

4. Request the General Manager table a report to a future Council Meeting to endorse the membership of the Port Macquarie Transport Network Community Consultative Committee.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

13.10 Membership of the Coast, Estuary and Floodplain Sub- Committee

RESOLVED: Cusato/Turner

That Council:

1. Adopt the revised Coast, Estuary and Floodplain Sub-Committee Charter as included in Attachment 2 to the report.

2. Adopt the revised membership composition of the Coast, Estuary and Floodplain Sub-Committee which provides for equitable representation for key catchment areas and an even spread across the flood management, coastal management and estuary management disciplines as follows:

Community Representatives
Name	Title	Organisation	Catchment	Coast, Estuary, Flood
Alan MacIntyre	Community Representative	NA	Camden Haven	Coast and estuary
Patrick McEntee	Community Representative	NA	Hastings	Coast and estuary
Bob Jolly	Community Representative	NA	Lake Cathie	Coast and estuary
Kingsley Searle	Oyster Industry	NA	Hastings	Coast and estuary
Tony Troup	Oyster Industry	NA	Camden Haven	Coast and estuary
Paul Hyde	Fishing Industry	NA	Hastings	Coast and estuary
New	Development Industry		Hastings	Flood
New	Development Industry		Camden Haven	Flood
New	Community Representative		Hastings	Flood
New	Community Representative		Camden Haven	Flood
New	Community Representative	Revive Lake Cathie	Lake Cathie	Flood

3. Proceed to seek formal Expressions of Interest for replacement and new members for the Coast, Estuary and Floodplain Sub-Committee.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

13.11 The Settlers Inn, 101 Hastings River Drive, Port Macquarie - Inspection Report Received From NSW Fire & Rescue

RESOLVED: Turner/Alley

That Council:

1. Note the contents of the Fire Safety Inspection report, dated 5 July 2019, from NSW Fire & Rescue, as shown in Attachment 1 to this report.

2. Exercise the powers conferred on Council by the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, 1979 (Division 9.3 and Schedule 5), to issue a Fire Safety Order to address the outstanding fire safety concerns at the premises 101 Hastings River Drive, Port Macquarie.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

14 ITEMS TO BE DEALT WITH BY EXCEPTION

Nil.

CONFIDENTIAL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

RESOLVED: Turner/Dixon

1. That pursuant to section 10A subsections 2 & 3 and 10B of the Local Government Act 1993 (as amended), the press and public be excluded from the proceedings of the Council in Confidential Committee of the Whole (Closed Session) on the basis that items to be considered are of a confidential nature.

2. That Council move into Confidential Committee of the Whole (Closed Session) to receive and consider the following items

Item 15.01 Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery - Negotiations with Interested Parties

This item is considered confidential under Section 10A(2)(c) of the Local Government Act 1993, as it contains information that would, if disclosed, confer a commercial advantage on a person with whom the Council is conducting (or proposes to conduct) business.

Item 15.02 Human Resources (HR) - Permanent and Temporary Placements and Associated Services

Item 15.03 Consent to be a Group Member - NSW Class Action

This item is considered confidential under Section 10A(2)(g) of the Local Government Act 1993, as it contains advice concerning litigation, or advice that would otherwise be privileged from production in legal proceedings on the ground of legal professional privilege.

Item 15.04 T-19-34 (REGPRO621920) Pipes, Pipe Relining, Pumps, Water Meters, Pre-cast Concrete Products and Associated Fittings, Products and Services

This item is considered confidential under Section 10A(2)(d(i)) of the Local Government Act 1993, as it contains commercial information of a confidential nature that would, if disclosed, prejudice the commercial position of the person who supplied it.

Item 15.05 Settlement Point Ferry - Out of Water Inspection and Maintenance (Slipping)

This item is considered confidential under Section 10A(2)(d(ii)) of the Local Government Act 1993, as it contains commercial information of a confidential nature that would, if disclosed, confer a commercial advantage on a competitor of the Council.

Item 15.06 T-19-16 Provision of Landscaping Services

Item 15.07 T-19-36 (REGPRO T611920MNC) Supply, Delivery and Placement of Road Resurfacing

3. That the resolutions made by the Council in Confidential Committee of the Whole (Closed Session) be made public as soon as practicable after the conclusion of the Closed Session and such resolutions be recorded in the Minutes of the Council Meeting.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

ADJOURN MEETING

The Ordinary Council Meeting adjourned at 9.48pm.

RESUME MEETING

The Ordinary Council Meeting resumed at 10.24pm.

ADOPTION OF RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE CONFIDENTIAL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

The Mayor returned to the Meeting at 10.24pm and resumed the Chair.

RESOLVED: Dixon/Alley

That the undermentioned recommendations from Confidential Committee of the Whole (Closed Session) be adopted:

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

Item 15.01 Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery - Negotiations with Interested Parties

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the information provided in this confidential Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery Negotiations with Interested Parties report (“Confidential Report”).

2. Accept the proposal received from Walker Funeral Group Pty Ltd as outlined in the Confidential Report (that having regard to all the circumstances appears to Council to be the most advantageous), for the purchase of Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery (the “Accepted Proposal”).

3. Delegate authority to the General Manager to negotiate the detailed terms of the Contract of Sale to give effect to the Accepted Proposal and to enter into a Contract of Sale with Walker Funeral Group Pty Ltd for the purchase of Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery.

4. Request the General Manager to develop a communications plan as a way of ensuring the community is informed of Council’s consideration and resolution in relation to the sale of Innes Gardens Memorial Park Crematorium and Lawn Cemetery.

5. Maintain the confidentiality of the documents and considerations in respect of this Confidential Report.

carried: 7/1

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann and Turner

Against: Pinson

Item 15.02 Human Resources (HR) - Permanent and Temporary Placements and Associated Services

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Appoint the following LGP808-3 Approved Contractors for the provision of Human Resources - Permanent and Temporary Placements and Associated Services to Council’s Preferred Suppliers list for an initial term commencing on 22 August 2019 and ending on 30 November 2020, with two (2) consecutive options to extend each for a further term of 12-months, such options to be for the benefit of Council and may be exercised only by the Council in its sole discretion:

a) Chandler Macleod Group Limited;

b) Data#3 Limited;

c) DOB Enterprises Pty Ltd Macquarie Labour Hire/MBC Recruitment;

d) Forsythes Recruitment (Newcastle) Pty Ltd;

e) Hays Specialist Recruitment (Australia) Pty Ltd;

f) McArthur (NSW) Pty Ltd;

g) Michael Page International (Australia) Pty Limited;

h) Newada Pty Ltd t/as Men at Work Labour Hire NSW;

i) NORTEC Employment & Training Limited t/as NORTEC Staffing Solutions;

j) Randstad Pty Limited;

k) WorkPac Pty Ltd;

2. Delegate authority to the General Manager to execute the necessary Notice of Participation for LGP808-3.

3. Maintain the confidentiality of the documents and considerations in respect of this Human Resources - Permanent and Temporary Placements and Associated Services procurement process.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido,

Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

Item 15.03 Consent to be a Group Member - NSW Class Action

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Provide consent to participate as a group member in the NSW Class action against Jardine Lloyd Thompson Pty Ltd.

2. Affix the seal of Council to the Consent Form.

3. Maintain the confidentiality of the documents and considerations in respect of the NSW Class action against Jardine Lloyd Thompson Pty Ltd.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido,

Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

Item 15.04 T-19-34 (REGPRO621920) Pipes, Pipe Relining, Pumps, Water Meters, Pre-cast Concrete Products and Associated Fittings, Products and Services

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. In accordance with the Local Government (General) Regulations 2005 clause 178(1)(b), decline to accept any of the tenders submitted for Request for Tender REGPRO621920 for the Supply & Delivery of Concrete and FRC Pipes and Associated Products for the reason being that it does not provide Council the most advantageous offer.

2. Commit to participating in Local Government Procurement’s panel arrangement LGP908-3 for the supply and delivery of Pipes, Pipe Relining, Pumps, Water Meters, Pre-cast Concrete Products and Associated Fittings, Products and Services for the period of the arrangement not exceeding 31 August 2021.

3. Appoint the following LGP908-3 Approved Contractors to Council’s Preferred Suppliers List:

a) Abergeldie Watertech Pty Ltd;

b) Cadia Group Pty Ltd;

c) Elster Metering Pty Ltd;

d) Itron Australasia Pty Limited;

e) Iplex Pipelines Australia Pty Ltd;

f) Holcim (Australia) Pty Ltd trading as Humes;

g) Q-Max Pumping Systems Pty Ltd;

h) McBerns Pty Ltd;

i) Rocla Pty Ltd;

j) Taggle Systems Pty Ltd;

k) Viadux Pty Ltd;

l) Vinidex Pty Ltd;

m) Xylem Water Solutions Australia Limited.

4. Delegate authority to the General Manager to execute the necessary documents.

5. Maintain the confidentiality of the documents and considerations in respect of Request for Tender REGPRO621920.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido,

Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

Item 15.05 Settlement Point Ferry - Out of Water Inspection and Maintenance (Slipping)

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the actions planned for the Out of Water Inspection and Maintenance (Slipping) of the Settlement Point Ferry.

2. In accordance with Section 55 (3) (i) of the Local Government Act, 1993, due to the extenuating circumstances and unavailability of reliable and competitive tenders as described in this report, Council does not invite tenders for the Out of Water Inspection and Maintenance (Slipping) of the Settlement Point Ferry, as a satisfactory result would not be achieved.

3. Accept the quotation from Birdon Pty Ltd to undertake the Out of Water Inspection and Maintenance (Slipping) of the Settlement Point Ferry for $595,567.00 (ex GST).

4. Note that Birdon Pty Ltd may undertake any additional works as may be required by the AMSA Certified Surveyor to achieve a Certificate of Survey, within the allocated budget for the ferry slipping.

5. Note that Birdon Pty Ltd may undertake additional functional works following the inspection to address other maintenance issues or improve the operation of the ferry service, within the allocated budget for the ferry slipping.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido,

Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

Item 15.06 T-19-16 Provision of Landscaping Services

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Accept tenders from the following contractors to be appointed to a panel arrangement for the provision of landscaping services for a two year period commencing 1 September 2019, with two options to extend for a period of one year each, such option(s) to be for the benefit of the Council and may be exercised only by the Council in its sole discretion:

a) B & K Revegetation & Landscaping;

b) BNJ Landscaping Pty Ltd;

c) Gondwana Bush Restoration; and

d) Lawrence Outdoor Industries Pty Ltd.

2. Accept the Schedule of Rates for the provision of landscaping services from:

a) B & K Revegetation & Landscaping;

b) BNJ Landscaping Pty Ltd;

c) Gondwana Bush Restoration; and

d) Lawrence Outdoor Industries Pty Ltd.

3. Affix the seal of Council to the necessary documents.

4. Maintain the confidentiality of the documents and considerations in respect of Tender T-19-16.

carried: 9/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido,

Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

Item 15.07 T-19-36 (REGPRO T611920MNC) Supply, Delivery and Placement of Road Resurfacing

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the Open Panel Source Tender (T611920MNC) conducted by Regional Procurement on behalf of six (6) participating Councils for the Supply, Delivery and Placement of Road Resurfacing.

2. Accept the tenders from the following suppliers to be appointed to a panel of suppliers for T-19-36 (T611920MNC) for the Supply, Delivery and Placement of Road Resurfacing for the period 1 October 2019 to 30 September 2022:

(a) Category 1 - Bitumen Spray Seal

(i) All Pavement Solutions Pty Ltd

(ii) Colas NSW Pty Ltd (complying offer)

(iii) Eastcoast Asphalt Pty Ltd t/as Fishers Asphalt

(iv) NSW Spray Seal Pty Ltd

(v) Pacific Blue Metal Pty Ltd

(b) Category 2 - Asphaltic Concrete

(i) Accurate Asphalt & Road Repairs Pty Ltd

(ii) Colas NSW Pty Ltd (complying offer)

(iii) Eastcoast Asphalt Pty Ltd t/as Fishers Asphalt

(iv) Fenworx Pty Ltd

(v) Fulgur Pty Ltd t/as CNC Roads

(vi) Pacific Blue Metal Pty Ltd

(i) Accurate Asphalt & Road Repairs Pty Ltd

(ii) Colas NSW Pty Ltd (complying offer)

(iii) Eastcoast Asphalt Pty Ltd t/as Fishers Asphalt

(iv) Fenworx Pty Ltd

(v) Fulgur Pty Ltd t/as CNC Roads

(vi) Pacific Blue Metal Pty Ltd

(d) Category 4 - Crack Sealing; Rigid and Bituminous Road Surfaces

(i) Colas NSW Pty Ltd (complying offer)

(ii) Pacific Blue Metal Pty Ltd

(iii) Road Maintenance Pty Ltd

(iv) Supersealing Pty Ltd

(v) Total Crack Sealing Pty Ltd

(e) Category 5 - Heavy Patching

(i) Accurate Asphalt & Road Repairs Pty Ltd

(ii) Colas NSW Pty Ltd (complying offer)

(iii) Eastcoast Asphalt Pty Ltd t/as Fishers Asphalt

(iv) Fenworx Pty Ltd

(v) Fulgur Pty Ltd t/as CNC Roads

(vi) Pacific Blue Metal Pty Ltd

(vii) Stabilcorp Pty Ltd

with the option of one 12-month extension period, such option to be for the benefit of Council and may be exercised only by the Council in its sole discretion.

3. Accept the Schedule of Rates from the following suppliers for the Supply, Delivery and Placement of Road Resurfacing:

· Accurate Asphalt & Road Repairs Pty Ltd

· All Pavement Solutions Pty Ltd

· Colas NSW Pty Ltd

· Eastcoast Asphalt Pty Ltd t/as Fishers Asphalt

· Fenworx Pty Ltd

· Fulgur Pty Ltd t/as CNC Roads

· NSW Spray Seal Pty Ltd

· Pacific Blue Metal Pty Ltd

· Stabilcorp Pty Ltd

4. Affix the seal of Council to the necessary documents.

5. Maintain the confidentiality of the documents and considerations in respect of Tender T-19-36 (T611920MNC).

carried: 7/1

For: Alley, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido

and Turner

Against: Cusato

The meeting closed at 10.25pm.

………………………………………..

Peta Pinson

Mayor

AGENDA Ordinary Council 18/09/2019

Item: 05

Subject: DISCLOSURES OF INTEREST

RECOMMENDATION

That Disclosures of Interest be presented

DISCLOSURE OF INTEREST DECLARATION

Name of Meeting:

Meeting Date:

Item Number:

Subject:

I, the undersigned, hereby declare the following interest:

Pecuniary:

Take no part in the consideration and voting and be out of sight of the meeting.

Non-Pecuniary – Significant Interest:

Take no part in the consideration and voting and be out of sight of the meeting.

Non-Pecuniary – Less than Significant Interest:

May participate in consideration and voting.

For the reason that:

Name:

Signed:

Date:

Please submit to the Governance Support Officer at the Council Meeting.

(Refer to next page and the Code of Conduct)

Pecuniary Interest

4.1 A pecuniary interest is an interest that you have in a matter because of a reasonable likelihood or expectation of appreciable financial gain or loss to you or a person referred to in clause 4.3.

4.2 You will not have a pecuniary interest in a matter if the interest is so remote or insignificant that it could not reasonably be regarded as likely to influence any decision you might make in relation to the matter, or if the interest is of a kind specified in clause 4.6.

4.3 For the purposes of this Part, you will have a pecuniary interest in a matter if the pecuniary interest is:

(a) your interest, or

(b) the interest of your spouse or de facto partner, your relative, or your partner or employer, or

4.4 For the purposes of clause 4.3:

(a) Your “relative” is any of the following:

i) your parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, lineal descendant or adopted child

ii) your spouse’s or de facto partner’s parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, lineal descendant or adopted child

iii) the spouse or de facto partner of a person referred to in paragraphs (i) and (i)

(b) “de facto partner” has the same meaning as defined in section 21C of the Interpretation Act 1987.

4.5 You will not have a pecuniary interest in relation to a person referred to in subclauses 4.3(b) or (c)

(a) if you are unaware of the relevant pecuniary interest of your spouse, de facto partner, relative, partner, employer or company or other body, or

(b) just because the person is a member of, or is employed by, a council or a statutory body, or is employed by the Crown, or

(c) just because the person is a member of, or a delegate of a council to, a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter, so long as the person has no beneficial interest in any shares of the company or body.

Non-Pecuniary

5.1 Non-pecuniary interests are private or personal interests a council official has that do not amount to a pecuniary interest as defined in clause 4.1 of this code. These commonly arise out of family or personal relationships, or out of involvement in sporting, social, religious or other cultural groups and associations, and may include an interest of a financial nature.

5.2 A non-pecuniary conflict of interest exists where a reasonable and informed person would perceive that you could be influenced by a private interest when carrying out your official functions in relation to a matter.

5.3 The personal or political views of a council official do not constitute a private interest for the purposes of clause 5.2.

5.4 Non-pecuniary conflicts of interest must be identified and appropriately managed to uphold community confidence in the probity of council decision-making. The onus is on you to identify any non-pecuniary conflict of interest you may have in matters that you deal with, to disclose the interest fully and in writing, and to take appropriate action to manage the conflict in accordance with this code.

5.5 When considering whether or not you have a non-pecuniary conflict of interest in a matter you are dealing with, it is always important to think about how others would view your situation.

Managing non-pecuniary conflicts of interest

5.6 Where you have a non-pecuniary conflict of interest in a matter for the purposes of clause 5.2, you must disclose the relevant private interest you have in relation to the matter fully and in writing as soon as practicable after becoming aware of the non-pecuniary conflict of interest and on each occasion on which the non-pecuniary conflict of interest arises in relation to the matter. In the case of members of council staff other than the general manager, such a disclosure is to be made to the staff member’s manager. In the case of the general manager, such a disclosure is to be made to the mayor.

5.7 If a disclosure is made at a council or committee meeting, both the disclosure and the nature of the interest must be recorded in the minutes on each occasion on which the non-pecuniary conflict of interest arises. This disclosure constitutes disclosure in writing for the purposes of clause 5.6.

5.8 How you manage a non-pecuniary conflict of interest will depend on whether or not it is significant.

5.9 As a general rule, a non-pecuniary conflict of interest will be significant where it does not involve a pecuniary interest for the purposes of clause 4.1, but it involves:

a) a relationship between a council official and another person who is affected by a decision or a matter under consideration that is particularly close, such as a current or former spouse or de facto partner, a relative for the purposes of clause 4.4 or another person from the council official’s extended family that the council official has a close personal relationship with, or another person living in the same household

b) other relationships with persons who are affected by a decision or a matter under consideration that are particularly close, such as friendships and business relationships. Closeness is defined by the nature of the friendship or business relationship, the frequency of contact and the duration of the friendship or relationship.

c) an affiliation between the council official and an organisation (such as a sporting body, club, religious, cultural or charitable organisation, corporation or association) that is affected by a decision or a matter under consideration that is particularly strong. The strength of a council official’s affiliation with an organisation is to be determined by the extent to which they actively participate in the management, administration or other activities of the organisation.

d) membership, as the council’s representative, of the board or management committee of an organisation that is affected by a decision or a matter under consideration, in circumstances where the interests of the council and the organisation are potentially in conflict in relation to the particular matter

e) a financial interest (other than an interest of a type referred to in clause 4.6) that is not a pecuniary interest for the purposes of clause 4.1

f) the conferral or loss of a personal benefit other than one conferred or lost as a member of the community or a broader class of people affected by a decision.

5.10 Significant non-pecuniary conflicts of interest must be managed in one of two ways:

a) by not participating in consideration of, or decision making in relation to, the matter in which you have the significant non-pecuniary conflict of interest and the matter being allocated to another person for consideration or determination, or

b) if the significant non-pecuniary conflict of interest arises in relation to a matter under consideration at a council or committee meeting, by managing the conflict of interest as if you had a pecuniary interest in the matter by complying with clauses 4.28 and 4.29.

5.11 If you determine that you have a non-pecuniary conflict of interest in a matter that is not significant and does not require further action, when disclosing the interest you must also explain in writing why you consider that the non-pecuniary conflict of interest is not significant and does not require further action in the circumstances.

5.12 If you are a member of staff of council other than the general manager, the decision on which option should be taken to manage a non-pecuniary conflict of interest must be made in consultation with and at the direction of your manager. In the case of the general manager, the decision on which option should be taken to manage a non-pecuniary conflict of interest must be made in consultation with and at the direction of the mayor.

5.13 Despite clause 5.10(b), a councillor who has a significant non-pecuniary conflict of interest in a matter, may participate in a decision to delegate consideration of the matter in question to another body or person.

5.14 Council committee members are not required to declare and manage a non-pecuniary conflict of interest in accordance with the requirements of this Part where it arises from an interest they have as a person chosen to represent the community, or as a member of a non-profit organisation or other community or special interest group, if they have been appointed to represent the organisation or group on the council committee.

SPECIAL DISCLOSURE OF PECUNIARY INTEREST DECLARATION

This form must be completed using block letters or typed.

If there is insufficient space for all the information you are required to disclose,

you must attach an appendix which is to be properly identified and signed by you.

[insert full name of councillor]

In the matter of

[insert name of environmental planning instrument]

Which is to be considered at a meeting of the

[insert name of meeting]

Held on

[insert date of meeting]

PECUNIARY INTEREST

Address of the affected principal place of residence of the councillor or an associated person, company or body (the identified land)

Relationship of identified land to councillor

[Tick or cross one box.]

 The councillor has interest in the land (e.g. is owner or has other interest arising out of a mortgage, lease, trust, option or contract, or otherwise).

 An associated person of the councillor has an interest in the land.

 An associated company or body of the councillor has interest in the land.

MATTER GIVING RISE TO PECUNIARY INTEREST[1]

Nature of land that is subject to a change

in zone/planning control by proposed

LEP (the subject land2

[Tick or cross one box]

 The identified land.

 Land that adjoins or is adjacent to or is in proximity to the identified land.

Current zone/planning control

[Insert name of current planning instrument and identify relevant zone/planning control applying to the subject land]

Proposed change of zone/planning control

[Insert name of proposed LEP and identify proposed change of zone/planning control applying to the subject land]

Effect of proposed change of zone/planning control on councillor or associated person

[Tick or cross one box]

 Appreciable financial gain.

 Appreciable financial loss.

[If more than one pecuniary interest is to be declared, reprint the above box and fill in for each additional interest]

Councillor’s Signature: ………………………………. Date: ………………..

This form is to be retained by the council’s general manager and included in full in the minutes of the meeting

Last Updated: 3 June 2019

Important Information

This information is being collected for the purpose of making a special disclosure of pecuniary interests under clause 4.36(c) of the Model Code of Conduct for Local Councils in NSW (the Model Code of Conduct).

The special disclosure must relate only to a pecuniary interest that a councillor has in the councillor’s principal place of residence, or an interest another person (whose interests are relevant under clause 4.3 of the Model Code of Conduct) has in that person’s principal place of residence.

Clause 4.3 of the Model Code of Conduct states that you will have a pecuniary interest in a matter because of the pecuniary interest of your spouse or your de facto partner or your relative or because your business partner or employer has a pecuniary interest. You will also have a pecuniary interest in a matter because you, your nominee, your business partner or your employer is a member of a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter.

“Relative” is defined by clause 4.4 of the Model Code of Conduct as meaning your, your spouse’s or your de facto partner’s parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, lineal descendant or adopted child and the spouse or de facto partner of any of those persons.

You must not make a special disclosure that you know or ought reasonably to know is false or misleading in a material particular. Complaints about breaches of these requirements are to be referred to the Office of Local Government and may result in disciplinary action by the Chief Executive of the Office of Local Government or the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

This form must be completed by you before the commencement of the council or council committee meeting at which the special disclosure is being made. The completed form must be tabled at the meeting. Everyone is entitled to inspect it. The special disclosure must be recorded in the minutes of the meeting.

[1] Clause 4.1 of the Model Code of Conduct provides that a pecuniary interest is an interest that a person has in a matter because of a reasonable likelihood or expectation of appreciable financial gain or loss to the person. A person does not have a pecuniary interest in a matter if the interest is so remote or insignificant that it could not reasonably be regarded as likely to influence any decision the person might make in relation to the matter, or if the interest is of a kind specified in clause 4.6 of the Model Code of Conduct.

2 A pecuniary interest may arise by way of a change of permissible use of land adjoining, adjacent to or in proximity to land in which a councillor or a person, company or body referred to in clause 4.3 of the Model Code of Conduct has a proprietary interest

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 10.04

Subject: Status of Reports From Council Resolutions

Presented by: Corporate Performance, Rebecca Olsen

Alignment with Delivery Program

1.3.2 Build trust and improve Council's reputation through transparency, good decision making and living Council’s Values.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council note the information contained in the Status of Reports from Council Resolutions report.

Discussion

Report	Date & Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Bicentenary Projects 2021	21/08/19 Item 11.04		DSG		Aug-19 Complete
T-18-58 Supply and Delivery of two (2) x 20 Tonne Track Mounted Excavators	15/05/19 Item 14.01	Onsite demonstration	DI	Aug-19	Sep-19
Biodiversity Strategy: Post exhibition	19/06/19 item 13.10	Submissions to the strategy closed 25/07/19. We are still considering the submissions received.	DDE	Aug-19	Sep-19
Health and Education Precinct Draft Master Plan - post exhibition	21/11/18 Item 11.05	Information still being obtained.	DSG	May-19 Jun-19 Jul-19 Aug-19	Sep-19
John Henry Taylor and Mildred Joy Taylor v. Port Macquarie-Hastings Council - results of cost assessment	17/04/19 Item 14.01		DCP		Sep-19
Proposed Orbital Road Project	19/06/19 Item 13.01		GM		Sep-19
Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility - post community engagement	17/07/19 Item 11.04		DDE		Sep-19
Bold Street, Laurieton Pedestrian Crossing - posit community engagement	17/07/19 Item 13.03		DI		Sep-19
Flynns Beach Master Plan - post community engagement	17/07/19 item 11.05		DDE		Sep-19
Ocean Drive Duplication Project	21/08/19 Item 13.06		DI		Sep-19
Revive Lake Cathie Inc. Submission to PMHC 2019-2020 Operational Plan	15/05/2019 Item 09.01	Delayed due to stakeholder meetings.	DDE		Oct-19
T-19-09 Supply and Delivery of Ready Mix Concrete - post negotiations	19/06/19 Item 15.04	Still negotiating	DI	Aug-19	Oct-19
T-19-10 Supply and Delivery of Road Construction Materials - post negotiations	19/06/19 Item 15.05	Still negotiating	DI	Aug-19	Oct-19
QFPM - Enforcement of Unlawful Activity Policy - findings of review	18/07/18 Item 09.07	Policy being drafted. Awaiting further advice and discussions with Councillors.	DDE	Dec-19 Feb-19 Mar-19 Apr-19 Jun-19 Jul-19 Aug-19	Oct-19
LGP EL0519 Supply of Electricity - Accepted Rates	17/07/19 Item 15.06	Local Government Procurement completing evaluations and pending Council notification.	DCP	Sep-19	Oct-19
Land Acquisition - 921 Hastings River Drive, Pembrooke - Post Exhibition	12/12/18 Item 12.04	Valuation pending.	DCP	Jun-19 Aug-19	Oct-19
Paragliding Activities at Bartlett's Beach - Review of Risk Management Controls	17/07/19 Item 12.01		DDE		Oct-19
Coastal Koala Plan of Management	19/09/18 Item 12.04	Draft CKPoM under review and subject to peer review following legal advice from landowner	DSG		Oct-19
Borrowing for Projects	21/08/19 Item 10.08		DCP		Oct-19
Parking Strategy Review	21/08/19 Item 13.02		DI		Oct-19
Port Macquarie Transport Network Community Consultative Committee - Membership	21/08/19 Item 13.09		DSG		Oct-19
Planning Proposal PP2016 – 11.1 Mission Terrace Lakewood – post exhibition	15/11/17 Item 12.06	Going back out on exhibition to public	DSG	Sep-19	Nov-19
PP: Bundaleer Aged Care - 67 High Street and 4-8 Johnstone Street, Wauchope - Gateway Determination	15/08/18 Item 12.04	Awaiting legal advice and owner's consent	DSG	Sep-18 Oct-18 Feb-19 Apr-19 May-19 Jul-19 Sep-19	Nov-19
Planning Proposal – Lot 2 DP1091253 Beach Street Bonny Hills	19/04/16 Item 12.02	Awaiting advice from proponent	DSG	Sep-19	Nov-19
Planning Proposal Request PP2011 - 9.3: The Ruins Way and South Blackwood, Port Macquarie	19/06/19 Item 13.06	Awaiting advice from proponent	DSG	Aug-19 Sep-19	Nov-19
Town Centre Master Plan Charter Review	20/06/18 Item 09.09	Still being discussed	DSG	Apr-19 May-19 Jun-19 Aug-19 Oct-19	Nov-19
Future of Committees following establishment of Cultural Steering Group	19/04/17 Item 15.05	Item is to be discussed at a future Cultural Steering Group meeting, following the adoption of the Cultural Plan	DSG	Jun-17 Jul-17 Sep-17 Oct-17 Feb-18 Apr-18 Jul-18 Sep-18 Feb-19 Apr-19 May-19	Nov-19
Tuffins Lane Sporting Fields - Terms of Agreement	14/12/16 Item 06.02	Awaiting Catholic Parish advice	GM	Oct-18 Mar-19 Apr-19 Jul-19	Dec-19
Markets Policy and local markets	21/11/18 Item 11.03		DSG		Dec-19
Hay Street Forecourt Tuesday Real Food Market Compliance Report	20/02/19 Item 11.01		DSG		Dec-19
Council owned lots at North Shore - Progress of Sale	19/09/18 Item 09.24)	Council is currently in the process of obtaining DA's for the individual lots, prior to sale - this will provide assurance to future purchasers that the lots can be built on.	DSG		Dec-19
Proposed Primary Airport Access Road Intersection with Oxley Highway	21/08/19 Item 13.01		DI		Dec-19
Canal Maintenance	18/10/17 Item 12.04		DI		2018/2019 FY
2020 Ordinary Local Government Election	20/02/19 Item 09.07		DCP		Feb-20
Planning Proposal - Airport Business Park - post exhibition	17/07/19 Item 13.05	Awaiting additional information from the proponent to allow for the gateway determination to be issued.	DDE		Feb-20
Planning Proposal - Airport Business Park - draft DCP approval	17/07/19 Item 13.05	Awaiting additional information from the proponent to allow for the gateway determination to be issued.	DDE		Feb-20
Classification as "Operational" Land - 52 John Oxley Drive, Port Macquarie - post exhibition.	20/06/18 Item 14.05		DSG		Mar-20
Trialling Of Parklets In The Port Macquarie Town Centre	16/05/18 Item 10.02	Council is still working the relevant approvals	DSG		Aug-20
MOU - Norfolk Island Regional Council - income and expenditure administration.	20/03/19 Item 09.02		GM		Feb-21
Biodiversity Certification Assessment and Strategy - Port Macquarie Airport and Surrounding Land - viability and implications of the options for securing the required Blackbutt Tallowwood dry grassy open forest and Koala habitat credits, prior to the clearing that creates the demand for those credits.	10/08/16 Item 12.01		DDE		2021 (estimate)

Cyclic Reports

Report	Reporting Officer	Reporting Cycle	Month
Mayoral Discretionary Fund Allocations	GM	Monthly	Every
Monthly Financial Update	DCP	Monthly	Every (except July)
Investments	DCP	Monthly	Every
Recommendations by the Mayor’s Sporting Fund Sub-Committee	DSG	Monthly	Every
Development Activity and Assessment System Performance	DDE	Quarterly	May, Aug, Nov, Feb
Operational Plan – Quarterly Progress	DCP	Quarterly	Nov, Feb, May, Aug
Management of Flying-Fox Colony in Kooloonbung Creek Nature Reserve - Quarterly Progress Report (15/08/18 - Item 12.08)	DDE	Quarterly	Dec, Mar, June, Sep
Legal Fees - Update Report (19/09/18 - Item 09.16)	DCP	Quarterly	Feb, May, Aug, Nov
Grant Application Status Report (21/08/19 - Item 11.02)	DSG	Biannual	Feb, Aug
Glasshouse Strategic Plan Update	DCP	Biannual	Feb, Aug
Digital Technology Project Status (16/08/17 - Item 09.18)	DCP	Biannual	Feb, Aug
Delivery Program – Six Monthly Progress	DCP	Biannual	Mar, Sep
Update on Site Specific Planning Proposal Requests	DSG	Biannual	Apr, Oct
Mayoral and Councillor Fees (Setting of)	GM	Annually	May
Long Term Energy Strategy – Progress	DDE	Biannual	May, Nov
Economic Development Strategy - Progress (20/11/2013 - Item 10.03)	DSG	Biannual	May, Nov
Performance of Property Investment Portfolio 6-Monthly (12/12/17 - Item 09.09)	DSG	Biannual	May, Nov
Council Policy - Status	DCP	Annually	Jul
Recreation Action Plan – Status	DDE	Annually	Jul
UGMS - Annual Progress Report on Implementation and Status of Actions (20/06/18 - Item 12.07)	DSG	Annually	Jul (previously report in April 2019)
Local Preference Policy Outcomes	DCP	Annually	Aug
Annual Report of the Activities of the Mayor’s Sporting Fund	DSG	Annually	Sep
Council Meeting Dates	GM	Annually	Sep
Creation of Office - Deputy Mayor	GM	Annually	Sep
Audit Committee Annual Report	DCP	Annually	Sep
Annual Report of Disability Discrimination Act Action Plan	DSG	Annually	Sep
Legislative Compliance Register	DCP	Annually	Sep
Cultural Plan 2018 - 2021 - Implementation Progress Report (19/09/18 - Item 10.02)	DSG	Annually	Sep
Annual Disclosure of Interest Returns	GM	Annually	Oct
Council’s Annual Report	DCP	Annually	Nov
Update Report - Impact of cost shifting for the previous financial year including any additional categories of cost-shifting that have been identified (21/10/15 - Item 09.04)	DCP	Annually	Nov
Compliments and Complaints Annual Report	DSG	Annually	Dec
Funding Programs for Koala Recovery Strategy (19/09/18 - Item 12.05)	DDE	Annually	Dec

Attachments

Nil

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 10.12

Subject: Delivery Program (2017-2021) Six Monthly Progress Report (January to June 2019)

Presented by: Corporate Performance, Rebecca Olsen

Alignment with Delivery Program

1.1.4 Provide easy to understand and accessible community reporting.

RECOMMENDATION

That the information in the Delivery Program (2017-2021) six monthly progress report (January to June 2019) be noted.

