Agenda of Ordinary Council - Thursday, 18 August 2022

UNCONFIRMED MINUTES

Ordinary Council Meeting

21/07/2022

PRESENT

Members:

Mayor Peta Pinson (Mayor)

Councillor Adam Roberts (Deputy Mayor)

Councillor Lauren Edwards

Councillor Sharon Griffiths

Councillor Lisa Intemann

Councillor Nik Lipovac

Councillor Rachel Sheppard

Councillor Josh Slade

Other Attendees:

Chief Executive Officer (Dr Clare Allen)

Acting Director Business and Performance (Ashley Grummitt)

Director Community, Planning and Environment (Melissa Watkins)

Director Community Infrastructure (Robert Fish)

Director Community Utilities (Jeffery Sharp)

Group Manager Governance (Michael Ferguson)

Executive Assistant to the Mayor (Linda Kocis)

The meeting opened at 10.00am.

01 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY

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

02 REMOTE ATTENDANCE AT MEETING

RESOLVED: Roberts/Slade

That Council accede to the requests of Councillor Sharon Griffiths and Councillor Lauren Edwards to attend the meeting by remote means.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

03 LOCAL GOVERNMENT PRAYER

Pastor Hartley Taylor from the C3 Church Port Macquarie delivered the Local Government Prayer.

04 APOLOGIES

RESOLVED: Roberts/Sheppard

That the apology received from Councillor Danielle Maltman be accepted.

carried: 7/0

For: Edwards, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

Councillor Griffiths left the meeting due to technical difficulties, the time being 10:06am.

05 CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES

resolvED: LIpovac/Sheppard

1. That the Minutes of the Ordinary Council Meeting held on 16 June 2022 be confirmed.

2. That the Minutes of the Extraordinary Council Meeting held on 23 June 2022 be confirmed.

3. That the Minutes of the Extraordinary Council Meeting held on 29 June 2022 be confirmed.

carried: 7/0

For: Edwards, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

06 DISCLOSURES OF INTEREST

Councillor Adam Roberts declared a Non-Pecuniary - Significant Interest in Item 13.02 - Petition - Mill Estate Subdivision, Wauchope - Detrimental Affect on Businesses of the Proposed Removal of Parking Spaces in High Street, Wauchope for the reason that a close family member is associated with a building company who may be a competitor at times with the building company noted in the report.

Councillor Adam Roberts declared a Non-Pecuniary - Significant Interest in Item 13.03 - Petition - Mill Estate Subdivision, Wauchope - Bond for Stages 3 and 4 for the reason that a close family member is associated with a building company who may be a competitor at times with the building company noted in the report.

07 MAYORAL MINUTES

Nil.

08 CONFIDENTIAL CORRESPONDENCE TO ORDINARY COUNCIL MEETING

RESOLVED: Roberts/Sheppard

That Council determine that the attachments to Item 14.05 be considered as confidential, in accordance with Section 11(3) of the Local Government Act.

carried: 7/0

For: Edwards, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

09 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. Steven Gates - Roads Register S163 Roads Act

2. Jamie Harrison - Engagement of a Swimming Coach at the PMQ Swimming Pool

3. Ben Cudmore - Memorial Seat for the Late James Moir at Shelley Beach

4. Fred Martin - Viewing Platform at Bonny Hills

5. Steven Gates - Update on Community News and Previous Council Meetings

RESOLVED: Slade/Roberts

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

carried: 7/0

For: Edwards, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

09.01 Roads Register - Section 163 of Roads Act

Mr Steven Gates address Council on the Roads Register under Section 163 of the Roads Act and answered questions from Councillors.

09.02 Engagement of a Swimming Coach at the Port Macquarie Swimming Pool

Mr Jamie Harrison, on behalf of the Port Macquarie Swimming Club and Port Macquarie Surf Life Saving Club, addressed Council on the lack of the engagement of a Gold Level swimming coach at the Port Macquarie swimming pool by The YMCA.

Councillor Griffiths returned to the meeting, the time being 10:35am.

09.03 James Moir Memorial Bench Seat - Shelley Beach

Mr Ben Cudmore, on behalf of the Moir family, addressed Council on the wish of the family and friends of the late James Moir for a Memorial Bench seat in his memory at Shelley Beach or Wayne Richards Park if Shelley Beach not an option. Mr Cudmore answered questions from Councillors.

09.04 Viewing Platform at Bonny Hills

Mr Fred Martin addressed Council on his wish for a non-viewing platform at Bonny Hills and requested some pruning of trees in the area etc to improve the scenic view. Mr Martin answered questions from Councillors.

09.05 Update on Community News and Previous Meetings

Mr Steven Gates addressed Council on roads issues within the Local Government Area and provided an update on previous Council Meeting presentations and other actions.

10 PUBLIC FORUM – MATTERS ON THE AGENDA

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

Mr Stuart Watson - Item 11.05 - Investment Report (Supporting)

Ms Casey Dwyer - Item 13.03 - Petition - Mill Hill Estate Subdivision Wauchope -

Bond for Stages 3 and 4

RESOLVED: Slade/Lipovac

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

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

Mr Stuart Watson, on behalf of Climate Change Australia - Hastings Branch, addressed Council on Item 11.05 - Investment Report, speaking on results of investments to-date. Mr Watson answered questions from Councillors.

Deputy Mayor Roberts declared a non-pecuniary, significant interest in Item 13.03 and left the meeting, the time being 11:13am.

Ms Casey Dwyer addressed Council in Item 13.03 - Petition - Mill Hill Estate Subdivision, Wauchope - Bond for Stages 3 and 4 requesting Council consider accepting the bond by the developer and answered questions from Councillors.

Suspension of Standing Orders

RESOLVED: Sheppard/Lipovac

That Standing Orders be suspended to allow Items 13.02, 13.03, 11.01, 11.03, 11.04, 11.05, 11.07, 11.08, 12.01, 12.02, 12.04, 12.05, 13.01, 14.01, 14.02, 14.04 and 14.05 not in the block to be brought forward and considered next.

carried: 7/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

13.02 Petition - Mill Estate Subdivision, Wauchope - Detrimental Affect on Businesses of the Proposed Removal of Parking Spaces in High Street, Wauchope

RESOLVED: Slade/Lipovac

That Council:

1. Note the petition received by local business owners and residents regarding the Mill Estate Subdivision, Wauchope and the detrimental affect on businesses of the proposed removal of parking spaces in High Street, Wauchope.

2. Respond to the organiser of the petition with the outcome of Council’s consideration in the matter.

carried: 7/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

13.03 Petition - Mill Estate Subdivision, Wauchope - Bond for Stages 3 and 4

Casey Dwyer addressed Council earlier in the Meeting on this item.

MOTION

MOVED: Slade/Pinson

That Council:

1. Note the petition received by local business owners and residents regarding the Mills Estate Subdivision, Wauchope and the request to Council to accept the bond of 130% from BDM to allow Stages 3 and 4 to be registered.

2. Request that the Chief Executive Officer write to Transport for NSW to provide their position on Council accepting the 130% bond, which would allow the landowners to start the building process.

3. Write to the owner of the petition advising them of the outcome.

AMENDMENT

MOVED: Griffiths/Intemann

That Council:

1. Note the petition received by local business owners and residents regarding the Mill Estate Subdivision, Wauchope and the request to Council to accept the bond of 130% from BDM to allow Stages 3 and 4 to be registered.

2. Write to the owner of the petition advising them that Council will continue to expedite the process with Transport for NSW and the applicant.

PROCEDURAL MOTION:

MOVED: Pinson/Slade

That the Amendment be put.

lost: 2/5

For: Pinson and Slade

Against: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac and Sheppard

Debate on the matter continued.

THE AMENDMENT WAS PUT AND CARRIED

carried: 5/2

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac and Sheppard

Against: Pinson and Slade

THE AMENDMENT THEN BECAME THE MOTION AND WAS PUT AND CARRIED

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Intemann

That Council:

2. Write to the owner of the petition advising them that Council will continue to expedite the process with Transport for NSW and the applicant.

carried: 5/2

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac and Sheppard

Against: Pinson and Slade

Deputy Mayor Roberts returned to the meeting, the time being 12:20pm.

11.01 Status of Reports From Council Resolutions

MOTION

MOVED: Pinson/Roberts

That Council:

1. Request the Chief Executive Officer to extend the report for Outcome of Micromex Community Satisfaction Survey from September 2022 to October 2022.

2. Request the Chief Executive Officer to extend the report for Policy Review – Climate Change Response Policy – post public exhibition from September 2022 to October 2022.

3. Note the information contained in the Status of Reports from Council Resolutions report.

4. Request the Chief Executive Officer to provide a briefing that includes State and Federal Government priorities in regards to climate change.

5. Request the Chief Executive Officer to provide an update on progress on the Joint Integrated Transport Network Plan to the August 2022 Council Meeting.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

Councillor Sheppard left the meeting, the time being 12:55pm.

11.03 Notice of Motion - On Street Carparking Loss in Relation to Bain Park Masterplan

RESOLVED: Griffiths/Slade

That Council request the Chief Executive Officer provide a report outlining advice on potential on-street carparking loss resulting from the implementation of the Bain Park Masterplan to the August 2022 Ordinary Council meeting.

carried: 7/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts and Slade

Against: Nil

Councillor Sheppard returned to the meeting, the time being 12:57pm.

11.04 Notice of Motion - Queen's Birthday Awards

RESOLVED: Lipovac/Intemann

That Council acknowledge the following 2022 Queen’s Birthday Honours Recipients from the Port Macquarie-Hastings LGA:

· Greg Davies - Emergency Services Medal - Marine Rescue Port Macquarie Unit Commander.