Executive Summary

Six monthly progress reports on the Delivery Program are a legislated requirement of the NSW Government’s Integrated Planning and Reporting Framework.

This report provides a snapshot of Council’s progress in implementing the 2017-2021 Delivery Program. This progress report allows Council and the community to understand what action has been undertaken relative to the objectives contained within the Delivery Program 2017-2021.

Council adopted the Integrated Planning and Reporting suite of documents including the new Delivery Program 2017-2021 on 21 June 2017, hence this is the fifth six monthly progress report against the four year Delivery Program (2017-2021).

Discussion

Delivery Program 2017-2021: Six monthly progress report

The Delivery Program was developed by Council within the legislated nine-month timeframe, following the September 2016 election. The Delivery Program is reviewed annually to ensure that the objectives align with the Community Strategic Plan.

The Delivery Program also outlines the Councillors’ commitments to the Port Macquarie-Hastings community during their four-year term of office. Objectives in the Delivery Program represent what the Council aims to deliver and serves as a guide for Council’s Executive and staff when developing the annual Operational Plan.

The Operational Plan sets out the individual actions and projects that will be undertaken each financial year to deliver the overall objectives in the Delivery Program. Achievement of these objectives contributes to achieving the vision and goals in the Community Strategic Plan.

In a broad context, the Delivery Program enables Council to deliver the community’s aspirations for the future, as described in the Towards 2030 Community Strategic Plan. The Delivery Program objectives appear in each of the four Community Themes outlined below:

· Community Theme 1 – Leadership and Governance

· Community Theme 2 – Your Community Life

· Community Theme 3 – Your Business and Industry

· Community Theme 4 – Your Natural and Built Environment

Each of the themes in the Delivery Program describes what the expected result will be if the overall objectives are achieved and detail what the intended outcome will be.

This six monthly reporting phase focuses on what has been delivered to date on actions, activities and projects for each Council service.

Attachment A to this report provides details of actions that are experiencing delays in delivery as reported to the Ordinary Council Meeting in August 2019 as part of the End of Year - Quarterly Progress Report against the 2018-19 Operational Plan.

A snapshot of 2018-2019 projects across the region can be seen below

Laurieton/Camden Haven/surrounds

· Camden Haven River Recreational Boating improvements including boat ramps upgrades at Bruce Porter and Dunbogan Reserves are complete

· Stage 2 stormwater remediation works at Batar Creek Road Kendall are complete

· Comboyne Small Town Sewerage Scheme provision of a centralised sewerage system has construction ongoing and continuing into 2020

· Stormwater flood mitigation measures at Rodley Street Bonny Hills has construction ongoing and continuing into late 2019

· Skatepark renewal at Kendall is pending initiation phase of the project and will continue into 2019-2020

· Playground replacements at Herons Creek Reserve, Wall Reserve, Foreshore Reserve and Pioneer Park are complete

· Dunbogan Bridge substructure rehabilitation work has commenced and will continue into late 2019

· Bold Street Pedestrian crossing has design ongoing

· Construction of the Sewer Rising Main from Camden Haven Sewer Pump Station #1 to Dunbogan Bridge is complete

Port Macquarie

· Port Macquarie Airport Terminal upgrade - Stage 1 complete with Stage 2 works commenced

· Kingfisher Waste Depot expansion has detailed designs nearing completion and construction planned to continue into 2019-2020

· Hastings River recreational boating improvements is in the initiation phase, pending design commencement

· The off leash dog exercise park in Wauchope is complete. The Port Macquarie facility now forms part of the broader upgrade to Stuarts Park Regional Sporting Precinct

· Port Macquarie Pool has site selection process underway with the detailed design to follow

· Construction of new park at Crestwood Park is complete

· John Oxley Drive upgrade at The Ruins Way to Wrights Road Oxley Highway has designs underway and will continue into 2019-20

· Stormwater remediation works for Gordon to Buller Street has stormwater catchment analysis and design phase progressing

· Port Macquarie Coastal Walk upgrades had the Westport Park segment completed in November 2018, the Charlie Uptin segment is scheduled to commence and the Doctors Walk segment is currently in the design phase

· Port Macquarie-Hastings Hockey Facility has lighting installed to Field 2

· Port Macquarie Regional Sports Stadium - lighting installation is complete with construction of new training field commenced and scheduled for completion in September 2019

Wauchope/Rural/surrounds

· Hastings Regional Sporting Facility - Stage 1 development has design works progressing with construction planning and phasing under development

· Bago Road pavement rehabilitation, Milligans Road to Pacific Highway is complete with final seal planned in September 2019

· Bridge replacement on Comboyne Road over Hartys Creek has construction complete

· Long Flat and Telegraph Point Small Town Sewerage Scheme provisions of a centralised sewerage system has construction ongoing and continuing into 2020

· Design work for Beechwood Road Stage 5 and 6 reconstruction is ongoing

· Design phase for the Wauchope to Sancrox trunk main is complete with construction to continue into 2019-2020

· Blackbutt Park facility upgrade and replacement of park furniture has work commenced

Summary of achievements by Community Theme, Delivery Program Objective and Council Service

Achievement highlights are listed below by Community Theme, Council Service and Delivery Program Objective. The information below demonstrates Councils achievements from and highlights ‘how we know we are progressing’ against the set objectives outlined in the Delivery Program 2017-2021.

Community Theme 1 – Leadership and Governance

What are we trying to achieve

A collaborative community that works together and uses opportunities for community participation in decision making that is defined as ethically, socially and environmentally responsible

What the result will be

· A community that has the opportunity to be involved in decision-making

· Open, easy, meaningful, regular and diverse communication between the community and decision-makers

· Partnerships and collaborative projects that meet the community’s expectations, needs and challenges

· Knowledgeable, skilled and connected community leaders

· Strong corporate management that is transparent

How we know we are progressing

· Improving levels of community participation at community engagement activities

· Ongoing Council participation in regional Local Government initiatives

· Council financial management that is communicated to the community

We know we are progressing on delivering outcomes to the community against the Delivery Program objectives as achievement highlights can be seen below against specific council services.

Highlights by Council Service and Delivery Program Objective

Council Service: Communications and Community Place

Delivery Program Objective: 1.1.1 Use a variety of tools to engage with the community in a manner that is transparent, effective, relevant and inclusive

· Over 780 Media releases, statements, alerts and announcements were issued from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019

· Over 743,000 visits and over 971,000 sessions were recorded on the corporate website from 1 July to 30 June 2019

· Facebook likes increased from 7,966 as at 1 July 2018 to 9,129 as at 30 June 2019

· A range of communication tools were used to keep the community up to date with council activities including use of consistent media channels such as social media, newspaper advertising and Weekly Mayoral messages

· Registered users on Council’s ‘Have Your Say’ online engagement portal as at 30 June 2019 was 3,880. An increase from 3,424 users as at 30 June 2018

Council Service: Community Place

Delivery Program Objective: 1.1.2 Support community involvement in decision making through education around Council matters and services

· Community members were involved in a variety of community engagement activities that involved face-to-face engagement via drop-in information sessions, group engagement and pop-up information sessions, Community-Council Action Team Meetings and Community Think Tank Workshops

· The Community Planning Program is ongoing and has seen Lake Cathie, Rollands Plans/Telegraph Point residents involved in plan development. Over 980 community members engaged with the process to date

· Community-Council Action teams (CCAT) have been established to help support and drive development of the Community Plans

Delivery Program Objective: 1.1.3 Engage with the community on impacts and changes to services

· Development of a community engagement and education program is underway to enable community involvement in decision-making.

· A framework for how council consider engagement, education and communications has been developed

Council Service: Integrated Planning and Reporting

Delivery Program Objective: 1.1.4 Provide easy to understand and accessible community reporting

· An easy to read Community Report Card, highlighting Council’s achievements in delivering outcomes to the community for the 2017-18 financial year, was published in November 2018

· The 2017-18 Annual Report was adopted at the Ordinary Council Meeting in November 2018 meeting legislative requirements

· The 2019-20 Operational Plan and budget was presented and adopted at the Ordinary Council Meeting in June 2019. Public exhibition, inviting community feedback, was from 21 March and 18 April 2019 with a number of community engagement popup sessions undertaken during this time

Council Service: Communications

Delivery Program Objective: 1.1.5 Develop an effective and coordinated community focused Communications Strategy

· A strategic approach to communication and engagement has been endorsed by Councillors with implementation progressing

· Marketing and education campaigns are ongoing and have included a variety of communication channels to deliver a range of messages including bus stops, signage, Facebook, digital billboard, radio, television, cinema, shopping centre displays and media releases

Council Service: Governance

Delivery Program Objective: 1.1.6 Continue to promote access by the community to Councillors

· Laurieton and Wauchope Ordinary Council Meetings were held in October 2018 and March 2019 respectively as part of the Take the Council to the Community Program

Council Service: General Manager's Office

Delivery Program Objective: 1.2.1 Promote Council participation and build linkages in local, state and federal initiatives, forums and opportunities to support Council’s continued planning for the growth of the region

· Regular meetings held with Camden Haven, Port Macquarie and Wauchope Chamber of Commerce and also Northside and Lake Cathie Progress Associations with the Mayor and Senior staff in attendance

· Ongoing meetings and or Networking events attended with Federal, State and Local members to advocate for local community needs

Council Service: General Manager's Office

Delivery Program Objective: 1.3.1 Provide effective leadership and equity

· The General Manager of Port Macquarie-Hastings Council was appointed the interim Executive Officer for the Mid North Coast Joint Organisation (MNCJO) in early 2019, a permanent Executive Officer was appointed in June 2019

· Joint Organisations teleconferences and network meetings have been attended to support this function

Council Service: Governance

Delivery Program Objective: 1.3.2 Build trust and improve Council's reputation through transparency, good decision making and living Council’s Values

· The 2017-18 Legislative Compliance Register was reviewed and presented to the Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee and also presented and adopted at the September 2018 Ordinary Council Meeting

· Annual Public Interest Disclosures (PID) and Government Information Public Access (GIPA) reporting was submitted in line with required timeframes

· The annual Disclosure of Interest Returns were adopted at the October 2018 Ordinary Council Meeting

Council Service: Governance

Delivery Program Objective: 1.3.3 Ensure there is appropriate management of risk to mitigate impact for Council and the community

· Review of the Corporate Risk Register has been undertaken on a quarterly basis and presented to the Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee

· The 2018-19 Risk Management Action Plan had identified actions implemented

· The annual review of insurance coverage was undertaken and completed

· The Project Management Framework was implemented with training complete. Continuous improvement to the Project Management Framework is captured in the continuous improvement log

· The Risk Management policy was adopted at the Ordinary Council Meeting in February 2019

Council Service: Human Resource Management

Delivery Program Objective: 1.3.4 Manage our workforce to deliver community outcomes.

· Implementation of Workforce Management Strategy actions identified for 2018-19 have been delivered

· The Work, Health and Safety Strategy is currently in draft with actions being identified

Delivery Program Objective: 1.3.5 Build an engaged workforce

· The annual Employee Engagement Days were delivered in May 2019, with over 500 staff participating

· Millennial workshops were held in late 2018 to identify opportunities for new ways to engage with employees

· Part 1 of the Employee Engagement Roadshow was developed and has been delivered to over 70 people leaders

· The Employee Engagement survey was completed in February 2019. Action planning sessions have commenced across the organisation

Council Service: Digital Technology

Delivery Program Objective: 1.4.1 Provide efficient technology and inclusive digital systems that are easy to use and easy to access

· Renewal of Council’s technology infrastructure to provide secure and responsive information communication technology is ongoing. This includes planning for the Customer Experience Project

· Geographic Information Systems (GIS) has been provided to the organisation and community with no complaints received regarding data accuracy

Council Service: Business Improvement Office

Delivery Program Objective: 1.4.2 Deliver agreed services at the agreed service level at best value

· Work is ongoing to embed a culture of continuous improvement across the organisation

· An updated Business Improvement toolkit was prepared to enable the workforce to access tools to make improvements along with a series of workshops to build capacity in making improvements

· A service review program is planned to commence in 2019-2020

· The Business Improvement Office worked across various service areas to progress process improvement initiatives which including working with the Development and Environment and Digital Technology areas

Council Service: Customer interactions

Delivery Program Objective: 1.4.3 Deliver a customer focused service that provides the community a consistent experience of Council

· Over 75,000 calls were received through the customer call centre with 75% of calls answered (within 20 seconds) exceeding the set target of 75%. The call abandonment rate was 3%, achieving the set service standard of 3% or lower

· 94% of initial customer interactions were dealt with at the first point of contact

· Over 92,000 counter enquires were processed, and over 32,000 e-mails were received through Customer Service offices in Laurieton, Port Macquarie and Wauchope

Council Service: Financial Management and Assets and Property Investments

Delivery Program Objective: 1.5.1 Manage Council’s financial assets and provide accurate, timely and reliable information

· The audited financial statements were lodged in October 2018 in accordance with legislated timeframes

· Investment reports tabled in accordance with required timelines

· Investment returns exceeding the benchmark for the financial year

· Financial reports tabled in accordance with required timelines

· Quarterly Budget Review Statements submitted and adopted by Council in line with required timeframes

· The 2019-20 Operational Plan and budget was presented and adopted at the June 2019 Ordinary Council Meeting

Council Service: Procurement

Delivery Program Objective: 1.5.2 Use procurement, tendering, purchasing and contract management approaches that are transparent and equitable

· Completion of audit action items with quarterly reporting to the Audit Committee was undertaken in line with the Procurement Strategy

· The Plant Replacement Program was delivered in line with the approved schedule

Council Service: Commercial Business Units – Glasshouse, Property and Leasing, Crematorium

Delivery Program Objective: 1.5.3 Develop, manage and maintain Council Business Units through effective commercial management

· Operating revenue increased at the Airport by 3% in comparison to the same period last year exceeding the 3% target

· Operating revenue increased at the Crematorium by 25% in comparison to the same period last year exceeding the 3% target

· Operating revenue increased at the Environmental Laboratory by 13% in comparison to the same period last year exceeding the 3% target

· Operating revenue increased at the Glasshouse by 14% in comparison to the same period last year exceeding the 3% target

· Identified actions from the Glasshouse Strategic Plan have been delivered. A review of the Glasshouse Strategic Plan commenced in line with the Cultural Steering Group in conjunction with the recently adopted Cultural Plan

· 157 commercial leases and 73 community leases are current and operating

Council Service: Asset Management

Delivery Program Objective: 1.5.3 Develop, manage and maintain Council Business Units through effective commercial management

· The six monthly Property Investment Strategy update report was presented to the November 2018 Ordinary Council Meeting

Council Service: Commercial Business Units

Delivery Program Objective: 1.5.4 Identify new commercially viable revenue sources

· New revenue sources identified, including review of car parking fees at the

Airport, and included in 2019-20 Schedule of Fees and Charges.

Community Theme 2 – Your Community Life

What are we trying to achieve

A healthy, inclusive and vibrant community

What the result will be

· Community hubs that provide access to services and social connections

· A safe, caring and connected community

· A healthy and active community that is supported by recreational infrastructure

· A strong community that is able to identify and address social issues

· Community participation in events, programs, festivals and activities

How we know we are progressing

· Community facilities are established that encourage social activities and interactions

· Community safety initiatives are recognised and supported

· Open spaces, recreational and community facilities are provided for a range of social, health and wellbeing activities.

· The community is supported through a range of programs based on social issues

· A range of community activities, programs and events are supported and implemented

We know we are progressing on delivering outcomes to the community against the Delivery Program objectives as achievement highlights can be seen below against specific council services

Highlights by Council Service and Delivery Program Objective

Council Service: Sports and Recreation

Delivery Program Objective: 2.1.1 Support Community Safety initiatives

· Lifeguard Services operated at Town, Flynns, Lighthouse, Lake Cathie, Rainbow and North Haven beaches over the summer period with additional services provide at Lake Cathie to ensure lifeguard services provided coverage in peak periods

· The Surf Education Program was delivered to local schools across the region and included 38 presentations delivered to over 4,690 students

Council Service: Community Place

Delivery Program Objective: 2.1.1 Support Community Safety initiatives

· Council continued to support the Hastings Liqueur accord with ongoing campaigns. The ‘RETHINK THAT SNEAKY DRINK’ campaign was launched to target underage drinking in the Port Macquarie Local Government Area

· As part of the Graffiti Blasters Program training session for students were undertaken to encourage awareness of the removal of graffiti tags

· Approximately 300 tags per month and approximately 200 hours of volunteer time was donated per month from 1 July 18 to 30 June 2019 supporting the Graffiti Program

Council Service: Emergency Management

Delivery Program Objective: 2.1.2 Advocate for, support and coordinate emergency services

· Coordination and support provided to emergency services as required

· Works were undertaken in relation to the Pappinbarra Fires to replace culverts

· Works were undertaken in relation to Hannam Vale Road flood damage

Council Service: Compliance

Delivery Program Objective: 2.1.3 Conduct regulatory and educational activities, which safeguard public and environmental health, and ensures compliance with planning and building standards

Monitoring and taking action to ensure compliance issues are managed has seen a range of inspections undertaken from 1 July to 31 December 2018, some of which have included:

· 306 pool inspections undertaken

· 836 risk based audit inspections relating to on-site sewage undertaken

· 287 inspections relating to development approvals and building, environmental, public health and on-site sewage standards undertaken

· 47 fire safety inspections were undertaken

· Over 1,600 offences recorded by Council Rangers in relation to parking, beach patrols, illegal signage and sale of goods on roads

· Over 735 companion animal incidents were recorded and actioned

Council Service: Commercial Business Units - Environmental Testing

Delivery Program Objective: 2.1.3 Conduct regulatory and educational activities, which safeguard public and environmental health, and ensures compliance with planning and building standards

· Sampling, analysis and reporting of operational and regulatory requests at the Laboratory were completed within the set service standards and budgets

· National Association of Testing Authority corporate accreditation maintained

Council Service: Community Place

Delivery Program Objective: 2.2.1 Support and advocate for all community sectors

· Focus on youth initiatives has seen a youth forum held with the Governor of NSW. A Youth Summit was also held as part of Youth Week and a grant has also been secured for a Youth Leadership Program

· Two rounds of Community Grants were delivered and funding distributed

· 24 Community Groups were successful in obtaining grant funding in Round 1 of the Community Grants Program and Round 2 saw a further 12 Community Groups obtain funding which has supported activities across the local government area

· The Draft Community Inclusion Plan was presented to the Executive in June 2019 for comment before a further report will be presented to Council. The plan will determine focused actions for Seniors, Youth, Aboriginal, Multicultural, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex and Questioning (LGBTIQ) communities

Council Service: Community Place

Delivery Program Objective: 2.3.1 Ensure access to community facilities and activities: including access to natural environment

· A number of actions have been delivered as part of the Disability Inclusion Action Plan some of which included:

o Hosting two Autism and Emergency Service Workshops

o Co-ordination of the Access Committee Meetings. The committee undertook a review of the ‘Charlie Uptin Walk’ accessible viewing platform

o Delivery of a Prevention of Elder Abuse presentation with the NSW Trustee and Guardian, Seniors Rights Services, NSW Fair Trading and Community Legal Centre

o Providing assistance to the Long Flat Community Centre with a grant application for an accessible (disability) toilet

o Developing an app for accessible (disabled) car parking spaces

Council Service: Recreation and Buildings and Community Place

Delivery Program Objective: 2.3.2 Provide a range of inclusive sporting and recreational opportunities and facilities to encourage a healthy and active lifestyle

· A range of actions were implemented as part of the Recreation Action Plan some of which included:

o Sancrox/Thrumster Sports Fields - The Development Application associated with site earthworks has been approved. Documentation for engagement of a consultant to undertake detailed designs commenced

o Westport Park - Riverwall and pathway upgrade complete

· The Sporting Facility renewal and upgrade program is being undertaken with actions including:

o Blackbutt Park facility upgrade and replacement of park furniture has work commenced

o Port Macquarie-Hastings Hockey Facility has lighting installed to Field 2

o Port Macquarie Regional Sports Stadium - lighting installation is complete with construction of new training field commenced and scheduled for completion in September 2019

o Oxley Oval – Sporting Infrastructure Upgrade has the incoming power supply complete. Construction of the sports clubhouse has been delayed while project partners seek finalisation of funding deed

· The Mayors Sporting Fund has distributed over $16,000 this financial year as a result of fund raising events held to help support youth achieve sporting aspirations

· Regional Master Planning for recreational facilities included:

o The Draft Vince Inmon Sporting Complex Master Plan adopted in June 2019. The Section 355 Committee elected to utilise the 2019-20 Operational Plan budget to fund part of the main facility building upgrade

o The Draft Master Plan for Flynns Beach was presented to the July 2019 Ordinary Council Meeting with further community engagement to be undertaken

o The Master Plan for Bain Park Wauchope is yet to commence and will align with the Wauchope Community Plan development

· Camden Haven River recreational boating improvements including boat ramps upgrades at Bruce Porter and Dunbogan Reserves are complete

· Hastings River recreational boating improvements is in the initiation phase, pending design commencement

Delivery Program Objective: 2.3.3 Develop and implement management of operational and maintenance programs for open space, recreational and community facilities

· Maintenance program works for parks, reserves, sporting fields and beaches across the local government area was undertaken with actions including:

o Maintenance of park furniture in Camden Haven, Wauchope and Port Macquarie

o Preparation of sites for events including markets and weddings

o Inspection of all playgrounds and repairs undertaken

o Ongoing Sports field preparation for weekly fixtures

o Mowing of all parks and reserves

o Cleaning of bin hides and bubblers

o Mowing of cemeteries

· All four pools managed in accordance with the pool management and operational guidelines with programmed and reactive maintenance undertaken

· Park furniture renewals including the donated seats program delivered

· Playground replacements at Herons Creek Reserve, Wall Reserve, Foreshore Reserve and Pioneer Park complete

· The Recreational Walkway Replacement program was undertaken with boardwalk replacements works at Kooloonbung Creek Nature Park complete

· The maintenance program for beaches was undertaken with actions including

o Detailed beach grooming undertaken at all high profile beaches

o Beach accesses maintained and cleaned as required

· The maintenance program for boat ramps, wharves and jetties was undertaken in accordance with the approved maintenance schedule

· Rocks Ferry Reserve riverbank revetment extension work is ongoing

· Westport Park - Riverwall and pathway upgrades complete

· Skatepark renewal at Kendall is pending initiation phase of the project and will continue into 2019-2020

· Construction of a new Park at Crestwood Park is complete

· Community engagement undertaken for Kew Community Park with designs ongoing and will continue onto 2019-20

· Community engagement undertaken for the Coal Wharf Reserve upgrades to install a sub-surface drainage system, concept designs complete and will continue onto 2019-20

Council Service: Building Maintenance

Delivery Program Objective: 2.3.3 Develop and implement management of operational and maintenance programs for open space, recreational and community facilities

· Scheduled and reactive maintenance programs of all Council-owned buildings including office furniture replacement was undertaken

· Building rectification works undertaken in line with Council Building Asset Management Plan

Council Service: Recreation and Buildings

Delivery Program Objective: 2.3.4 Plan, investigate, design and construct open spaces, recreational and community facilities

· Wayne Richards Park – Stage 3B detailed designs are ongoing and will continue into 2019-20

· Flynns Beach upgrade to the sea wall has construction commenced in May 2019 and will continue into 2019-20

· Hastings Regional Sporting Facility - Stage 1 development has design works progressing with construction planning and phasing under development

· Upgrades to Kooloonbung Creek Foreshore from Gordon to Hayward Street is complete

· Town Centre Master Plan improvements has works on the Gordon Street Bridge underpass continuing and ongoing into 2019-20

· Design for the Port Macquarie Off Leash Dog Exercise Park has concept plans developed for a facility at Stuart Park. This project also forms part of Council's RSIF project. Sue to check/move to DP

· The Wauchope off leash dog park is complete. The Port Macquarie facility now forms part of the broader upgrade to Stuarts Park Regional Sporting Precinct and will continue into 2019-20

· Concept plans for Mrs Yorks Garden have been adopted. Heritage Office approvals are currently being sought to allow for Master Plan implementation to commence

Council Service: Community Place - Library

Delivery Program Objective: 2.3.5 Plan and deliver innovative Library Services which cater for new technology and growing population

· The annual library events program was delivered with a range of children’s and adult programs which included a program of live stream concerts from the Sydney Opera House

· Library membership increased from 33,087 as at 30 June 2018 to 34,231 as at 31 July 2019

· New Library spaces have been created and have included new study rooms and technology spaces

· The Library Strategic Plan is currently in draft and under review

· The new Library webpage has been developed

Delivery Program Objective: 2.3.6 Support a range of inclusive community activities and programs

· A wide range of community activities and events have been held across the local government area some of which have included:

o 2019 Countdown to Christmas

o Mayors Sporting Fund Golf Day,

o Autism and Emergency Services Workshops and

o Youth Week

Delivery Program Objective: 2.4.1 Work with the community to identify and address community needs, to inform Council processes, services and projects

· A range of actions were implemented as part of the Volunteer Program, volunteers donated time and resources in a variety of programs and projects

Delivery Program Objective: 2.5.1 Support cultural activities within the community

· The Cultural Plan was adopted in late 2018 with the plan having 30 actions to be delivered by 2021

· A range of performing arts events were presented at the Glasshouse some of which included: TWO by Ensemble Theatre, The Gruffalo Live on Stage, The Sapphires and the Sydney Writers Festival

· A range of visual arts events were presented at the Glasshouse some of which include:

o Northern Exposure exhibition, Jason Wing - Artist in Residence, Primavera at 25 - HSC student workshop, the Archibald Prize, 2017 Regional Tour and ArtExpress

Community Theme 3 – Your Business and Industry

What are we trying to achieve

The Port Macquarie-Hastings region is a successful place that has vibrant, diversified and resilient regional economy for people to live, learn, work, play and invest

What the result will be

· A strong economy that fosters a culture supportive of business and ensures economic development of the region

· Townships, villages and business precincts that are vibrant commercial, tourism, recreational and/or community hubs

· A region that attracts investment

· Partnerships that maximise economic return and create an efficient and effective business environment

How we know we are progressing

· There is growth and development of new industries and business

· Tourism and major events contribute to increased economic activity

· There are greater opportunities for investment across the region

· Council is recognised for its role in fostering partnerships that contribute to business and industry growth

We know we are progressing on delivering outcomes to the community against the Delivery Program objectives as achievement highlights can be seen below against specific council service

Highlights by Council Service and Delivery Program Objective

Council Service: Economic Development

Delivery Program Objective: 3.1.1 Assist the growth of local business and industry, ensuring this is a central consideration of Council activities

· Implementation of the Economic Development Strategy has included actions such as:

o Supporting the growth of The Hub pop-up co-working centre

o Supporting the 2019 Mid Coast Careers Market

o Completion of a Business Confidence Survey with over 400 businesses participating

o Supporting Transport for NSW international airfreight pre-feasibility study

· Implementation of the Small Business Friendly Council Program has included major initiatives such as a Local Preference Policy (LPP) and Outdoor Dining Policy (ODP) and work commenced to draft an outdoor trading policy

Council Service: Strategic Land Use Planning

Delivery Program Objective: 3.1.2 Optimise the use of appropriately zoned land for business uses

· Proposed location of the future Airport Business Park has the draft planning proposal received including biodiversity certification outcomes. A report was presented to the Ordinary Council meeting in June 2019

· Investigations regarding the capacity of land at the intersection of Ocean Drive and Houston Mitchell Drive Lake Cathie, for potential service industrial development had the assessment report on the planning proposal presented to the Ordinary Council Meeting in April 2019. The planning proposal has also been forwarded to the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment

Council Service: Economic Development

Delivery Program Objective: 3.1.3 Implement Major Events Strategy

· Implementation of actions within the Major Events Strategic action plan has seen Council support 23 major events. These events resulted in a combined economic impact of over $36 million for the community

Delivery Program Objective: 3.1.4 Implement the Destination Management Plan

· Implementation of actions from the Destination Management Plan has included:

o Delivery of a winter campaign and Fly Port Macquarie campaign

o Ongoing support provided to Destination North Coast for the creation of a Business Events Bureau

o Completion of procurement for Destination PR services

· Visits to the destination website increased by over 46.2% (year on year) this represents an increase in users from over 251,700 2017-18 to over 367,900 in 2018-19

· The Destination Management Plan review is ongoing. Consultation with Greater Port Macquarie Tourism Marketing sub-committee was undertaken

Delivery Program Objective: 3.2.1 Support vibrant commercial, tourism, recreational and or community hubs across the region

· Supporting town and village initiatives that will provide activation and economic return, some actions have included:

o Supporting the Wauchope Main Street upgrade

o Outdoor trading and A-frame sign fee waiver for towns and villages commenced

o Visual merchandising workshop held in Laurieton

o Support provided for the Creative Wauchope festival

o The installation of town and village signage has seen community engagement undertaken on proposed symbolism and was facilitated through the Community Planning process

Council Service: Airport

Delivery Program Objective: 3.3.1 Develop, manage and maintain Port Macquarie Airport as a key component of the regional transport network and continue to grow the airport’s contribution to the regional economy

· Port Macquarie Airport Terminal upgrade - Stage 1 construction is complete

· Port Macquarie Airport Parallel Taxiway - Stage 2 works has concept designs finalised and environmental assessment ongoing

· Biodiversity certification agreement is progressing with implementation post approval

· Over 214,700 passengers passed through Port Macquarie Airport

Council Service: Economic Development

Delivery Program Objective: 3.3.2 Promote investment, education and lifestyle opportunities

· Promoting local growth and opportunities within and outside the region is has included undertaking actions such as:

o Review and updates to the Investment Prospectus is complete

o Broader place messaging through marketing channels has included videography undertaken for the live, work, invest video campaign

Delivery Program Objective: 3.4.2 Support local business networks

· The Business Hub is meeting regularly with 75% attendance and is actively involved with “The Hub’ business and co-working space

Delivery Program Objective: 3.4.3 Encourage innovation that will support our growth as a regional city including smart community technology

· The Business Hub met regularly and is actively involved with The Hub business and co-working centre

· Engagement with local Chambers of Commerce and other business/industry representative groups is ongoing

· Expanding the local free Council Wi-Fi network has seen the Port Macquarie Airport Terminal and Port Macquarie Pool now live

Community Theme 4 – Your Natural and Built Environment

What are we trying to achieve

A connected, sustainable, accessible community and environment that is protected now, and into the future.