· Corey Tutt - Order of Australia Medal - for Service to Indigenous STEM Education (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).

· Susan Baker - Order of Australia Medal - for Service to Conservation and the Environment.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

11.05 Investments - June 2022

Mr Stuart Watson addressed Council earlier in the meeting on this item.

RESOLVED: Roberts/Slade

That Council note the Investment Report for the month of June 2022.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

11.07 Policy Review - Volunteer Policy - Post Exhibition

MOTION

MOVED: Intemann/Roberts

That Council adopt the Volunteer Policy.

AMENDMENT

MOVED: Pinson/Roberts

That consideration of this item be deferred pending a further Workshop with the Chief Executive Officer, relevant Directors and Councillors and a report be brought back to a future Council Meeting to be determined by the Chief Executive Officer.

THE MOTION WAS WITHDRAWN

THE AMENDMENT THEN BECAME THE MOTION AND WAS PUT AND CARRIED

RESOLVED: Pinson/Roberts

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

11.08 Draft Code of Conduct and Procedures for the Administration of the Model Code of Conduct

RESOLVED: Intemann/Roberts

That Council:

1. Pursuant to Section 440 of the Local Government Act 1993, adopt the draft Code of Conduct.

2. Pursuant to Section 440AA of the Local Government Act 1993, adopt the Procedures for the Administration of the Model Code of Conduct.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

12.01 Notice of Motion - Homelessness in the Local Government Area

MOTION

MOVED: Lipovac/Slade

That Council request the Chief Executive Officer report to the November 2022 Ordinary Council meeting that provides data on the issue of homelessness in our Local Government Area and possible solutions that Council may be able to facilitate.

AMENDMENT

MOVED: Griffiths/Sheppard

That Council note the request and consider homelessness through the Housing Strategy, the Urban Growth Management Strategy and the Blueprint.

THE AMENDMENT WAS PUT AND LOST

lost: 1/7

For: Griffiths

Against: Edwards, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

THE MOTION WAS PUT AND CARRIED

RESOLVED: Lipovac/Slade

carried: 7/1

For: Edwards, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Griffiths

ADJOURNMENT OF MEETING

RESOLVED: Pinson/Roberts

That the meeting be adjourned.

carried: 7/1

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Intemann

The meeting adjourned at 1.45pm.

The meeting recommenced at 2.08pm.

12.02 Bonny Hills Reserves Master Plan - Post Exhibition

RESOLVED: Intemann/Sheppard

That Council:

1. Note the information in the Public Exhibition Report - Bonny Hills Reserves Master Plan.

2. Note the responses to feedback themes and associated updates to the Draft Bonny Hills Reserves Master Plan.

3. Thank community members for their feedback.

4. Thank the Bonny Hills Community Council Action Team (CCAT) for their work in analysing community responses and for their feedback.

5. Adopt the updated Bonny Hills Reserves Master Plan.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

12.04 Graffiti Management Update

RESOLVED: Sheppard/Roberts

That Council:

1. Note the progress report on actions that have been taken in relation to Graffiti management in the community.

2. Request that the PMQ Youth Network be advised of the occurrence of the bi-monthly roundtables, and that interested parties are welcome to attend.

3. Request that a formal invitation be extended to Port Macquarie Headspace and Land Care to have representatives attend the future roundtable discussions.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

12.05 Prioritisation of Sporting Infrastructure Projects

MOTION

MOVED: Roberts/Pinson

That Council:

1. Note the information contained within this report.

2. Defer prioritisation of the identified major sporting infrastructure projects until after confirmation is received from major funding partners, the Commonwealth Government and the State Government, as to what contributions will be available to help deliver each project.

3. Through the Chief Executive Officer and the Mayor, engage with the Federal Members, Dr David Gillespie MP and Pat Conaghan MP; State Members Leslie Williams MP and Melinda Pavey MP, to determine what funding either is available or will be likely be available in the current or upcoming budgets, to contribute to the projects identified in this report.

4. Through the Chief Executive Officer, provide a report to Council on the outcome of discussions with the Federal and State Members prior to a specific order of prioritisation.

AMENDMENT

MOVED: Sheppard/Intemann

That Council:

1. Note the information contained within this report.

2. Endorse the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility as a major strategic infrastructure project and as such, pursue progression of this project as a stand-alone item and as an urgent priority to seek external funding for the project noting the risk of failure of the existing facility.

3. Prioritise the delivery of the Thrumster Sporting Fields, Port Macquarie Aquatic Centre, Rainbow Beach Sports Fields Stage 2, Hastings Regional Sporting Fields and the design development of the next stage of Wayne Richards Sporting Fields in this respective order to meet capacity and growth demands within the LGA, acknowledging the multiple electorates in our area.

4. Investigate and seek funding from external revenue sources to support the collected S7.11 contributions where applicable in funding the sporting infrastructure projects noting the above prioritisation order.

5. Continue to investigate and seek funding from external revenue sources to implement facility improvements at the Port Macquarie Regional Stadium to ensure it remains a premier sporting venue within the LGA.

6. Reflect the above prioritisation of sporting infrastructure projects in the Recreation Action Plan review to be finalised by December 2022.

THE AMENDMENT WAS PUT AND WAS LOST

LOST: 4/5

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann and Sheppard

Against: Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Slade and Pinson Casting Vote

THE MOTION WAS PUT AND CARRIED

RESOLVED: Roberts/Pinson

That Council:

1. Note the information contained within this report.

2. Endorse the PMQ Aquatic Facility as a major strategic infrastructure project and as such, pursue progression of this project as a stand-alone item and as an urgent priority to see external funding for the project noting the risk of failure of the existing facility.

3. Defer prioritisation of the remaining identified major sporting infrastructure projects until after confirmation is received from major funding partners, the Commonwealth Government and the State Government, as to what contributions will be available to help deliver each project.

4. Through the Chief Executive Officer and the Mayor, engage with the Federal Members, Dr David Gillespie MP and Pat Conaghan MP; State Members Leslie Williams MP and Melinda Pavey MP, to determine what funding either is available or will be likely be available in the current or upcoming budgets, to contribute to the projects identified in this report.

5. Through the Chief Executive Officer, provide a report to Council on the outcome of discussions with the Federal and State Members prior to a specific order of prioritisation.

carried: 5/3

For: Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts and Slade

Against: Edwards, Griffiths and Sheppard

13.01 ArtWalk Event Wrap Up Report

RESOLVED: Pinson/Intemann

That Council:

1. Note the success of the ArtWalk 2022 event.

2. Commend all staff involved with the planning, logistics and for their attendance at the event.

3. Note that a report will be presented to Council in August 2022 outlining options for the future delivery of the event.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

14.01 Urban Growth Management Strategy Update

MOTION

MOVED: Roberts/Pinson

That Council:

1. Note the progress of actions from Council’s Urban Growth Management Strategy as detailed within this report.

2. Endorse the information and associated timeframes contained within this report, in relation to the proposed continued progression of actions as detailed within Council’s Urban Growth Management Strategy.

AMENDMENT

MOVED: Sheppard/Edwards

That Council:

1. Defer consideration of this item pending receipt of a Councillor briefing on the Urban Growth Management Strategy.

2. Determine that the matter be considered further at the August 2022 Council meeting following receipt of the Councillor briefing referred to in 1 above.

THE AMENDMENT WAS PUT AND CARRIED

carried: 5/3

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac and Sheppard

Against: Pinson, Roberts and Slade

THE AMENDMENT THEN BECAME THE MOTION AND WAS PUT AND CARRIED

RESOLVED: Sheppard/Edwards

That Council:

1. Defer consideration of this item pending receipt of a Councillor Briefing on the Urban Growth Management Strategy.

2. Determine that the matter be considered further at the August 2022 Council Meeting following receipt of the Councillor Briefing referred to in 1 above.

carried: 7/1

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Roberts

14.02 Planning Amendment to Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Environmental Plan 2011 - Secondary dwellings in rural zones under Clause 5.5 of the Standard Instrument - Principal Local Environmental Plan 2006.

RESOLVED: Intemann/Roberts

That Council:

1. Adopt the State Government Standard Instrument - Principal Local Environmental Plan 2006 (SI LEP)) optional ‘Clause 5.5 Controls relating to secondary dwellings on land in a rural zone’ for inclusion in the Port-Macquarie-Hastings Local Environmental Plan 2011.

2. Notify the Department of Planning and Environment of its decision to adopt Optional ‘Clause 5.5 Controls relating to secondary dwellings on land in a rural zone’, including:

a. Permitting secondary dwellings with development consent in the following land use zones:

i. RU1 Primary Production,

ii. RU2 Rural Landscape, and

iii. RU5 Village;

b. Setting the following development controls for Clause 5.5:

i. the greater of -

a) 60 square metres total floor area the total for the secondary dwelling, or

b) 33% of the total floor area of the principal dwelling, excluding any area used for parking, and

ii. the distance between the secondary dwelling and the principal dwelling must not exceed -

a) 100 metres.

3. Request the Minister for Planning and Minister for Homes, the Hon. Anthony Roberts MP to prepare a draft Local Environmental Plan under Section 3.22 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, 1979 to expedite an amendment to the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Environmental Plan 2011 to insert optional ‘Clause 5.5 Controls relating to secondary dwellings on land in a rural zone’ from the Standard Instrument - Principal Local Environmental Plan 2006.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

14.04 Lake Cathie Natural Resource Management Monthly Update

RESOLVED: Intemann/Roberts

That Council note the progress of natural resource management projects/initiatives within the Lake Cathie/Lake Innes/Cathie Creek waterway and the progression of the Coastal Management Program.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

14.05 Tacking Point Surf Life Saving Club External Sewer Upgrade Works - Additional Funding Request

RESOLVED: Roberts/Pinson

That Council:

1. Note the request from the Tacking Point Surf Life Saving Club to consider a further contribution toward the expansion of the Club House in Matthew Flinders Drive, Port Macquarie.

2. Request the Chief Executive Officer confirm with the Tacking Point Surf Life Saving Club that an additional contribution from Council toward external sewer works to the maximum value of $116,956.38 (incl GST) will be made available.

3. Note the additional allocation will be taken from Recreation and Building allocations as detailed in the report, namely the budget allocation for the Camden Haven Surf Club ($51,027) and the Building Rectification Works budget allocation ($65,930) as carryover from the 2021-2022 Capital budget.

4. Include an additional budget line item in the first review of the 2022-2023 Operational Plan to the value of $117,000 for “Tacking Point Surf Life Saving Club Drainage Works” and it be funded as detailed in this report.

5. To also note the urgency of the Camden Haven Surf Life Saving Club work.

6. Request the Chief Executive Officer to provide a report to the December 2022 Council Meeting detailing the proposed course of delivery for the new Camden Haven Surf Life Saving Club.

7. Request the Chief Executive Officer to liaise with the relevant Local Members of Parliament, seeking their support for adequate funding for the Camden Haven Surf Life Saving Club relocation, and their assistance with the matters of land tenure.

carried: 7/1

For: Edwards, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Griffiths

EXTENSION OF COUNCIL MEETING

RESOLVED: Pinson/Roberts

That the Council Meeting be extended to 5.00 pm.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

15 ITEMS TO BE DEALT WITH BY EXCEPTION

RESOLVED: Sheppard/Lipovac

That Items 11.02, 11.06, 11.09, 12.03 and 14.03 be considered as a block resolution.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

RESOLVED: Sheppard/Lipovac

That all recommendations listed in the block resolution be adopted by Council.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

Item 11.01 Status of Reports from Council Resolution, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

11.02 Mayoral Discretionary Fund Allocations - 2 June to 6 July 2022

BLOCK RESOLVED: Sheppard/Lipovac

That Council note there has been no Mayoral Discretionary Fund allocations for the period 2 June to 6 July 2022 inclusive.

Item 11.03 Notice of Motion - On-Street Carparking Loss in Relation to Bain Park Masterplan, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 11.04 Notice of Motion - Queen’s Birthday Awards, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 11.05 Investments - June 2022, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

11.06 Policy Review - Investment Policy

BLOCK RESOLVED: Sheppard/Lipovac

That Council:

1. Place the revised draft Investment Policy on public exhibition for 28 days, from 29 July 2022 until 25 August 2022.

2. Note that a further report will be presented at the September 2022 meeting of Council, detailing the submissions received from the public during the exhibition period.

Item 11.07 Policy Review - Volunteer Policy - Post Exhibition, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 11.08 Draft Code of Conduct & Procedures for the Administration of the Model Code of Conduct, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

11.09 Delegation of Authority to the General Manager

BLOCK RESOLVED: Sheppard/Lipovac

That Council:

1. Revoke all previous delegations of functions to the General Manager.

2. Delegate to the Chief Executive Officer of Port Macquarie-Hastings Council the Functions in accordance with the Instrument of Delegation to the General Manager, attached to this report as Attachment 1.

3. Appoint the Director Community Utilities, Jeffery Sharp, to act as Chief Executive Officer in any instance where an Acting Chief Executive Officer has not otherwise been determined by Council while the Chief Executive Officer is absent from work on leave.

4. Delegate to any person acting as Chief Executive Officer pursuant to this resolution all the functions, delegations, and sub-delegations given to the General Manager by the Council.

5. Pursuant to clause 213 of the Local Government (General) Regulation 2021, delegate to the General Manager the authority to approve the abandonment of debts up to the amount of $5,000.

6. Note that the role of General Manager applies to the position of Chief Executive Officer and all references to General Manager refer to the position of Chief Executive Officer.

Item 12.01 Notice of Motion - Homelessness in the Local Government Area, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 12.02 Bonny Hills Reserves Master Plan - Post Exhibition, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

12.03 Change of Road Type - Girraween Close to Girraween Road

BLOCK RESOLVED: Sheppard/Lipovac

That Council:

1. Change the road type from Girraween Close to Girraween Road.

2. Place a notification of the road type change on Council’s website and in the NSW Government Gazette.

3. Inform all owners and residents of Girraween Close and Girraween Road of the Council resolution in this matter.

4. Notify the relevant statutory authorities and local organisations of the change.

5. Note that the road type change will be effective from 1 September 2022.

6. Replace existing street signage.

Item 12.04 Graffiti Management Update, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 12.05 Prioritisation of Sporting Infrastructure Projects, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 13.01 ArtWalk Event Wrap-Up Report, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 13.02 Petition - Mill Estate Subdivision, Wauchope - Detrimental Affect on Businesses of the Proposed Removal of Parking Spaces in High Street, Wauchope, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 13.03 Petition - Mill Estate Subdivision, Wauchope - Bond for Stages 3 and 4, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 14.01 Urban Growth Management Strategy Update, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 14.02 Planning Amendment to PMQ-Hastings LEP 2011 - Secondary Dwellings in Rural Zones under Clause 5.5 of the Standard Instrument - Principal LEP 2006, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

14.03 Rawdon Island Bridge

BLOCK RESOLVED: Sheppard/Lipovac

That Council:

1. Note the information provided in the Rawdon Island Bridge Update report.

2. Request the Chief Executive Officer provide a report to Council in accordance with milestone events associated with progress on Rawdon Island Bridge.

Item 14.04 Lake Cathie Natural Resource Management Monthly Update, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

Item 14.05 Tacking Point Surf Life Saving Club External Sewer Upgrade Works - Additional Funding Request, has been addressed previously within the meeting.

CONFIDENTIAL SESSION

RESOLVED: Sheppard/Roberts

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 Confidential Session of Council on the basis that items to be considered are of a confidential nature.

2. That Council move into Closed Session to receive and consider the following items:

Item 16.01 RFQ-21-58 - Rawdon Island Bridge - Site Surveillance Officer
RFQ-21-61 - Rawdon Island Bridge - Contract Administrator
RFQ-21-62 - Rawdon Island Bridge - Project Microbat Specialist

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 16.02 T-22-51 Water and Sewer Process Membrane Replacement Program

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 16.03 T-21-27 Supply and Delivery of Water Treatment Chemicals

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

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

16.01 RFQ-21-58 - Rawdon Island Bridge - Site Surveillance Officer;
RFQ-21-61 - Rawdon Island Bridge - Contract Administrator;
RFQ-21-62 - Rawdon Island Bridge - Project Microbat Specialist;

Councillor Sheppard left the meeting, the time being 04:02pm.

Councillor Sheppard returned to the meeting, the time being 04:04pm.

RESOLVED: Intemann/Roberts

That Council:

1. Note the current forecast for the completion for the Rawdon Island Bridge repair works is November 2022.

2. In accordance with Section 55(3)(i) of the Local Government Act, 1993, due to the extenuating circumstances to allow the ongoing contractual support services for the Rawdon Island Bridge repair works, not call public tenders for the:

a) Rawdon Island Bridge - Site Surveillance Officer

b) Rawdon island Bridge - Contract Administrator

c) Rawdon Island Bridge Project - Microbat Specialist.

3. Request the Chief Executive Officer to enter into negotiations to vary contracts:

a) RFQ-21-58 - Site Surveillance Officer with Local Government Engineering Services Pty Ltd to undertake role of Site Surveillance Officer

b) RFQ-21-61 - Contract Administrator with Focus Bridge Engineering (registered as MLEI Bridge Pty Ltd) to act as the Principal Authorised Person for contract T-21-42.03 on behalf of Council, and

c) RFQ-21-62 - Project Microbat Specialist with Echo Ecology and Surveying Pty Ltd for implementing a Microbat Management Plan

for a further period expiring 30 November 2022 in accordance with the terms and conditions specified in the contracts.

4. Delegate to the Chief Executive Offer the authority to negotiate and sign the contract deed of variations with

a) Local Government Engineering Services

b) Focus Bridge Engineering (registered as MLEI Bridge Pty Ltd), and

c) Echo Ecology and Surveying Pty Ltd,

for a further period expiring 30 November 2023 in accordance with the terms and conditions specified in the contracts.

5. Maintain the confidentiality of the documents and consideration in respect of these contracts.

6. Enter into borrowings of $4.6 million to cover the remaining cost of the project.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

16.02 T-22-51 Water and Sewer Process Membrane Replacement Program

RESOLVED: Roberts/Lipovac

That Council:

1. In accordance with Section 55(3)(i) of the Local Government Act 1993, will not invite tenders for T-22-51 Water and Sewer Process Membrane Replacement Program due to extenuating circumstances being risk of total failure and loss of Environmental Protection Agency Discharge Licence.

2. Issue a formal Request for Quotation T-22-51 Water and Sewer Process Membrane Replacement Program on a single invitation basis to the contractor recognised by Council.

3. Note that the Chief Executive Officer, under existing delegations to the General Manager, may accept a quotation for T-22-51 Water and Sewer Process Membrane Replacement Program, and present a further report to a future meeting of Council after contract award for Council’s information.

4. Maintain the confidentiality of the documents and consideration in respect of T-22-51 Water and Sewer Process Membrane Replacement Program and this report.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

16.03 T-21-27 Supply and Delivery of Water Treatment Chemicals

RESOLVED: Slade/Lipovac

That Council:

1. In accordance with section 178(1) of the Local Government (General) Regulation 2021, decline to accept any of the tenders submitted for T-21-27 Supply and Delivery of Water Treatment Chemicals and enter into negotiations with the identified preferred suppliers, with a view to entering into a contract in relation to the subject matter of the tender.