What the result will be

· Effective management and maintenance of essential water, waste and sewer infrastructure

· A community that is prepared for natural events and climate change

· Sustainable and environmentally sensitive development outcomes that consider the impact to the natural environment

· Accessible transport network for our communities

· Infrastructure provision and maintenance that meets community expectations and needs

· Well planned communities that are linked to encourage and manage growth

· Accessible and protected waterways, foreshores, beaches and bushlands

· An environment that is protected and conserved for future generations

· Renewable energy options that are understood and accessible by the community

How we know we are progressing

· We have water, waste, and sewer systems that are efficient, maintained and environmentally compliant

· Consideration, is given to climate change impacts and potential mitigation

· Programs are implemented to support, the condition of the natural environment

· The road and transport network is well planned and maintained

· The transport network, recreational facilities, and open spaces, reflect community priorities

· Coordinated urban development is, well planned to meet projected population growth

· We successfully preserve local flora and fauna

· Renewable energy options are promoted

We know we are progressing on delivering outcomes to the community against the Delivery Program objectives as achievement highlights can be seen below against specific council services

Highlights by Council Service and Delivery Program Objective

Council Service: Water Supply

Delivery Program Objective: 4.1.1 Plan, investigate, design and construct water supply assets ensuring health, safety, environmental protection and security of supply for the future growth of the region

· Construction of the Sancrox to Thrumster truck main has the design phase complete with construction to continue into 2019-20

· Koree Island high voltage incoming electrical upgrades complete

· Area 14 reclaimed trunkmain outlet construction at Bonny Hills is ongoing

· Construction of the Thrumster reclaimed water supply rising main to the reservoir has designs nearing completion and will continue into 2019-20

· Construction of the Beechwood Rosewood Reservoir is ongoing and is expected to be complete in the first quarter of 2019-20

· Construction of the Southern Arm Truck Main - Cowarra balance Tank to Pacific Hwy is complete

Delivery Program Objective: 4.1.2 Develop and implement annual maintenance and preventative works program for water supply assets

· Water asset replacement and renewal program undertaken in accordance with the program

Council Service: Sewerage

Delivery Program Objective: 4.1.3 Plan, investigate, design and construct sewerage assets ensuring health, safety, environmental protection and the future growth of the region

· Construction of the Port Macquarie Sewer rising main (PMSP71) has the detailed design phase complete and construction phase progressing towards commencement in 2019-20

· Provision of centralised sewerage systems for Comboyne, Long Flat and Telegraph Point as part of the small town sewerage program had construction commenced in October 2018 and is ongoing

· Lakewood/Kew (Area 15) sewerage upgrades to cater for future development is progressing. The project is delivered in partnership with NSW public works and design and investigation phase is programmed to continue into 2019-20

· Construction of the Area 14 reclaimed Inlet trunk main (DN250), Bonny Hills has designs nearing completion and will continue into 2019-20

· Construction of the sewer rising main from Camden Haven Pump Station #1 to Dunbogan Bridge complete

· Wauchope Sewer Treatment Plant Office construction complete

· Camden Haven reticulation augmentation complete

· Laurieton sewer rising main to Dunbogan Bridge is complete

Delivery Program Objective: 4.1.4 Develop and implement annual maintenance and preventative works program for sewerage assets

· Programmed replacement of sewerage assets including sewer pumps and electrical switchboards complete

· Programmed replacement of Sewer Treatment Plant electrical and mechanical assets including instruments complete

· Sewer assets replacement and maintenance program for odour control installations, sewer rehabilitation renewal and realigning works complete

Council Service: Stormwater and Drainage

Delivery Program Objective: 4.1.5 Work towards planning, investigation, design, construction of stormwater assets

· Stormwater remediation works at Calwalla Crescent has design phase complete. Construction commenced and is ongoing

Delivery Program Objective: 4.1.6 Develop and implement annual maintenance and renewal programs for stormwater assets

· Settlement Shore and Broadwater canal maintenance undertaken as required

· Major canal maintenance and dredging at Settlement Shore canals has works scheduled to commence and will be ongoing into 2019-20

· The Stormwater Renewal Program has been undertaken with actions including:

o Planning phase complete for Stormwater Relining at Fairmont Gardens, Wauchope

o Stormwater Relining at 559 Ocean Dr, North Haven, Bell St Dunbogan, 5 Cook St, North Haven and Andrews Park, Wauchope and repairs to the stormwater line underneath Andrews Park, Wauchope complete

· Investigation of stormwater remediation options for the Panorama Drive catchment has design phase complete

· Construction of stormwater flooding mitigation measures at Rodley Street Bonny Hills has construction commenced and will continue into 2019-20

· Capturing stormwater condition data for stormwater asset management is ongoing with results being used to guide the development of the stormwater renewal program

· Investigations of stormwater remediation options at Bellbowrie/Bay Street catchment area has design underway and progressing towards completion

· Construction of stormwater remediation measures for Stage 2 at Batar Creek Road Kendall is complete

· Detailed designs of stormwater remediation measures identified in the Westport Stormwater Management Plan has stormwater catchment analysis and design phase progressing

· Designs for stormwater remediation at 10 Dilladerry Cres Port Macquarie complete

· Designs for stormwater remediation at Lincoln Rd/Racewyn Close complete

Service: Waste Management

Delivery Program Objective: 4.1.7 Develop and implement effective waste management strategies

· Kingfisher Waste Depot expansion has detailed designs near completion and will continue into 2019-20

· The Waste Education Program was delivered to 17 local schools with over 3,500 primary school students participating

· Replacement of three transfer bins at Wauchope Transfer Station complete

· Illegal Dumping Clean Up / Prevention Program is ongoing

· Facility upgrade and expansion approvals for the Cairncross Waste Depot is ongoing

· Port Macquarie Hastings Fishing Little project complete

Council Service: Natural Resource Management

Delivery Program Objective: 4.2.1 Develop and implement Coastal, Estuary, Floodplain, and Bushfire Management Plans

· Maintenance programs for bushfire mitigation works on Council land were delivered in accordance with the Bushfire Risk Management Plan

· The Draft North Brother Local Catchment Flood Study was placed on public exhibition in May 2019 seeking community feedback

· Implementation of strategies of the Lake Cathie Coastal Zone Management Plan including stormwater outlet repairs at Middle Rock and Chapana Street complete

· The flood study relating to detailed investigations for the Hibbard Floodway was placed on public exhibition in June 2019 seeking community feedback

Council Service: Development Assessment

Delivery Program Objective: 4.3.1 Undertake transparent and efficient development assessment in accordance with relevant legislation

· Development assessment, building certification and subdivision certification activities were completed efficiently and in accordance with legislation

o Over 1,030 Development Applications with an average processing time of 42 days

o Over 170 Development Application modifications processes with an average processing time of 35 days

o Over 520 Building Construction Certificates with an average processing time of 10 days, and

o Over 75 Complying Development Certificates with an average processing time of 12 days

· No successful legal appeals were recorded in relation to processing errors for development applications

Council Service: Roads, Bridges and Transports

Delivery Program Objective: 4.4.1 Plan, investigate, design and construct transport assets which address pedestrians, cyclist and vehicular needs to cater for the future growth of the region

· Construction of new footpath undertaken at locations including:

o Central Road, Port Macquarie

o Hill Street, Port Macquarie

o Ocean Drive, North Haven

o The Parade, North Haven

o Kendall Road, Kew

· Construction of improved pedestrian amenity for Wauchope Main Street – Stage 1 has construction underway and will continue into 2019-20

· Construction to replace bridge over Harty’s Creek on Comboyne Road has construction complete

· Continuation of detailed design of dual lanes on Lake Road Port Macquarie - Jindalee to Fernhill intersections and Chestnut Road to Ocean Drive has designs ongoing

· Detailed designs for Hastings River Drive, Hughes Place to Boundary Street upgrade are progressing with expected completion of designs by late 2019

· Newport Island Road roundabout construction on Hastings River Drive complete

· Dunbogan Bridge substructure rehabilitation work has commenced and will continue into late 2019

· Kindee Bridge structural repairs and bridge replacement optioneering has initial repairs complete. Stage 2 works to continue into 2019-20

· Corridor planning for the regional road corridor - Kendall Road - Ocean Drive - Hastings River Drive has traffic counts complete with preparation of tender documents underway to appoint a contractor to assist with the project

· Kew Main Street has designs ongoing, project will continue into 2019-20

· Broad analysis of priorities for sealing of unsealed roads completed

· Bago Road pavement rehabilitation, Milligans Road to Pacific Highway is complete with final seal planned in September 2019

· Beechwood Road pavement rehabilitation east of Riverbreeze Drive has final bitumen seal scheduled for September 2019

· John Oxley Drive upgrade at The Ruins Way to Wrights Road Oxley Highway has designs underway and will continue into 2019-2020

· Undertaking the sealed road network condition survey has the project scope developed, contractor engaged and data collection commenced

· Ocean Drive duplication from Matthew Flinders to Greenmeadows has the business case under review by Transport for NSW, with construction funding announced in the NSW State budget

· Design and investigations for Gordon Street Pavement reconstruction between Ocean Drive and Horton Street is ongoing and will continue into 2019-20

· Sealing of the access road to the car park at Wall Reserve Car park is complete

· Car Park resealing works at Wall Reserve complete

· Planning and installation of new bus shelters as per the Community Passenger Transport Infrastructure Grant Scheme (CPTIGS) has included: Ongoing planning for:

o Port Macquarie Airport

Bus shelters installed at:

o High Street, Wauchope

o Cameron Street, Wauchope

o Beechwood Road, Beechwood (two)

o Pacific Drive, Port Macquarie

o Ocean Drive, Port Macquarie

o Ocean Drive, Lake Cathie (two)

o Granite Street, Port Macquarie

o Greenmeadows Drive, Port Macquarie (three)

o Hastings River Drive, Port Macquarie

o Ocean Drive, West Haven

· Upgrades to the ferry access for Settlement Point and Hibbard Ferries is ongoing and will continue into 2019-20

· The Beach-to-Beach shared path project at Camden Haven has construction of the Stage D9 pathway complete. A feasibility study and environmental pathways assessment will be undertaken for the remaining sections

· Lighthouse Road Tourism Connectivity Project - Lighthouse road east upgrades from Matthew Flinders Drive to The Lighthouse has construction commenced and is continuing into 2019-20

· Community engagement on the Orbital Road was undertaken

· Gordon/Horton Street intersection upgrades has design work commenced

· Telegraph Point Pedestrian safety upgrades for new footpaths and pedestrian refuges has planning project complete and design work commenced

Delivery Program Objective: 4.4.2 Develop and implement annual maintenance and renewal programs for transport assets

· The Road Rehabilitation Programme has included completion of the following projects:

o Bago Road, (Milligans to Herons Creek) Herons Creek - final bitumen seal in September 2019

o Beechwood Road, (Riverbreeze to Waugh Street) Wauchope - final bitumen seal in September 2019

o Colonial Circuit, Wauchope

o Burrawan Drive, Wauchope

o Fairmont Drive, Wauchope

o Range Street, Wauchope

o Bransdon Street, Wauchope

o Bay Street, Port Macquarie

o Bellbowrie Street, Port Macquarie

· The Road Reseal Programme has included completion of the following projects:

o Lighthouse Beach (Local Roads), Port Macquarie. The reseals were completed from January to March 2019. Resealing of Matthew Flinders Drive is planned for September 2019

· The Unsealed Road Maintenance Program has included completion of resheeting, grading, drainage and vegetation and rural roadside vegetation clearing as per the assessment criteria from Council’s road risk rating and road hierarchy system

· The Sealed Road Network Maintenance Program has included completion of resurfacing, heavy patching, vegetation management, roadside furnishing and drainage as per the assessment criteria from Council’s road risk rating and road hierarchy system

· The Bridges and Culverts Maintenance and Repair Program included completion of inspections, monitoring and bridge repair works as per the assessment criteria from Council’s road risk rating and road hierarchy system

· Bridgeworks and Road Rehabilitation Program was complete as per the assessment criteria from Council’s road risk rating and road hierarchy system

· Reactive maintenance to Koala Food Trees and Koala Fencing on the Link Road (Ocean Drive) was undertaken in accordance with the program

Delivery Program Objective: 4.4.3 Develop and implement traffic and road safety programs

· Implementation of the Road Safety Action Plan included delivery of two projects:

o Distracted Driver Action Plan implementation

o Safety Around Schools

· The Area Wide Traffic Study report has been received and a summary report will be presented to Council in 2019

· Installation and maintenance of street lights has included upgrade investigations, designs and delivery undertaken

Council Service: Strategic Land Use Planning

Delivery Program Objective: 4.5.1 Carry out strategic planning to manage population growth and provide for co-ordinated urban development

· Local Environmental Plan (LEP) and Development Control Plan (DCP) amendments for the proposed Yippin Creek urban release area to the west of Wauchope has consultants engaged for bushfire, flooding and stormwater with fee proposals being assessed for biodiversity

· Preparation of LEP, DCP and Contributions Plan (CP) provisions for the Port Macquarie Health and Education Precinct had the draft Master Plan exhibited with outcomes to be reported to Council

· The Stage 1 review of the Port Macquarie-Hastings Development Control Plan 2013 has project planning commenced. The NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment is developing a standard DCP format in the future which will also assist to inform the review

· A review of the housing related LEP and DCP provisions to promote housing choice options will have a consultant engaged to prepare a Local Housing Strategy and will continue into 2019-20

· Preparation of LEP, DCP and CP provisions for the “gateway sites” at the intersection of the Pacific and Oxley Hwy had the planning proposal placed on public exhibition in April and May 2019. A report on outcomes was reporting to Council in June 2019 to finalise the Planning Proposal and DCP

Delivery Program Objective: 4.5.2 Plan for infrastructure that supports population growth

· The Roads, water and sewerage works program under preparation prior to commencing the review of the Major Roads Contribution Plan and Water and Sewerage Development Servicing Plans

Delivery Program Objective: 4.6.1 Develop and implement a range of programs for the environmental management of lands within the local government area

· Implementation of the Weed Management Program has included delivery of outcomes such as:

o Over 620ha of land treated for invasive weeds

o Over 850kms of weed dispersal routes treated

o Over 720ha of Bushland under active management

o Over 320km of riparian restoration works were undertaken

· Delivering bushfire preparedness and planning programs to the community is has been undertaken including joint collaboration with Rural Fire Services

· Ongoing education provided to residents, industry and community groups on Council’s tree management requirements within the Port Macquarie-Hastings 2013 tree management Development Control Plan

· Over 1,280 customer requests relating to tree matters have been handled during 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019 including those relating to public, private matters and illegal tree works

· Estuarine Lake Linkages Program was undertaken

Council Service: Asset and Property Investments and Building Maintenance

Delivery Program Objective: 4.7.1 Promote renewable energy outcomes within Council

· LED lighting upgrades complete for the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council office building

· Wauchope and Kendall Pool were identified as existing Council facilities that were suitable to install solar energy systems. Preliminary works completed, with the projects to continue into 2019-20

· Implementation of the Long Term Energy Strategy actions has seen the six monthly update reports presented to the November 2018 and April 2019 Ordinary Council Meetings

Council Service: Water Supply

Delivery Program Objective: 4.8.1 Ensure all Council operations comply with environmental standards and regulations

· Operating and maintaining water treatment plants in accordance with adopted maintenance programs has been undertaken

· Operating the water supply network to ensure public health and safety has been undertaken

· Operating and maintaining storage dams in accordance within the set guidelines has been undertaken

Council Service: Sewerage

Delivery Program Objective: 4.8.1 Ensure all Council operations comply with environmental standards and regulations

· Operating and maintaining sewerage treatment plants in accordance with environmental licences, adopted maintenance programs and safety requirements was undertaken

· Operating the sewerage network to ensure public health and safety has been undertaken with all defects identified through waste trade inspections undertaken and complaints/requests dealt with in line with service standards

Delivery Program Objective: 4.8.2 Increase community awareness and enable access to the natural environment

· Delivering bushfire preparedness and planning programs to the community has been undertaken including joint collaboration with Rural Fire Services

Delivery Program Objective: 4.8.3 Promote Biodiversity Programs

· The Draft Biodiversity Strategy was reviewed and placed on public exhibition. Implementation of actions will commence into 2019-20

Options

It is a statutory requirement under Integrated Planning and Reporting legislation to report on what has been delivered against the Delivery Program on a six monthly basis.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

· Planning and Reporting Officer

· Integrated Planning and Reporting Development Officer

· Group Manager Organisational Performance

· The General Manager, Directors, Group Managers and staff reporting against the annual 2018-2019 Operational Plan provide the basis for the Delivery Program Progress Report

Planning & Policy Implications

This report is aligned with legislative obligations under the Local Government Act and Regulation and the requirements of the NSW Integrated Planning and Reporting Framework

Financial & Economic Implications

There are no direct financial implications from this report. Quarterly budget review statements (QBRS) align with the reporting period referenced in this report.

Attachments

1 View. Attachment A - 2017-2021 Delivery Program and 2018-2019 Operational Plan - Exception Report

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 11.01

Subject: Flynns Beach Master Plan Community Engagement Feedback Report

Presented by: Development and Environment, Melissa Watkins

Alignment with Delivery Program

2.3.4 Plan, investigate, design and construct open spaces, recreational and community facilities.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the information contained within the Flynns Beach Master Plan Community Engagement Feedback Report.

2. Recognise the community engagement that has been undertaken regarding Flynns Beach Master Plan and thank the community for their feedback.

3. Adopt the Flynns Beach Master Plan (Attachment 1), which includes minor amendments as outlined in this report.

4. Request the General Manager consider funding opportunities for implementation of Flynns Beach Master Plan through development of future Operational Plans and relevant State and Federal government grant programs.

Executive Summary

The Draft Flynns Beach Master Plan was last considered at the Ordinary Council Meeting held on 17 July 2019 where it was resolved to place the Draft Flynns Beach Master Plan on public exhibition for 28 days from 22 July to 18 August 2019.

This report outlines the community feedback provided during exhibition of the Draft Flynns Beach Master Plan. The Community Engagement Report is provided in Attachment 2 to this report.

The Master Plan proposes significant improvements to the Flynns Beach precinct including:

· Further seawall upgrades

· Park improvements including new landscaping and turf, provision of new park furniture, shelters, new barbecues and bubblers

· Pedestrian access improvements including footpath connections along Tuppeny Road and crossings for Pacific Drive

· Provision of a new clubhouse, or renovations to the existing structure

· Installation of a small children’s playground

· Bank stabilisation works

· Bush regeneration

· Formalisation of southern parking area.

This report recommends that the amended Flynns Beach Master Plan (Attachment 1) be adopted.

Discussion

The Draft Flynns Beach Master Plan (Attachment 4) was last considered at the Ordinary Council Meeting held on 17 July 2019 where it was resolved:

11.05 DRAFT FLYNNS BEACH MASTER PLAN - COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Cusato

That Council:

1. Note the information contained in the Draft Flynns Beach Master Plan - Community Engagement Report 2018.

2. Endorse the Flynns Beach Master Plan Community Engagement Plan.

3. Place the Draft Flynns Beach Master Plan on public exhibition for 28 days from 22 July to 18 August 2019.

4. Request the General Manager provide a report to the September 2019 Ordinary Council Meeting outlining community feedback provided during the public exhibition period.

CARRIED: 9/0

FOR: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

AGAINST: Nil

In accordance with resolution 3, the draft Master Plan was exhibited and 32 pieces of feedback were received during the exhibition period. Feedback, which was generally supportive of the exhibited plan, as follows:

PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS	DESCRIPTION
UPGRADE FURNITURE	Requests for additional BBQ’s, comfortable benches with back support, provision of shade and extra picnic tables.
PLAYGROUND	Feedback regarding the playground was mixed. Port Macquarie Surf Life Saving Club (PMSLSC) are concerned about the impact of noise associated with playground use on life saving operations. Others recognised the benefit a playground in this location could provide for families enjoying Flynns Beach.
FITNESS STATION	Request for installation of beach volleyball courts and fitness machines.
UPGRADE SURF CLUB	General support for the upgrade of the surf club building. PMSLSC have some concerns about proposed replacement of the facility, and possible impacts on surf lifesaving operations.
PROVISION OF DRINKING WATER POINTS	Request to include bubblers and/or water bottle refill stations.
PROVISION OF LIGHTING	Requests for lighting to be provided across the site.
ACCESS PATHS	Requests for: · Provision of access for wheelchairs, prams and pedestrians from Pacific Drive down to the beach, with no stairs. · A footpath from the top of the road Southern end of the beach on the eastern side of the road down to the Surf Life Saving Clubhouse.
INSTALL STAIRS AT SOUTHERN END OF WALL	Installation of stairs was supported.
BEAUTIFICATION OF THE AREA	Requests to: · Maintain the natural beauty of the area through any development · Undertake bush regeneration within the precinct · Tidy up of entrance to Tuppeny Road.
DROP-OFF ZONE	Provision of short term drop off car park was supported. Feedback was provided that: · It is preferred that two car spaces be available. · The drop off zone of the western side is in the wrong spot. It needs to in a more appropriate place. The identified location on the western side puts pedestrians at risk.
AREA IN FRONT OF NORM MORGAN ROW	Support for seating near and around the Norfolk Island Pines.
EXTRA BEACH SHOWERS	Request for provision of extra beach showers.
VIEWING OPPORTUNITIES	One submission was opposed to proposed viewing areas near corner Tuppenny Road and Pacific Drive and Tully’s Headland, on the basis they will have a negative environmental impact. Support was provided for the viewing opportunity near Rocky Beach access.
CREATION OF FRIENDS OF FLYNNS	A proposal to establish a voluntary team was proposed through development of the Master Plan.
SIGNAGE	The following feedback was provided in regard to signage: · Signage or branding of the area as Flynns Beach with an insignia could be included across the entire site · Signage highlighting how to identify rips currents and dangers in the area e.g. submerged rocks etc. · Improved beach safety signs that accommodate a few other languages for our visitors.
PARKING	Car parking feedback was provided: · Carpark places at the exit end set at 45 degrees for easy entry and exit. · Provide spaces that are not to minimum standard as they are too small. · Consider allocated parking for the Surf Schools to reduce impact of their parked vehicles merging onto the pedestrian and vehicle traffic.
PEDESTRIAN SAFETY	Pedestrian safety was the issue that drew most feedback during the exhibition period. Submissions proposed: · Reduction in the speed limit for Tuppeny Road and the area around Flynns Beach shops. It was suggested that this could be permanent or imposed during peak use periods, like around schools · Consideration of alternative traffic calming devices · Relocation of the pedestrian crossing on Pacific Dr at the shops.
ROAD ACCESS	One submission proposed creating left and right turning lanes on the exit of Tuppeny Road to reduce motorist confusion.
CYCLE PATH	Request for a line-marked cycle path on Pacific Drive
OTHER CONSIDERATIONS	· Retain the historical ambience of this area · Stop referring to the road to Flynns as Tuppeny Lane, it is Tuppeny Road. · Consider the impact the erosion is having on the stability of the road where people park. Consider installation of gabions to control erosion

The detailed submissions are included in the Community Engagement section of this report.

Staff have reviewed the community submissions and have identified some issues for consideration in finalising the Master Plan, as follows:

· Location of the proposed children’s playground

· The preferred option for the clubhouse facility

· Lighting within the precinct.

· Traffic management/pedestrian safety.

Staff will also correct the name of the road through the reserve to Tuppeny Road on the final draft Master Plan.

Children’s Playground

There was mixed feedback regarding the proposal to install a playground at Flynns Beach. Some recognise the benefit such infrastructure provides for families using this reserve. Others expressed concerns with construction and maintenance costs of a playground at this location.

PMSLSC is concerned about the proposed location of the playground. Their concern is that noise generated through playground use will negatively impact on communications between surf club members in the surveillance tower and the beach.

Staff support the installation of the playground as proposed. There is a shortage of local playgrounds to service the nearby neighbourhoods, with closest being John Downes Playground (650m) or Rotary Park Playground (2.2km). Flynns Beach is a preferred location as it can benefit from the nearby amenities such as toilets, cafe, barbecues and water bubblers, and shade from the existing trees. It will undoubtedly prove popular with younger beach users.

It is proposed that the playground will be relatively compact given the limited amount of green space available within the reserve.

Staff acknowledge PMSLSC concerns regarding the location identified within the draft Master Plan and propose to relocate it at the northern end of the reserve. This change in location for the playground does not negatively impact on the overall vision for Flynns Beach Reserve.

Clubhouse Renewal - Option 2

One of the key elements of the draft Master Plan is the proposal to replace the existing surf clubhouse with a new facility in the future. This is identified as Option 2 on the draft plans. As can be seen in the Submission table below, a number of submissions were supportive of this proposal, while one submission did not support this on the basis of cost.

A condition based assessment is undertaken on all Council building assets every 3 - 4 years. An assessment of Port Macquarie Surf Clubhouse undertaken in 2018 determined that its current condition is 2 on a scale of 1 (unserviceable) to 5 (excellent condition). On this basis, staff estimate that the facility will need to be rebuilt in approximately 15 years.

The importance of this facility to PMSLSC and the broader community may see the planning for replacement of this asset bought forward. At this time staff consider this element of the Master Plan to be a long term action.

It is important to recognise that the replacement of the surf clubhouse, as per Option 2, sees the new facility constructed slightly south of the existing facility. This option will also benefit PMSLSC who will be able to operate from the existing facility while a new clubhouse is being constructed.

Provision of street and park lighting

The provision of street and park lighting will significantly improve usability and safety of this area. On this basis, staff support the inclusion of street and park lighting in the master plan.

Traffic management/pedestrian safety

Pedestrian safety within this precinct remains a concern for the community, as outlined in the Community Engagement section of this report. A number of ways of addressing this concern were suggested through the public exhibition period such as speed zone reductions and installation of flashing lights similar to those associated with school zones. Council’s traffic engineers are aware of these concerns and have identified the most suitable options to improve pedestrian safety in this precinct. These improvements, which are identified within the draft Master Plan, include:

· Provision of additional pedestrian refuges on Pacific Drive, near the southern and northern intersection with Tuppeny Road

· Upgrading of the existing pedestrian crossing at Flynns Beach shops

· Upgrading of the vehicular exit of Tuppeny Road

· Provision of dedicated walkways along Tuppeny Road, creating separation between vehicles and pedestrians.

Concerns were also raised about a perceived reduction in car parking as a result of works planned in this Master Plan. Council recognises that this is a concern for beach users, particularly during peak holiday periods. The Flynns Beach Reserve area is highly constrained by landform and significant vegetation preventing options to increase parking yield in the immediate area. However, the Master Plan proposes to increase pedestrian safety and improve connectivity to the site making it easier to walk to Flynns Beach, or to park in nearby areas and walk to the beach.

One submission suggested changing the southern car park arrangement from 90 degrees as shown on the plan to 45 degrees to make it more user friendly. Staff do not propose to change the parking arrangement as shown on the Master Plan at this time. When this element of Master Plan is prioritised for delivery staff will develop a more detailed design for this area with a view to maximising car parking yield. This may result is a parking arrangement that is not exactly as depicted in the Master Plan, and 45 degree parking may be the result.

Based on the information provided above, staff recommend the adoption of Draft Master Plan - Option 2 with amendments outlined in this report. The modified plans are presented as Attachment 1.

Options

Council can opt:

· To adopt Flynns Beach Master Plan as was publically exhibited

· To adopt Flynns Beach Master Plan as presented, which includes minor changes based on feedback provided during the exhibition period, as outlined in this report

· To request modifications be made to Flynns Beach Master Plan

· Not to adopt Flynns Beach Master Plan.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

Community were invited to participate in a variety of engagement methods during the period June - August 2019. Community members were encouraged to provide their feedback to Council, leave comments and make submissions email or online via Council’s Have Your Say website.

The Community Engagement Report is attached for information (refer to Attachment 2 ‘Community Engagement Report (Stage 2) Flynns Beach Master Plan’).

32 submissions were made in response to the Draft Flynns Beach Master Plan (Attachment 5). A copy of the Submissions has been provided to Councillors under separate cover. The details of these submissions, and Council’s response, is included below:

Submission Flynns Beach Master Plan		Issue
1.	Alan Forrester	The pedestrian safety would be further addressed with a 40 km/hr speed zone from the entry to the lane and exit, and include the car park/pedestrian crossing to the shops. The zone could have a 40km/hr flashing lights and be enforced during peak times - school holidays, weekends and public holidays between 9 and 4. This would add to the overall family friendliness of the area. Signage or branding of the area as Flynns Beach with an insignia could be included across the entire site, including logo/branding being added to any planned informational signs on the beach/walkways/road and thereby promoting the area for all. Street pole flags or similar could be considered.
1.	*Response/* *Comment*:	A reduction is speed zone is not supported at this time. Staff have identified upgrading of the existing pedestrian crossing at Flynns Beach shops and installation of two additional crossing points as the preferred method of improving pedestrian safety in this area of Pacific Drive. Staff note that there have been no other requests for branding for Flynns Beach through the master planning process. On this basis, this will not form part of the Master Plan at this point in time.
2.	Brenton Burden	I would like to see the carpark places at the exit end set at 45 degrees for easy entry and exit. This is a very popular beach and trees look pretty but take up car spaces, just have them at the ends. Hopefully the spaces are not to minimum standard as that is too small for family cars and kids opening doors. Vegetate the land on the North west side for shading if you must, not the car park.
2.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Council recognises that parking is a concern for beach users, particularly during peak holiday periods. The Flynns Beach Reserve area is highly constrained by landform and significant vegetation preventing options to increase parking yield in the immediate area. However, the Master Plan proposes to increase pedestrian safety and improve connectivity to the site making it easier to walk to Flynns Beach, or to park in nearby areas and walk to the beach. Staff do not propose to change the parking arrangement as shown on the Master Plan from 90 degrees to 45 degrees at this time. When this element of the Master Plan is prioritised for delivery staff will develop a more detailed design for this area with a view to maximising car parking yield. This may result is a parking arrangement that is not exactly as depicted in the Master Plan, and 45 degree parking may be the result.
3.	Mark Thomas	Rocky Beach stairs - good idea but a low priority I think. Viewing Opportunity near Cnr Tuppenny and Pacific - I have to oppose this one as it will impact the EEC. It must be protected. There are two Threatened plant species at Flynn’s. Viewing Opportunity near Rocky’s access - Good idea, needs to be formalised. Informal tracks should be closed down. Tully’s Headland lookout, seating and shelter. I oppose this as we’ve just regenerated the area and is EEC. The plan acknowledges the area is EEC but proposes building stuff. I reject the notion that the pathway is “overgrown”. When we regenerated the area we deliberately made the path ‘low-tech’. It’s open for discussion. Southern access to beach - Formal stairs are long overdue. Please consider the impact the erosion is having on the stability of the road where people park. Remember there is an Endangered plant there. Southern carpark - Go for it! Crossing point from bottom of stairs near club (plan point 23) - agreed, it is pretty average at the moment. Gabions to control erosion - absolutely!
3.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Support for draft Master Plan inclusions are noted. Viewing platforms have been incorporated at vantage points, which are currently being utilised by the community. Formalisation of these vantage points will reduce the impact on the EEC's caused by the existing informal movements. Revegetation of disturbed areas adjacent to the platforms will be implemented to help further address erosion issues. The potential environmental impact of all elements of the Master Plan require further assessment. At a high level, impacts have been considered in informing the development of this draft plan. However, detailed assessment of environmental impacts will be undertaken as part of the required statutory approvals process as delivery of elements of the Master Plan are prioritised. Project leads will engage with other Council stakeholders (for example, Environmental Services) as part of this process.
4.	Nick G	AMAZING! This is the kind of sophisticated redevelopment Port Macquarie needs. As a local resident that enjoys Flynn's Beach, these upgrades will really enhance the experience of living in Port Macquarie. At present Flynn's is under-utilised. The proposed upgrades will undoubtedly improve the flow of visitors to this part of town and will ensure local shop-owners and stakeholders have great footfall to support their businesses. Improvements to the café and amenities along with the proposed viewing deck/platform will exploit the incredible natural beauty from Flynn's Beach. As an alternative to Town Beach, Flynn's deserves high quality infrastructure. I would love to see Flynn's Beach urbanised with colourful lights at night. It could be Port's answer to Vivid if there were seasonal lightshows at Flynn's Beach, The Glasshouse and the yet-to-be-built Aquatic and Leisure Centre. I'd also suggest looking at the Gold Coast Broadwater Parklands because they've made clever use of architectural and environmental features. Also, I'd suggest looking at the INCREDIBLE "Street's Beach" in Brisbane - not because of the manmade lagoon but because of the way they incorporate urban and natural features to create an unforgettable outdoor experience. The floral pavilions would really enhance the visual appeal of the beach.
4.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Support for the draft Master Plan is noted. Request for colourful lighting is noted but not supported at this time. A key theme that has emerged through this master planning process has been the need to strike an appropriate balance between development of the precinct to contemporise the area to the benefit of an ever growing population base and tourism sector and the need to maintain the natural ambience of Flynns Beach.
5.	Peter Allen	We live near the beach and use it regularly, including after school surfing. Tuppeny Lane is dangerous for children, without designated pathways and limited parking. Option 2 is a great proposal, which properly addresses traffic and pedestrian issues and properly utilises this great space - another outstanding asset for residents and drawcard for tourists. Beach volleyball courts / posts would be another drawcard- they are cheap and aren’t found elsewhere. More BBQs please.
5.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Council staff are currently considering a community group proposal for installation of beach volleyball courts at Town Beach. The draft Master Plan identifies provision of improved barbecue pavilion and picnic facilities. However, spatial constraints limit the amount of infrastructure that can be provided within the reserve without losing too much green space. This has been raised as a concern through development of the draft Master Plan.
6.	Peter Navin	I believe that much of the "plan" is perhaps achievable but not necessarily warranted. I do not believe that any playground or exercise area is needed. The area available for improvements such as these are very limited, there already exists a sufficient playground at John Downes Park and two exercise stations between Rocky Beach Reserve and Mill Hill reserve. I walk the Coastal Walk from Mill Hill to Swift Street daily and seldom see the equipment being utilized. The demand for more is not there. Similarly, the installation, ongoing maintenance and repair of playground items will be costly, may well not be cost-effective or warranted. I would anticipate that the Port Macquarie Surf Club has been and will continue to be included in all discussions in relation to the future "improvements" to the clubhouse building. What control of the use will the PMSLSC have over the use of the building? Consideration of alternative traffic calming devices should be investigated before the inclusion of speed humps on Tuppenny Road - NOT Tuppenny Lane. I am against any erection of a memorial to the fellow who died at Flynn's. Memorials such as the one suggested are not for council to erect and maintain. The idea of loved ones seeking council approval to have a memorial seat installed at some appropriate spot along a walkway or in a park/reserve with a small plaque attached, at their cost, has been in place since the early 80s and more than suffices for such memorials. Extra outdoor shower spaces would enhance the beach area and perhaps one more BBQ. Upgraded public toilets are required. There is already a cafe, no more are required. The present "under- construction" sea wall works will solve many issues when completed. More information regarding the regeneration of the overgrown slopes above Tuppenny Road is required to be able to make any further comments/suggestions. Directional traffic arrows on the southern exit from Tuppenny Road may be helpful to those not conversant with the road. I do not see that too much extra road works are required at the top of the stairs from Tuppenny Road to Pacific drive. No marked crossing is necessary at the exit point of the stairs to Tuppenny Road. Parental control and responsibility are required. I would anticipate that before any adoption of the final plan for the area by council, residents have a final opportunity to inspect the final plan and seek clarification on any issue, preferably at a public meeting. Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Draft Plan. Try to keep the historical ambience of this rare area as it is, not as a futuristic place for the masses.
6.	*Response/* *Comment*:	There is a shortage of local playgrounds to service the nearby neighbourhoods, with closest being John Downes Playground (650m) or Rotary Park Playground 2.2km. Flynns Beach is a preferred location as can benefit from the nearby amenities such as toilets, cafe, barbecues and water bubblers, and shade from the existing trees. Council recognises PMSLSC are a key stakeholder in this precinct and will engage with them through any future improvements / redevelopment of the surf club building. PMHC has leased the existing clubhouse facility to PMSLSC, with the current agreement being for a 20 year period which commenced a few years ago. Traffic calming measures will be further investigated during future design stages. The Master Plan has been updated to correctly identify Tuppeny Road. There is no mention of a memorial in the masterplan. Council have an existing policy whereby members of the community are able to apply for a memorial seat.
7.	Sergio Pavan	Very comprehensive and positive plan. Happy to support the concept, the devil is often in the detail and will look forward to the unfolding and development of the plan. Planners seem to have covered all at this stage. I support the Council statement on the Tidal Pool issue as noted in the plan. I am strongly opposed to such a project on many levels, none the least is the intrusion of a built structure onto a world class natural and beautiful beach and landscape.
7.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted.
8.	Tessa Hodson	Lots of good features. Prefer option 1 - upgrade of existing surf club if this means lower cost. Please add some comfortable benches with back support on the lawns under the Norfolk Pines for people who just want to sit comfortably and enjoy the view.
8.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted.
9.	David Wrigley	It all looks absolutely fantastic, we always expected The Flynns Beach area over the past 50 years to become something. Now it all looks like what we all hoped for is finally happening. I can see why the 80% of people submitting love it. I do as well. Shade is paramount and add a children’s playground great. I suppose a Tidal pool may come along in the future. Nice older tidal pools shall be repaired in the area meantime. The volume of shark sightings may increase as such a tidal pool may be a wonderful option at Flynns in the coming years. The new surf club expansion looks very classy. My only concern is with all this happening many more people will arrive and more parking shall possibly be needed. If there is an event of an evening at The Surf Club +the new Surf club Restaurant + The Blue Whale eatery at 4 Flynn Street. It is of some concern as I watch 20 – 30 vehicles of an evening already looking to park and doing a U turn at Flynn and Surf Street. I see from my balcony how popular the Blue Whale is becoming and the volume of cars arriving and looking to park, it is far greater than in the days when “Thommo’s” seafood restaurant was paramount or any others who tried to make this largish establishment work. Seating for over a hundred. Lots of vehicles now filling Flynn and Surf Street especially on a Friday evening…
9.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted. Council recognises that parking is a concern for beach users, particularly during peak holiday periods. The Flynns Beach Reserve area is highly constrained by landform and significant vegetation preventing options to increase parking yield in the immediate area. However, the Master Plan proposes to increase pedestrian safety and improve connectivity to the site making it easier to walk to Flynns Beach, or to park in nearby areas and walk to the beach.
10.	Elizabeth Casey	1. There needs to be an inclusion to show proposed lighting of the area. 2. The comments about maintaining the natural beauty of the area are strongly supported but the potential future inclusion of a tidal bath is inconsistent with maintaining the natural beauty i.e. it would destroy the natural rock formations and beach scape. 3. I support the establishment of “Friends of Flynns Beach” and would be willing to participate in the establishment of this group. 4. I support both option 1 and 2 but option 2 with a new club house would be preferable. I realise that the option involving a new club house is a far more costly scenario and may delay the implementation of other improvements outlined in option 1. I therefore would propose that option 1 be modified to allow all its inclusions to proceed as soon as possible, whilst incorporating contingency to include a new club house (as per option 2) in the future.
10.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Staff support the inclusion of street and park lighting in the final draft Master Plan. Other comments are noted.
11.	Bev Carver	Love the idea of revitalising Tully's Lookout. Also, Tuppenny Road not Tuppenny Lane. I notice there will be some recognition/remembrance of those who have lost their lives at Flynn's Beach. E.g. Bronson. I know of another local family who lost their son at this beach - will he also be part of the memorial? My Dad was on the Building Committee for the current surf club building. I am writing the 100 year history of the surf club.
11.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted. There is no mention of a memorial in the Master Plan. Council have an existing policy whereby members of the community are able to apply for a memorial seat.
12.	Cadence Ward	We do not need another new playground in Port Macquarie-Hastings. Perhaps instead of building a new, unnecessary playground, council could upgrade existing ones to be sun safe, fenced in, with free access to water bubblers etc. Port Macquarie struggles with car parking, especially during summer when the annual flood of tourists occurs and they proceed to take up every car park we have. Utilise the space being made available, and increase the amount of car parks being added to a beach that has previously struggled to keep up with demand.
12.	*Response/* *Comment*:	There is a shortage of local playgrounds to service the nearby neighbourhoods, with closest being John Downes Playground (650m) or Rotary Park Playground (2.2km). Flynns Beach is a preferred location as can benefit from the nearby amenities such as toilets, cafe, barbecues and water bubblers, and shade from the existing trees.
13.	Christian Schafer	I am in favour of the "Flynns Beach Master Plan". I believe this plan is a great design and enhances the beach area. I have no adverse comments. Thank you
13.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted.
14.	Christina Parkin	Please do not impact on the degree of shady green areas - this is what I love about FB. The rest looks great and I commend the designers! A small playground for kids in the shaded area - I know there is a beach but for those times when users want to use the amenity for BBQs etc., it would add to the potential usage.
14.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted. A playground is proposed within the Master Plan.
15.	Fran Lake	I have been watching the work progress from the start and I find the draft plan a little confusing with most of the visual plans on site back to front but am hopeful/confident the finished product will be worth the wait. I think it is well past time the club facilities (showers change rooms) were upgraded. I am aware there was a grant to upgrade the women’s facilities a little while back but am left disheartened as we still have toilets which don’t flush properly, wash basins with hardly any water coming from the taps and hot showers that may work occasionally but more often don’t if there is more than one person to shower especially if the men’s showers are being used at the same time and a ceiling that has more leaks than before the renovations!
15.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted.
16.	Ian Ramsay	I do not live in Port Macquarie but we are regular visitors to Port and we regard Flynns Beach as our front yard. I have had a look at the proposal and the only comment I can make is that from my observations I feel that the upgrade is long overdue. Obviously we are all aware of the current parking status and it is long overdue for a revamp. Better beach access will I feel be a tremendous asset as would improve picnic facilities and a playground. I feel the proposed improvements will greatly enhance the area and I fully support the proposal.
16.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted.
17.	Janette Turnbull	Do not put in a playground at Flynns Beach. Children are taken to the beach so they can experience a different form of play and learn about the coastal area of our country, discovering rock pools etc. Children can be taken to a number of playgrounds in the area if that is the experience the parent is giving them. It would be vandalised within the week as at night it is very out of sight which makes it an easy target. If you want to spend money on recreation that is going to help the community and give families the opportunity to stay out longer, put in toilets to all playgrounds. It is irresponsible of council to keep allowing the building of playgrounds without these facilities. It is a health issue. It is a moral issue. It is another ignorant decision the council seem to be good at.
17.	*Response/* *Comment*:	There is a shortage of local playgrounds to service the nearby neighbourhoods, with closest being John Downes Playground (650m) or Rotary Park Playground (2.2km). Flynns Beach is a preferred location as can benefit from the nearby amenities such as toilets, cafe, barbecues and water bubblers, and shade from the existing trees. Staff also propose to update the Master Plan to include lighting, which will improve passive surveillance and reduce the likelihood of vandalism.
18.	Lyn Webb	My main concern is that there seems like a lot of the beach (sand area) will be overtaken by the construction, so that when the tide is fully in there will be a lot less space for holiday makers and locals to sit on the sand. I have lived near this beach for 25 years and at busy holiday times the whole beach is full of people and beach umbrellas etc. Also locals who want to walk the beach every day would only be able to do it when the tide is out!!
18.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted. Proposed elements of the Master Plan will not impact on the beach area, with the exception of the upgrade of the seawall. The upgrade of the seawall is an extremely important component of the overall Master Plan, in ensuring that the existing reserve and associated infrastructure is protected in the future. The impact of the seawall on available beach space is minimal, as can be seen through construction of Stage 1 currently underway. The new wall is constructed in front of the existing wall, impacting on beach space. However, this is offset as more usable reserve space is created behind the seawall.
19.	Kaye Waters	Please provide safe and easy access for wheelchairs, prams and pedestrians from Pacific Drive down to the beach, with no stairs.
19.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Existing landform and environmental constraints make it difficult to achieve access compliant grades for walkway connections from Pacific Drive down onto Tuppeny Road. An accessible ramp connecting Tuppeny Road with the beach forms part of the current seawall upgrade. The Master Plan proposes to significantly improve access in the area around the surf club as improvements are delivered.
20.	Annie	The draft Master Plan looks great. I do believe we need to upgrade our surf clubs to provide more facilities & modernise - just need to consider if there will be sufficient parking at Flynns Beach to accommodate increase usage of the surf club for functions etc. Please, if you upgrade or build a new surf club you add to the council's future works (not too far in the future) the same for Tacking Point Surf Club. The improvements to Flynns Beach may be at detriment to Tacking Point Surf Club usage and thus fund raising ability. If you include outdoor gym type area - please make it similar to Town Beach - that is the style that you can move i.e. fitness machines - this allows all ages & disabilities to benefit. Include bubblers with water bottle refill stations. Consider improved beach safety signs that accommodate a few other languages for our visitors.
20.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted. Council has a history of partnering with surf clubs to improve clubhouse facilities. The key driver for surf club renewal is building condition. Council undertakes condition based assessment of surf clubs every few years. Based on assessments undertaken during 2018, Council’s priority is on working with Camden Haven Surf Life Saving Club to replace their facility as it is in the worst condition of all four surf club buildings in the Port Macquarie - Hastings area.
21.	Daniel Barakat	A tidal pool would be a great plan for Flynns Beach community and greater Port Macquarie. All other proposals are great, anything new will bring more life to Flynns Beach.
21.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted. The proposed tidal pool does not form part of the scope for this Master Plan.
22.	Trudy Thwaites	Play area and more barbeques would be fantastic. Better access for pedestrians especially those unable to use stairs.
22.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Play area and barbecues are included within the master plan.
23.	Rachel Rhodes	Bronson Rhodes Memorial incorporating seat and plaque and contemporary art work such as a Sculpture etc. A dedicated art wall in Bronson Rhodes name with community artists invited to conduct community workshops to create community art installations. Signage highlighting how to identify rips currents and dangers in the area e.g. submerged rocks etc.
23.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Council is currently reviewing the Public Arts policy, which will direct the content and theme of the public art / sculpture proposed for this location. Council have an existing policy whereby members of the community are able to apply and purchase a memorial seat - any request for a memorial seat should be made in this manner.
24.	Andrew Bailey	Excellent plan, well-conceived and all elements make sense. I would suggest that tiered concrete steps instead of the proposed vertical seawall would be a better outcome in terms of environment, facility and engineering stability. I am confident that Option 2 (replacement of Surf Club) would be a much more viable long terms strategy than refurbishing the old surf club. Ensure use of natural materials - hardwood etc. rather than treated pine. Ensure more space for Café area
24.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted.
25.	Annemieke English	The Master Plan looks very comprehensive, hopefully will make for a safe enjoyable place for lots of use in the future years. Being a beach walker, access to Flynns Beach across Tuppenny Road is probably my first concern. The speed limit is never adhered to and the vision is poor. My only easy suggestion is to put a diagonal crossing from the bottom of the stairs to the top of the next set of stairs and indicate on the road that there is a crossing ahead. This may make it a little safer for pedestrians. I think it is wonderful that some thought is being put into future use of this beautiful beach and area.
25.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Staff have identified upgrading of the existing pedestrian crossing at Flynns Beach shops and installation of two additional crossing points as the preferred method of improving pedestrian safety in this area of Pacific Drive. Pedestrian safety along Tuppeny Road will be improved with provision of a designated walkway adjacent to the road. Improved pedestrian safety across Tuppeny Road from Flynns Beach shops will be addressed in the long term with the plans for a crossing above the road connecting with the new surf club facility. A short term solution to this issue still needs to be resolved by staff.
26.	Denise Herd	The Master Plan appears to be well considered. My suggestions would be: An extension of the cafe area with easy handicapped parking access close to the cafe. Children's safe play equipment in a child safe fenced area with seating for parents so they can supervise their children.
26.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted.
27.	Wayne Hudson	As a long term resident of Flynns Beach the plan looks okay. Move the children’s playground from the centre of the beach to the north end. That way the load (people and parking) would be spread across the entire beach rather than concentrated in the centre. More of the beach would be used and accessed which would be great rather than concentrating it near the centre. It is important to maximise parking too and so the boardwalk next to the existing parking area is a good idea. The plan looks to remove some parking which would be catastrophic on such a busy beach. Please don’t remove any parking, because summer time and also nipper days this is ALL needed. Updating the surf club looks amazing and will bring a more user friendly beach and a better and more state of the art surf club for such a busy beach. More lighting at night. It is extremely dark and with these new decks etc. it would be great to use into the dusk and night times for family dinners, gatherings etc.
27.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted. Staff propose to change the location of the playground in the final draft Master Plan to the northern section of reserve, as suggested. Staff are also recommending inclusion of street and park lighting in the final plan. Council recognises that parking is a concern for beach users, particularly during peak holiday periods. The Flynns Beach Reserve area is highly constrained by landform and significant vegetation preventing options to increase parking yield in the immediate area. However, the Master Plan proposes to increase pedestrian safety and improve connectivity to the site making it easier to walk to Flynns Beach, or to park in nearby areas and walk to the beach.
28.	Corey Enfield	Drop off zone of the western side is in the wrong spot. It needs to in a more appropriate place. The identified location on the plan puts pedestrians at risk. Reducing the speed limit down to 30km in the Flynns Beach shop precinct and Tuppeny Road. Better signage/warning signal to clearly identify the pedestrian crossing. A footpath would be good from the top of the road Southern end of the beach on the eastern side of the road down to the Surf Life Saving Clubhouse. Possibility of considering allocated parking for the two Surf Schools.
28.	*Response/* *Comment*:	A reduction is speed zone is not supported at this time. Staff have identified upgrading of the existing pedestrian crossing at Flynns Beach shops and installation of two additional crossing points as the preferred method of improving pedestrian safety in this area of Pacific Drive. A footpath connection from the surf clubhouse south along Tuppeny Road to Pacific Drive is included in the plan. Allocated parking for surf schools is not supported at this time.
29.	Latif Ucdereli	Pedestrian safety from the shops up the top down to the beach. When any construction is occurring in the area to engage with the businesses, this will ensure they have enough lead time to plan and prepare.
29.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Improved pedestrian safety across Tuppeny Road from Flynns Beach shops will be addressed in the long term with the plans for a crossing above the road connecting with the new surf club facility. A short term solution to this issue still needs to be resolved by staff.
30.	Rick Rolff, Secretary PMSLSC	Any proposed redevelopment of the Surf Club building would need to be done in close consultation with the Club. Whilst the current concept is in line with the Surf Club Master Plan done some years ago any work to advance the design would need close consultation with the club to ensure its primary function is suitable to support the club and councils surf lifesaving functions. The original club building, the construction of which dates back to the 1950's, was financed by the club along with the numerous upgrades and maintenance to the present day and as such the club has a considerable financial interest in the existing building. Proposed storage for surf schools would need to be a standalone facility separate from the Surf Club Building. There is no room within the current building and if storage was to be considered in any redevelopment of the club it would need to be separate from the club areas with its own access. The club would not consider loss of footprint to accommodate this additional storage. We will not consider the playground suitable for the beach reserve and believe it should not proceed. The beach is its own playground and such a facility would be better elsewhere. We have concerns with its position close to the observation tower. The tower is the major observation location for swimmers in trouble and as such need clear radio reception between Surf Lifesavers during rescue events. Noise from playground adjacent the tower would compromise this function.
30.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Council recognises PMSLSC as a key stakeholder in development and delivery of this master plan. Council will support the club with plans for redevelopment of the surf club building, when deemed appropriate, to ensure that this critical community service is supported with appropriate infrastructure to service a growing regional city and tourism destination. Council does not have plans to provide storage for surf schools within the surf club. There is support for provision of a playground at Flynns Beach. However, noting PMSLSC concerns about noise, staff are proposing to reposition the playground at the northern end of the reserve.
31.	Tracey Wells	Happy with the draft plan. Pedestrian safety and car parking has been my concern in this area.
31.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Comments are noted.
32.	David Craddock	Move existing crossing at the Flynns Beach shops south by 100m and remove parking from in front of it (directly)
32.	*Response/* *Comment*:	Staff have considered a range of options and have identified upgrading of the existing pedestrian crossing at Flynns Beach shops and installation of two additional crossing points as the preferred method of improving pedestrian safety in this area of Pacific Drive.

Planning & Policy Implications

A majority of works identified in the draft Master Plan are considered as Exempt Development or Development permitted without consent as identified in sections 65 and 66 of State Environmental Planning Policy (Infrastructure) 2007.

Ongoing planning across Council’s infrastructure network will be undertaken to achieve integration with existing assets and ensure safe and efficient operations of public roads whilst still meeting the intent of the master plan.

The adoption of this Master Plan will inform the development of other key planning documents:

· Coastal Management Program (CMPs). CMPs identify coastal management issues and the actions required to address these issues in a strategic and integrated way. An adopted Master Plan will inform CMP actions for Flynns Beach.

· Plans of Management (POM). In accordance with the Crown Lands Management Act, by 30 June 2021 Council is required to develop POM for Crown reserves for where Council is identified as Council Crown Land Manager. Flynns Beach is one of these sites and staff will commence preparation of a Flynns Beach Reserve POM during the current financial year.

Financial & Economic Implications

The total cost of implementing the Master Plan is estimated at $20 million.

An itemised breakdown of this cost estimate is attached (refer to Attachment 3 ‘Flynns Beach Master Plan - Cost Estimate’). Staff recognise that delivery of the Master Plan as presented will require significant investment. However, the Master Plan is a long term vision for this highly valued public space and staff estimate that its implementation could take 15 years for some elements, such as the construction of a new surf club facility.

An allocation of $3.1 million is identified in the Recreation and Buildings 10 year works programme for Reserve Upgrades in 2021/22. While this budget has been identified in the works programme, allocation of these funds will be subject to adoption by Council through an annual Operational Plan in the future.

The improvements identified within the Flynns Beach Master Plan provide a range of social, health, environmental, economic and tourism benefits. On this basis, there are a range of state and federal government grant programs that have potential to partner with Council and other funds in master plan implementation. Examples of such programs are Building Better Regions Fund, Crown Land Improvement Program and Coastal Management Program grants.

Attachments

1 View. Flynns Beach Master Plan - Final Draft

2 View. Community Engagement Report (Stage 2) - Flynns Beach Master Plan

3 View. Flynns Beach Master Plan - Cost Estimate

4 View. Draft Flynns Beach Master Plan - as exhibited

5 View. Flynns Beach Master Plan - Community Submissions

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 11.02

Subject: Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility - Site Selection

Presented by: Development and Environment, Melissa Watkins

Alignment with Delivery Program

2.3.4 Plan, investigate, design and construct open spaces, recreational and community facilities.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the information contained in the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility- Site Selection Report.

2. Acknowledge the community engagement that has been undertaken regarding a new Aquatic Facility in Port Macquarie and thank the community for their feedback on their preferred site.

3. Reconfirm Macquarie Park as the preferred site for a new Aquatic Facility in Port Macquarie.

4. Request the General Manager to proceed with the next stage of the project being detailed design and approvals; including development of a Strategic Concept Design.

5. Request the General Manager provide a future report to Council on the progress of detailed design and the Strategic Concept Plan in June 2020.

6. Request the General Manager provide a future report to Council on the outcome of discussions with the displaced user groups of Macquarie Park, being Port Macquarie Football Club & Port Macquarie Army Cadets to identify suitable alternative facilities in June 2020.

Executive Summary

Following a report to the July 2019 Meeting of Council, it was resolved that the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility project proceed to the next stage of community engagement, being site selection on six identified sites:

· Macquarie Park (Gordon Street)

· Dixie Park (Aston Street)

· Findlay Park (Findlay Avenue)

· Upper Oxley Oval (Pacific Drive)

· Thrumster Sporting Complex (College Drive)

· Wayne Richards Park (Koala Street)

A seventh option, being a like-for-like upgrade of the existing Port Macquarie Pool complex, was also identified as an option with the acknowledgement while the site is not large enough to accommodate the spatial requirements of a new contemporary Aquatic Facility it would provide an opportunity for the community to provide feedback on the implications of this option

A community consultation period, which encompassed diverse engagement methods to reach a broad cross section of the community, was undertaken from Monday 22 July - Sunday 1 September, 2019.

In addition to community engagement initiatives and to further support the site selection process, a Site Selection Workshop was conducted with representatives across Council divisions to identify and consider further planning considerations for each option.

Through analysing the feedback received from the community and the outcomes of the Site Selection Workshop, Macquarie Park at Gordon Street, Port Macquarie has been reconfirmed as the preferred site for a new Aquatic Facility within Port Macquarie.

This report recommends that Council proceed with the next stage of the project being detailed design and approvals; including development of a Strategic Concept Design.

Discussion

At the Ordinary Council meeting held on 17 July 2019, Council resolved the following:

11.04 PORT MACQUARIE AQUATIC FACILITY - SITE SELECTION

RESOLVED: Cusato/Griffiths

That Council:

1. Note the details of community engagement that have been undertaken to date as outlined in this report regarding a new aquatic facility in Port Macquarie;

2. Note the facility design components contained within the Otium Planning

Group’s Port Macquarie-Hastings Aquatic Strategy in conjunction with the community’s 2017 feedback on priorities for inclusion in a new facility;

3. Note the schematic layouts containing the facility design components for six (6) identified sites for the new Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility and the alternate option to upgrade the existing site;

4. Endorse the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Community Engagement Plan and proceed to the next stage of community engagement on the seven (7) options contained within this report; and

5. Request the General Manager to table a report at the September 2019 Council meeting detailing the outcomes of community engagement.

CARRIED: 9/0

FOR: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

AGAINST: Nil

In accordance with resolution 4 above, Council staff commenced further engagement with the community on Monday 22 July regarding the proposed Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility as per the project’s endorsed Community Engagement Plan, with a specific focus for this stage of engagement on selection of a preferred site. Various engagement activities were undertaken to reach a broad cross section of the community, incorporating online surveys, stakeholder meetings, targeted letter drops, traditional media and social media, online submissions, email blasts and Aquatic Facility pop-ups at two shopping centres and the Port Macquarie Pool.

Following an overwhelming response from the community and feedback that further time was required for community members to provide a sufficient response to Council on this project, the consultation period was extended for a further two weeks and closed on Sunday 1 September. The engagement activities resulted in 880 surveys being completed and 57 written submissions received. From the consultation outputs, the community identified Macquarie Park as their preferred site for the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility (refer to Attachment 1 - Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Site Selection - Community Engagement Report).

Survey Responses - What did the community tell us?

A majority of respondents live in Port Macquarie.

A majority of respondents were aged between 31 and 75 years of age.

The community were asked about their usage of Council owned pools. As can be seen above, a majority of respondents identified as being regular users of Council’s pools. The table below identifies that a significant majority of persons surveyed who identified as using Council pools use the Port Macquarie facility.

If respondents identified as being a member of a current user group of one of the potential sites, or they neighbour one the potential sites, they were asked to identify the site.

47% of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed with the statement that the new Aquatic Facility should be located within the Pot Macquarie CBD compared with 33% who disagreed or strongly disagreed. 20% of respondents were neutral on this criteria.

There was not a strong outcome from this question with 42% being neutral, 26% disagreeing and 32% agreeing with the statement.

89% of all respondents either agreed/strongly agreed that the Aquatic Facility should be accessible by all forms of public transport.

No strong opinion either way for this criterion with 40% of respondents neutral, 27 % disagreeing and 33% agreeing with this statement.

A clear majority of respondents (70%) agreed with this statement.

41% of respondents are neutral about this staement, however more respondents are not in favour of building on a landmark site (38%) than for (21%).

A majority of respondents (55%) indicated that they would support a site that may require additional construction costs to enable all identified features of the Aquatic Facility to be delivered, compared with 14% for costs to be minimised and 31% selecting a balance of both cost and location.

Respondents were asked to select their first, second and third choices for the location of the new Aquatics Facility (from the list of the six new sites and the upgrade of the existing site). The results are summarised below:

Macquarie Park is the most preferred site with 20.8% of all votes cast. Second is an upgrade of the existing pool site with 19.1% of the votes and third Wayne Richards Park with 18.1% of all votes cast.

The Macquarie Park site has 25% of the first choice votes with a like for like upgrade of the existing pool site and the Thrumster Sporting Complex site showing just over 21% of votes each.

The site choices were weighted with three points for 1st choice, two points for 2^nd choice and 1 point for 3rd choice. As can be seen above, when the sites are totalled for all votes cast using this weighting method, Macquarie Park has the greatest number of points at just over 22% of the possible points. Second is the upgrade of the existing pool site with 19.4% of all points available, closely followed by Thrumster and Wayne Richards Park both with just under 18% of the possible points.

Macquarie Park was the preferred (first choice) site for regular users of a pool in the Port Macquarie-Hastings LGA with 32% of the 394 regular pool users selecting this site. Thrumster was the second most preferred site with 18% of the votes.

It is interesting to note that of the 66 votes cast for Thrumster by regular users, 27 were from people who lived outside of Port Macquarie (22 in Wauchope and 5 in Lake Cathie/Bonny Hills and the Camden Haven). 26 respondents were regular users of pools other than the Port Macquarie Pool - Wauchope Pool (24); Kendall (1) and Laurieton (1).

Although the numbers shown above are relatively small, it is important to consider the impact on visitation to outlying pools from regular users, the Wauchope facility in particular, if the new Aquatic facility were to be located at Thrumster.

In addition to the questions included above, the survey asked the following:

· Please outline below any specific comments you have regarding your preferred sites, or any of the potential site locations.

· Do you have any other specific comments about the proposed Aquatic Facility?

The following themes/comments were provided in response to these questions:

THEME / COMMENT	NUMBER OF OCCURRENCES
Thrumster is a growing area and central to LGA and highway	10
Don’t impact local sporting clubs especially football clubs	6
Ample Parking required	6
Macquarie Park/ CBD ideal for tourists, public transport, convenient for local schools, close to shopping	4
Accessible by Public Transport especially school buses	4
Control the costs and make it practical	3
Not in CBD due to traffic congestion and/or parking issues	3
Needs to be in town	3
Tidal Pool preferred - therefore have aquatic facility at Thrumster for spread of facilities	3
Access and area for future expansion	3
Upgrade current pool - holds a lot of history	2
Inclusion of diving facilities	2
Upgrade current so as to spend money in other towns across LGA	2
Wauchope	2
Don’t use Dixie due to impact on sporting users; will be less accessible for LALC events	2
Location near the Sewerage Treatment Plant not suitable and should not be considered.	2
Should be within 5-10 minutes of Port Macquarie	1
Don’t use Findlay due to impact on sporting users	1
If football club impacted relocate to Wayne Richards Park	1
Heated indoor pool accessible year-round	1
Kids water play	1
Near the hospital	1
More aquarobics classes at Wauchope	1
Needs to be funded and sorted as soon as possible	1
Involve the public	1
Pool access for elderly and disabled	1
Lagoon in old Coles Area	1
Incorporate gym with cost included in pool admission	1
Use Facebook to advise of usage restrictions due to carnivals etc.	1
Not Wayne Richards - in the middle of nowhere	1
Existing site is fine - build multi-storey carpark on adjacent site	1
No 25m indoor pool - open air preferred	1

In addition to the surveys, 57 submissions were made during the engagement period. Summarised comments are included below:

No.	Name	SUBMISSION SUMMARY
1	A and J Steinmetz	Opposing Oxley Park as a location, requesting the area be kept as a green space.
2	Philip and Anne Henry	Favouring Thrumster as the site location.
3	Ines Zanin	Positive for a new Aquatic Facility anywhere in Port Macquarie, just not in Wauchope as too far for seniors.
4	Larry Brook	Supportive for a 10 lane 50m pool and 10 lane 25m pool. Has considerable knowledge in the Aquatics area and happy to participate in the process (Life Member of Port Swim Club).
5	David Brown	Opposing Oxley Park as a location, requesting the area be kept as a green space (no pool & high rise). Also objected to the removal of the Norfolk Island Pine trees at Oxley Oval.
6	Rod and Dawn Mallinson	Opposing Upper Oxley Oval as a site location, requesting the area to be kept as open green space.
7	Carol Griffiths	Supportive of a modest upgrade of the existing pool facilities only. Not in favour of spending $40-50million when the rural road network is deteriorating.
8	Ray Griffiths	Strongly opposes spending $40-50 million on the new Aquatic Facility, prefer the money to be spent on the rural road network.
9	Jo-anne Stavely	Strongly agrees that the site locations should be located as close to the CBD as possible.
10	Diane Irving	Preferred site location is at Wayne Richards Park where the Council depot is. Is also keen for an ocean pool for the elderly.
11	Phillip Mallia	Upgrade the existing site, walk in heated pool with spa and sauna.
12	Shirley Thompson	Macquarie Park is the preferred site.
13	Janette Turnbull	Opposed to a new Aquatic Centre, if the area requires another pool build one at Sovereign Hills (but not a huge centre, just a pool).
14	Jane Hackett	Strongly opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location. Preferred site locations are Thrumster, Macquarie Park & Wayne Richards Park.
15	John Hackett	As above. Strongly opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location. Preferred site locations are Thrumster, Macquarie Park & Wayne Richards Park.
16	Alison Steinmetz	Opposing Oxley Park as a location, requesting the area be kept as a green space
17	Christine Coorey	Upper Oxley Oval is not suitable. Most sensible option would be to upgrade the existing pool site.
18	Various Residents from Gemini II, 32 Burrawan Street	As above per Jane and John Hackett's submissions. Residents strongly opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location. Preferred site locations are Thrumster, Macquarie Park & Wayne Richards Park.
19	Ian Nettle	Opposing Upper Oxley Oval as a site location. Rebuild of existing facility would be most beneficial.
20	Sandra Adams	Strongly opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location. Preferred site locations are Thrumster, Macquarie Park & Wayne Richards Park.
21	Occupant of 6-32 Burrawan Street	Strongly opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location. Preferred site locations are Thrumster, Macquarie Park & Wayne Richards Park.
22	Jeff and Val Austin	Support for Wayne Richards Park, and opposition to Upper Oxley Oval.
23	Kayleen Jobson	Concerned about parking for Macquarie Park site location.
24	Debra McDonnell	Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location.
25	Dena Owen	Opposed to the Aquatic Facility in Port Macquarie - Preferred site is at Laurieton as there is no heated pool option there.
26	Alex Irving	Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location.
27	Port Macquarie Junior AFL Club	Opposed to Wayne Richards Park site location due to the site being currently designated as a 2nd AFL ground and purpose built athletics track in Council's Master Plan for 2020, and also unpleasant smell close to STP. Macquarie Park would be a better site location as close to town and more parking. Sporting Clubs at Macquarie Park can be catered for at other sites (including new fields planned at Thrumster).
28	Sandra & Dennis Woods	Strongly opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location, should remain an open space. Supports Macquarie Park or upgrade of existing current site.
29	Port Macquarie Aquatic Centre Committee	Detailed submission covering pros and cons of all sites. Preferred sites are 1) Macquarie Park, 2) Upper Oxley Oval, then less preferred sites 3) Findlay Park, 4) Dixie Park, then Problematic Sites 5) Wayne Richards Park, 6) Thrumster.
30	Ruth Herdegen	Strongly opposed to the Upper Oxley Oval site location. Preferred option is to upgrade the existing site.
31	Port Macquarie Swimming Club	Opposed to two sites, Wayne Richards Park (due to odour) and Thrumster due to traffic problems. Preferred site is Macquarie Park.
32	Julie Lenard	Preferred site location is to stay at the current site.
33	Peter & Cathy Rasmussen	Preferred site location is Upper Oxley Oval.
34	Dawn Mallinson	Concerned resident about Upper Oxley Oval site selection, and impact on residents, totally inappropriate site and will have a devastating effect on the mental health of residents.
35	Margaret & Tony Bourke	Prefer the site to stay in the centre of town. Macquarie Park and current site are the preferred sites.
36	Port United Soccer Club	Opposed to Dixie Park as a site location, on behalf of Port United Soccer Club.
37	Elizabeth Vaughan	Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location, should be left as green space. Concerned for impact on nearby residents. Preferred site location is Macquarie Park.
38	Dorothy Kirkness	Prefers the pool to stay where it is.
39	Kayla Finn & Rowan Johnston	Strongly opposed to Upper Oxley Oval (leave as green space) and Macquarie Park (leave as open green space). Preferred site would be to upgrade existing location, or second choice would be at Thrumster.
40	M & P Ellison	Supports a tidal pool next to Town Beach
41	Ivan & Jenelle Francis	Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location, should be left as green space. Concerned for impact on nearby residents. Other nominated sites do not have impact on residents.
42	Jill Knight	Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location, should be left as green space. Other better suited options include Thrumster, Macquarie Park, Wayne Richards Park.
43	Brian Knight	As above. Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location, should be left as green space. Other better suited options include Thrumster, Macquarie Park, Wayne Richards Park.
44	NA & JM Trim	As above. Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site location, should be left as green space. Also expressed concerns about parking for larger sporting events at Oxley Oval and the Ironman event. Other better suited options include Thrumster, Macquarie Park, Wayne Richards Park.
45	Maureen McGovern	Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval site, due to traffic management issues, no public transport. Preferred site is to upgrade existing swimming pool location. Is an owner of property on Burrawan St (opposite Upper Oxley Oval) and has made a complaint about not receiving correspondence (doesn't live at property, but heard about it via another tenant).
46	Elisabeth Hall	Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval as a site location, keep as green open space. Agrees an upgraded pool is needed, but put is closer to where the bigger and younger population lives.
47	Lorryl Rumble-Fuller	Strongly opposed to Upper Oxley Oval as a site location, due to significance to heritage of our town, and need for green space on foreshore. Other areas in town would be more suited.
48	Sande Wood	33 completed surveys (hard copies) enclosed.
49	Ian Masters	Opposed to Upper Oxley Oval as a site location, and surprised it is an option. Should be left as green space.
50	Bruce Thompson	Five sites are already used by other organisations. Sovereign Hills will be a white elephant like Taree Complex. Another suggested option would be Hibbard Bowling Club. Present site is well situated. Cost wise better to upgrade the existing site.
51	C & S Keg	Macquarie Park to be the new site.
52	Kate Whatman	Prefer site to stay at the present location, close to the centre of town. Oxley Oval area should be open space. Complex should not be at a satellite location (Thrumster) as there would be a risk to town decentralising if moved out of CBD area.
53	Margaret Modok	Suggest existing site with better facilities i.e. Olympic pool, indoor heated pool, diving pool, spa + sauna, children’s water play, better change rooms with lockers, lawn area with tables + chairs. Alternative relocation to Short St carpark.
54	Stephen Vaughan	Strong objection to Upper Oxley Oval site - impact on residents and school due to topography public transport infrastructure and noise pollution.
55	Jack Flash	Propose instead contemporary amphitheatre for council events and school productions
56	Jeff Potts	Wayne Richards Park preferred option - size is more conducive to an inclusive health facility in line with Strategic Report with note to consider alternative energy (solar) in planning. Less impact as adding to an already existing sports precinct. More car parking capacity than other site options.
57	James McCallum	Oppose Upper Oxley Park site - more suited to amphitheatre with focus on arts and culture precinct promoting tourism.

Please note that where support was indicated for particular sites in the written submissions, these were added to the Site Preference tallies from the Have Your Say survey (and are included in the graphs shown in the Preferred Site analytics shown above).

It should also be noted that a couple persons submitted more than one submission. The content of these submissions were the same so they have been treated as a single submission for each person in this instance.

In conjunction with feedback received from the community, staff from across Council divisions came together to analyse a range of planning considerations against each site option. These planning considerations were grouped in themes as key criteria being identified:

· Available space to deliver objectives, required functionality and longevity

· Adjacent complimentary facilities

· Location, catchment and accessibility

· Environmental impacts

· Capital costs

· Impact to existing and planned users

Assessment of the sites against these criteria was undertaken which confirmed that the staff preference for an aquatic facility is Macquarie Park.

The preferred site - Macquarie Park

Macquarie Park has been identified as the preferred site for an aquatic facility on a number of occasions since planning commenced in 1999/2000. There is a current Council resolution from 2011 resolving that this is the preferred site for a new aquatic facility.