2. Pursuant to section 178(4)(a) and (b) of the Local Government (General)

Regulation 2021 decline to invite fresh tenders for the reasons that: the

Tender Evaluation Panel considers that the tenderers have the

demonstrated the experience, capacity and capability to meet the

requirements of the Request for Tender, inviting fresh tenders likely will not achieve a superior outcome.

3. Note the Chief Executive Officer, under existing delegation to the General Manager, may accept tenders for T-21-27 Supply and Delivery of Water Treatment Chemicals following successful negotiations, and present a further report to a future meeting of Council after contract award for Council’s information.

4. Maintain the confidentiality of the documents and consideration in respect of Request for Tender T-21-27 Supply and Delivery of Water Treatment Chemicals.

carried: 7/1

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Intemann

RESOLVED: Sheppard/Lipovac

That the Council Meeting be re-opened to the public.

carried: 8/0

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Nil

The outcomes of the Confidential Session of the Ordinary Council meeting were read to the meeting by the Group Manager Governance.

The meeting closed at 4.13pm.

………………………………………..

Peta Pinson

Mayor

AGENDA Ordinary Council 18/08/2022

Item: 06

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 Chief Executive Officer, such a disclosure is to be made to the staff member’s manager. In the case of the Chief Executive Officer, 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 Chief Executive Officer, 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 Chief Executive Officer, 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 Chief Executive Officer 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

18/08/2022

Item: 11.06

Subject: Notice of Motion - Significant Regulatory and Governance Developments Regarding Climate Change Risk

Councillor Rachel Sheppard has given notice of her intention to move the following motion:

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Regarding Council’s long-term financial sustainability

a. Note that the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) has identified that climate change “presents material financial risks and opportunities for organisations - across short, medium and long terms” (Reference 1), including

i. physical risks including damage to assets, project delays, supply chain disruptions, and;

ii. litigation risks arising from failure to manage or disclose risks.

b. Note that the above listed risks identified by the AICD are directly relevant to the long-term financial sustainability of Council as a substantial service provider, asset owner and asset custodian.

c. Note that Council is preparing to deliver a General Fund Improvement Plan to the August 2022 Ordinary Council meeting.

d. Request the CEO provide a report to the October 2022 Ordinary Council meeting, which details Council’s current approach to assess and address climate change risk to Council, including reasonably expected impacts of climate change on Council’s general fund operating results and long-term financial sustainability.

2. Regarding Council’s investment of public funds

a. Note that peak financial regulatory bodies have identified climate change as a specific, significant and dynamic risk to financial institutions and investors.

b. Note that since 2020, the area of climate change risk assessment and disclosure is undergoing dynamic regulatory developments, with rapid progress from 2021 toward establishment of standardised international assessment and disclosure standards, to provide high quality, comparable climate risk information for investors.

c. Note that Council currently invests approximately $400million of public funds, and currently has placed a proposed updated investment policy on public exhibition, however it is unclear to what extent this investment policy is informed by the dynamic changes occurring regarding assessment and disclosure of climate related risk.

d. Request the Chief Executive Officer prepare a report to the November 2022 meeting of the Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC), for the ARIC to give consideration to commentary and advice of financial regulatory bodies in Attachments 1-5 and any other sources they consider relevant, and subsequently provide informed commentary and recommendations to Council including but not limited to:

i. Implications of climate risk, climate risk assessment and climate risk disclosure for Council’s investment policy, if any;

ii. Implications of climate risk, climate risk assessment and climate risk disclosure for the long term financial sustainability of council, if any, and;

iii. Means through which Council can be kept continuously adequately informed of relevant current developments in the area of climate risk, climate risk assessment and climate risk disclosure.

e. Request the Chief Executive Officer provide a report detailing ARIC commentary and advice to the next available Ordinary Council meeting following the meeting of ARIC, no later than December 2022.

f. Defer consideration of the Investment Policy pending Council’s consideration of the report as detailed in 2e above.

Comments by Councillor (if provided)

Summary:

Recent developments in the governance and financial regulatory sectors have highlighted the risk that climate change poses to long term financial sustainability of organisations, and to investors. As such, Council requires sound advice regarding how Council is currently assessing and addressing this risk to financial sustainability and Council’s investments of public funds. This Notice of Motion in part requests our elected body to note a series of facts and resources relevant to these matters. This Notice of Motion further requests the Chief Executive Officer provide the relevant information to Councillors so that we can assess whether Council is adequately factoring climate risk into long-term financial planning and investment decisions.

1. Long-term financial sustainability of Council and climate change risk.

According to the Office of Local Government Councillor Handbook (2021), “The elected council’s role may be compared to that of a public company… The ‘shareholders’ of a public company can be likened to a local community” (p. 11). The handbook further specifies that “Councillors comprise the governing body of a council in the same way that a board of directors is the governing body of a corporation” (p 17).”

Over the past two years, peak governance and financial regulatory bodies have identified that climate change poses significant risk to the financial sustainability of companies. Directors are identified as having responsibility in managing the risk climate change poses to the companies they direct. In a speech at the Governance Institute of Australia Fellows Roundtable, 14 October 2021, Australian Securities and Investments commissioner Sean Hughes identified climate change related risk as a key issue on ASIC’S domestic and international agenda, and articulated a continued key message to directors and officers of public companies to

“Consider climate risk. Directors and officers of listed companies need to understand and continually reassess existing and emerging risks that may be applicable to the company’s business, including both physical and transitional climate risk. … As others have observed, climate change poses systemic risks. These risks are dynamic, not static. They are evolving. It is certainly not unforeseeable that both physical and transitional risks escalate materially over the years ahead, perhaps faster than expected.”

The Reserve Bank of Australia, the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority, and the Council of Financial Regulators similarly acknowledge in no uncertain terms the risk climate change poses to financial institutions, investors, and the broader economy (attachments 1-5).

The Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) is a globally reputed peak body supporting governance best-practice, and is more comprehensive and specific in its advice to directors regarding managing climate risk. The 30-page AICD Climate Risk Governance Guide (2021), asserts that “climate change…presents material financial risks and opportunities for organisations - across short, medium and long terms. This evolution has been driven by developments in the climate science, and a stark shift in institutional investor, debt finance, regulator, market, and community expectations… Climate change creates two primary financial risks: the physical impacts of a changing climate and risks in the transition to a net zero emissions economy… A failure to manage these risks can, in turn, give rise to significant risks to a company’s reputation and ‘social licence to operate’ and, ultimately, exposure to litigation risks.” (p. 6)

Port Macquarie Hastings Council has already encountered some of the physical risks articulated by the AICD, including damage to assets, project delays and supply chain disruption.

Regarding damage to assets: Council is the owner or custodian of over $2billion of assets. As at 4 August 2022, Council has an estimated $92million dollars of damages outstanding from the floods of 2021-2022 alone, as a result of damage to bridges, roads and other community infrastructure. This doesn’t consider cost of repair of those public assets damaged in the Black Summer fires. Climate related extreme weather over the past four years has already incurred considerable damage and cost to Port Macquarie Hastings Council, and we can expect further such damage to be common place into the coming decades.

Regarding supply disruption: After several years of extreme weather events causing state-wide infrastructure damage, all councils and the private market are now competing for limited construction resources (materials and labour) to complete repairs or build new infrastructure. The increased demand drives up costs, resulting in more expensive delivery of infrastructure, lesser financial capacity for infrastructure and service delivery, and - in my opinion - ultimately compromising council’s long term financial sustainability. Ongoing climate related events into the future can be expected to continue, at significant cost to community health, safety and wellbeing, but also at significant cost to Council’s capacity to continue delivering on core business (e.g. roads, sewer, water supply, waste services, storm water).

Notably, Council is already in a challenged position with regards to our long-term financial sustainability. As a result, Council is preparing a General Fund Improvement Plan which may foreseeably require increasing rates and other revenue and reducing services/delivery in order to improve financial sustainability.

In light of the costs climate change has already caused Council, and the advice from relevant peak bodies regarding climate change governance, it is prudent for Councillors to seek to inform ourselves of Council’s current approach to assessing and addressing the risk climate change poses Council. This will allow us as Councillors/Directors, to consider whether the current approach is adequate to ensure the financial sustainability of Council.

Relevant considerations for such a report include but are not limited to:

· What sources does Council use to determine its approach to assessing and addressing climate change?

· How is climate change risk integrated into Council’s existing risk management framework?

· How is damage from climate related natural disasters factored into our long-term financial planning?

· How has climate change been factored into asset management, in terms of useful lives of assets and anticipated depreciation?

· How has climate change been factored into delivery of critical infrastructure, including water supply, storm water, sewer, and roads/bridges?

· Has council undertaken adequate disclosure of climate impacts to various stakeholders to mitigate transition risk of litigation?

· How does Council currently determine which climate related risks present material exposure to council’s operations over the short, medium and long term?

· What is Council’s level of tolerance for climate risks, and how is this tolerance determined?

· What climate change scenario (how many degrees temperature change) is Council basing risk assessment and action upon?

· What is Council’s capacity to respond to changes in climate modelling and associated risk projections

· Any other information relevant to Council’s current approach to climate risk assessment and action.

2. Investments and climate change risk

Council currently invests approximately $400million of public funds, and has placed a proposed updated investment policy on public exhibition. However it is unclear to what extent the proposed investment policy is informed by the dynamic changes occurring regarding assessment and disclosure of climate related risk.