As identified in the previous report to Council regarding this matter, there are a number of positives for Macquarie Park as a site for a future aquatic facility:

· Existing power / water / sewer utility / storm water / recycled water provisions within close proximity to site

· Zoned as RE1 (permissible under current zoning)

· Low bushfire risk

· Central location and close proximity to existing pool site

· Public transport access

· Larger space is available allowing for more variation of facility configuration

· Linkages with existing recreational site (netball), still space for future growth

· Low impact to adjacent land use

· Low vegetation impacts

· Close to other community facilities

· Parking to complement existing infrastructure. Through the community engagement process, a number of submissions expressed concerns about the impact an aquatic facility at Macquarie Park would have on parking, which many see as an issue at this time. As one of the largest sites proposed through the site selection process, Macquarie Park offers potential for more car parking to be provided than is required to service the aquatic facility providing a benefit to the broader area.

· Exposure for existing businesses within close proximity

A number of constraints associated with Macquarie Park were also identified:

· Displacement of existing sporting user groups

· Pressure on Munster Street

· Native title status to be determined (land tenure)

· Pump station constrains access at Munster Street

· Pump station visual impact at Munster Street

· Sewer main traverses south of site

· Ex-landfill site therefore cost for disposal of excess soil material is high and additional structural requirements

· Adjacent to an area mapped as Endangered Ecological Community

· Southern part of the site is located within 1:100 year flood zone - flood assessment to be undertaken as part of the development

· Building height restriction of 11.5m

· Environmentally sensitive areas adjacent to site

Staff recognise the need to engage with impacted user groups once a decision on the preferred site is resolved by Council. Assuming Macquarie Park is resolved as the site, staff will work with Port Macquarie Football Club & Port Macquarie Army Cadets to identify suitable alternative facilities for training and/or competition. It will be some time before construction of a new aquatic facility commences. There is considerable planning to undertake, along with a need to confirm funding sources for the project. On this basis, it is unlikely that work will commence within 3 years, noting that it will possibly be considerably longer before the required project budget can be secured. This gives staff time to work with the impacted users to develop a relocation plan, and it is likely that they will remain using Macquarie Park for the next couple of years. Once a plan has been agreed, staff will report the outcome back to Council.

The replacement of the Munster Street Sewer Pump Station is identified in the 10 year works programme. Staff advise that there is potential to relocate this infrastructure at the time of renewal to better integrate with the planned aquatic facility. To accommodate this, the project manager overseeing the aquatic facility detailed design process will coordinate the detailed design for the sewer pump station to address the constraint and visual impact associated with the existing structure.

Other constraints identified above will be addressed through the detailed design and approval process.

The existing Port Macquarie Pool site

It is recognised that the existing pool site is not large enough to accommodate a new aquatic facility based on the identified spatial requirements as outlined in the Port Macquarie - Hastings Council Aquatic Facility Draft Strategy Report prepared by Otium Consulting. However, an alternate option to constructing a new aquatic facility would be to upgrade or replace the existing pool facilities to extend their useful life. This would essentially involve a like-for-like upgrade. However, further works would be required to bring the facility up to current industry standards and meet compliance requirements, which have come into effect since the original facility was constructed. This would include addressing accessibility and the upgrade of plant and equipment for operational purposes to comply with relevant health standards. Independent structural assessments have determined that the existing pool structures are at end of useful life, so full renewal of these facilities will be required.

The estimated cost of delivering this option is in the order of $8-10 million. It is estimated that these works would extend the usability of the facility for a further 50 years, noting the works would need to be undertaken over an estimated 8 month period, displacing a significant number of pool users for an extended period. Further, this option does not address existing congestion issues associated with this facility, which will only worsen as our population continues to increase.

While there was strong support for this option through the community engagement process, being the second preference overall, review of the some of the comments provided in support of this option indicates that a number of respondents had not understood that a contemporary aquatic facility cannot be accommodated on the existing site as it is just not big enough.

Given that the existing site does not have space to accommodate a new aquatic facility with capacity to meet demand that will result from local population growth, staff do not support the option to deliver a like-for-like upgrade of pool facilities on the existing site.

Aquatic Facility Planning - Next Steps

Assuming Council adopt Macquarie as the site for a new aquatic facility, the project manager responsible for detailed design and approvals will commence project planning. Council will undergo a Request for Tender process to engage consultant/s to undertake the detailed design of this facility. The outcome of this process will be reported to Council in early 2020 with a likely timeframe for commencement of detailed design being March or April 2020.

One of the early deliverables of this engagement will be development of a Strategic Concept Design and Staging Plan. Council will undertake further engagement with the community when the Strategic Concept Design and Staging Plan are complete.

Options

Council may choose to:

1. Adopt the recommendations contained within this report;

2. Request further information on the site selection process and consider alternative identified site options for the Aquatic Facility.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

Prior to the exhibition period commencing, face-to-face meetings were held with the following key stakeholders for the project to inform them of the engagement and answer any questions they may have had about the engagement process and/or concerns with the project moving forward. All stakeholders were encouraged to provide feedback during the engagement period.

· BlueFit - managers of the existing Port Macquarie Pool;

· Football Mid North Coast - overarching body for football clubs in the region, one of which could be affected depending on the site chosen; future user of the Thrumster site;

· Little Athletics, Port Pacers - future users of the Wayne Richards Park site option;

· Port Macquarie Netball Association, Port Macquarie Football Club & Port Macquarie Army Cadets - current neighbour and users (respectively) of the Macquarie Park site

· Port United Football Club - current user of Dixie Park site;

· Port Saints Football Club, Hastings Secondary College (Westport Campus), Port Macquarie Softball Association - current users of the Findlay Park site;

· Port Macquarie Vikings Rugby Club - users of the Oxley Oval site

· Pool for Port Macquarie Group (now Aquatic Facility Committee) - lobby group for the development of a new Aquatic Facility for Port Macquarie.

A meeting was also held with representatives from the Birpai Local Aboriginal Land Council, which confirmed that there were no known Aboriginal Heritage issues with any of the sites. The Land Council wishes to be involved in both the design and construction phases of the project.

In accordance with the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility - Site Selection & Concept Plan Community Engagement Plan, Council staff conducted consultation with the community on their preferred site for the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility based on the six identified options, with a 7th option of a like-for-like upgrade of the existing pool site also being presented to the community.

The Community Engagement program is included below:

DATE(S)	ACTIVITY
11 - 15 July	Stakeholder Meetings with site user groups (existing and future) & Pool for Port Macquarie Group
18 July	Media Release
22 July - 1 September *	Have Your Say Online Engagement Survey
2 August	Letterbox Drop to Neighbours of Sites
8 August	Meeting with Birpai Local Aboriginal Land Council
13 - 15 August	Pop-Up Engagements: - Port Central - Port Macquarie Pool - Settlement City
22 July - 22 August	Promotion of Survey via newspaper advertisements, Facebook & posters on-site and in local spaces

*The exhibition period was extended for 2 weeks to allow for further input from the community (particularly from those who neighbour the potential sites).

A comprehensive Have Your Say site was developed to solicit feedback on the various site options. The following documents were available in the Document Library on this site to provide the community with more information regarding this issue:

- Otium Planning Group Report - Port Macquarie-Hastings Council Aquatic facilities Strategy

- Aquatic Facility - Site Context Map

- Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Site Options - Schematic Layouts

- Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Site Options - Existing Site Layout

- Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Site Options - Positives and Constraints

- Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Site Options - Existing Site Layout

- Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Site Options - Frequently Asked Questions

- Council Report - Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility

Community members were asked for their feedback on the different site options and the various criteria that will help Council determine the best site for a new Aquatic Facility by completing a survey (refer to Attachment 2 - Have Your Say - Survey for Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Site Selection). The survey was also available at Council offices and libraries and at the Community Engagement Pop-Ups. Submissions could also be sent directly to Council via email or letter.

While the main purpose of the survey was to understand community views on a preferred site for the aquatic facility, the questions were tailored to:

· Have respondents think more broadly about the criteria for determining a good site.

· Provide information relating to respondent motivation for participating in the survey.

· Provide staff with additional information to be able to better differentiate between site option should survey results no provide a clear community preference in regard to site.

Three engagement pop-ups were held during the exhibition period with a total of approximately 80 conversations held with community members. Residents were encouraged to complete the Aquatic Facility survey either at the pop-up or on-line.

In addition to the 880 surveys being completed by community members, 57 written submissions were received. Submissions have been provided under separate cover to Councillors.

Internal consultation was undertaken with the following staff:

· General Manager

· Director Development and Environment

· Group Manager Recreation and Buildings

· Group Manager Community Place

· Group Manager Economic Development and Communications

· Group Manager Development Assessment

· Group Manager Infrastructure Delivery

· Acting Group Manager Transport and Stormwater Network

· Acting Group Manager Water and Sewer

· Community Participation Manager

· Recreation and Facilities Manager

· Senior Landscape Architect

· Senior Project Manager - Infrastructure Delivery

· Senior Transport Engineer

· Property and Leasing Coordinator

· Facilities Coordinator

Engagement Next Steps

Staff will contact the users of preferred site, Macquarie Park, on the day that this report is published to discuss report content and plans to identify a suitable alternate training and competition venue/s (where required) should Council adopt Macquarie Park as the preferred site.

On the same day, staff will advise the stakeholders associated with the other potential aquatic facility sites that the report has been published and advise them how to access it.

The next stage of community engagement will occur when a Strategic Concept Plan and Staging Options have been developed as part of the detailed design phase of this project.

Planning & Policy Implications

Council’s 2019-2020 Operational Plan contains the following action relating to this project:

Project Description

Detailed Description

Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility

Design Finalisation

Various planning implications will need to be considered for this project as it progressed to detailed design and approvals.

Financial & Economic Implications

An allocation of $450,000 has been included in the 2019/2020 Operational Plan/budget for finalisation of the facility’s detailed design.

Detailed costing for a new aquatic facility will be determined following the detailed design stage of the project. However, based on recently developed contemporary facilities within Australia, it is estimated that the project in its entirety will cost in the vicinity of $40 - $50 million. Staging options for the project will be considered during the detailed design planning process and further engagement with the community will be undertaken to determine costing options. Ongoing conversations will be undertaken with the State and Federal Government regarding grant funding opportunities.

Attachments

1 View. Attachment 1 - Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Site Selection - Community Engagement Report

2 View. Attachment 2 - Have Your Say - Survey for Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility Site Selection

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 11.05

Subject: ArtWalk 2019 - Post Event

Presented by: Strategy and Growth, Jeffery Sharp

Alignment with Delivery Program

2.5.1 Support cultural activities within the community.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the success of the ArtWalk 2019 event.

2. Support the growth of Artwalk to become one of Council’s signature events in 2020 and beyond.

Executive Summary

Following from the success of previous ArtWalk events, the fourth annual ArtWalk returned to the Port Macquarie CBD from 6pm - 9pm on Thursday 19^th July 2019, with an expanded program of free arts and cultural offerings across the following weekend.

The purpose of the event was to activate the CBD via existing businesses and public art, and raise the profile of our regional artists, arts businesses and our cultural facilities.

This year’s event saw the event move from April to July due to clashes with public holidays and Ironman Australia. An estimated 13,500 people attend the evening event, showing a growth of more than 300% from the inaugural event in 2016, highlighting a continued desire for arts and cultural activities.

The ArtWalk 2019 event resulted not only in a vibrant CBD that drove a night time economy, it fostered creative collaborations, raised the profile of our arts and cultural sector within the community and provided enduring connections between artists, businesses, Council and the community. The success of ArtWalk and feedback received from visitors and stakeholders points to the significant opportunity to continue to grow the event and the demonstrated positive outcomes in future years.

Discussion

On Thursday 19 July 2019, the fourth ArtWalk event took place in Port Macquarie CBD region - the culmination of planning with community members, businesses and Council staff.

This year’s Artwalk focused an expansion and testing of additional satellite events and an increased CBD program, to broaden the art and creative offerings available to attendees. In particular, this year’s event program added events in the lead up, a professional learning program, and satellite events over the following weekend, providing opportunities to create, learn, explore, indulge and discover arts and cultural activities across our Local Government Area.

The ArtWalk event ran from 6pm – 9pm on Thursday 18^th July along Clarence, Hay, Murray Street and Town Green. The program provided a night of sensory delights enabling the community to explore our local historic collections and discover local artists exhibiting in unconventional spaces. It showcased artists and their work, local museums, musicians and performing artists. The event worked collaboratively with the support of local business, who teamed up with artists, opening their business spaces at night to provide a pop up “gallery space”. Our existing museums and galleries also opened their building to showcase artist works and facilitate guided tours and talks about their collections. The result was an increase in visitation to each cultural facility, with some locals entering these buildings for the first time in many years.

An increase in live art, music and demonstrations such as stencilling and glassblowing were held in public spaces, and local restaurants and coffee houses hosted local artists work, activating an incredible cultural precinct, all with no fee charged to attendees.

Image 1 : Artist Carly Marchment demonstrating her art.

The event was enhanced by the generous in kind support and use of space by El Paso Motel Group, businesses operating from Clarence House and Four Espresso.

This year saw a huge increase in the number of participants with over 114 artists involved in one form or another as part of the evening program. The evening crowd was estimated at 13,500 people. Event attendance was calculated on a head count within a designated area every 30 minutes.

The event was also supported by 30 volunteers, who assisted with the delivery of the event including the Tacking Point Surf Club who provided a First Aid Station and two roving first aid teams across the site.

The below table shows the growth of the ArtWalk event since its humble beginnings in 2016.

Measure	2016	2017	2018	2019	Comments
$ equivalent of in kind support	Approx 300 Staff hours	Approx 300 Staff hours	Approx 300 Staff hours	Approx 345 staff hours	Including project management & on the night delivery
Number of Artists Involved	18	45	71	114	60% increase year on year
Number of Artist Market Businesses	0	18	31	27	Total of 141 creative participants who contributed to the night.
Number of business Involved	9	26	42	45
Number of attendee surveys completed	130	194	225	128
Number of Live Sites	18	42	63	64
Number of Satellite events	0	0	11	22	100% increase year on year
Artwalk App Map views	No App	4816	10,906	*Not recorded	*Izi travel Technical Error
Event Attendees (approx)	3,500	8,500	11,500	13,500 + 1000 at satellite events.	26% increase year on year (14,500 total)
Facebook Likes	0 – no Facebook	448	811	1479	82% increase year on year

There were a number of new initiatives, which linked with this year’s ArtWalk program:

ArtWalk Extension - Satellite Events

Council expanded a program of satellite events to encourage participants to explore the ArtWalk event, and then to explore our region and the other arts and cultural pursuits that are available. 22 satellite events were held across the weekend at the following venues:

· Hastings Valley Fine Arts Gallery

· Ultragraffix Gallery

· ArtHouse Industries

· DS1 Projects

· Sunset Gallery and Framing

· Dark Alley Collectables

· Riot Art and Craft

· Clay Koala

· Hello Koalas

· Port Macquarie Library

· Nicola Macleay Art Gallery

· Glasshouse Regional Gallery

· Ken Strong Gallery

· Smart Portraits Workshop with Ronnie Grammatica

· Original Sound Lounge – Live Music at various venues

· The Artist Markets

· The Little Shack.

A pilot program extending an ArtWalk component into the Friday evening and Saturday was undertaken with The Little Shack on Town Green. The aim of the extension was to trial additional small events held on the Town Green. Activities included fire twirling, silent disco and silent yoga sessions. Whilst the program was very successful on the ArtWalk evening, additional live music or activation would be needed to continue these types of activities on Town Green on other evenings.

Image 2: Silent Disco at the Little Shack - ArtWalk extension

Social Media and ArtWalk Booklet - Marketing initiative

The event was marketed to a targeted local audience using limited resources. The main focus of the campaign was online and social media coverage, as well as media coverage in local newspapers. Council’s Destination Marketing also supported the event via targeted social media for family holidaymakers and visitors outside of the region.

A new initiative this year was a 12-page booklet to highlight the ArtWalk evening, and satellite events. 6,000 printed copies were distributed to hotels, local businesses and partners as well as on the night. Advertising in Focus Magazine and good lead up stories in the local media provided interest in the event.

Image 3: ArtWalk marketing collateral

This year, ArtWalk also increased their local social media content sharing and promotion of local artists and businesses in the lead up to the event.

A key driver to the promotion of the event is the collaborative approach working with artists. 89% of the participants also promoted the event through their social media channels, which provided greater reach and awareness in our local audience.

The increased social media presence saw significant growth in the profile of ArtWalk with an increase of 182% in facebook page likes.

Image 4: ArtWalk Facebook Page

Programs/Projects associated with the Artwalk Program:

Sunday Afternoon - Accessible Art

Port Macquarie-Hastings Council were pleased to present a community developed animation program titled Sunday Afternoon, which was developed as part of the Four Season in One Day Dementia Project. The program, led by PMHC, brought together people living with dementia with creative artists to produce an animated video work for display on the night. Over eight participants and their carers worked with Creative Ageing Facilitator, Lisa Hort, and artist, Kathryn Applebee, to produce an eight-minute film. Funding was received from Dementia Australia to deliver this program as part of the Dementia Friendly Communities Program.

Image 5: Sunday Afternoon projected onto the MBC Wall - Dementia Friendly Communities

Faces of the Hastings

In the lead up to ArtWalk and as part of the Bicentenary project, PMHC engaged local photographer Ronnie Grammatica to take portraits of our local community. 12 images were installed in large format poster prints in a temporary public art installation on a number of buildings throughout Wauchope. The images captured the diversity of who our community is, as well as bringing art out into the streets and embedded as part of the everyday. This is the second time that the Faces of the Hastings has been held. The program continues to bring art into a highly trafficable and accessible place.

Photographer Ronnie Grammatica and Skye Frost from the Council beside some of the Faces Of The Hastings in Wauchope.

Image 6: Artist Ronnie Grammatica with the Faces of the Hastings

ArtSmarts Program

The ArtSmarts professional learning program was once a gain delivered to assist in the professional development of artists. The program was developed to assist creatives to develop business skills and networks required for building a creative business in the Port Macquarie-Hastings Region. It also looked at ways to generate additional income through a commercial business model. This year, 20 participants were selected to be part of the program.

Over an eight-month period, participants were involved in a two hour program focussing on marketing, branding, product development and pricing, along with 6 mentoring sessions with a local arts business facilitator. On the evening, 14 participants participated in the ArtWalk event, launching their products and services to a huge audience.

Part of the program focused on exploring additional revenue streams through their creative practice that would support their current practice.

Many of the participants have continued the business mentoring outside of the program and meet up regularly to support each other.

Measuring Success - ArtWalk 2019 Visitor Feedback and Future Opportunity

By any standards, the fourth annual ArtWalk event was an outstanding success. Approximately 13,500 people attended the three-hour event, and more than 1000 people attending satellite events and programs. Surveys and digital feedback forms captured community and participant feedback on the night, as well as follow up media stories, social media posts, and post-event interviews with artists and businesses.

Destination Research were commissioned to undertake survey and feedback analysis on this year’s event. A full copy of the report is attached, with the summary as follows.

The research demonstrates the audience’s high satisfaction across many aspects of the event with 95% rating Artwalk as very good or excellent overall. Survey respondents felt the event delivered a purposeful connection to the community, and a created a sense of belonging. The event connected the wider community with the creative sector and showcased the talent and work of local artists. Visitors felt this was important both for the community as a whole, and for the benefits of the arts and cultural community. Many found the event inspiring and fun, providing opportunities to enjoy a cultural experience in the heart of the city - and a vibrant atmosphere for the CBD.

The research shows the important community benefits of the event, and increasingly

important social opportunities that are offered to share art experiences with both visitors and friends alike. However, beyond its immediate and significant social impacts, the event also makes an economic contribution through the attraction of tourists to the Port Macquarie LGA, with around 10% coming from outside the local area. The event attracted both overnight and day visitors bringing an economic contribution of approximately $193,960.

Assessment of opinions on improving specific elements at the event found that live music would be the preferred addition (70% agreement), along with more visual arts (50%) and kid’s activities (44%). Survey respondents also suggested a range of other improvements to enhance the event in future years including the extension of food services through food trucks or stalls. Around 24% of respondents also suggested altering the timing of the event, by either :

a) moving the event to a weekend or

b) moving the event to a warmer time of year.

An event over a weekend creates opportunities to engage an audience for longer, and extend the program to workshops or other interactive projects. A weekend event also provides great opportunity to increase visitation from outside the LGA and for visitors to stay for longer, and therefore extends the economic impact of the event.

Both social media such as Facebook and traditional media were successful in attracting audiences; however, it was interesting that over half the audience were attending for the first time. This has implications for providing relevant information, signage and assistance for new visitors.

There are many encouraging signs from the research to suggest that the program, activities and overall experience are very well received. With over 85% of visitors suggesting they will return next year (and recommend it to friends), a positive future for the event seems assured.

Artists and Business Participant Feedback

An additional survey was undertaken along with direct interviews post event with participants and business hosts. The results showed:

· 87% of participants rated the ArtWalk event as excellent or good.

· 100% would recommend participating in ArtWalk to others.

· 89% thought that ArtWalk brought new people/ audience to their business

· 97% or participants agreed that ArtWalk has raised the profile of arts and culture in our community.

· 72 % of participants preferred ArtWalk be held in April.

Overall, the feedback was very complimentary.

Conclusion

Following the outstanding success of the 2019 ArtWalk program there is great evidence that this event has the capacity to become a signature event for the Port Macquarie-Hastings region. Even with the event being held in the cooler month of July, audiences were drawn to the event and greatly enjoyed the experiences on offer. The event struck a chord with residents and visitors providing them the opportunity to explore arts and culture in a unique fashion.

Consideration is underway to determine resources to deliver a future Artwalk event program that can meet the long-term vision of the Cultural Plan, as well as support outcomes under Council’s Event Plan and Economic Development Strategy.

Options

1. Council note the report.

2. Council request additional information.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

Engagement with businesses commenced in April 2019, testing the appetite to support the event in July. Once again, as per 2018 event experience there is a strong willingness to be part of the event again.

PMHC actively engaged the restaurant and food outlets within the precinct to create easy takeaway street style food options. 45 host businesses were involved in the delivery of the ArtWalk program and satellite events.

Internal Consultation

Community Place Team

Electrical Services

Parks & Recreational Services

Glasshouse

Roads & Transport

Economic Development & Communications

External Consultation:

Cultural Steering Group

Port Macquarie Emergency Services

Local Businesses

Local Artists

Port Macquarie Museum

Planning & Policy Implications

The ArtWalk Program delivers and contributes to the following strategies in the

2019 - 2021 Cultural Plan.

· Create, develop and maintain vibrant Cultural spaces and places to maximise opportunities for our community to participate in cultural Activities across the region.

· Raise the skills and capacity of our local creatives to foster a vibrant cultural community

· Foster collaboration

· Identify and develop opportunities to profile and promote culture at all levels - local to International.

In particular, it delivers on Action 3.4 - Cultural Festivals.

Financial & Economic Implications

The program was delivered through the Community Place - Cultural Plan program funding. The event was budgeted at $35,000, however came in at a cost of $43,909. The increase in cost is attributed to opening and activating the Glasshouse ($4,447), increased pedestrian safety through traffic management ($3,297), and increased marketing assistance/ social media ($3,200).

Council in kind staff support for the planning and delivery of the event were approximately 345 hours or the equivalent of $21,500. Staff time was funded from existing salary lines within the Community Place annual allocations.

The event attracted both overnight and day visitors bringing an economic contribution to the LGA of approximately $193,960. A significant impact for a short three hour burst.

Attachments

1 View. Attachment 1 - ArtWalk 2019 - Research Report by Destination Research

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 11.06

Subject: Bicentenary Priorities, Artwalk Resourcing and Tastings on Hastings

Presented by: Strategy and Growth, Jeffery Sharp

Alignment with Delivery Program

2.5.1 Support cultural activities within the community.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Endorse the two-year temporary appointment of a Cultural Event Coordinator, to support the 2021 Bicentenary projects and the 2020 and 2021 Artwalk events.

2. Discontinue Tastings on Hastings as a Council-run event.

3. Continue to support events and activities that showcase local producers and produce, as guided by the 2019-2024 Port Macquarie-Hastings Events Plan.

4. Request the General Manager develop the 2021 Bicentenary event and 2020 and 2021 Artwalk events, to be signature Council-run events in line with the 2019-2024 Port Macquarie-Hastings Events Plan.

5. Endorse the reallocation of the existing 2019/20 Tastings on Hastings net budget $36,200 to support the delivery of the Bicentenary and Artwalk events.

Executive Summary

Events and cultural activations are an important part of our place development and instil community pride and ownership in our identity, and sense of place. Council’s Cultural Plan talks to our role in recognising important milestones like our Bicentenary and our desire to develop a thriving creative industry. Council’s Events Plan focuses on our work supporting a portfolio of sustainable, high quality and innovative events for our community and to showcase our region, including the development of ‘signature events’ which drive significant overnight visitation and exposure interstate and potentially internationally.

This report proposes a way forward for Council’s support for 2021 Bicentenary priorities and signature events for the next two years. In particular, noting limited resources, it proposes that for Council-delivered events, our focus be on developing the Bicentenary Event and Artwalk as the two local signature events. It recommends that budget for these and Bicentenary projects be sources from the existing Bicentenary budget (which was carried over from 2018/19), a reallocation of the 2019/20 Tastings on Hastings budget, and Economic Development (Events) reserve, if required. Further consideration of resourcing will be requested as part of the 2020/21 Council budget development and grant funding will be sought as a priority.

Discussion

Tastings on Hastings

The Tastings on Hastings event has been a key component of Council’s community event delivery from 2002-2017. Council resolved to not deliver Tastings on Hastings in 2018, instead focusing on the delivery of the 200 Together Bicentenary event. Similarly, after an unsuccessful call for a new event coordinator, on 17 April 2019, Council resolved not to deliver the 2019 Tastings on Hastings event and to consider how the Tastings on Hastings budget may be best allocated into the future:

10.02 T-19-13 TASTINGS ON HASTINGS - EVENT COORDINATOR

RESOLVED: Intemann/Levido

That Council:

1. Note that no responses were received to the Request for Proposal for an Event Coordinator for the 2019 Tastings on Hastings event.

2. Not deliver the 2019 Tastings on Hastings event.

3. Note the current 2018-2019 Operational Plan Item 3.1.3.2 - 'Finalise and Implement a new Port Macquarie-Hastings Events Plan'.

4. Request the General Manager hold a Councillor briefing on the Port Macquarie Hastings Events Plan by the end of June 2019, with a view to tabling a report at a meeting of Council on or before September 2019 on the Port Macquarie Events Plan and how the Tastings on Hastings budget may be best allocated into the future.

CARRIED: 4/3 FOR: Cusato, Intemann, Levido and Pinson AGAINST: Alley, Hawkins and Turner

In response to point 4 of the above resolution, a Councillor briefing was held to discuss the draft 2019-2024 Port Macquarie Hastings Events Plan, which has now been finalised. It was noted that this is an internal Council plan, which maps the strategies and actions to be undertaken to achieve our vision “for the Port Macquarie-Hastings to be recognised as a region that hosts and supports a portfolio of sustainable, high-quality and innovative events which reflect the spirit of our places and adds vibrancy to them, connects our community, showcases our region and delivers positive economic outcomes”.

In developing the Events Plan, consideration was given to how Council’s limited events resource should be best focused. The Plan notes Council’s diverse role in events, including a desire to:

1. Partner with key stakeholders to attract, support, develop, host and deliver a portfolio of events which reflects the desires of our community and increases visitation to the region;

2. Leverage event opportunities to increase visitation to the region;

3. Create vibrant and participative spaces and encouraging community connections;

4. Foster event development and legacy;

5. Enable and support the environmental and financial sustainability of local events.

It also notes the local events landscape and the diverse range of events supported by Council, including signature events (which drive significant overnight visitation and exposure interstate and potentially internationally), cultural events, food events, community/civic events, sporting events, business events, community markets and Glasshouse events.

In considering how to best to use the 2019/20 Tastings on Hastings net budget ($36,200), a range of options were explored. The strong desire to develop and deliver a great 2021 Bicentenary event and the potential to develop Artwalk as a signature event (given its unique nature and increasing popularity) led to the conclusion that a resource to support the development and delivery of these events would be the best use of this budget. In particular, it was recognised that, unlike Tastings on Hastings, these events offer a unique point of difference, which is not only attractive to our community, but is key to attracting a high number of out of region visitors. An increased focus on these two events directly aligns with the Port Macquarie-Hastings Events Plan objectives:

· Maintain and build on the mix of art, cultural, sporting, community, business, entertainment and iconic Port Macquarie events to support the unique identity of different parts of our region

· Support the development of new signature events which drive significant overnight visitation and exposure interstate and internationally.

We acknowledge that Tastings on Hastings has played an important part of our local events scene - in its early days as a mechanism to promote and grow the region’s producers, and more recently as a much loved community event. Council support to local business and industry remains a priority and (in the absence of Tastings on Hastings) there are many opportunities for our support to continue via a range of high quality ‘foodie’ events and markets in our region eg Slice of Haven and Twilight Tastings.

2021 Bicentenary Projects

At the 21 August 2019 Council meeting, Council endorsed three 2021 Bicentenary Projects:

11.04 BICENTENARY PROJECTS 2021

RESOLVED: Turner/Hawkins

That Council:

1. Endorse the following proposed 2021 priority Bicentenary projects:

(a) Bicentenary Event 10 -18 April 2021;

(b) The Flagstaff Hill redevelopment; and

(c) Continuation of the development of the Port Macquarie foreshore walkway and sculptural trail, as recommended by the Bicentenary Working Group of Council’s Cultural Steering Group.

2. Request the General Manager add a new action to the 2019/2020 Operational Plan, relating to ‘the development and delivery of 2021 Bicentenary projects’.

4. Note the Cultural Steering Groups support for the priority projects.

5. Request the General Manager prepare a report for the September Council Meeting to determine resourcing to deliver the agreed priority projects for the 2021 Bicentenary.

CARRIED: 9/0

FOR: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

AGAINST: Nil

A key consideration of implementing these project is resourcing for project oversight and implementation:

· The Bicentenary Event, in particular, (proposed as Council and community-led activities over ten days) will take significant event development and coordination over the next 18 months. It is recommended that a dedicated event development and coordination resource be engaged for this project.

· Similarly, the Flagstaff redevelopment requires project management expertise to ensure appropriate design, manufacture and installation of a replica of the 1821 flagstaff (80ft high) and modified viewing platform. Staff are currently exploring options for support to this project via our Project Delivery Group;

· The development of the foreshore walkway is underway, with the design work included as part of Council’s 2019/20 Operational Plan. Construction and planning for sculptural elements from Westport Park to Town Green East, including the Kooloonbung Creek to Arboretum section, are as yet un-funded, and will be the focus of future grant applications.

As per the December 2017 Council resolution, a budget of $128,000 was allocated for bicentenary activities. In 2018/19, only $16,255 of this budget was used for the 2018 Bicentenary Event and the development of Bicentenary collateral and graphic design support.

At the 21 August 2019 Council meeting, it was resolved that $111,745 (the unspent portion of the budget) be carried over to 2019/20. This budget will go some way to supporting the delivery of the priority Bicentenary projects, but it is acknowledged that further resources will be required, including the pursuit of grant funding.

Artwalk

Following the outstanding success of the 2019 ArtWalk program (refer “Artwalk 2019 - Post Event” report), feedback from attendees and visitors indicates this event has the capacity to become a signature event for the Port Macquarie Hastings region. The event certainly strikes a chord with residents and visitors providing them the opportunity to explore arts and culture in a unique fashion.

The potential growth of Artwalk to a multi-day event could be a significant way to attract greater visitors to the event - both locals and overnight visitors that boost the visitor economy. Currently, Artwalk is developed and delivered by Council’s Creative Place Facilitator – Arts & Culture, with support from a range of industry and arts stakeholders and other Council staff. To develop Artwalk to what is viewed as its full potential (to support our Cultural Plan and Major Events objectives), Council will need to invest in a dedicated event development and delivery resource.

The way ahead

Noting Council’s limited resources and the assessment of opportunities to support both Cultural Plan, Events Plan and visitor economy objectives, it is recommended that for Council-delivered events, our focus be on developing the Bicentenary Event and Artwalk as the two local signature events. Current staffing and budget allocations are not sufficient and it is recommended that Council engage a dedicated Cultural Event Officer, for a period of two years. This term will cover the Bicentenary event development and delivery in April 2021 and two annual Artwalk events, after which it is recommended a review of Artwalk and its future direction take place.

It recommends that budget for this role and priority Bicentenary projects be sourced from the existing Bicentenary budget (which was carried over from 2018/19), a reallocation of the 2019/20 Tastings on Hastings budget, and Economic Development (Events) reserve, if required. Further, staff will pursue grant funding opportunities and request consideration of resourcing as part of the 2020/21 Council budget development.

Options

Council may choose to:

1. Resolve as recommended;

2. Consider a different allocation of the 2019/20 Tastings on Hastings budget; or

3. Request further information from staff on other preferred resourcing options.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

Engagement on the approach to the 2021 Bicentenary projects has been in collaboration with the Cultural Steering Group and the Bicentenary Working Group. Engagement regarding Tastings on Hastings was undertaken with the community in October and November 2018. Artwalk engagement and feedback is noted in the Artwalk 2019 - Post Event report, also presented for Council consideration this month.

Planning & Policy Implications

There are no planning and policy implications in relation to this report.

Financial & Economic Implications

There is currently a budget of $111,745 (noting that this is a carryover from 2018/19) for Bicentenary priorities.

The proposed reallocation of the 2019/20 Tastings on Hastings budget is a net $36,200 (expenses = $153,500, income = $117,300).

The Bicentenary Working Group estimates (excluding staff/project management cost) for the delivery of the priority projects are as follows:

· Bicentenary Event - $150,000 (estimate only)

· Flagstaff Hill Project - $20,000 for initial detail design development and $190,000 for implementation. 

· Bicentennial walk - $10,000,000 + Sculptural elements $300,000

It is anticipated that a range of grant funding opportunities will be explored and Council will be asked to give consideration to the budget for Bicentenary priorities, Artwalk and staffing commitments as part of the 2020/2021 budget development.

Attachments

Nil

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 11.09

Subject: Re-Establishment of Alcohol Free Zone - Port Macquarie CBD

Presented by: Strategy and Growth, Jeffery Sharp

Alignment with Delivery Program

2.1.1 Support community safety initiatives.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council re-establish Alcohol Free Zones in the Port Macquarie CBD for a further four years from October 2019 to October 2023.

Executive Summary

Port Macquarie Hastings Council has a role in addressing community issues regarding alcohol consumption. It follows a Council resolution in December 2007 to establish Alcohol Free Zones within the Central Business District (CBD) and a further request in 2014 to undertake a review and the extension of Alcohol Free Zones. The Alcohol free Zone expired in December 2018. Council is seeking to re-establish an Alcohol Free Zone for a further four years in line with current standards and guidelines.

The objectives of the Alcohol Free Zone is to;

· Create a safe enjoyable evening environment;

· Create a diverse night economy not reliant on licensed premises trading;

· Ensure the Local Government Area entertainment areas are safe and inviting;

· Reduce alcohol related violence;

· Reduce the level of malicious damage;

· Reduce the level of disorderly conduct;

· Advocate for licensed premises ongoing compliance with Responsible Service of Alcohol obligations; and

· Maintain public perception of a safe regional city

In July 2019, Council resolved the following:

11.03 Port Macquarie Alcohol Free Zone Review and Extension 2019

RESOLVED: Cusato/Griffiths

That Council:

1. Re-establish the Alcohol Free Zone in the CBD for a further four years from October 2019 to October 2023.

2. Place the proposal on public exhibition to inform the community of the intention to re-establish an Alcohol Free Zone in the Port Macquarie Central Business District, in accordance with the requirements under the Local Government Act for an exhibition period of 6 weeks, commencing 22 July to 2 September 2019.

carried: 8/0

For: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

Against: Nil

Discussion

Alcohol Free Zones prohibit the drinking of alcohol in public places such as roads, footpaths or car parks under Part 4 of the NSW Local Government Act 1993, Sections 642 - 649. Council first established an Alcohol Free Zone in the Port Macquarie CBD in 2007 through an action within Council Crime Prevention plan. This was then extended for a further 4 years, in 2014. Unfortunately, due to competing priorities the Alcohol Free zones lapsed in December 2018. Council through consultation with the Local Area Command and the Hasting Liquor Accord are now seeking to re-establish the Alcohol free Zones to enable the Police to act on Council’s behalf and provide a safer CBD for all.

The purpose of an Alcohol Free Zone is to assist in the reduction of alcohol-related anti-social behaviour within the Port Macquarie CBD. It also aims to create a safe and enjoyable environment reducing the level of malicious damage, alcohol related violence, and other disorderly behaviour related to the irresponsible consumption of alcohol. The Alcohol Free Zones operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The Port Macquarie-Hastings continue to have a very proactive approach in responding to the issues that arise from alcohol consumption in the region with current strategies including:

• A 1.00am lockout of licensed premises;

• An active Liquor Accord, which is well coordinated with a strong local membership from licensed premises and clubs;

• Campaigns through the Liquor accord including Plan B and Rethink your drink;

• Secure Taxi Ranks; and

• An Alcohol Prohibition on all public reserves that restrict the consumption of alcohol on Council owned reserves and beaches from 9:00pm until 12:00pm, with a 24 hour restriction on a number of larger reserves.

Local police also continue to be proactive in implementing initiatives to increase the safety of the CBD, reducing the opportunity for alcohol related crime including prevention and enforcement strategies. This includes building and maintaining ongoing relationships with owners and managers of licensed premises, providing information and education on risk reduction and undertaking random audits.

Supporting Evidence

The NSW Recorded Crime Statistics 2014-2018 for the Port Macquarie Hastings Local Government area has seen a significant decrease in alcohol related crime and offences; this is due to a collaborative co-enforced approach between Council the local authorities and licensed establishments.

The Port Macquarie CBD area is the main identified Police ‘hot spot’ for alcohol related crime within the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Government Area. As the Alcohol Free Zones have lapsed, discussions have occurred with local Police who have confirmed they would support the re-establishment of an Alcohol Free Zone for a further four years. Police report a positive impact as a direct result of enforcement of have an Alcohol Free Zone in place.

Duration

As per the Local Government Act 1993, Alcohol Free Zones may be established for up to four years. It is proposed that the re-established zone in the Port Macquarie CBD be for the maximum period, operating from October 2019 through to October 2023.

Enforcement

As per the Local Government Act 1993, any member of the NSW Police Force or an enforcement officer are responsible for enforcing Alcohol Free Zones. Guidelines exist for the enforcement of Alcohol Free Zones, which includes a warning system and a process for recording enforcement statistics.

Council will also continue to review the Alcohol Free Zones and areas across the local government area and continue/modify their coverage in areas considered important.

Cancellation or Suspension

As per section 645 of the Act, Council has the power to suspend or cancel the

Zone at an earlier date, if deemed necessary, or to hold specific community events. Council is required to do so via a Council resolution and must publish a notice of suspension and/or cancellation. In the case of a cancellation, all signage would need to be removed immediately.

Prior to cancellation or suspension, Council would be required to liaise with

Police both prior to and after the Council resolution.

Location

It is proposed that the re-established zone covers the same area as the existing zones (attachment 2). This zone would cover all public streets, footpaths and Council controlled car parks within the CBD. The zones have been developed to allow areas to be suspended to hold events whilst maintaining an overall alcohol free zone in the CBD

Options

Council may not wish to extend the Alcohol Free Zone for an additional four years.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

Discussion has continued with the Local area Command and the Hastings Liquor Accord. Council has received a letter of support from Hastings Liquor Accord endorsing the extension of the Alcohol Free Zones in Port Macquarie CBD

As part of the process for implementing an Alcohol Free Zone, Council is required to place the proposal on exhibition to inform the wider community as well as contact relevant community agencies.

The re-established four year Alcohol Free Zone in the CBD was placed on public exhibition for a 6-week period, from the 22 July 2019 to 2 September 2019.

During the six-week period of exhibition, the Have Your Say website had 79 visits with four engaged visitors.

Through Have Your Say and email, we received five submissions. We also received a verbal request to review and include the Gordon street footpaths as part of the Alcohol Free Zone. This is an appropriate change and has been included.

Submission <title>

Issue

Anne Curtis

Agreed with the extension of the AFZ

Response/

Comment:

Endorses approach

Christina Parkin

I understand the need for strategies to reduce unsociable behaviour due to the effects of alcohol, but I do believe making the foreshore precinct an 'alcohol free zone' gives local liquor licensees unfair advantage. What if you don't want to sit in a pub or hotel to watch the beautiful river view by the foreshore to enjoy a sociable wine or beer?. There should be a 12 - 9pm ability to consume alcohol responsibly in this area. With its proximity to the police station, this would be easy to 'police'.

Response/

Comment:

The foreshore areas of Council LGA are governed under a different policy and this policy covers footpaths and roads only.

Community are able to enjoy a socially responsible drink on our parks and reserves between the hours of 12pm and 9pm as per the Alcohol use on Public Reserves and Beaches Policy 2018.

Antony Moore

Agreed with the extension of the AFZ

Response/

Comment:

Endorses approach

Sergio Pavan

I support the extension of the Alcohol Free Zone for the Port Macquarie CBD as presented.
I assume that drinking alcohol along the break wall footpath is not permitted unless falling under the special provision as outlined.

Response/

Comment:

The Breakwall is a under the control and management of the Crown and therefore not covered under this policy.

Rick Smallman

I do agree with re-establishing the AFZ for another 4 years.

I also would ask, if it is possible, to extend the AFZ to all historic Monuments in Port Macquarie and to have regular Police visits to these areas.

Response/

Comment:

Endorses approach

Our parks and reserves, and therefore our monuments protected under a number of other policies including Alcohol use on Public Reserves and Beaches Policy 2018, between the hours of 12pm and 9pm. This provides the Police with the powers to control alcohol consumption within our reserves, when they do not have competing priorities.

Planning & Policy Implications

This process is directly linked to the Alcohol use on Public Reserves and Beaches Policy 2018.

Financial & Economic Implications

There are no financial and economic implications in relation to this report.

Attachments

1 View. Port Macquarie CBD Alcohol Free Zone Map 2019-2023

2 View. Hastings Liquor Accord Letter of Support

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 11.10

Subject: Library Strategic Plan

Presented by: Strategy and Growth, Jeffery Sharp

Alignment with Delivery Program

2.4.1 Work with the community to identify and address community needs, to inform Council processes, services and projects.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council endorse the Port Macquarie-Hastings Library Strategic Plan 2019 - 2021, to help drive the library services.

Executive Summary

Port Macquarie-Hastings Library Service is an industry leading, future focused library service, highly valued by our community and recognised for its provision of modern, high quality programs and services^{^[1]}. The library provides access to valuable resources for the whole community regardless of socio-economic status or areas of disadvantage. In addition to the more traditional library services, Port Macquarie-Hastings Library Service includes innovative programs to promote life-long learning and discovery, including access to new and emerging technologies as well as a creative studio space.

Council’s 2018/19 Operational Plan required the development of a new Library Strategic Plan as part of a Council-wide service review. The Library Strategic Plan 2018-21 will provide a direction of activities to manage the future of Library services in the local government area.

The Library Strategic Plan’s vision is to provide a library service for all that provides a cultural hub for the community through access to collections, spaces and experiences. The library is one of the few places left where an individual can go to research, gather information, interact with others and deepen their connection with their broader community without the expectation of a commercial transaction. Libraries generate enormous social capital. Social Capital being the network of social connections that exist between people, and their shared values and norms of behaviour, which enable and encourage mutually advantageous social cooperation.

Discussion

Public libraries operate within and for the needs of their broader community, and adhere to a universal philosophy of providing free access to information in a safe and welcoming place. Increasingly, the public library is seen as a place of social interaction – a place to connect not only with information, but with people. Indeed the public library is home to all manner of social and professional connections - study groups, business meetings, community initiatives, book clubs and more. As society moves ever further online, it has fallen to public libraries to cater to and support this inherent human need for social connection. The provision of events and author talks, the facilitation of various interest groups, and a breadth of family and children’s programs accommodates that need.

Rapid changes in technology have also meant there is an ever-widening digital divide between those that are digitally literate and those that are not. While government departments transition their services online in the name of convenience, many in the community - and in particular older people - are getting left behind. The library plays a vital role here in supporting those that are without these necessary skills to access essential government services.

Port Macquarie-Hastings Library Service consists of five service points – a central library in Port Macquarie, two outer branch libraries at Laurieton and Wauchope, a mobile library van that visits rural and remote areas, and a self-service loans stand at Port Macquarie Airport.

Port Macquarie-Hastings Council has a longstanding cooperative agreement with Kempsey Shire Council to share resources and acquisitions responsibilities.

The central Port Macquarie Library branch was built in 1999 and covers an area of 2100m2. This now falls below the State Library of New South Wales’ recommended minimum floor space of 2590m2 (as at 2016). Projections show the local catchment area of Port Macquarie to be 52,794 by 2036, which should represent an area of 3179m2. The current building does not meet that requirement.

Council has Development Contributions Plans in place, which will provide for Library/community facilities in new urban release areas at Lake Cathie/Bonny Hills and at Thrumster that need to be considered as part of the Library Strategic Plan

The objectives of a public library service

NSW public libraries have a distinct philosophy and set of foundation principles, which have their roots in the Free Library Movement of the 1930s and the Library Act 1939. These early priorities still resonate with the goals and roles of contemporary public libraries in NSW:

1. Public library service is a national necessity.

2. Their essential purpose is the supply of literature and information necessary to the progress and prosperity of the community as a whole.

3. Research is essential to commerce and industry.

4. Without libraries, the citizen has no check on indoctrination and propaganda.

It is important here to note that:

· Physical and virtual visitation, library borrowing and participation in library programs continue to increase year on year.

· Libraries play a major part in supporting the achievement of government literacy targets.

· Libraries provide collections, programs and spaces for marginalised groups including older people, refugee and multicultural communities, and people who are digitally disadvantaged.

Libraries Advisory Committee, NSW 1939

The Library Act 1939 (the Act) encouraged NSW local councils to establish and manage public libraries. Councils that have adopted the Act, including Port Macquarie-Hastings Council, are required to provide a library in accordance with the Act, are entitled to state government assistance and cooperative services with the State Library of NSW. The Act also sets out that the people of NSW are entitled to access public libraries, use library collections and become members free of charge.

All NSW councils have adopted the Act. The Library Council of NSW is established under the Act as the statutory authority charged with advising the government and local councils on library matters.

The public library exists to provide the materials, which communicate ideas, experience and information. Public libraries in NSW have continued to evolve as physical and virtual spaces with diverse collections, and are notable for their sophisticated and responsive services, which are provided to communities across the state.

Standards and guidelines

The Library Council of NSW has formulated recommended minimum standards and guidelines for public library services in NSW, to help councils assess the level of service given by their public libraries to their respective communities. It is intended to encourage best practice in service delivery by highlighting state and peer cohort medians and the services that have been achieved by leading libraries. These standards and guidelines are intended to assist public libraries and councils to:

· evaluate current services

· set targets for improvement

· develop continuous improvement in library service delivery, and

· plan for future needs.

Based on the State Library requirements and standards, Port Macquarie Library service has evolved over time to meet the changing needs of the community, but has reached the limit of what can be achieved without changing the current built form of the libraries themselves as well as changing and updating services and programs within the libraries. Laurieton Library is also at full capacity, while Wauchope has sufficient capacity to meet the needs of the growing community of that area. New growth areas such as Thrumster and Rainbow Beach have no library services whatsoever. The new library van, which will be operational in 2020, will be able to provide limited services to these areas. Current staffing levels fall well short of State Library Guidelines.

Port Macquarie Hastings Library (June 2017)		NSW average (June 2017)^{^[2]}
Total visits	455,956	393,732
Circulation per staff member	36,035.85	17,007.30
Staff (FTE)	20.5	25.61 (SLNSW recommendation 25.8)
Expenditure per capita	36.45	52.08 (SLNSW recommendation 56.35)
Total expenditure	2.88m	3.66m
Library programs	333	942

Library services are rapidly changing and have moved from the traditional collections to being more of a community hub and resource centre. To plan for the future of library services a plan, the Port Macquarie Hastings Library Strategic Plan, is required to direct that focus of our activities.

Library Strategic Plan

The plan, attachment 1, focuses on key areas and establishes actions that will ensure a consistent level of service but also innovation to ensure the service stays up to date with local, national and international trends.

The plan looks at:

1. People

2. Programs

3. Spaces

4. Collections

5. Technology

This plan will ensure a collective approach to developing our future library services, programs, events and structural requirements into the future.

Key actions and measures have been developed for each theme area and these are outlined in the plan. Some of the key outcomes include:

· Annual customer satisfaction surveys

· Provide wide ranging programs to cover 0-18yrs

· Development of Civic Precinct Master Plan by June 2021, increasing Port Library floor space to meet or exceed minimum recommendation.

· Develop concept plans for additional libraries/community hubs in key urban growth areas by June 2021. Includes cost modelling to implement and resource

· New library van will extend services by June 2020.

· Review collection development policy on an annual basis to streamline collections based on community need

· Proactively seek out new digital services

· Monitor trends to keep abreast of and showcase emerging technologies.

· Provide access to internet facilities and digital literacy services

Options

That Council;

1. Endorse the Library Strategic Plan 2019-2021 as recommended.

2. Seek additional information in regards to the Library Strategic Plan 2019-2021.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

The plan was developed by the Library Staff through a series of workshops. Consultation has also been undertaken with Group Manager Community Place, as well as initial discussions with Group Manager Recreation and Buildings.

To date no formal community engagement has been undertaken to prepare the draft Library Strategic Plan, though it is based on continuous feedback received through the Library service. The process also included the review of a number of public library strategic plans including:

· Campbelltown City Council,

· Coffs Harbour Council,

· Richmond Shire Council

· Tweed Shire Council,

· Midcoast Council - draft copy,

· Queensland Public Libraries

Council is also required to submit measures and data to the State Library each year, which also assist in shaping the direction of the service.

The proposed plan is in line with the State Library Direction of future services.

Although as previously stated, Council has not engaged with the community on the development of the Library Strategic plan. However, in July 2019 Council engaged with the community on their ideas for our future library service.

Through the engagement period we received 83 submissions, the top responses were:

1. Reading areas (47)

2. Study Rooms (37)

3. Programs for adults and children (34)

4. Connections to green spaces, play spaces, outdoor areas and community gardens (31)

5. Technology rooms (31)

6. Youth Spaces (30)

7. Extended hours (Saturdays, evening) (29)

8. Meeting Rooms for Hire (28)

9. Partnerships and co-locate with youth services, government services and Council Facilities (24)

10. Art Gallery/ Exhibition space (23)

11. Mobile Library Service (19)

12. Facilitated groups (17)

13. Recording Studio (17)

14. Business functions, Start up, Innovations hub (14)

15. Performance Stage (14)

16. Make Space (13)

These priority ideas will be taken into consideration when planning for our current and future library services and spaces and will be subject to resource availability. One of the key areas that the library is keen to explore, particularly at the Port Macquarie Library is the extension of weekend hours and needs resource consideration as part of the 20/21 budget development. Testing can be explored in the 19/20 year with careful planning based around current resourcing levels.

Planning & Policy Implications

The development of a Library Strategic Plan was identified and required as part of Council’s 2018/19 Operational Plan.

Financial & Economic Implications

There are financial implications in future built form requirements that may impact on the current Port Library site as well as potential new building sites in partnership with developers and staffing any projected new libraries.

The Section 7.11 Community Facilities Developers Contributions plan currently includes “Branch Library and Administration” facilities in both the identified growth areas of Lake Cathie/Bonny Hills and Thrumster. Additionally, the Voluntary Planning agreements for Rainbow Beach (Lake Cathie/Bonny Hills) and Sovereign Hills (Thrumster) also make mention of the facilities, ensuring that as development progresses expanded opportunities for Library Services in these areas will be provided.

Planning for the programs, events and collections actions are covered in the operational budget of the Library service.

Attachments

1 View. PMHC Library Strategic Plan 2019-2021

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 12.01

Subject: Health and Education Precinct Master Plan

Presented by: Strategy and Growth, Jeffery Sharp

Alignment with Delivery Program

3.2.1 Support vibrant commercial, tourism, recreational and/or community hubs across the region.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council

1. Note the community engagement process and submissions received during the public exhibition period and subsequent workshops.

2. Adopt the Health and Education Precinct Master Plan.

3. Note the plans of stakeholders to establish a Consortium to assist in driving the development and implementation of a Health and Education Precinct.

Executive Summary

Planning for the future of the Port Macquarie Health and Education Precinct (the HEP) is part of Council’s wider vision for a thriving regional city and a strategic focus in Council’s Urban Growth Management Strategy (the UGMS). The growth of the health and education sectors presents an opportunity to increase the number of young people in the community, provide economic diversification, increase labour force participation and build on Port Macquarie’s growing status as a regional city.

The Port Macquarie region is experiencing strong growth in its population, with a predicted 9.3% growth in the local health sector. The Education, Health Care and Social Assistance sectors are projected to have the highest rate of jobs growth for the Mid North Coast to 2022. The HEP is a key part of Port Macquarie’s future growth. The aim is to transform the precinct into to a centre of excellence for education, training and health. The precinct will help position Port Macquarie as an increasingly competitive destination for university students, health care professionals and the broader community. Key to success is encouraging appropriate development that will support and foster a range of learning models and health-related services within an accessible, high amenity, attractive public realm.

A vibrant and well-connected health and education precinct will be integral to the long-term success of Port Macquarie and the community.

Council has been developing a Master Plan for the Health and Education Precinct for the past 15 months. A final version has now been completed and is presented to Council for consideration.

To support the implementation of the Health and Education Precinct, members of the community and key stakeholders in the precinct have indicated a desire to establish a Health and Education Precinct consortium to help Council drive the outcomes of the precinct Master Plan.

Discussion

The Draft Master Plan was presented to the November 2018 Council meeting where Council resolved to:

11.05 THE HEALTH AND EDUCATION PRECINCT DRAFT MASTER PLAN

RESOLVED: Cusato/Griffiths

That Council:

1. Place the draft Health and Education Precinct Master Plan on public exhibition for an extended period from 26 November 2018 through to the 21 February 2019.

2. Note a further report will be tabled at the April 2019 meeting of Council detailing the submissions received during the public exhibition period.

CARRIED: 8/0

FOR: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido and Pinson

AGAINST: Nil

Whilst the expectation was that a report would be able to be presented back to Council in April 2019, a number of external influences were encountered which has meant the updated Master Plan was not able to be completed until very recently.

Council commenced work on the development of the Health and Education Precinct Masterplan in April 2018. Consulting firm Architectus was engaged to partner with Council to manage the project. The project comprised an Enquiry by Design (EBD) and Master Plan process for Port Macquarie’s Health and Education Precinct (HEP). The EBD is the primary source and driver of the key Master Plan moves towards a successful and sustainable HEP.

The Methodology

The development of a Master Plan is a timely intervention to ensure that a clear vision is developed for the precinct, to take advantage of the expected growth in the sector as well as support the key stakeholders in creating a great place to live, work and play. The intent of the process was to develop a vibrant and well-connected health and education precinct that will ensure to long-term success of health, education, innovation and research in our region.

The precinct is home to a number of specialist medical practitioners as well as;

· the Port Macquarie Base Hospital,

· University of NSW - Rural Clinic

· Charles Sturt University,

· the Shared Health, Research and Education Campus (SHREC) supporting CSU, University of NSW Rural Medical School, and University of Newcastle initiatives,

· St Columba Anglican School, and

· Lake Innes Shopping Village.

Major institutions across the precinct are investing to enhance their capabilities, and recognise the opportunity to connect with one another and share some facilities to enhance activity across the precinct. In addition, the area continues to see high growth in the specialist medical services.

The site

As indicated in the schematic below, the study area is loosely bounded by John Oxley Drive to the west, Lake Road to the north, the industrial area and Lake Innes Nature Reserve to the east, and the southern boundary of St Columba Anglican School. It excludes residential properties between John Oxley Drive and Major Innes Road, and it takes in some additional areas where the HEP needs to connect to adjacent areas includuing: between John Oxley Drive and Oxley Highway; and around Merrigal Road.

The culmination of the EBD elicited the following themes as key to a successful precinct:

· Connectivity and accessibility

· Vibrant, activated and attractive

· Innovative and creative

· Education and research

· Culture, sharing and welcoming

· Destination

· Health, sporting and wellness

· Economy and business

· Collaboration and interaction

· Unique identity

The Precinct will be a vibrant and innovative centre of excellence, connected locally and to the world. It will have the capacity to evolve and the flexibility to adapt as the region changes.

The Master Plan

The existing Health and Education Precinct is loosely divided into five character areas. The boundaries are blurred, because current uses and the building types are changing. However, describing the character was a useful part of the EBD process to frame a discussion with participants about what they liked in the precinct, and what qualities they would like to see carrying forward. This in turn informed the vision statement.

A key strategy in formulating this master plan was to engage early, and deeply, with key business and institution stakeholders in the precinct. Rather than a traditional Enquiry by Design (EBD) process which culminates in a draft design concept, the focus of the charrettes in this study was on information gathering and sharing, agreements around opportunities, visioning and key objectives, and most importantly on building trusted relationships between stakeholders and with Council.

Through the comprehensive enquiry by design that was supported by key players within the precinct, the big key moves the Master Plan proposes:

· a new pedestrian spine through the precinct

· a new bus loop around the precinct

· two new road connections into the precinct

· a balance of facilities, services and activities in the precinct

· a green, healthy, vibrant identity for the precinct.

The Master Plan introduces design principles to carry and embed the desired outcomes for the precinct. The core principles are role and identity to:

· Support a functional, productive and vibrant economy that reflects the shared aspirations of stakeholders and Council

· Draw on the unique character of the precinct to celebrate and enhance its national reputation for innovation and excellence

· Foster understanding of the role of the importance of the precinct for Port Macquarie and the region

· Increase visibility of the ‘complete’ offering of health, education, research, commercial and community uses within the precinct.

The Design Principles are:

· Underlying structure

o Topography views and landmarks

o Landscape and ecology

o Service and infrastructure

· Movement Network

o Street network, traffic and parking

o Public transport

o Pedestrian and cycle network

· The Community

o Land uses

o Activity nodes and shared facilities

· The Character

o Built form

o Streetscapes and public space

Through the Master Plan, the intention is to achieve the principles through the design Strategies. This includes actions around the following:

· Pedestrian Spine;

o The pedestrian spine is the centrepiece of the Master Plan.

o Connecting the major institutions with each other, with the shopping centre, and with recreational opportunities.

o Reducing car dependence.

· Topography, landscape and ecology;

o Maintain and enhance the ‘green’ qualities of the natural environment, including large stands of mature trees.

· Services and infrastructure;

o Link the precinct’s learning and health institutions to regional, national and global networks.

· Movement network;

o Provide for improved vehicle circulation.

· Public transport;

o Easy access to the services and facilities within the precinct.

· Pedestrians and Cyclists;

o Complete and extend the walking and cycling network to connect people to their destinations.

· Land used;

o Enable a range of opportunities for health, education and research, including for shared facilities and initiatives.

· Activity nodes;

o Create a gathering space / series of spaces where people can go.

· Built form;

o Encourage high quality, environmentally responsive contemporary design.

o Let the existing tree canopy be dominant on the skyline.

· Streetscape and public spaces;

o Establish different characters for public spaces.

Options

Council has the option to seek clarification or changes to the HEP Master Plan which may require further work, or adopt the recommendation presented.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

Internal Engagement

The following section of Council were involved in the EBD/Master Plan development:

· Executive Team

· Strategic Land Use Planning

· Water and Sewer

· Transport, Stormwater Network

· Recreation and Building

· Development Assessment

· Community Place

· Economic Development

· Commercial Business Unit – Airport

· Environmental Services.

· Councillors

· Economic Development Steering Committee

External Consultation

The following stakeholders were represented:

· Port Macquarie Base Hospital

· St Columba Anglican School (who also hosted the event)

· Charles Sturt University (including staff as well as local and international students)

· Lake Innes Shopping Village

· Roads and Maritime Services

· Busways

· University of Newcastle

· Highfields Development Pty Ltd

· Roads and Maritime Services

· Local Residents

· Local Planners and Surveyors

The draft Precinct Master Plan was placed on public exhibition from the end of the November 2018 to the end of February 2019. The engagement included:

· Pop up engagement within the precinct;

· Have Your Say page;

· Plans available at libraries and customer service centres;

· Media story to encourage community input; and

· Resident letter box drop.

During the exhibition period, we received a total of 47 submissions - 23 via Have your Say and 24 via email/letter. The Have Your Say site had a total of 1500 visits with 563 downloads of the masterplan and 276 downloads of the posters.

At the conclusion of the public exhibition phase an additional series of engagement workshops were held in March 2019 with a variety of key stakeholders including residents, local planners and surveyors, business groups and those involved in the Enquiry by Design (EBD). All the feedback was then collated and shared with Architectus to develop the final Master Plan.

The feedback from the public exhibition phase as well as the engagement workshops came under the following themes:

· Pedestrian Spine - Location of North-South Spine between Ellis Parade and Kingfisher Road.

· Connectivity

· Zoning - Land use options for area 4 – Wrights Road to Ellis Parade.

· Maximum Heights of buildings, setbacks and FSR - Kulai Place.

· Traffic, parking and access to the Precinct - especially to/from the Hospital.

· Industrial Area -more discussion on how the industrial area to the east will change over time and how allied industries and connections to them from HEP will benefit the whole Precinct.

· Environment - Sustainability and Water Sensitive Urban design (WSUD) - more discussion on how the Master Plan can facilitate future sustainability and WSUD initiatives.

· Staging - future study to investigate impact of Orbital locations on the HEP precinct. Perhaps 2 stages of HEP implementation (so as not to hold-up area 4 implementation).

· That a HEP consortium be establish to help drive outcomes of the Master Plan

· Minor graphics - names omitted

Amendments were made to the Master Plan to reflect the community feedback on the above topics. This included a relocation of the pedestrian spine, review of the connectivity of roads and pathways, review of and suggested zoning options for the precinct and proposed implementation review. The proposed Orbital road corridor has been removed from the document pending the Strategic Business Case that is currently being planned.

Discussions have continued with key stakeholders within the precinct and there is strong support for the development of a consortium to support outcomes of the HEP Master Plan. Members of the consortium could include CSU, UNSW (Rural Clinic), Port Macquarie Base Hospital, Lake Innes Shops, St Columba School and other interested key stakeholders.

A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organisations or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity, or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal.

Throughout the process, the participants within the precinct were keen to develop quick wins including connectivity, parking outcomes and better public transport options. It is considered that the establishment of a consortium could increase the likelihood of any quick wins occurring within the precinct, not relying solely on Council to drive and implement change.

Whilst an interested party, it is not considered prudent that Council be involved as a member of any consortium at this point given the regulatory role that will be required of Council if the Master Plan is adopted.

Through the public exhibition period, Council received 47 formal submission to the Health and education Precinct Draft Master Plan, with 23 through the Have your Say portal and 24 via email/letter. Below is a summary of the submissions and a response/comment.

Submission

Issue

Dr Adam King

Submission for Hermitage Family Medical Centre to be considered as part of the Health and Education Masterplan and rezoning of the area be considered.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The site has been considered as part of the overall Master Plan and further planning work is required to determine zoning of this particular site.

Sue Proust

Submission on behalf of the Hasting Birdwatcher Inc, to raise awareness of the biodiversity of the area and to express disappointment in regards to the lack of ecologist involvement in the development of the plan. The submission also provided feedback on the ecological impact of the Health and Education Master Plan.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. As this is the Master Plan stage, ecologists are not yet involved. As the project progresses, additional studies including environmental studies will be undertaken. It should be noted that the community acknowledged the importance of the environment within the precinct.

Tony Blue (3 Submissions)

Submission on behalf of Highfields Development P/L (HDPL) providing objections on the exhibited Master Plan with concerns that the Master Plan was too conservative, did not meet the outcomes of the UGMS particularly in terms of built form, building heights and economic outcomes. There were also concerns about the location of the pedestrian spine. A further submission also highlighted the location of the proposed loop road.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The revised Master Plan has reviewed the zoning as well as built form and the position of the pedestrian spine that will address concerns raised through the submissions.

Jean Hegarty

Submission providing feedback concerning traffic congestion in the Health and Education precinct.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. Traffic is an issue for the precinct one of the drivers within the Master Plan is to look at additional links out of the precinct as well as public transport solutions and a more walkable location.

Donna Clarke

Submission on behalf of Midwest Radio Networking Pty Ltd regarding concerns of community consultation, orbital road planning and a further review of the western portion of the Health and Education Master Plan. The submission raised concerns about proposed building heights. There were also concerns about the timing and location of the Proposed Orbital Road corridor through their site. Plans for development of land was also provided.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. It was an oversight that this key landowner was not included in the EBD, this was rectified through the workshop stages of engagement. The focus on the eastern side of John Oxley Drive was the initial driver and the lot referred to in this submission will be included in the further stages of the project including planning determinations. Through the review of the Master Plan, building heights have been increased.

Council has resolved to undertake a Strategic Business Case to look at all options for improvement to our traffic network, including a possible Orbital Road route, this is to be undertaken over the next two years and as such the route previously shown on the draft HEP Master Plan has been removed

Sandra O’Brien

Submission advised that she had missed the opportunity to provide feedback on the Health and Education Masterplan and was unsure of the proposed location.

Response/

Comment:

Noted

Elizabeth Auld

Submission suggested that Council planners or engineers to be available for public to discuss concerns on the Health and Education Masterplan. Concerns also on traffic and environmental impacts.

Response/

Comment:

Noted and additional engagement workshops held in March 2019 to facilitate additional conversation and receive feedback.

Nadine Rose

Submission requesting information on the sound barrier and koala conservation Merrigal Road.

Response/

Comment:

Noted

Leisha Graham

Submission requesting public forum at CSU. Raised concerns on Lyrebird Place not being part of the Health and Education Masterplan along with traffic congestion.

Response/

Comment:

Noted and additional engagement workshops held in March 2019 to facilitate additional conversation and receive feedback.

10.

Greg Skimmings

Submission on being unable to connect through the Health and Education Masterplan hotline.

Response/

Comment:

Noted

11.

Kenneth Paulsen

Submission concerning re-zoning Kulai Place and Lyrebird Place. Requested meeting of residents in that area.

Response/

Comment:

Noted and additional engagement workshops held in March 2019 to facilitate additional conversation and receive feedback. Zoning has also been reviewed an altered from the draft Master Plan.

12.

Scott Marchment

Submission on behalf of Charles Sturt University in support of the Health and Education Master Plan. Information on university Master Plan was provided for the operation of the existing campus as well as potential expansion both north and south. The submission also included commentary on KPoM, telecommunications, services, building heights, location of the pedestrian spine, movement network and parking.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. Key issues within the submission have been taken into account as part of the revised Master Plan including the location of the pedestrian spine, building heights restrictions and movement corridors and parking location. These will continue to be key issues as the project developed.

13.

Greg Freeman

Submission on environmental protection and enhancement and the suggestions that further sustainable practices particularly around energy, transport, waste and water be included into the Health and Education Masterplan.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The intention of the Master Plan is to provide a basis for a future innovative and sustainable precinct.

14.

Mel Gray-Thompson

Submission advising they were pleased that Merrigal Road was included with approval for a private use gate to access the hospital,

Response/

Comment:

Noted

15.

Andy Davis

Submission raising concerns of traffic congestion and lack of parking within the Health and Education precinct.

Response/

Comment:

Note. This was a key issue for the development of the Master Plan and additional access point for traffic, pedestrian and public transport routs have been included in the final plan.

16.

John Handford

Submission on environmental protection and preservation of bushland around the Health & Education precinct.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. As the project progresses additional studies, including environmental studies will be undertaken. It should also be noted that the community are very aware of the habitat and are wanted to protect and enhance those features.

17.

Sue East

Submission from Camden Haven Chamber of Commerce providing support in principle but raise concerns on traffic congestion within the Health and Education precinct.

Response/

Comment:

Note. Traffic congestions and movement is a key issue for the development of the Master Plan and additional access point for traffic, pedestrian and public transport routs have been included in the final plan.

18.

John Drinan

Submission congratulating Council on the focus of creativity and innovation.

Response/

Comment:

Noted

19.

Wendy Hee

Submission suggesting that the Health and Education Masterplan to include start-up spaces for graduating professionals.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. It is envisaged that the Master Plan and future development of this precinct will encourage that type of activity.

Sam Shead

Submission complimenting the spine pathway with trees and the plaza connection to CSU. Concern on the impact to the hospital when moving the helicopter pad above the emergency department.

Response/

Comment:

Noted

21.

Debbie and Leon Purcell

Submission raising concerns that the Health and Education Master Plan affects decisions associated with the proposed orbital road.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. Council has resolved to undertake a Strategic Business Case to look at all options for improvement to our traffic network, including a possible Orbital Road route, this is to be undertaken over the next two years and as such the route previously shown on the draft HEP Master Plan has been removed.