Over the past several years, but especially since 2021, Australia’s peak financial regulatory bodies have publicly expressed escalating concern regarding the risk that climate change poses to financial institutions, investors and the broader economy. For councillor reference, Attachments 1-5 are a sample of relevant statements and speeches from regulatory bodies including the Reserve Bank of Australia, Australian Securities and Investments Commission, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, and the Council of Financial Regulators. The key themes arising from these sources are somewhat repetitive, but warrant emphasis: climate change causes risk to institutions that are financial, significant, unpredictable, dynamic, uncertain and material.

The risks can be broadly divided into two categories of physical risks of climate change, and the transition risks associated with the changing economic landscape, such as stranded assets. Investors currently face difficulties accurately assessing the risk profile of institutions they may wish to invest in, due to lack of meaningful comparative information about climate risk.

Unsurprisingly then, the RBA, ASIC, APRA and CFR are actively and vocally supporting the development of a new international system for standardised reporting of sustainability and climate related risks. The upcoming new climate risk assessment and disclosure standards are intended to provide high quality, meaningful and comparative reporting information on companies that allows investors to make informed risk decisions. The new standards are being developed under the auspice of the International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation, announced by the new International Sustainability Standards Board in late 2021, and have progressed - rapidly - with consultation on an exposure draft recently completed in July 2022.

As financial institutions and companies undertake the foreshadowed shift in assessment and disclosure of climate risk in the coming years, it is foreseeable that the risk profile of Council’s investment portfolio will likewise shift. Council’s approach to investment is consistent with legislation, such that all investments, including those in lower rated and unrated ADIs are considered highly secure. This has been successfully stress tested in the GFC and pandemic. However, Deputy Governor of the RBA, Guy Debelle suggests that climate change poses to investors is warrants specific consideration in his speech to the Australia Investment Conference (December 2021)

“Why is there a particular focus of the Council of Financial Regulators on the financial risks of climate change? Isn't it just like any other risk that we would expect financial institutions to manage?

Climate change is a first-order risk for the financial system. It has a broad-ranging impact on Australia, both in terms of geography and in terms of Australian businesses and households. Most Australian financial institutions now recognise climate as a risk. The assessment of climate risks has evolved considerably over the past five years, but there remains considerable scope for further improvement. There are a number of complexities that make this a challenging risk for financial institutions to assess, including the uncertainties involved in making assumptions about a possible future and the lack of historical data.”

As it stands, it is entirely plausible that Council’s investment strategy and portfolio will be sufficiently robust to the dynamic environment and foreshadowed regulatory changes regarding risk assessment and disclosure. However, given the sum of public funds and the above-noted uncertainties at play, it is prudent for councillors to seek subject matter expert commentary and advice, prior to adopting a new investment policy for the coming year. Council should ensure that our investment strategy is sufficiently agile to respond to developments in the area of climate risk assessment and disclosure. For this reason, this NOM requests the Chief Executive Officer seek commentary and advice from Council’s Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee to aid our informed deliberation.

References/Resources

1. Office of Local Government, Councillor Handbook (2021) https://www.olg.nsw.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Councillor-Handbook-2021.pdf

2. Speech by ASIC Commissioner Sean Hughes at the Governance Institute of Australia Fellows Roundtable. (October 2021) Corporate governance update: climate change risk and disclosure https://asic.gov.au/about-asic/news-centre/speeches/corporate-governance-update-climate-change-risk-and-disclosure/

3. Australian Institute of Company Directors (2021). Climate Risk Governance Guide. https://www.aicd.com.au/content/dam/aicd/pdf/news-media/research/2021/climate-risk-governance-guide-web.pdf

4. Speech by Deputy Governor RBA Guy Debelle to CFA Australia Investment Conference (October 2021). Climate Risks and the Australian Financial System: https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2021/sp-dg-2021-10-14.html

5. Australian Securities and Investments Commission (Dec 2021) ASIC welcomes new International Sustainability Standards Board and updated climate-related disclosure guidance https://asic.gov.au/about-asic/news-centre/find-a-media-release/2021-releases/21-349mr-asic-welcomes-new-international-sustainability-standards-board-and-updated-climate-related-disclosure-guidance/

6. APRA & RBA (Nov 2021) Joint Statement from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and the Reserve Bank of Australia:

https://www.rba.gov.au/about-rba/our-policies/network-for-greening-fs-pledge.html

7. The Council of Financial Regulators. (Dec 2021) Quarterly Statement by the Council of Financial Regulators – December 2021

https://www.cfr.gov.au/news/2021/mr-21-06.html

Attachments

1. ASIC Corporate governance update climate change risk and disclosure

2 . RBA Climate risks and the australian financial system

3 . RBA and APRA Joint Statement

4 . ASIC welcomes new International Sustainability Standards Board and updated climate-related disclosure guidance ASIC - Australian Securities and Investments Commission

5 . Council of Financial Regulators Quarterly Statement

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 11.07

Subject: Status of Reports From Council Resolutions

Presented by: Chief Executive Officer, Dr Clare Allen

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 and Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Policy Review - Media Relations policy	21/04/2022 Item 11.10		CEO	Jul-22	Aug-22
General Fund Operating Result Improvement Plan Report	28/04/2022 Item 6.02	Not ready for July meeting	DBP	Jun-22 Jul-22	Aug-22
Policy Review - Compliance and Enforcement Policy	16/06/2022 Item 11.08	Public exhibition is not yet completed	DCPE	Jul-22	Aug-22
Urban Growth Management Strategy	21/07/2022 Item 14.01		DCPE		Aug-22
Future Delivery of Artwalk Event	21/07/2022 Item 13.01		DCPE		Aug-22
On Street Carparking Loss in Relation to Bain Park Masterplan	21/07/2022 Item 11.03		DCPE		Aug-22

Report	Date and Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Update on Progress to the Joint Integrated Transport Network Plan	21/07/2022 Item 11.01		DCI		Aug-22
Procurement process - Port Macquarie Hastings Blueprint - Determine outcome	16/06/2022 Item 12.05	Addressed through Rescisson motion	CEO		Aug-22
Proposed Rescinding of the Asset Disposal Policy	16/06/2022 Item 11.10		DCU		Aug-22
T-21-03 Design and Construct of Six Sewer Pump Stations - post contact award	17/03/2022 Item 16.01		DCI		Aug-22
COVID-19 Recovery and Stimulus Projects Update	16/02/2022 Item 11.01		DCPE		Aug-22
Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility - Business Case	21/04/2022 Item 14.05	Business case development is underway	DCPE	Jun-22	Sep-22
Policy Review - Volunteer Policy	21/04/2022 Item 11.09	Resolved by Council in July 2022 Ordinary Council meeting to defer policy pending a workshop being undertaken	DCPE	Jul-22	Sep-22

Report	Date and Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Prioritisation of Sporting Infrastructure Projects - Outcome of Discussions with Federal and State members	21/07/2022 Item 12.05		DCPE		Sep-22
Policy Review - Investment Policy - Following Exhibition	21/07/2022		DBP		Sep-22
T-20-41 Kew Main Street Upgrade	21/04/2021 Item 15.01	Negotiations ongoing and awaiting design information from consultant. Retendering period extended	DCI	Jun-21 Jul-21 Sep-21 Nov-21 Feb-22 Mar-22 July-22	Sep-22
Port Macquarie-Hastings Tree Management Policies And Procedures - Budget required to fast track backlog - Process improvements - Options to reduce risk and provide for residents to prune treew wihtout Council approval	19/05/2022 Item 12.01	A thorough review of tree management process and procedures required as detailed in 2022-2023 Operational Plan	DPCE	Jun-22	Sep-22

Report	Date and Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Ferry Operations - Vehicle Movements & Vehicles Left on Bank Monitoring	19/05/2021 Item 12.03	Councillor Briefing to newly elected Council in early 2022	DCI	Oct-21 Nov-21 Feb-22 Jun-22	Sep-22
Draft Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Housing Strategy 2021-2041 - post exhibition	19/05/2021 Item 12.06	Workshop with Councillors to be scheduled for July with industry forum to follow.	DCPE	Oct-21 Mar-22 Jun-22	Sep-22
Coastal Protection Options - Illaroo Road, Lake Cathie	21/04/2021 Item 13.06	Community workshops underway. Updates provided via monthly report on Lake Cathie coastal hazard options, stormwater and CMP	DCPE	Jun-21 Sep-21 Feb-22 Mar-22 Jun-22	Sep-22
Dunbogan Beach Recreational Enhancement Options	21/04/2022 Item 12.05	Community engagement anticipated to commence in Aug/Sept with a report back to Council following.	GMC	Jul-22	Sept/Oct - 22

Report		Date and Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Independent Review - Funding Options and Rating Structure for Development and Maintenance of the Port Macquarie CBD		29/6/2022 Item 6.02		DCPE		Oct[LK1] -22
Policy Review - Road Reserve Management	19/05/2022 Item 11.10		Public Exhibition yet to occur	DCI	Aug-22	Oct-22
Prioritisation of Sporting Infrastructure Projects	17/03/2022 Item 12.01		Resolved by Council at July 2022 Ordinary Council meeting to defer pending advice from major funding partners and federal and state members	DCPE	Apr-22 Jun-22 Jul-22	Oct-22
Outcome of Micromex Community Satisfaction Survey	19/05/2022 Item 7.01		Resolved as Item 11.01 in July 2022 Ordinary Council meeting to defer item to October 2022	DCPE	Sep-22	Oct-22
Policy Review - Climate Change Response Policy - post public exhibition	19/5/2022 Item 7.01		Resolved as Item 11.01 in July 2022 Ordinary Council meeting to defer item to October 2022	DCPE	May-22 Sep-22	Oct-22
Report	Date and Item of Resolution		Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Bain Park Masterplan - Stages 1 & 2 amendments	07/03/2022 Item 07.01		Final design anticipated	DCPE	Aug-Sept 22	Oct-22
Potential Purchase of Land - Following negotiations	19/05/2022 Item 16.01		Negotiations not yet finalised	CEO	Aug-22	Oct-22
Port Macquarie Works Depot	16/06/2022 Item 11.16			CEO		Oct-22
Town Centre Master Plan - Finding of Independent Review	16/02/2022 Item 12.03			DBP		Oct-22
Data on Homelessness in the Local Government Area and Possible Solutions	21/07/2022 Item 12.01			DCPE		Nov-22
New Employment Lands Zones - Translation to Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Environmental Plan 2011 - post public exhibition	17/03/22 Item 14.02		The NSW Govt’s exhibition period will run for 6 weeks from 27 May 22 to 8 July 22. Following exhibition, it is anticipated that this will be reported back to Council in Aug/Sept-22. Following further advice from DPE it is likely that this will be reported to Council in December 22.	DCPE	Sep-22	Dec-22
Report	Date and Item of Resolution		Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Delivery of Camden Haven Surf Life Saving Club	21/07/2022			DCPE		Dec-22
Implementation of Fly Neighbourly Agreement - 6 month Update	19/05/2022 Item 13.01			DBP		Dec-22
Draft Joint Integrated Transport Network Plan	17/03/2022 Item 14.01		Commenced the draft plan and working with TfNSW to finalise draft plan including highway corridor and related Council projects.	DCI	May-22 Jul-22	Dec-22
Draft s9.11 Airport Business Park Roads Contribution Plan	20/05/2020 Item 13.05		To be considered as part of wider development contribution framework review	DCPE	Dec-20 Jun-21 Oct-21 Jun-22	Dec-22

Report	Date and Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Policy Review - Management of Public Spaces - Outlining Success of Method Dealing with these Issues	16/06/2022 Item 12.03		GMC		Dec-22
PP2014 - 10.1 - Planning Proposal Assessment report - 11 and 33 Mumford Street, Port Macquarie - post public exhibition	17/03/2022 Item 14.04	Gateway process commenced 16 May-22. Gateway determination provides for a 10 month timeframe for completion.	DCPE		Dec-22
Material Public Benefit - Developer Delivered Sewer Works Kendall - completion of works	17/03/2022 Item 14.07		DCU		Feb-23

Report	Date and Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Tendering and purchasing process - Council's commitment and support to local business for previous 12 months	17/03/22 Item 11.20		DBP		Mar-23
Classification as "Operational" Land - 52 John Oxley Drive, Port Macquarie - post exhibition.	20/06/18 Item 14.05	To be incorporated in strategic property portfolio review to be undertaken in 2022/2023	DBP	Mar-20 Nov-20 Mar-21 Apr-21 Jun-21 Sep-21 Feb-22 Jun-22	Jun-23
Implementation of Fly Neighbourly Agreement - 12 month Update	19/05/22 Item 13.01		DBP		Jun-23
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		DCPE		2024 (estimate)

Report	Date and Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Council owned lots at North Shore - Progress of Sale	19/09/18 Item 09.24)	Subject to strategic property portfolio review to be undertaken in 2022.	DBP	Dec-19 Feb-20 Sep-20 Mar-21 Apr-21 Jun-21 Sep-21 Feb-22 Aug-22	TBA
Sale of Surplus Land- 178 Nancy Bird Walton Drive, Kew	16/02/2022 Item 09.23	Subject to strategic property portfolio review to be undertaken in 2022.	DBP	Dec-22	TBA
Tuffins Lane Sporting Fields - Terms of Agreement	14/12/16 Item 06.02	Awaiting Catholic Parish advice	CEO	Oct-18 Mar-19 Apr-19 Jul-19 Dec-19 Jun-20	TBA
Lots 101 and 102 DP 1244390 Pacific Drive, Port Macquarie - options for operational land	07/03/2022 Item 10.01	Subject to strategic property portfolio review to be undertaken in 2022.	DBP		TBA
T-22-51 Water and Sewer Process Membrane Replacement Program - following negotiations	21/07/2022 Item 16.02		DCU		TBA
T-21-27 Supply and Delivery of Water Treatment Chemicals - following negotiations	21/07/2022 Item 16.03		DCU		TBA

Report	Date and Item of Resolution	Status	Reporting Officer	Previous Anticipated Date/s for Report	Current Anticipated Date for Report
Draft MR538 and MR600 Corridor Strategy - Following public exhibition	19/05/2022 Item 14.04		DCI		TBA

Cyclic Reports

Report	Reporting Officer	Reporting Cycle	Month	Altered Report Date	Reason for Altered Date
Mayoral Discretionary Fund Allocations	CEO	Monthly	Every
Monthly Financial Update	DBP	Monthly	Every (except July)
Investments	DBP	Monthly	Every
Recommendations by the Mayor’s Sporting Fund Sub-Committee	DCPE	Monthly	Every
Opening Lake Cathie (13/01/2022 Item 05.01)	DCPE	Monthly	Every
Legal Fees - Update Report (19/09/18 - Item 09.16)	CEO	Quarterly	Feb, May, Aug, Nov
Development Activity and Assessment System Performance	DCPE	Quarterly	Feb, May, Aug, Nov
Community Inclusion Plan - Update of Tasks, Measures and Actions	DCPE	Quarterly	Sep, Dec, Mar, Jun
Operational Plan – Quarterly Progress	DBP	Quarterly	May, Nov (other 2 quarters reported with DP 6 mthly progress report)

Report	Reporting Officer	Reporting Cycle	Month	Altered Report Date	Reason for Altered Date
Grant Application Status Report (21/08/19 - Item 11.02)	DCPE	Biannual	Feb, Aug
Glasshouse Strategic Plan Update	DBP	Biannual	Feb, Aug
Delivery Program – Six Monthly Progress	DBP	Biannual	Feb, Sep
Update on Site Specific Planning Proposal Requests	DCPE	Biannual	Jun, Dec
Mayoral and Councillor Fees (Setting of)	CEO	Annually	May
Port Macquarie-Hastings Destination Management Plan 2020-2024 (20/05/2020 - Item 12.01)	DCPE	Annually	Jun		Current resouring levels have prevented this report from being prepared.
Kooloonbung Creek Flying Fox Camp Management Plan - Annual Update (16/06/2021 - Item 12.03)	DCPE	Annually	Jun
Council Policy - Status	CEO	Annually	Jul

Report	Reporting Officer		Reporting Cycle		Month		Altered Report Date		Reason for Altered Date
Recreation Action Plan – Status	DCPE		Annually		Aug-22				We are currently working through the process to develop an update/review of Recreation Action plan and working towards engagement with our sporting groups and community over the coming months. A report on the progress of the current Recreation Action plan 21-25 and the approach to developing the new one will be brought to the Ordinary Council meeting in August
UGMS - Annual Progress Report on Implementation and Status of Actions (20/06/18 - Item 12.07)	DCPE		Annually		Jul
Local Preference Policy Outcomes	DBP		Annually		Aug
Cultural Plan 2021 - 2025: Implementation and evaluation of actions undertaken 04/08/2021 - Item 10.01)	DCPE		Annually		Aug
Report		Reporting Officer		Reporting Cycle		Month		Altered Report Date		Reason for Altered Date
Annual Report of the Activities of the Mayor’s Sporting Fund		DCPE		Annually		Sep
Council Meeting Dates		CEO		Annually		Sep
Creation of Office - Deputy Mayor		CEO		Annually		Sep
Audit Committee Annual Report		CEO		Annually		Sep
Annual Report of Disability Discrimination Act Action Plan		DCPE		Annually		Sep
Legislative Compliance Register		CEO		Annually		Sep
Koala Recovery Strategy Annual Report (19/09/18 - Item 12.05)		DCPE		Annually		Sep
Annual Disclosure of Interest Returns		CEO		Annually		Oct
Professional Development of Councillors (15/09/2021 - Item 09.07)		CEO		Annually		Oct
Council’s Annual Report		DBP		Annually		Nov
Performance of Property Investment Portfolio (20/11/19 - Item 10.17)		DBP		Annually		Nov
Local Strategic Planning Statement (03/11/2021 - Item 12.05)		DCPE		Annually		Nov
Strategic Planning Statement - Implementation of Actions (03/11/2021 - Item 12.05)		DCPE		Annually		Nov
Code of Conduct Complaints Annual Report		CEO		Annually		Dec

Attachments

Nil

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 11.10

Subject: 2017-2022 Delivery Program and 2021-2022 Operational Plan - Six Monthly Progress Report as at 30 June 2022

Presented by: Business and Performance, Ashley Grummitt

Alignment with Delivery Program

1.1.4 Provide easy to understand and accessible community reporting.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council note the 2017-2022 Delivery Program and 2021-2022 Operational Plan Six Monthly Progress Report as at 30 June 2022.

Executive Summary

This report reviews Council’s progress towards the delivery of the objectives adopted in 2017-2022 Delivery Program (DP) and the delivery of actions listed in the 2021-2022 Operational Plan. This will be the final report against the 2017-2022 Delivery Program.

As previously reported, 2021-2022 presented exceptional operational challenges for Council. Significant weather events, global resource and supply chain challenges, competing local priorities i.e. the Rawdon Island Bridge project, and the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on staff and supplier resources, have impacted on CPI delivery during the year. Grant funding opportunities have also in some cases directed resources away from actions identified in the Operational Plan.

Despite these challenges, 85% of Council’s Corporate Performance Indicators (CPIs) have been delivered On Track (i.e. 387 of 453 CPIs). While delays have been reported against the remaining 15% (66 CPIs), substantial action has been delivered against the majority of these items, with 50% (33 CPIs) close to completion.