22.

Lindsay Moller

Submission requesting that the plans not be approved prior to approval of the Orbital Road network.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The adhoc development of this precinct will continue if a Master Plan is not adopted and this was a key driver to develop a Master Plan in the first instance to manage and control the development within this important precinct.

23.

James Cullen

Submission in favour of the Health and Education precinct and suggested the area expand further to allow for more parking.

Response/

Comment:

Noted and parking has been considered within the confines of the proposed precinct.

24.

Alan Cleaver

Submission enquiring on the impact of the Health and Education Masterplan has on property owned in Kulai Place.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The residents in Kulai have been consulted on a number of occasions throughout the process.

25.

Brad Thomas

Submission supporting the proposed LEP controls associated with the Health and Education precinct. Requested 10m rear setback and access via Googik Track.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. Setbacks have been reviewed and logistics of developing access to the Googik track will continue.

26.

Donna Schafer

Submission enquiring if Council was approaching current property owners to discuss options of the new proposed footpath.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. Additional engagement workshops were held in March 2019 to facilitate additional conversation and receive feedback particularly regarding the location of the pedestrian spine, which has subsequently moved.

27.

Vicki’s Swim Centre

Submission supporting the proposed Health and Education Master Plan. Did raise concerns on parking within the Precinct.

Response/

Comment:

Noted and parking has been considered within the confines of the proposed precinct.

28.

Kevin & Gayle Corken

Submission advising of satisfaction of the Health and Education Masterplan. Happy with the proposed rezoning and return 10m set back with consideration for a 14.5m (4 story) height limit.

Response/

Comment:

Noted

29.

Elizabeth Auld

Submission advising of disappointment on the consultation for the Health and Education Master Plan. The Orbital Road should be addressed first.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. Council added additional engagement workshops after receiving submissions from the community.

Orbital Road - Council has resolved to undertake a Strategic Business Case to look at all options for improvement to our traffic network, including a possible Orbital Road route. This is to be undertaken over the next two years and as such the route previously shown on the draft HEP Master Plan has been removed.

30.

Stephen Watt

Submission thanking Council for being proactive in future planning. Highlighted the 2 new road links, the pedestrian spine and cycle ways in the Health and Education Master Plan.

Response/

Comment:

Noted

31.

Leisa Graham

Submission requesting a meeting for the residents with Council planner to answer questions. Raised a number questions including why Lyrebird Place was not included on the maps and the timeframe for construction of the project.

Response/

Comment:

Noted and additional engagement workshops held in March 2019 to facilitate additional conversation and receive feedback. The label for Lyrebird is included in the Master Plan.

32.

Winona Graham

Submission raising concerns of the impact that the Health and Education Precinct will have on residents in Lyrebird Place. Enquired when construction will commence and concerns of traffic congestion in the area.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. This is only a Master Plan and there are many stages of planning required prior to any wholesale construction, excluding any single lot development. Traffic movement has been a consideration of the plan.

33.

Ken Paulsen

Submission providing feedback on lack of community consultation on the Health and Education Master Plan. Requests a meeting with affected local residents.

Response/

Comment:

Noted and additional engagement workshops held in March 2019 to facilitate additional conversation and receive feedback

34.

Timothy Pollitt

Submission outlining some suggestions to improve current traffic flow within the Health and Education Precinct. Complimented bike paths and suggested the continuation into town.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. Traffic congestions and movement is a key issue for the development of the Master Plan and additional access point for traffic, pedestrian and public transport routes have been included in the final plan.

35.

Mary-Clare Crowley

Submission complimenting the Health and Education Master Plan. Suggest improvement on pedestrian and cycle ways. After more information on walkway between Kulai Place and Merrigal Road.

Response/

Comment:

Note. Traffic congestions and movement is a key issue for the development of the Master Plan and additional access point for traffic, pedestrian and public transport routes have been included in the final plan.

36.

Joshua Garrett

Submission complimenting the Health and Education Master Plan. Request further information on development of the west area and timing of construction around John Oxley Drive.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The detailed design for the improvement to John Oxley Drive are imminent. Timing and development of the west area of the precinct is still to be determined through future stages of this project.

37.

Anthony Thorne

Submission on behalf of Alcedines Pty Ltd regarding amendments to the Master Plan including maintaining the existing R2 residential zone, rather than the E2 proposed zoning. Recognising the opportunity the property may provide for future road links, and consideration for opportunities this lot provides overall for future health and education purposes.

It also acknowledges that the landowner had been accidently omitted from the engagement process and that an offer was extended to ensure the owner’s feedback was considered.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The Master Plan zoning for that lot has been amended to reflect its current zoning.

38.

Michelle Chapman

Submission on behalf of Client Palmcare Pty Ltd that highlighted preferred zoning and height of built form as well as an immediate need for precinct sewer servicing strategy. The submission also outlined the importance of the pedestrian spine and a new east west road link.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The Master Plan is the first stage in developing this precinct as a whole. A traffic and services plan will be required to ensure that development within the precinct is well managed.

39.

Frank and Barbara Elphink

Submission raised concerns over the location of the proposed pedestrian spine along their boundary.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The location of the pedestrian spine has been reviewed and amended. As this is a Master Plan, the location of the pedestrian spine is still only an indicative and the logistics of final placement and implementation will be developed through the life of the project.

40..

Guy Hingston

Submission complimenting the Health and Education Masterplan. Dr Hingston keen to undertake development that supports the proposed outcomes of the Master Plan, with proposed significant development on his properties.

Response/

Comment:

Noted.

Michelle Love

Submission relating to Lot 6 DP 262597, Kingfisher Road, which has been the subject of a development proposal within the precinct and would like understand how to move forward with the development as it meets the intent of the proposed Master Plan.

Also call for the description on joining the four allotments on the corner of John Oxley Drive to be deleted.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. If the plan is adopted, further work will be required to finalise planning requirements. Council will work with individual owners to process proposals. The four lots on John Oxley Drive will be treated separately.

42.

Michelle Love

Submission relating to 38 John Oxley Drive, which has been the subject of a pre lodgement meeting for a development within the precinct and the change of zoning to allow a medical use.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. If the plan is, adopted further work will be required to finalise planning requirements. Council will work with individual owners to process proposals.

43.

Michelle Love

Submission is relating to Lot 14 DP262597 Kulai Place, which has previously been the subject of investigations for a childcare centre development. This meet the needs of the proposed Health and Education Precinct, Progression on the planning proposal is sought and that Council should not delay in the implementation of the required zone changes and increased in built form within this precinct.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. If the plan is, adopted further work will be required to finalise planning requirements. Council will work with individual owners to process proposals.

44.

Kimberly Minogue

Submission on behalf of the UNSW Rural Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine. There are concerns regarding the proposed Bus Route and the safety of students walking between campuses.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The Master Plan show indicative traffic locations and additional detailed design will be required to determine final locations.

45.

Evelyn Sandie

Submission relating to the location of the pedestrian spine and the need for pedestrian pathways through the precinct. The submission also focussed on the proposed impact of the Master Plan, building heights, the zoning, setback and traffic on Kulai place particularly and the big change from the current residential feel. There were concerns over acquisition as well as types of proposed development.

The submission also relayed the disappointment that residents were not included in the EBD.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. The location of the pedestrian spine has been reviewed and amended. The intent of the Master Plan is to manage future development within the precinct and this will see a change from the current residential feel, as we have seen in Highfields Circuit. Further work on traffic solutions will be required and are part of the next stages of this project.

Council did respond to numerous submissions regarding resident involvement and held a resident workshop in March 2019.

46.

Paul Jones

Submission was scathing about the plan and the engagement process. Concerns raised about increasing traffic in the industrial area and the potential for it to become a short cut, which will lead to further congestion on Lake Road. In addition, raised concerns about funding of the project and that money would be better spent elsewhere. Final concerns about the impact on property values.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. Further work on traffic solutions will be required and are part of the next stages of this project.

47.

St Columba Anglican School

Submission noted the school’s involvement in the process and request a boundary adjustment to the precinct to encompass the parcel of adjoin land to the south of the school.

Response/

Comment:

Noted. Through the next stages of the project this will be explored.

A full copy of submissions have been provided to the Councillors under separate cover.

Following the exhibition, a review of the received submissions, additional consultations were completed with residents, land owners, planners, major institutions and businesses in the area. It was considered necessary to amend the exhibited plan with the following minor modifications as follows:

1. Location of North-South Spine between Ellis Parade and Kingfisher Road. The location has been adjusted to reflect community feedback. Implementation of the pedestrian spine will be managed through incentives and developer’s contributions and these will be determined through future works.

2. Land use options for area 4 – Wrights Road to Elis Parade. Options for future zoning has been suggested in the Master Plan. This will require additional planning reviews and studies to determine final zoning of the precinct.

3. Maximum Heights of buildings, setbacks and FSR - Kulai Place. This has been reviewed and indicative suggestions made through the Master Plan.

4. Traffic, parking and access to the Precinct - especially to/from the Hospital has been considered, with additional access points identified.

5. Industrial Area - the industrial area to the east of the precinct will change over time as allied industries (health, research and education) and stronger connections from the industrial area through to HEP will benefit the whole Precinct.

6. Sustainability and Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) - how the Master Plan can facilitate future sustainability and WSUD initiatives.

7. Staging - future study to investigate impact of Orbital locations on the HEP precinct. Perhaps 2 stages of HEP implementation (so as not to hold-up area 4 implementation).

8. Minor graphics - Lyrebird Street to be labelled on all plans.

9. Reinstatement of current zoning R2 on Lot 15 DP 1115953 Kingfisher Road.

Planning & Policy Implications

If Council adopts the HEP Master Plan, the project will then move into the next stage of development. This will include undertaking studies to assist in the development of a new Development Control Plan (DCP) for the precinct and then subsequent changes to the Local Environment Plan (LEP) and any developer contribution planning or Voluntary Planning Agreements (VPA) for individual sites.

Investigation into any augmentations to utilities supporting the precinct will also need to be completed.

The work on developing the planning outcomes for this project will likely take 12 months to determine.

Financial & Economic Implications

o date, this project has been funded out of Council’s Economic Development Reserve.

Funding of $120,000 for the next stages of this project has been included in the current 2019/20 Operational Plan.

Development of the Health and Education Precinct is anticipated to have a positive effect on the overall economic activity of the LGA.

Attachments

1 View. Health and Education Precinct Master Plan - Post Exhibition

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 12.02

Subject: Event Sponsorship Program Round 1, 2020

Presented by: Strategy and Growth, Jeffery Sharp

Alignment with Delivery Program

3.1.3 Implement Major Events Strategy.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council pursuant to provisions of Section 356 of the Local Government Act 1993, grant financial assistance from the Event Sponsorship Program Round 1, 2020 in the total amount of $20,000 to:

Event Name & Ranking	Sponsorship $ Recommended
1. Howling Moon Blues Festival	$5,000
2. Fox Superflow MTB Event	$5,000
3. Twilight Tastings Wauchope	$2,500
4. Port Macquarie Bodyboarding Association Bodyboard Teams Event	$2,500
5. Cycling NSW Junior Tour	$2,500
6. Laurieton Multisport Challenge	$2,500
Total allocated this round	$20,000

Executive Summary

Round 1 of funding for 2020 under Council’s Event Sponsorship Program opened in July and closed in August 2019. This round of funding was open to events being held in the first half of 2020. Seven applications were received with three of these events (Fox Superflow, Port Macquarie Bodyboarding, Laurieton Multisport Challenge) having received support under the Program previously. One event has received previous Council support through the event placement company, Sports Marketing Australia (Cycling NSW Junior Tour).

Event Sponsorship Program applicants are required to demonstrate that the proposed event is either a driver of significant overnight visitation (i.e. a measurable economic impact, evidenced by previous data collected), or has the potential to grow to major event status with a significant economic impact. Typically, there are four grants consisting of $5,000 allocations on offer per round, with $40,000 allocated to the Program per year. Council has the discretion to offer less than $5,000 per recipient, with the opportunity to allocate to a larger number of applicants per round. A maximum of three re-occurring allocations to any one event can be made under this program.

Applicants are also required to detail how the grant will be spent, with the proposed spending required to be allocated toward marketing activities that assist in attracting out of region visitors.

Discussion

As per previous rounds, an internal review panel assessed applications. The individual panellists completed a matrix containing the established Program criteria, and weightings (see Table 1). The Panel then met to discuss each application and make a final assessment. Criteria and weightings are as follows (with 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest), and applicants are then ranked and funds allocated. 65% is payable prior to the event, with the remaining 35% paid upon satisfactory acquittal (evidenced by visitor data).

A summary of the panel’s assessment of each applicant is detailed in confidential Attachment 1.

Attachment 1, titled “Event Sponsorship Program Assessment Summary - Round 1, 2020” provides commercial information of a confidential nature that would, if disclosed prejudice the commercial position of the person who supplied it. Local Government Act 1993 - Section 10A(2)(d(i).

Table 1- Program Criteria & Weightings

Criteria	Weighting
Potential to become a major event & attract significant visitor nights	5
Unique to the region/Mid North Coast	3
Financial sustainability	4
Substantial economic impact (or potential for)	3
Event organiser experience & resourcing	3
Off-peak or shoulder season placement	5
Robust marketing plan	4
Community Benefit	3

Since the Sponsorship Program’s inception in 2015, 64 applications have been received (not including the current round), with 43 allocations of sponsorship totalling $181,000 to the following events:

Table 2- History of allocations under the Event Sponsorship Program

Event Name	Year	Sponsorship granted	Est. Economic Impact
Ekam Yoga Festival	2015	$3,500	$17,000
Big Band Blast	2015	$5,000	$309,000
3 Rivers Rowing Festival	2015	$3,500	$45,000
King of the Mountain Fun Run	2015	$2,000	$33,000
Sand Mudder	2015	$2,000	$22,000
Beatles Festival	2016	$2,000	$135,000
Bago Bluff Mountain Bike Marathon	2016	$2,000	$40,000
Port Macquarie Running Festival	2016	$3,000	$585,000
Suck it up Buttercup	2016	$5,000	$500,000
Ekam Yoga Festival	2016	$5,000	$20,000
3 Rivers Rowing Festival	2016	$2,500	$45,000
Big Band Blast	2016	$5,000	$309,000
Port Macquarie Beer & Cider festival	2016	$5,000	$360,000
Northern Division Road Cycling Championships	2016	$2,000	$29,000
Luminosity Youth Summit	2016	$4,000	$20,000
Sand Mudder	2016	$3,000	$90,000
Beach to Brother Running Festival	2016	$5,000	$308,000
King of the Mountain Fun Run	2016	$1,500	$22,500
Suck it up Buttercup	2017	$5,000	$233,000
Port Macquarie Beatles Festival	2017	$5,000	$416,000
Port Macquarie Running Festival	2017	$5,000	$763,000
Slice of Haven	2017	$5,000	$647,000
Blues & BBQ Festival	2017	$5,000	$812,000
Ekam Yoga Festival	2017	$2,500	$44,000
Port Macquarie Beer & Cider Festival	2017	$5,000	$500,000
Beach to Brother Running Festival	2017	$5,000	$353,000
Port Macquarie Mountain Bike Festival	2017	$2,500	$10,000
Suck it Up Buttercup	2018	$5,000	$267,000
Port Macquarie Running Festival	2018	$5,000	$1,021,000
Slice of Haven	2018	$5,000	$712,000
Hello Koalas Festival	2018	$5,000	$103,000
Elephant Trail Race	2018	$5,000	$407,000
Beach to Brother	2018	$5,000	$1,066,000
Wildwood Music Festival	2018	$2,500	$76,000
Digital Expo	2018	$0-refunded	$0
Fox Super Flow MTB Champs	2019	$5,000	$207,000
Seaview Classic Road Cycling Race	2019	$5,000	$508,000
Regional Dementia Conference	2019	$5,000	$109,000
Laurieton Multisport Challenge	2019	$5,000	$71,000
Elephant Trail Race	2019	$5,000	$618,000
‘A Gala Night at the Ballet’	2019	$5,000	$228,813
Aussie Endurance MTB Championships (solo 24hr)	2019	$5,000	$543,430
PMBA Bodyboard Teams Event	2019	$5,000	$154,448
TOTAL (43)		$181,000	$12,669,191

*Estimates in red. Acquittal data for these events due late 2019.

Options

Council can endorse the final assessment of the internal review panel, which is to grant the following amounts (in ranked order):

Event Name & Ranking	Sponsorship $ Recommended
1. Howling Moon Blues Festival	$5,000
2. Fox Superflow MTB Event	$5,000
3. Twilight Tastings Wauchope	$2,500
4. PMBA Bodyboard Teams Event	$2,500
5. Cycling NSW Junior Tour	$2,500
6. Laurieton Multisport Challenge	$2,500

Council may decide not to endorse the final assessment of the internal review panel. This will result in the further options of either not expending any of the allocated budget for this round of funding or re-opening this round of funding and calling for new applications.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

No external community engagement occurred as part of the assessment process.

Internal consultation included:

Council’s Executive Group

Group Manager Economic Development & Communications

Major Events Manager

Internal Review Panel:

Group Manager Community Place

Major Events Manager

Economic Development Project Officer

Waste Projects Officer

Planning & Policy Implications

There are no planning and policy implications in relation to this report.

Financial & Economic Implications

Since February 2015, Council has allocated $181,000 to the Event Sponsorship Program with an economic impact of over approximately $12 million being realised (based on increased visitor nights as a direct result of these events).

Council has an annual allocated 2019/20 budget for the Event Sponsorship Program of $40,000 divided between two contestable funding rounds. Should Council choose to adopt Option 1 from this report, $20,000 will be allocated from this budget to the six events recommended.

Attachments

1 View. Confidential - Event Sponsorship Program Evaluation Summary - R1 2020 (Confidential)

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 13.01

Subject: Transport Network Improvements (Including the Proposed Orbital Road Project) - 19 June 2019 Council Resolution Update Report

Presented by: General Manager, Craig Swift-McNair

Alignment with Delivery Program

4.4.1 Plan, investigate, design and construct transport assets which address pedestrians, cyclist and vehicular needs to cater for the future growth of the region.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council note the information included in the Transport Network Improvements (Including the Proposed Orbital Road Project) - 19 June 2019 Council Resolution Update report.

Executive Summary

The purpose of this report is to provide an update on the resolution of Council from the 19 June 2019 Council meeting, where Council resolved (amongst other things) to move forward with the development of a Strategic Business Case (SBC) for future strategic transport network planning, including consideration of alternate routes for the proposed Orbital Road.

This report provides an update on each of the fourteen points that formed part of the 19 June 2019 Council resolution.

Discussion

At the 19 June 2019 Council meeting, Council resolved the following in relation to future strategic transport network planning and the proposed Orbital Road:

Item 13.01 - Proposed Orbital Road Project

RESOLVED: Levido/Turner

That Council:

1. Note the strong community support, including published support from the State Member for Port Macquarie and Federal Member for Cowper, for the concept of an Orbital Road as an integral part of the future strategic transport network planning for Port Macquarie;

2. Note the information provided in:

a) this Proposed Orbital Road Community Engagement Council report; and

b) the RPS Proposed Orbital Road Community Engagement Report being Attachment 1.

3. Request the General Manager to proceed to the next stage of the proposed Orbital Road process, being the development of a Strategic Business Case, known as “Gate 1” (incorporating a Needs Confirmation Summary, known as “Gate 0”) as identified in the NSW Infrastructure Investment Assurance Framework.

4. Note that the Strategic Business Case will take up to 24 months and will include both a review and assessment of (but will not be limited to):

a) Findings to date (e.g. traffic network studies, Orbital Road Feasibility Study and recent community engagement);

b) Investigation of alternate routes for an East-West link road (Ocean Drive to Oxley Highway) and a North-South link road (Oxley Highway to Boundary Street), including alternate upgrades to the existing road network assuming no alternate route crossing of the Lake Innes Nature Reserve;

c) Planned traffic network improvements and upgrades to the existing road network, including Lake Road and Ocean Drive;

d) Cost-benefit analysis of options to improve the traffic network;

e) Project specific traffic studies;

f) Environmental impact investigations (including heritage); and

g) Social and economic impact investigations;

h) Arrange value management workshops for the east-west link road options and north-south link road of the Orbital Road options to include Lake Road upgrade as an option to assist with ranking options on the basis of best value for the community, at a time determined by the General Manager within the strategic business case process.

5. In proceeding with the Strategic Business Case, will engage and partner with relevant agencies including:

a) Roads and Maritime Service (RMS)/Transport for NSW (TfNSW)

b) NSW Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH)

c) NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS)

d) NSW Department of Planning and Environment (DPE).

6. Note the strategic importance of a flood-free Primary Airport Access Road, regardless of any other link roads, and request the General Manager to separate the flood-free Primary Airport Access Road from the proposed Orbital Road project (including that project’s Strategic Business Case) and to progress planning for a flood-free Primary Airport Access Road as a stand-alone priority, including consultation with RMS/TfNSW and the community.

7. Request the General Manager to establish a Proposed Orbital Road Community Consultative Committee that will be guided by a Council-adopted Charter (yet to be determined), with membership of the Committee to be determined via a formal Expression of Interest process, ensuring that a broad cross-section of interests and expertise are represented on the Committee.

8. Request the General Manager to develop a communications and engagement plan to cover the period of the development of the Strategic Business Case, as a way of keeping the community informed and engaged, including via the Community Consultative Committee, in a transparent and timely manner in relation to progress of the project.

9. Request the General Manager to develop a plain English version of the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council Area Wide Traffic Study, which is then to be made available to the public via the Council web site.

10. Request the General Manager to write to the State Member for Port Macquarie, Leslie Williams MP, seeking ongoing support for Port Macquarie-Hastings traffic network improvements and $400,000 in grant funding as a co-contribution towards the estimated $800,000 cost to develop the Strategic Business Case, with Council also to contribute $400,000.

11. Request the General Manager to make this Council report (including any attachments) and the subsequent Council resolution available to the public, through appropriate communication channels, including Council’s web site.

12. Request the General Manager to make this Council report (including any attachments) and the subsequent Council resolution available to State agencies as listed above such as TfNSW, OEH, NPWS, DPE and any others deemed applicable, as well as to the State Members of Parliament for Port Macquarie and Oxley and the Federal Members of Parliament for Cowper and Lyne.

13. Thank the community for the feedback received during the engagement period in relation to the proposed Orbital Road and other traffic network improvements and request the General Manager advise those who made submissions of Council’s determination in this matter.

14. Request the General Manager to table a report at the September 2019 Council meeting detailing progress on the resolutions of Council as they relate to this Proposed Orbital Road Community Engagement report and traffic network improvements generally.

carried: 5/3

For: Alley, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido and Turner

Against: Dixon, Griffiths and Pinson

Following are listed each of the above-mentioned fourteen Council resolutions, below which is an update on progress against each of the resolutions:

Update:

This resolution was noted by Council only. Accordingly, no further action is required.

2. Note the information provided in:

a) this Proposed Orbital Road Community Engagement Council report; and

b) the RPS Proposed Orbital Road Community Engagement Report being Attachment 1.

Update:

This resolution was noted by Council only. Accordingly, no further action is required.

Update:

The scope of works (SoW) for the SBC is nearing completion with the intent to release an open Request for Tender in mid-September 2019 in order to table a report to the November 2019 Council meeting for the consideration of Council, noting that this timing is yet to be confirmed.

The SoW has been drafted to cover all the points listed in point 4 of the 19 June 2019 Council resolution, including workshops at key stages with the relevant agencies as listed in point 5 of the resolution.

The key milestone program dates proposed in the SoW are as follows, noting that these are still to be confirmed and may be subject to change throughout the process:

- Contract Award – 4 December 2019

- Draft Report Submission – 7 May 2021

- Final Draft Report Submission (following a minimum 2-week review period by Council staff) – 2 June 2021

- Final Draft Report placed on public exhibition – 22 June to 20 July 2021

- Final SBC Report Submission – 4 August 2021

The scope of the project covers all investigations, analysis and documentation for the development of a shortlist of preferred options which address the project objectives, presented in a comprehensive SBC conforming to the NSW Government Infrastructure Investor Assurance Framework (IIAF) SBC requirements.

The scope will be developed in accordance with industry best practice and relevant IIAF and Transport for NSW (TfNSW) guidelines. Council is seeking the expertise and experience of a consultant/s who are familiar with the NSW Government requirements for transport network improvement analysis and investigation and subsequent SBC development projects.

It is anticipated that the scope of this project will cover the following stages:

- Review of existing information and workshops with Council staff to gain a full understanding of the requirements;

- Review and analysis of the existing road network to identify all possible options for improvement;

- Options investigation and development to refine the long list of options:

o This stage includes detailed environmental (including heritage), social and economic impacts/benefits investigation and assessment

- Detailed analysis of options to determine the shortlist of preferred solutions:

o This stage includes detailed cost benefit analysis and economic appraisal of options in order to short list and prioritise them

- Final reporting of all work completed and clearly articulating the outcomes in the required SBC format.

A proposed project staging is shown below. It should be noted that this staging is indicative only and as stated above, Council will be seeking the experience and expertise of suitable consultant/s (through an upcoming tender process), to ensure the objectives are achieved:

1) Stage 1 Existing information review:

1.1 Inception meeting and site visit

1.2 Review of existing information:

1.2.1 Workshop with Council staff to ensure all existing information is identified and understood.

1.3 Constraints identification and mapping

1.4 Project inception working paper report:

1.4.1 Understanding of Requirement, constraints and existing situation.

2) Stage 2 Options identification:

2.1 Traffic model development:

2.1.1 Review of Area Wide Traffic Study model.

2.1.2 Traffic Modelling Technical Memo.

2.1.3 Base and future year model development – data collection, calibration and validation as required.

2.1.4 Base model analysis – issues identification.

2.1.5 ‘Do Minimum’ case development and analysis.

2.1.6 Options to be considered shall include several options put forward by the community.

2.2 Existing network working paper report

2.3 Improvement options identification:

2.3.1 Long list of options – existing corridors upgrades and new corridors.

2.3.2 Schematic option design arrangement development.

2.3.3 Options testing.

2.3.4 Options refinement and value management.

2.4 Network improvement working paper report.

3) Stage Options development and assessment:

3.1 Strategic 3D Design of refined list of options from Stage 2:

3.1.1 Terrain model development using LiDAR and existing survey only.

3.1.2 Strategic design in accordance with Austroads to understand strategic costs and impacts.

3.2 Strategic Cost Estimate:

3.2.1 Development of unit rate estimates for key elements of designs

3.2.2 Cost Estimation Technical Memo

3.2.3 P90 strategic cost estimates based on strategic designs in accordance RMS Project Estimating manual.

3.3 Environmental Impacts/benefits assessment:

3.3.1 Detailed desktop environment, including heritage, investigation and assessment based on strategic designs.

3.3.2 Limited ‘on-ground’ environmental investigation and assessment to refine and validate desktop assessment.

3.4 Social Impacts/benefits assessment:

3.4.1 Direct and indirect social impacts/benefits assessment based on strategic designs.

3.5 Economic Impacts/benefits assessment:

3.5.1 Direct economic impacts/benefits assessment based on strategic designs and traffic analysis.

3.5.2 Indirect economic impacts/benefits assessment based on a suitable best practice methodology.

3.6 Options refinement and value management.

3.7 Options development and assessment working paper report.

4) Stage 4 Options Analysis:

4.1 Economic Appraisal:

4.1.1 Undertake an economic appraisal on the refined list of options from Stage 3, utilising the analysis and assessment outputs from Stages 2 and 3 in accordance with TfNSW Principles and Guidelines: Economic Appraisal of Transport Investments and Initiatives

4.2 Cost benefit Analysis:

4.2.1 Rank options with a benefit to cost ratio assessment in line with the NSW Government’s Guide to Cost-Benefit Analysis TPP 17-03.

4.3 Shortlisting and prioritising preferred options

4.4 Staging Identification:

4.4.1 Based on the prioritised shortlist of preferred options identity the short-term (0 to 10 years), medium-term (10 to 20 years) and long-term (20+ years) staging and program of actions (further design, investigations, approvals and detailed business cases) to deliver the options.

5) Reporting:

5.1 Strategic Business Case:

5.1.1 A plain English, but detailed, community facing summary that can be easily understood by a non-technical audience.

5.1.2 A comprehensive Strategic Business conforming the Infrastructure NSW format.

5.2 Strategic Business Case - Final Report (including 5.1.1 and 5.1.2 above).

4. Note that the Strategic Business Case will take up to 24 months and will include both a review and assessment of (but will not be limited to):

a) Findings to date (e.g. traffic network studies, Orbital Road Feasibility Study and recent community engagement);

c) Planned traffic network improvements and upgrades to the existing road network, including Lake Road and Ocean Drive;

d) Cost-benefit analysis of options to improve the traffic network;

e) Project specific traffic studies;

f) Environmental impact investigations (including heritage); and

g) Social and economic impact investigations;

Update:

Refer to the response provided above for point 3 of the Council resolution.

5. In proceeding with the Strategic Business Case, will engage and partner with relevant agencies including:

a) Roads and Maritime Service (RMS)/Transport for NSW (TfNSW)

b) NSW Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH)

c) NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS)

d) NSW Department of Planning and Environment (DPE).

Update:

During the development of the SBC, Council will engage and collaborate with relevant State Government agencies as listed above. This engagement will include a series of workshops at key stages of the process, where the appointed consultancy will outline investigations and analysis undertaken, with the intent of gaining critical input from the key agencies.

A joint project team will be established with TfNSW to ensure that planning for the integrated State and Local road network is as seamless as possible. This will likely be achieved by Council formally entering into a project Memorandum of Understanding with TfNSW.

Update:

The scope for the Primary Airport Access Road project is currently being refined following the 21 August 2019 Council resolution for further investigation and discussion with TfNSW. This discussion commenced on 30 August 2019, via the Regional Transport Infrastructure Steering Group (RTISG). For information the above-mentioned 21 August 2019 Council resolution is as follows:

13.01 NOTICE OF MOTION - PROPOSED PRIMARY AIRPORT ACCESS ROAD

INTERSECTION WITH OXLEY HIGHWAY

RESOLVED: Intemann/Turner

That Council:

2. Request the General Manager investigate and consult with Transport for NSW (TfNSW) regarding the feasibility of either:

a) Upgrading the existing Clifton Drive intersection to serve the proposed Primary Airport Access Road; or

b) Continuing to plan for a new intersection with the proposed Primary Airport Access Road onto the Oxley Highway, excluding the extension of any new intersection into the Fernhill area.

3. Request the General Manager report to the December 2019 Council meeting on progress in regard to Point 2 above.

CARRIED: 7/2

FOR: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido and Turner

AGAINST: Griffiths and Pinson

Update:

The Proposed Orbital Road Community Consultative Committee as referred to in the above Council resolution, is to be known as the Port Macquarie Transport Network Community Consultative Committee (PMTNCCC). At the 21 August 2019 Council meeting, Council adopted a Charter for the PMTNCCC.

Following adoption of the above-mentioned Charter, an Expression of Interest (EOI) for membership of the PMTNCCC has been drafted and will be released to the public in September 2019, seeking an independent Chairperson and community members.

In an effort to ensure complete transparency and independence in relation to the evaluation of submissions received for the EOI for membership of the PMTNCCC, Council is in the process of seeking support from another Council to undertake the evaluation of all submissions for the PMTNCCC. It is anticipated that a report on the outcome of the EOI for the PMTNCCC will be tabled at the November 2019 Council meeting.

Update:

Pending finalisation of the SoW for the SBC, a communication and engagement plan will be prepared to ensure clear and transparent engagement and communication throughout all stages (1-5) of the SBC.

The communication and engagement plan will include engagement with Councillors, the PMTNCCC and other stakeholders. The Plan will also outline how Council will communicate on these engagement opportunities and the channels to be used to ensure broad community awareness and understanding of the project, its progress and next steps.

Update:

Council has drafted a plain English Summary Report for the Port Macquarie Hastings Area Wide Traffic Study. The purpose of the summary report is to articulate clearly the process undertaken to investigate the local transport network and the analysis undertaken to determine the recommended improvements. This report will be available via Council’s website by the end of September 2019.

Update:

The General Manager wrote to the State Member for Port Macquarie, Leslie Williams

MP on 25 June 2019 requesting $400,000 in grant funding as a co-contribution to the estimated $800,000 cost to develop the SBC. A copy of that letter is attached to this report for information, titled Correspondence - General Manager to Leslie Williams MP - Proposed Orbital Road Support - 25 June 2019.

Further to the above-mentioned letter, the issue of the request for $400,000 was discussed at a meeting with the Minister for Regional Transport & Roads. The Hon. Paul Toole MP, Leslie Williams, the Mayor, General Manager and the Director Development & Environment on 31 July 2019 in Sydney. At that meeting, the Minister confirmed that the State Government has already allocated over $67 million in the 2019-2020 State budget for road projects in our area and therefore he would not support any additional funding being made available for the development of the SBC. This information was confirmed in a letter from Leslie Williams to the General Manager dated 6 August 2019, received by Council on 19 August 2019. A copy of that letter is attached to this report for information, titled Correspondence - response to letter 2019 06 25 requesting grant funding $400000 - General Manager letter ~ The Hon Leslie Williams MP to GM.

Funding of $800,000 was included in the 2019-2020 Operational Plan that was adopted by Council at the 19 June 2019 Council meeting. In light of the above response from the State government regarding the $400,000 funding request, the entire amount of $800,000 will be funded from Councils Strategic Priorities Reserve.

Update:

The above-mentioned documents are publicly available through the document library on the proposed Orbital Road web page on Council’s web site.

Update:

The 19 June 2019 Council report and related documents were made available to the following parties in the weeks following the June 2019 Council meeting:

- The Hon. Dr David Gillespie MP, Member for Lyne

- Mr Pat Conaghan MP, Member for Cowper

- The Hon. Leslie Williams MP, Member for Port Macquarie

- The Hon. Melinda Pavey MP, Member for Oxley

- Mr. Shane Robinson, Area Manager Hastings-Macleay, NPWS

- Mr. Anthony Lean, Chief Executive of the Office of Environment & Heritage

- Ms. Anna Andrews, Director Operations, TfNSW

- Mr. Jim Betts, Secretary, NSW Department of Planning, Industry & Environment

Update:

Thank you letters were sent on 28 June 2019 to community members who made a submission during the engagement period. The letter detailed the 19 June 2019 Council resolution and thanked the community for their submission. The letter also explained what the next steps of the project were in relation to the SBC.