By comparison, Council reported On Track performance of 85% in 2018-19, 80% in 2019-20 and 86% in 2020-21.

Discussion

Overview - Delivery Program

The Delivery Program outlines the Councillors’ commitment to the Port Macquarie-Hastings community and their objectives during their term of office. The Delivery Program is reflective of the Towards 2030 Community Strategic Plan and serves as a guide for Council’s Executive and staff when developing the annual Operational Plan.

The Delivery Program objectives are categorised under the following Community Themes:

· Theme 1 – Leadership and Governance

· Theme 2 – Your Community Life

· Theme 3 – Your Business and Industry

· Theme 4 – Your Natural and Built Environment

A number of statutory deadlines were modified as per the Office of Local Government Circular A700190 dated 1 May 2020, which extended the existing Delivery Programs for a further 12 months, maintaining the key themes and any activities not yet completed. As a result, the Delivery Program adopted in June 2020 was amended to a five-year Delivery Program 2017-2022 (revised 2020).

This will be the final report against the 2017-2022 Delivery Program. Quarterly reporting on Council’s Delivery Program 2022-2026 and 2022-2023 Operational Plan will commence from October 2022.

4. Overview - Operational Plan

The 2021-2022 Operational Plan (OP) is a sub plan of the adopted 2017-2022 Delivery Program that establishes the individual actions, projects and activities Council will undertake in the financial year to achieve the objectives of Delivery Program.

The 2021-2022 Operational Plan contains 453 Corporate Performance Indicators (CPIs) that measures the delivery of the Operational Plan actions. As at 30 June 2022, 387 (85%) are On Track and have met the requirements within the Operational Plan and 66 (15%) are reported as Off Track.

The following chart and accompanying table provides a trend analysis of the total number of Operational Plan actions, and percentage of actions identified as On Track by quarter over the progress of the 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22 reporting years.

Status	Q1 Jul-Sep		Q2 Oct-Dec		Q3 Jan- Mar		Q4 Apr-Jun
2019/20 On Track	375	88%	375	88%	375	86%	375	80%
2020/21 On Track	521	94%	527	96%	527	93%	464	86%
2021/22 On Track	430	89%	439	91%	443	83%	453	85%

The above graph indicates that there has been an improvement in delivery outcomes over the past quarter with 85% On Track at 30 June 2022 versus 83% identified as On Track at 31 March 2022.

Chart 1 below, and the accompanying table detail the total number of CPIs and their status by theme in the 2021-2022 Operational Plan.

Chart 1:

Community Theme	Total	On Track	Off Track	Overall Delivery
Leadership & Governance	80	75	5	94%
Your Community Life	111	97	14	87%
Your Business & Industry	34	28	6	82%
Your Natural & Built Environment	228	187	41	82%
Total	453	387	66	85%

Details of progress achieved against each CPI and action are provided in the following attachments:

Attachment A - Statistical Overview by Community Theme.

Attachment B - Six Monthly Exception Report - this report details each Operational Plan action, activity or project that is currently experiencing delays and is reported as Off Track.

Attachment C - Capital Works by Location - this listing provides a status overview of capital works by LGA area.

Attachment D - Six Monthly Progress Report as at 30 June 2022 - this report provides full details on all Operational Plan line items with concise and accurate commentary on progress and status for each. It also outlines the links from the Community Strategic Plan, Delivery Program objective and Operational Plan action, activity and/or project that is being delivered.

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 and Internal Consultation

Internal consultation was undertaken with:

· Chief Executive Officer, Directors, Executive and Group Managers;

· All staff reporting against the annual 2021-2022 Operational Plan;

· Business Performance Analyst (Corporate Reporting);

· Planning and Reporting Development Officer;

· Planning & Reporting Officer.

Planning and Policy Implications

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

Financial and Economic Implications

There are no direct financial implications in relation to this report. Quarterly Budget Review Statements (QBRS) align with the reporting period referenced in this report.

Attachments

1. ATT A - Statistical Overview by Community Theme

2. ATT B - Six Monthly Exception Report

3. ATT C - Capital Works by Location

4. ATT D - Six Monthly Progress Report as at 30 June 2022

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 11.11

Subject: 2021-2022 Carry-over Projects

Presented by: Business and Performance, Ashley Grummitt

Alignment with Delivery Program

1.5.1 Manage Council’s financial assets and provide accurate, timely and reliable information.

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RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Adopt the 2021-2022 carry-over projects outlined in this report for inclusion in the 2022-2023 budget.

2. Amend the 2022-2023 one-year Operational Plan to include all projects approved to be carried over as individual action items.

Executive Summary

This report lists projects from the 2021-2022 budget, which were not completed in the financial year and need to have their budgets carried over into the 2022-2023 budget to enable finalisation. Adopting these projects for inclusion in the 2022-2023 Operational Plan (and budget) ensures that they will continue or be completed.

Preliminary expenditure figures show that Council has expended approximately $82 million in 2021-2022 on works program projects including land purchases and some flood impacted works. This level of expenditure is higher than last year and more than the average over the last 5 years as shown in the table below:

Year	Total Works Program Spend
2021-2022	$82,232,069**
2020-2021	$76,219,535*
2019-2020	$81,249,807
2018-2019	$59,491,069
2017-2018	$56,255,526
Average	$71,089,601

*This figure was reported to the 12 August 2020 Ordinary Council meeting as $74,347,076 as a preliminary result.

**This is a preliminary figure waiting on end of year transactions to be completed.

Expenditure in the general course of business is impacted by the phasing of significant projects, for example, when the project in is planning phase the level of expenditure may be less than during the construction phase and not always indicative of the amount of work completed. The 2021-2022 expenditure includes significant amounts on the progression and finalisation of some major projects including the Flood Response Works, Rawdon Island Bridge Repairs, Rainbow Beach Sports Fields, the Cairncross Landfill Expansion, Gordon Street Pavement Works, the Bicentennial Walkway and Thrumster Recycled Water Interim Supply Rising Main Works.

The delivery of some projects within the 2021-2022 Operational Plan has been delayed due to impacts associated with exceptional operational challenges during the financial year. This year has continued to see Council and the community deal with the impacts of significant weather events, requiring Council staff’s direct involvement in operational responses as was necessary to support the immediate needs of the community, as well as a reprioritization of resources to remediation projects.

National and global events have led to significant impacts on resource and supply chain availability. In particular, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continued to have an impact on our community and the way Council staff work, including resource availability.

Despite the particularly challenging circumstances during 2021-2022, the expenditure figures confirm that Council has still been able to deliver a significant amount of works.

The following table illustrates the level of carry-over in relation to the total budget for the last 5 years. A breakdown of the 2021-2022 carry-over confirms that $9.6m of the $18.0m carry-over was due to the impacts of adverse weather, floods and COVID-19, including associated impacts on resourcing.

Note that the Revised Budget at 30 June is the final budget for the year, which takes into account any carry-overs from the previous year and budget adjustments throughout the year. Some of these carry-over projects listed in the attached are capital whilst others are operational in nature. This expenditure is in addition to recurrent operational expenditure incurred in delivering services to the community.

Year	Original Budget	Revised Budget at 30 June	Carry-over
2021-2022	$78,473,294	$103,500,764	$18,030,536
2020-2021	$95,952,777	$86,475,993	$8,931,712
2019-2020	$97,885,485	$96,439,460	$11,307,655
2018-2019	$67,289,844	$89,803,038	$24,809,194
2017-2018	$122,733,342	$100,989,586	$29,827,793

Discussion

It is normal practice for Councils to carry forward some project budgets from the previous financial year to enable their completion in the following financial year. Some factors such as weather impacts, new grant funding meaning a re-prioritisation of resources, or third party impacts are beyond Councils’ control. As noted above the delivery of projects in 2021-2022 has been significantly impacted by some particularly significant events such as weather, flood and COVID-19, including their impacts on resourcing and supply chains.

Attached to this report is a full listing of projects that were partially completed in 2021-2022 and need to have budget amounts carried over to facilitate completion in the 2022-2023 financial year. The carry-over value from 2021-2022 is $18,030,536 and is broken down into the following deferral categories:

Amount to Be Carried Over
Deferral Category	Total
Awaiting Design	259,234
Awaiting Tender	-125,014
Grant Not Received	66,641
Multi-year Project	3,982,908
Other	2,428,120
Weather/ COVID/ Resourcing Impacts	9,562,089
Operational Considerations	1,856,557
Grand Total	18,030,536

* Note numbers appearing as negative is where Council is ahead of schedule on particular Multi-year projects, these Multi-year projects are detailed in the attachment. Negative carry over will reduce 2022/2023 budget for that particular multi- year project.

The carry-over can also be broken down by Fund and Section as follows:

Amount to Be Carried Over
Fund	Section	Total
General Fund	Airport	166,674
	Aquatic Facilities	40,599
	Biosecurity	3,043
	Building Services	326,058
	Bushfire Control	129,792
	Cemeteries	19,740
	Community Engagement	40,000
	Community Inclusion	122,369
	Destination & Cultural Development	53,260
	Development Engineering	74,637
	Drainage	790,250
	Infrastructure Planning	339,058
	Library	102,069
	Natural Resources	39,193
	Parks & Recreation	5,006,108
	PM Town Centre Masterplan	6,458
	Strategic Property Investments	158,010
	Transport and Traffic	6,286,896
General Fund Total		13,704,213
Sewer Fund	Sewerage Services	1,506,483
Sewer Fund Total		1,506,483
Waste Mgt	Waste Disposal	379,819
Waste Mgt Total		379,819
Water Fund	Water Supply	2,440,021
Water Fund Total		2,440,021
Grand Total		18,030,536

As noted above, there are a number of reasons why project budgets need to be carried over into the next financial year. Some of these reasons are summarised as follows:

Grant Funded Projects

If a project is subject to grant conditions, Council is obliged to carry-over any unspent funds for the purposes of completing the project. If all of the grant funding is not required, then Council is generally required to repay the unspent grant funds. Delays in grant projects can be caused by delays in grant confirmations from the relevant grant funding authority. The table below represents the funding composition of the carry-over projects, with grant funding representing 32% of the total.