Update:

This Council report is in response to point 14 of the above-mentioned Council resolution i.e. providing an update on progress to date on the 19 June 2019 Council resolution.

In relation to an update on traffic network improvements more generally, the following information is provided, noting that this information is discussed on a regular basis at the Regional Transport Infrastructure Steering Group meetings. It should also be noted that the information provided below is not meant to be exhaustive, but highlights the work being done on traffic network improvements in the Port Macquarie area more generally:

- Lake Road – Preconstruction Stage 2 – Jindalee to Fernhill Road:

Update:

This project is currently in the design phase. Opus Consulting is the lead design

Consultant. Final traffic modelling has now been submitted by the consultant, with Council staff currently reviewing the model. It is anticipated that detailed designs will be submitted to Council in October 2019.

- Lake Road - Preconstruction Stage 3 – Central Road to Ocean Drive:

Update:

This project is currently in the design phase. Local Government Engineering

Services (LGES) is the lead design consultant for the concept design and pathway reports. Modelling is still being reviewed by Council staff, noting that this project has been placed on hold pending the completion of traffic modelling for the Lake Road Duplication Stage 2 - see information detailed above with regard to Stage 2.

- Hastings River Drive Upgrade – Preconstruction - Hughes Place to Boundary Street

Update:

The project is currently in the design phase. AT&L is the lead design consultant for this phase of the project. Geotechnical investigations were completed in July 2019, with a revised concept layout now under review by Council staff, with services potholing now complete. It is anticipated that detailed design will be approximately 50% complete by the end of September 2019, with 100% of the detailed design expected to be complete by the end of January 2020.

- Ocean Drive Duplication Matthew Flinders Dr and Greenmeadows (South)

Update:

A report on this project was tabled at the 21 August 2019 Council meeting detailing a project update regarding the Business Case and highlighting Council’s position in relation to the budget shortfall against the out-turn cost. Transport for NSW are now managing the assurance review process for the Business Case, noting that the timing of completion of this review is unknown.

- Oxley Highway - Preconstruction - Pacific Highway to Ocean Drive

Update:

TfNSW, with support from Council, is continuing to investigate and plan improvements to the Oxley Highway leading into Port Macquarie. Survey work to support investigations has recently been completed by TfNSW.

- Boundary Street Upgrade - Preconstruction - Hastings River Drive to Port Macquarie Airport

Update:

This project is currently in the design phase. Cardno is the lead consultant for this phase of the project. A flood report undertaken by Advisian has been provided to Cardno to allow them to proceed with the final concept design. It is anticipated that the concept designs will be submitted to Council staff in November / December 2019. Planning is also underway on an interim pavement rehabilitation to address maintenance concerns prior to any major upgrade works.

For further context in relation to the broader work being undertaken by Council on transport network improvements, the budget for 2019-2020 for Roads & Transport (which includes maintenance & upgrades of sealed & unsealed roads, rural roads, bridges and roadside vegetation) is approximately $32.4 million, highlighting the large investment Council continues to make in transport network improvements.

Options

This report is for noting only in relation to the progress made against each of the resolutions from the 19 June 2019 Council meeting in relation to future strategic transport network planning, including the proposed Orbital road.

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

There has been no external community engagement in relation to this report due to the fact that this report is an update report only.

Internal consultation has taken place with the following:

- General Manager

- Directors

- Acting Group Manager Infrastructure Planning

- Group Manager Community Engagement

- Group Manager Economic & Cultural Development

Planning & Policy Implications

There are no planning and policy implications in relation to this specific report, noting that this is an update report only.

Financial & Economic Implications

There are no financial and economic implications in relation to this specific report, noting that this is an update report only.

Attachments

1 View. Council Report - Proposed Orbital Road Project - 19 June 2019

2 View. Correspondence - General Manager to Leslie Williams MP - Proposed Orbital Road Support - 25 June 2019

3 View. Correspondence - response to letter 2019 06 25 requesting grant funding $400000 - General Manager letter ~ The Hon Leslie Williams MP to GM

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/09/2019

Item: 13.10

Subject: Bold Street Laurieton Pedestrian Crossing

Presented by: Infrastructure, Dan Bylsma

Alignment with Delivery Program

4.4.1 Plan, investigate, design and construct transport assets which address pedestrians, cyclist and vehicular needs to cater for the future growth of the region.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the outcomes of the community engagement undertaken in response to the Council resolution from the Ordinary Council meeting of 17 July 2019

2. Note that Council staff recommend a mid-block (Option 1) location for the Bold Street, Laurieton pedestrian crossing for the reasons as detailed in this report

3. Endorse the mid-block (Option 1) location for the Bold Street, Laurieton pedestrian crossing

4. Request the General Manager write to the Local Member for Port Macquarie, Leslie Williams MP, providing a status update on the project and the proposed timeframe for delivery

Executive Summary

At the 15 May 2019 Ordinary Council meeting, staff presented a report to Council in response to a question from the Mayor regarding the process undertaken to determine the proposed location of the pedestrian crossing in Bold Street, Laurieton. Following this, Council resolved:

RESOLVED: Pinson/Dixon

That Council:

1. Note the information provided in this report.

2. Note the tabled Petition of over 600 signatures to locate the pedestrian crossing on Bold Street Laurieton and investigate the crossing being constructed between the entry and exit of the Coles Supermarket carpark and the Chemist Shop.

3. Defer commencement of pedestrian crossing works in Bold Street Laurieton for the purpose of reviewing the location of the crossing.

4. Request the General Manager report to the July 2019 Council Meeting on the feasibility of moving the crossing including the safety, financial and other impacts of doing so.

5. Note that this deferral is likely to delay the project beyond the terms of the current funding agreement.

CARRIED: 8/0

FOR: Alley, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

AGAINST: Nil

In response to this resolution, at the 17 July 2019 Ordinary Council meeting, staff presented a further report to Council in relation to the feasibility of moving the proposed Bold Street pedestrian crossing. Following this, Council resolved the following;

RESOLVED: Intemann/Alley

That Council:

1. Note that Council staff recommend a mid-block (Option 1) alignment for the position of the Bold St Laurieton pedestrian crossing for the reasons as detailed in this report.

2. Request the General Manager undertake additional community engagement for a period of 28 days from 22 July 2019, regarding the preferred location of the Bold St Laurieton pedestrian crossing, ensuring that the mid block (Option 1) and the two alternate crossing locations are included in this engagement process.

3. Request the General Manager provide a report to the September 2019 Council meeting summarising the outcomes of the community engagement.

4. Request the General Manager write to the local Member for Port Macquarie, Leslie Williams MP requesting an extension to the current grant funding agreement for the Bold Street Laurieton pedestrian crossing, to cater for the additional community engagement process and related timelines.

CARRIED: 9/0

FOR: Alley, Cusato, Dixon, Griffiths, Hawkins, Intemann, Levido, Pinson and Turner

AGAINST: Nil

Council staff have now undertaken additional community engagement regards the preferred location and the two alternate crossing locations.

Discussion

Community Engagement & Internal Consultation

Consultation Approach

The objective of this additional community engagement was to:

· Seek feedback from adjoining businesses and transport operators on their preferred location of the pedestrian crossing and potential impacts on their business; and

· Seek feedback from the community on their preferred location of the pedestrian crossing.

The community were provided with the opportunity to identify their preference for the location of the pedestrian crossing and detail their reasons. Businesses were visited for a face-to-face meeting to gauge any impacts on their business and determine their preferred location.

The community and businesses were given the opportunity to provide feedback on the three options below.

Figure 1 - Option 1 Centrally located (Mid-Block)

Figure 2 - Option 2: Mid-Carpark crossing location (Bus Stop)

Figure 3 - Option 3 Northern crossing location (Coles to Pharmacy).

The community consultation consisted of the following identified activities.

Date	Activity
Mon 22 July 2019	Submissions Open ‘Have Your Say’ page published giving an overview of the project and a survey.
Mon 22 July 2019	Posters advertising the project and Pop Up Information Stall displayed in Libraries and Customer Service Centres.
Wed 7 August 2019	11am to 1pm Pop Up Information Stall at Haven Plaza (next to Coles)
Fri 9 August 2019	Project Team visited businesses for face-to-face meetings.
Sat 10 August 2019	9am to 11am Pop Up Information Stall at Haven Plaza (next to Coles)
Mon 19 August 2019	Submissions close.

Consultation Methodology

The survey for the pedestrian crossing went on public display for four weeks from 22 July to 19 August 2019. Community members were encouraged to provide their feedback, leave comments and make submissions at the Pop Up Information Stall or via Have Your Say website, mail, email or printed survey forms to Council.

Council held two Pop Up Information Stalls at the Haven Plaza for the community to meet the project team and discuss the potential location and design.

The following communication channels were also utilised:

Local Media Newspaper Advertisements	2 x public notices over 2 weeks in Camden Haven Courier
Local Media	Article in Camden Haven Courier
Letter to stakeholder businesses	Letter sent to all businesses impacted inviting to meet with project team or make a submission
Social Media	Council Facebook Post
Project Survey/Submission	Available at Have Your Say website, the pop up information stalls, Laurieton Library and Laurieton Customer Service Centre.
Email to Camden Haven Chamber of Commerce	Invitation to Chamber to promote to businesses and make a submission
Stakeholder face-to-face meeting	Meeting directly with businesses impacted.
Webpage – Have Your Say	Project page published 22 July 2019 with concept plans, comparison of options, July 2019 Council Report and opportunity to provide feedback and submissions.
Pop Up Information Stalls	Two Pop Up Information Stalls were held at Haven Plaza (Coles)
Posters	Displayed at Laurieton Library, Customer Service Centre, between Coles and Bakery, Hair dresser window

Have Your Say recorded 242 visitors to the project page. .A summary of the engagement during this period is provided below:

A) Business 23 face-to-face- meetings. Preferred location is:

Option neutral: 7

Option 1 Central Mid-block Laurieton Hotel: 7

Option 2 Bus stop: 2

Option 2 or 3: 2

Option 3 Coles to Pharmacy: 5

B) Stakeholder submissions. 4 submissions were received. Preferred location is:

Option 1 Central Mid-block Laurieton Hotel: 2

Option 1 or 3: 1

Option 2 Bus stop: 0

Option 3 Coles to Pharmacy: 1

C) Residents written submissions.10 submissions were received. Preferred location is:

Option neutral: 3

Option 1 Central Mid-block Laurieton Hotel: 0

Option 2 Bus stop: 2

Option 3 Coles to Pharmacy: 6

D) Residents 100 submissions were received. 37 submissions from Have your Say and 63 submissions were received via paper survey forms collected from the pop up information stalls, the Laurieton Customer Service Centre and Library, the preferred locations being:

Option neutral: 4

Option 1 Central Mid-block Laurieton Hotel: 25

Option 2: Bus stop: 9

Option 3: Coles to Pharmacy: 61

Withdrawn submission: 1

A full record of submissions and general comments from the community and businesses is contained within the attached “Community Engagement Report - Bold Street Pedestrian Crossing - August 2019”

Subsequent to the close of the 28-day community engagement period an email submission (4 September 2019) was received by Council staff regarding crossing locations. The information within this submission was not inconsistent with the broader community feedback received during the 28 day engagement period and has been included as a late attachment to this report for information.

Previous Assessment of Pedestrian Location Options

Following the Council resolution in May 2019, as noted previously, further investigations have been undertaken by Council staff into the feasibility of relocating the proposed pedestrian crossing to the location suggested in the Petition also tabled at the May 2019 Ordinary Council meeting.

The outcomes of these investigations are again summarised below for each alternate option for comparison. The pros and cons of each option have also been summarised in Table 1 below to assist in comparison.

The pros and cons for each option have been developed in consideration of the aims and objectives of constructing this crossing. These include:

· Provide a marked pedestrian crossing to give pedestrians right of way when crossing Bold Street to improve safety and accessibility to the various businesses.

· Provide a crossing in a location that is most suitable for all users, including people of all ages and physical capacity. (as per Austroads Design Guide). A mid-block crossing was originally proposed in the Master Plan to serve this purpose.

· Minimise impacts on current parking arrangements on Bold Street

· Minimise disturbance to the existing bus and taxi zones

· Minimise disturbance to the existing businesses and parking loss

· Provide a cost effective solution that best utilises the funds outlined in the funding deed ($347,000), noting that Council will need to cover the costs of any expenditure beyond this amount.

Option 1 - Centrally Located (Mid-Block) crossing

The previously proposed crossing location (refer Figure 1 above) was selected in the original Master Plan and then later confirmed by Council’s planning and design staff as it represents a central crossing location that has minimal impact on car parking and surrounding businesses as per the project objectives listed above.

The benefits of this option include:

· The crossing is located as close as possible to the Mid-Block and is considered to provide the most equitable, safe crossing location of all the options due to its central location.

· No impact on turning movements to or from the Coles Carpark.

· No impact on the taxi or bus bays.

· There is an opportunity for outdoor dining at the restaurant on the western side of the street.

· The works will improve the footpath grades at the real estate and bottleshop driveway as the current, steep paths will be removed and replaced to current accessibility standards.

· This option was supported by the majority of nearby business owners during the consultation process carried out by Council staff in particular the owner /operator of the Laurieton Hotel as well as the building owner who are both strong advocates for Option 1 and have objected strongly to any alternate options.

· Removal of the least number of carparks of all options (9)

The negatives of this option include:

· Option 1 is located further from the Pharmacy than the other two options which, as raised in the community Petition may limit the suitability of the crossing for pedestrians with limited mobility travelling between Coles and the Pharmacy.

· Option 1 has a higher estimated cost ($570,000) when compared to Option 3 ($460,000) as reconstruction of additional driveways and footpaths is required.

Option 2 - Mid-Carpark crossing location (Bus Stop)

As shown in Figure 2 above, this option involves shifting the crossing to the north to be situated between the preferred crossing location (southern end of the Coles carpark) and the Coles entrance/exit. This places the crossing approximately central to the Coles carpark which was selected to provide a compromise between the option 1 location and the location requested in the community Petition (Refer Figure 4), which is biased towards the northern end of the street potentially limiting the use for pedestrians to the south.

The benefits of this option include:

· Still provides a reasonably central crossing location whilst being positioned closer to the Pharmacy, as outlined in the Petition.

· Reduces the impact on businesses on the western side, particularly the bottleshop driveway as the crossing is located adjacent to the carpark.

· Is easier to construct on the western side as the site is flatter than the option 1 location.

This option does however have some significant drawbacks including some serious safety concerns. The negatives to this option include:

· The location of the central pedestrian refuge reduces the length of the right turn bay into the Coles carpark by approximately 1 car space. This will reduce the level of service of the turning lane and will lead to an increased chance of vehicles backing up into the travel lane. Further investigations may be required to test the significance of this should this option be progressed further.

· Relocation of the taxi rank would be required, impacting the taxi business (previously advised of no impact) and requiring the removal of 5-6 carparks to provide adequate room for the relocated taxi rank.

· The bus zone would require shortening and allow for one bus park only. The bus bay currently allows for one and half buses (or two parked temporarily) Busways do not support this option given the impacts to their operations.

· Requires a ramp with a retaining wall on the eastern side of the road due to the steep existing ground surface as shown in Figure 4. This would add reasonably significant expense to the construction.

· Requires the removal of the most carparks of all the options, totalling eleven (11) versus the nine (9) being removed in the option 1 proposal.

· An increased risk of a pedestrian/vehicle conflict when compared to the other options. This is a result of the close proximity of the crossing to the Coles carpark exit. Drivers existing the carpark, travelling South are required to look north for on-coming traffic before immediately turning to the south to check for pedestrians crossing as demonstrated in Figure 5 below. Pedestrians using the footpath and vehicles reversing out of the adjacent car parking also complicated this movement increasing the risk of a collision.

· Poor sight distance is available for pedestrians on the western side of the crossing due to the proximity of the bus stop.

· This option is the most expensive ($650,000) due to the need for retaining walls on the eastern side.

Figure 4 - Steep eastern side of crossing Option 2 to be addressed.

Figure 5 - Risk of Conflict between pedestrians and vehicles

Option 3 - Northern crossing location (Coles to Pharmacy)

Option 3 (refer Figure 3) has been investigated following the submission of the community petition suggesting that the highest pedestrian movement on the street is to and from the Coles entrance/exit to the Pharmacy and the crossing should therefore be located at that location.

It has been raised that if the crossing is constructed in the option 1 location, pedestrians would need to walk an additional 120m to get from Coles to the Pharmacy if they wished to utilise the crossing. This could be particularly arduous for disabled pedestrians and may lead to people crossing the road at the front of Coles rather than utilising the new crossing.

The benefits of this option include:

· Pedestrians travelling specifically from Coles to the Pharmacy or other nearby businesses would have a safe direct route to cross the road.

· No impact on turning movements to or from the Coles Carpark.

· A central pedestrian refuge would not be required as the road is narrower in this location.

· Minimal disruption to businesses on the western side of the road as Coles is located here.

· The newly constructed footpath at the front of the chemist could be utilised, reducing the cost of construction.

· No impact on the taxi or bus zones would be required.

· This is cheapest of all the options costing an estimated $460,000 (compared to $570,000 being the cost of the option 1 proposal)

There are decreased safety concerns when comparing this to Option 2 however, a number of negatives were also previously identified in investigating this option. These include:

· This option moves away from the concept of a Mid-Block crossing as in the option 1 proposal and provides a significant bias towards the northern end of the street.

· The crossing in this location is very close to an existing pedestrian refuge which is located approximately 40m to the north.

· As outlined above, one of the key objectives of the crossing is to provide safe access for as many people as possible, minimising the number of people crossing the road in random locations. Although the crossing would be situated at an area of high pedestrian demand it is expected that as there is such a significant bias towards the northern end of the street more pedestrians would not be using the crossing overall.

· If the crossing were to be positioned in this location there may still be a need to place an additional crossing towards the southern end of the street to meet pedestrian demand. This would likely not be acceptable to the RMS given the close proximity of pedestrian crossings.

· This crossing location would lead to the removal of approximately 11 carparks which would include six (6) directly in front of the Chemist. Detailed consultation has not occurred with the chemist regarding this at this stage however in the latest face to face consultation the Chemist have supported Option 2

· If the crossing is constructed to serve pedestrians moving between specific businesses, there is a reasonable risk that, if in future these businesses no longer operate in these locations, the crossing will be out of place and potentially require relocating.

For ease of comparison, Table 1 below summarises the pros and cons of each option.

Table 1 - Comparison of Options

Option	Pros	Cons
Option 1	· Mid-Block Crossing providing equitable location for entire street · No impact on turning in or out of Coles Carpark · Removal of the least number of carparks (9) · No impact on Bus or Taxi’s · Creates opportunity for outdoor dining · Supported by nearby business owners · Improves grades on footpath and driveways on western side of Bold St	· Located further from Coles and the Pharmacy as requested in the community Petition · Higher cost than option two at $570,000 - although additional costs would not be wasted money due to future upgrade requirements
Option 2	· Reasonably central location however, closer to the high pedestrian area of Coles/Pharmacy · Reduces impact on businesses on the western side of Bold St · Easier to construct on western side	· Reduces length of Coles carpark turning lane by approx. 1 car space · Taxi rank would require relocation thereby impacting 5-6 carparks · Bus Zone would be shortened · Requires retaining wall and ramp on eastern side of Bold St · Removal of the most carparks of all options (11) · Introduces risk of collisions with vehicles exiting Coles and pedestrians using the crossing · Poor sight distance for pedestrians on western side of Bold St due to proximity to bus bay · The most expensive option ($650,000)
Option 3	· Suits area of high pedestrian demand from Coles to the Pharmacy as requested in the community petition · No impact on turning in or out of Coles Carpark · No impact on Buses or Taxi’s · No central refuge required · Minimal disruptions to businesses on western side due to location of Coles · Minimal works required on eastern side · The cheapest of all options at $460,000 2.	· Provides a significant bias towards the northern end of the street · Limits use for pedestrians at the central and southern end of the street · Located close to an existing refuge (40m) · Additional crossings may still be required subject to demand and would potentially not be supported by RMS · Leads to the removal of 11 carparks · 6 carparks would be removed directly at the front of the chemist · If businesses move in future the crossing may be redundant in this location

Along with the above mentioned pros and cons for each option, the following should also be considered by Council in determining the most suitable crossing location.

ommunity Consultation

Should the recommended location of the crossing be moved to one of the alternate locations outlined in this report (Options 2 or 3), a further consultation period would be recommended to allow the businesses and broader community members that would be impacted by the new proposal to voice their opinions. It is possible that moving the crossing would lead to concerns from other business owners who have supported alternate options, in particular the Pharmacy, which could lose six (6) parks along their frontage under one of the alternate options and also the Laurieton Hotel who have been strong advocates for the recommended option. It is therefore recommended that a further 28 day period of public exhibition be undertaken once the final crossing location is confirmed.

Local Traffic Committee Approval (LTC)

Moving the crossing by a significant distance (Options 2 or 3), such as adjacent to the Pharmacy, would require new LTC approval. In addition, the location must meet Roads and Maritime Service (RMS) warrants (a calculation based on volume of pedestrians and vehicles). There is no surety that either alternate location will be supported by the LTC once recommended by Council. It should be noted that the construction of a formal pedestrian crossing without LTC concurrence is not possible.

Requirements of the Funding Deed

The current funding milestone for completion of the project is 31 March 2020. Discussions have been had with the Dept of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) on the potential to extend this date. Council has received a letter from the DPIE (attached) reaffirming that the delivery of this project is required to be complete by 31 March 2020.

Should the Option 2 or 3 location be confirmed, it would likely mean a lead time of approximately 3-4 months to re-design the crossing, receive relevant approvals and complete community consultation. This would require reassignment of design resources, impacting other priority projects in progress.

All delays associated with Option 2 or 3 would result in an inability to meet the funding deadline, causing funding to be withdrawn. Council would then have to fund the project in its entirety.

Re-design Fees

Additional costs would be incurred to re-design the crossing in a new location. Additional works required to progress to construction of a crossing in a new location would include:

· Survey of new crossing location

· Detailed design (concept design completed as part of this reporting)

· Project Management fees to revise construction planning documents and oversee community consultation period.

In total these additional works are estimated to cost approximately $30,000.

Summary

Community members have suggested the crossing should be located directly between Coles and the Pharmacy as this is considered the area of highest pedestrian demand. This community feedback was received after completion of the detailed design.

In line with the May 2019 Council resolution, Council staff further investigated the feasibility of relocating the crossing closer to the Coles entrance/exit and the Pharmacy and have now (consistent with the July 2019 Council resolution) undertaken additional community consultation on the respective options. The results of this earlier investigation generally found:

· The Option 1 (Mid-Block crossing) is a reasonable proposal that minimises the impacts on carparking and businesses whilst providing an equitable, Mid-Block crossing location for the entire community that would remain functional should business usages change in the future. The main negative to this proposal is that some pedestrians travelling specifically between Coles and the Pharmacy may not use the crossing due to its distance from their desired crossing location.

· Option 2 (between Coles and the Option 1 location) was determined an unsuitable option given the safety risks that would be introduced if the crossing were constructed in this location. It is the professional opinion of staff that a pedestrian crossing at the Option 2 location could not reasonably be approved for construction in consideration of the traffic safety risks it introduces. This option is also the most expensive and has a significant impact on parking.

· Option 3 (at the Pharmacy) was also determined to be a potentially reasonable option given it is the lowest cost of the three options and would provide a crossing in a location for those pedestrians wanting to specifically access the Pharmacy after visiting Coles (particularly disabled pedestrians). Some negatives however were identified with this option, the key ones being that this location is significantly biased towards the northern end of the street where an existing pedestrian refuge is already located and does not provide an equitable crossing location for all pedestrians and businesses. This option would also remove approximately two (2) additional carparks when compared to the option 1 preferred location, including six (6) located directly in front of the Pharmacy. It is the professional opinion of staff that a pedestrian crossing at the Option 3 location whilst practically feasible to be approved for construction, represents a suboptimal crossing location from a broader CBD viewpoint.

The results of the associated community engagement have now shown;

· The majority of businesses in support of Option 1 (7) A similar number expressed a neutral response for the location of the crossing (7) Most importantly the owner/operator of the Laurieton Hotel, building owner and Laurieton Hardware are strong supporters of Option 1 and have provided logical justification for this choice.

· There was lesser support from a number of businesses for Options 2 (2) and 3 (5) however these were largely with unsubstantiated reasons. A number of respondents also identified either a combination of Option 2 or 3 as their preference. Coles as a major stakeholder expressed support for Option 3 however justified this as a representation of their customers preference as opposed to direct impacts to business associated with each option.

· The majority of residents surveyed were in support of Option 3 (61) with the primary justification being that Coles and the Pharmacy are the primary destinations for shoppers. Of the remaining choices Option 1 attracted 25 responses and Option 2 (10) A number of other respondents were neutral (4)

Options

Council can resolve in line with the recommendations as included in this report, or may choose to proceed to construction with one of the options outlined in this report.

Planning & Policy Implications

Moving the crossing by a significant distance (Options 2 or 3), such as adjacent to the Pharmacy, would require new LTC approval and must also meet Roads and Maritime Service (RMS) warrants. Neither Option 2 or 3 has been tested in this regard.

Should Council resolve to proceed with either Option 2 or 3, an additional 3-4 months will be required to re-design the crossing, receive relevant approvals and complete community consultation.

Financial & Economic Implications

The current project budget for the Bold Street crossing is made up of $347,000 grant funding via the DPIE - Stronger Country Communities Fund (SCCF) and $224,999 from Council Reserves, totalling $571,999.

Estimates are outlined below for the total projected cost of each option, noting that Options 2 and 3 are based on concept design only, with a relatively small contingency of 15%:

· Option 1: $570,000

· Option 2: $650,000 (includes provisional $30K allocation for re design)

· Option 3: $460,000 (includes provisional $30K allocation for re design)

The current grant funding milestone for completion of the project is 31 March 2020. Recent discussions have been had with DPIE, as the funding body, on the potential to extend this date. DPIE have reaffirmed the delivery deadline remains at 31 March 2020, see attached letter. If Council is unable to meet this deadline there is a risk that funding will be withdrawn.

Attachments

1 View. Bold Street Pedestrian Crossing Option 1 Concept Plan

2 View. Bold Street Pedestrian Crossing Option 2 Concept Plan

3 View. Bold Street Pedestrian Crossing Option 3 Concept Plan

4 View. Community Engagement Report - Bold Street Pedestrian Crossing - August 2019

5 View. Letter to PMHC re project funding from DPC Aug 2019

6 View. Email submission from Cr Alley - 4 September 2019

[1] Identified through annual State Library of NSW statistics and industry networks.

Annual Donation to Local Schools, TAFE, Unis etc for end of year presentations	$1,950.00
Floral bouquet for General Manager on passing of close relative	$85.00
Donation towards 40^th Birthday Celebration for the PMQ-Hastings Municipal Band	$150.00
Donation of Glasshouse Vouchers to Make A Difference Fundraiser	$200.00
Donation of Glasshouse Vouchers to A Day For Laylah” Fundraiser	$200.00
Donation of Glasshouse Voucher to Rollands Plains Upper Public School Photography Exhibition Fundraiser	$150.00
Donation of Glasshouse Vouchers to Felicity’s Drought Bash Fundraiser	$200.00
	$2,935.00

Professional Development Activities	Date
One-on-One Leadership Coaching	Various dates 2017 - 2019
Induction into the role of Mayor and Council	August 2017
Code of Conduct Training	12/12/17
LGNSW Mayor’s Weekend Seminar	24/03/2018 - 25/03/2018
Leadership Coaching - Sue Montgomery - 10 sessions	31/10/17 to 03/10/18
Chairing & Effective Meeting Procedures Course - LGNSW	06/09/18
Executive Certificate for Elected Members Course - LGNSW	08/11/2018 - 10/11/2018 & 07/12 2018 - 08/12 2018
Code of Conduct & Code of Meeting Practice Training - Mayor	20/03/19
Local Govt Transformation Roadshow - Sydney	01/05/18
Code of Conduct Training	02/05/18
Public Sector Women in Leadership Master Class - Sydney	24/06-2019 - 25/06/2019
Local Strategic Planning Statements Short Course for Councillors - Kempsey	12/06/19
Code of Conduct Training	07/08/19
Webinar - Dysfunction in the Boardroom - Is Conflict Impacting your Performance? - Australian Institute of Company Directors	29/08/19
Conferences
2017 LGNSW Annual Conference - Sydney	02/12/2017 - 07/12/2017
2018 LGNSW Annual Conference - Albury	21/10/2018 - 23/10/2018
Public Sector Women in Leadership Master Class - Sydney	24/06/2019 - 25/06/2019

Original Budget as at 1 July 2019	Shortfall	($975,198)
Plus adjustments:
July Review	Balanced	$0
August Review	Surplus	$125,477
Forecast Budget Position for 30 June 2020	Shortfall	($849,721)

Description	Notes	Funding Source	Amount
Reserve Movements	1	Reserves	$30,000
Contributions and Other Revenues	2	Revenue	$50,000
Budget Variation Requests	3	Revenue	$52,157
Total			$132,157

Council Project	To/From Reserve	Amount	Other Funding	Comment
Hazardous Waste Disposal	Waste Reserve	$30,000	$0	Adjustment to cover costs associated with the collection of hazardous waste at The Kingfisher WTF and the collection of sharps throughout the LGA
Reserve Movements		$30,000	$0

Council Project	Received From	Amount	Other Funding	Comment
Co-Operative Marketing - Eat, See, Do Visitors Guide	Advertising Sales	$50,000	$0	Council will receive $50,000 in Co-Operative Marketing Income for the Eat, See, Do Visitors Guide. This has been transferred to the Tourism Marketing Reserve.
Total Contributions and other Revenues		$50,000	$0

Project Name	Funding Source	Amount	Comments
Grants Officer	Revenue	$52,157	New Grants Officer role to capitalise on the wide range of State and Federal Government funding opportunities. This funding has been transferred from another allocation within Strategy & Growth.
Total Approved Budget Variations		$52,157

General Fund	120,142,233
Waste Fund	17,461,444
Water Fund	101,301,560
Sewer Fund	52,454,612
Sanctuary Springs Fund	38,068
Broadwater	1,431,938
	292,829,856

Theme	%	Issues raised	Council response
General support for biodiversity conservation and works	95	Work together with community and Council to support our ecosystems.	This sentiment has been reflected in the Biodiversity Management Strategy
		Natural environment is greatest asset of this area	This sentiment has been reflected in the Biodiversity Management Strategy
		Council are custodians to maintain biodiversity into future	This sentiment has been reflected in the Biodiversity Management Strategy
Support for Strategy	95	PMHC Biodiversity Strategy is a commendable strategy	Noted
		It is very gratifying to read an official document about the importance of conservation in this region	Noted
		Council should supply funding and support Strategy	Council will consider funding allocations on an annual basis in the annual Operational Plan for actions which will be derived directly from the strategy.
		Identify opportunities for partnerships and educational opportunities.	Council currently actively seeks partnerships in the community to deliver programs benefiting our community. This will continue in the future. Currently Council is a partner with the Koala Hospital, NSW State Government, Bellingen and Kempsey Council to assist in funding the Koala Recovery project through the Mid North Coast Joint Organisation (MNCJO).
Funding and Implementation	15	Fund the actions of the Strategy	Council will consider funding allocations on an annual basis in the annual Operational Plan for actions which will be derived directly from the strategy.
		The document does not translate into positive action.	Council will consider funding allocations on an annual basis in the annual Operational Plan for actions which will be derived directly from the strategy.
		The document is lacking in key performance indicators.	It is not the intention of the Biodiversity Management Strategy to contain detailed key performance indicators. In order to deliver on the strategy Council is focused on the planning actions in the annual Operational Plan which will be derived directly from the strategy. The KPI’s associated will be strategy will be derived from the annual Operational Plan.
Lack of confidence that Council will implement the document.	60	Infrastructure works such as the orbital road and flood free access road have not considered or acknowledged the environmental impacts of the proposed works.	It is acknowledged that Council must balance the need for infrastructure programs and the associated impacts on the environment. Each individual infrastructure project is examined on its merits and is managed to reduce overall environmental impact. Each infrastructure project will also be examined individually taking into account the site specific and regional benefits and impacts associated with the proposal.
		Council’s actions are completely at odds with this document and concept.	It is acknowledged that Council must balance the needs of multiple stakeholders. This balance takes into account the values of environmental, social and economic constraints and opportunities in each consideration.
		Lost faith in Council to respect and preserve biodiversity in the LGA.	Council will consider funding allocations on an annual basis in the annual Operational Plan for actions which will be derived directly from the strategy.

Actions	Expected timeline	Progress to date
Level 1 Management Actions
Education and awareness programs	June 2020	· Information included on Council’s website which summarising Council’s approach to flying-fox management · Interpretative Signage is currently being designed for use at Kooloonbung Creek Nature Park and will be installed in consultation with Parks and Reserves at strategic locations. · Staff are provided guidance on how to deliver positive flying-fox messaging. · Continue to consult with affected community members. Ongoing community information sessions will be scheduled at six monthly intervals to inform the community of the progress of implementing the CMP. This will replace the community consultative committee format that is currently in place.
Property modification/service subsidies	June 2020	Staff have begun developing a trial subsidy program which will include eligibility criteria based on proximity to the camp and the level of likely impact as described in the CMP. The subsidy program is designed to reflect other eligibility programs that have been undertaken across NSW. Staff are also in consultation with Department of Industry Planning and Environment (DPIE) to determine suitable products.
Routine Camp Management	Ongoing	Friends of Kooloonbung Creek with support from Council’s NRM team continue to work in the reserve maintaining the bushland ecosystem and flying fox camp area.
Alternative habitat creation	June 2020	Not yet commenced
Protocols to manage incidents	June 2021	Not yet commenced
Research	Ongoing (long term)	Continued quarterly flying fox count undertake for the national census in August 2019.
Appropriate land-use planning	June 2022	Not yet commenced
Level 2 Management Actions
Canopy mounted sprinklers	June 2022	· Review of Environmental Factors with Ecological Impact Assessment Report has been completed · Have lodged a draft threatened species licence application with Department of Planning Industry and Environment as required under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 · Design and testing of canopy-mounted sprinkler system has been completed. · Options for alternative water supply are being investigated.
Buffers through vegetation trimming and removal	June 2024`	· Not yet commenced