Funding Source	Amount	%
Revenue	2,352,933	13%
Reserves	9,156,673	51%
Grants	5,801,412	32%
Environmental Levy	132,643	0.7%
Contributions	92,902	0.5%
Section 64 and 7.11 Contributions	493,973	3%
Total	$18,030,536	100.00%

Operational Considerations

Many operational considerations impact on Council’s ability to deliver projects as scheduled. Such considerations can include weather impacts, disaster events, competing projects which may divert resources away from scheduled delivery, resourcing implications (e.g. unplanned staff absences and vacancies), third party impacts beyond the control of Council (e.g. project partners) and market forces (e.g. availability and cost of materials/contractors). Approximately 53% of the carry-over amount is due to weather, floods and COVID-19, and associated resourcing and supply chain issues. This percentage is high, but not unexpected, with our LGA being impacted by such significant events, impacting lead times in procurement and availability of resources.

Not completing a project which has already commenced may expose Council to a range of risks including those in the areas of service delivery, public safety, political, reputational, legal and financial.

Budget Development Timeframes

The Council budget each year commences development in the September - October period prior to the financial year to which it relates. It is often difficult to estimate so far in advance what impact any of the above operational considerations may have on project delivery.

Multi-year Projects

Many projects, due to scheduled commencement in the latter part of a financial year or due to the size and scale of the project, may have always been intended to be completed over more than one financial year. Projects that have design and construction elements can often span financial years. The budget for the financial year reflects the financial commitment of the delivery plan. Estimating the split by year can be difficult given the budget timeframes as previously mentioned, and these may shift as the project progresses. The projects that are considered multi-year projects are outlined in the attachment to this report.

Future considerations

Council remains committed to ensuring that, where appropriate, improvements to processes and practices are achieved.

Phased capital budgets have been included in the budget for a number of years now. Regular monitoring through the phasing of capital budgets assists in the early detection and management of potential carry-overs during the current year.

It should be noted that whilst ongoing improvements will continue to be made to the budget process with a view to reducing the quantum of carry-overs, some level of carry-over should still be expected for the reasons outlined in this report.

Options

Council has the option of approving the carry-overs in total, in part, or not approving them at all. If no carry-over projects are approved, the projects that are currently partially completed would not be able to be finalised and any grant funding currently available for projects would be required to be returned to the relevant funding body. As outlined in the body of the report, other risks may exist by not approving various carry-over budgets.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

Consultation has taken place with all Divisions of Council.

Planning and Policy Implications

There are no direct policy implications as a result of this report, however the 2022-2023 Operational Plan will need to be amended to include the approved carry-over projects to be completed this financial year. There may be a subsequent impact on delivery of the 2022-2023 Operational Plan and this will be monitored via the monthly budget review process.

Financial and Economic Implications

The attached report outlines the carry-over projects and the amount of the carry-over for each project. By carrying over the remaining budgets for these projects, funding will be available in 2022-2023 to undertake the works remaining on these projects.

Attachments

1. 2021-2022 Carry-Over Projects / Amounts

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 11.15

Subject: Investments - July 2022

Presented by: Business and Performance, Ashley Grummitt

Alignment with Delivery Program

1.5.1 Manage Council’s financial assets and provide accurate, timely and reliable information.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council note the Investment Report for the month of July 2022.

Executive Summary

· Total funds invested as at 31 July 2022 was $417,713,843.

· Interest for the month of July was $605,122.

· The year-to-date investment income of $605,122 represents 12% of the total annual investment income budget of $5,173,100.

· Council’s total investment portfolio performance for the financial year to date was 0.29% above the benchmark (1.74% against 1.45%), benchmark being the Bank Bill reference rate as at 31 July 2022.

The following outlines the significant points identified in the attached Monthly Investment Report (Attachment 1), as provided by Council’s investment advisors:

· Council’s portfolio has met compliance requirements and outperformed benchmarks during the month.

· Over the past 12 months, the portfolio has returned 1.56% p.a., strongly outperforming bank bills by 1.34% p.a.

· Markets are now factoring in the possibility of a global recession as early as the second half of 2023. The RBA is expected to increase the official cash rate by another 50bp to 1.85% in early August 2022 and is looking to move towards their neutral setting of 2.5% by calendar year-end.

· The biggest risk to Council’s portfolio has been decreasing interest income while interest rates remain low, as opposed to loss of capital, noting that markets are factoring in additional rate increases over the coming months.

· Council’s exposure to institutions that fund fossil fuels is 67% of the total portfolio.

· Port Macquarie-Hasting Council remains amongst the best performing Councils in NSW where deposits are concerned, earning on average, $3m in additional interest income compared to its peers.

Discussion

Council has engaged Imperium Markets to provide both an investment management platform and investment advisory service. This decision was based on the need to provide more rigour and transparency around investment choices and to provide a sound framework to support the need for increased financial sustainability into the future.

The attached investment report and portfolio (Attachment 2) provides detailed information on the performance of Council’s investment portfolio.

Overview

Councils are often large and diverse organisations which have many regulatory and compliance requirements including how to raise revenue, and how that can be spent. For context, Port Macquarie-Hastings Council is a large regional Council with an annual expenditure of approximately $200 million. Whilst every Council has some similarities, they often have characteristics that may set them apart. Port Macquarie-Hastings Council is a large regional Council with high development activity and is also a water authority. These points are relevant in the context of Council reserves / investments. Following is a summary outline of the main areas that have seen an increase in reserves being collected.

Development Activity

This Council has experienced large development growth in recent years and this cycle of activity has seen larger amounts of developer contributions being received during those years. The purpose of these contributions is to fund infrastructure associated with the growth of an area and consequently are for new infrastructure and are future focussed. The funds cannot be spent on existing infrastructure. There are specific contribution plans which dictate which projects can be funded from these funds and many of the projects are not ready for completion yet (or are not yet needed as growth levels do not yet require the infrastructure). To complicate matters, Council’s cannot spend these funds on projects that are not listed in the relevant contribution plans.

Water and Sewer

Port Macquarie-Hastings Council is a water authority. Not every Council is (as separate Water Authorities exist for example, Sydney Water and Hunter Water). The provision of water and sewer services requires large capital investment, with large projects often occurring cyclically and requiring a combination of reserve funds and borrowing to fund these large infrastructure requirements.

Current Investments

Council is required to undertake investments in accordance with section 625 of the Local Government Act 1993. This report provides details of Council’s investments, and certifies that all funds that Council has invested as at 31 July 2022, comply with this Act. All investments have been made in accordance with the Act and Regulations, and Council’s Investment Policy.

As at 31 July 2022, the investments held by Council totalled $417,713,843 and were attributed to the following funds:

General Fund*	191,058,135
Waste Fund	22,619,204
Water Fund	138,188,094
Sewer Fund	64,173,378
Broadwater	1,616,552
Sanctuary Springs	58,480
	417,713,843

*Includes funds collected from development that must be expended in relation to adopted contribution plans. Also includes funds collected for works on the Port Macquarie Town Centre Master Plan.

Whilst the current level of investments remains high, these largely relate to funds which have legal restrictions (for example water and sewer), or for funds held for specific purposes.

These funds may be spent in the shorter or longer term depending on the required timing of future works. The totals will fluctuate dependent on the status of individual projects.

It is noted that there is a variance between the total investments held as per this report, ($417,713,843), and total investments held as per Imperium’s attached monthly report ($417,711,033). This is due to the fact that Council’s accounting policy treatment means that floating rate notes (FRNs) are held at amortised cost, whereas they are included at fair value in Imperium’s report.

In relation to Council’s exposure to financial institutions that fund fossil fuels, the following table provides a summary:

Financial institutions funding fossil fuels	Purchases since 01/07/22 ($)	Purchases since 01/07/22 (%)	Amount invested at 31/07/22 ($)	Amount invested at 31/07/22 (%)
Yes	0.00	0%	281,713,843	67%
No	0.00	0%	136,000,000	33%
	0.00		417,713,843

It is noted that if ICBC is considered to fund fossil fuel industries, the amount invested in the ‘yes’ category would be 83%.

Staff are currently undertaking a broader review in conjunction with Imperium Markets against the information reported via the “marketforces.org.au” website. Commentary on fossil fuel investments is provided by Imperium Markets in the attached Monthly Investment Report (Attachment 1).

The following graph shows total investments on a rolling 12-month basis:

The value of Council’s investments as at 31 July has remained the same as 30 June 2022 due to no new investments being made during July.

Options

This is an information report.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

Council uses the services of an independent financial advisor, on an ongoing basis with investments. Council obtains regular updates regarding market activities positions from various institutions.

Planning and Policy Implications

There are no planning and policy implications in relation to this report.

Financial and Economic Implications

Benchmark and budget levels have been met on a year to date basis. On an annual basis, if benchmark levels are not reached, then this may result in budget cuts in other areas to fund the shortfall.

Council’s total investment portfolio performance for the financial year to date is 0.29% above the benchmark (1.74% against 1.45%) and year to date income is 12% of the total annual budget.

It should be noted that investment income is noted as a gross amount. Section 97(5) of the Local Government Act 1993 indicates that any security deposit held with Council must be repaid with interest accrued. These security deposits will only relate to bonds held for security to make good damage done to works.

The overall investment income will be adjusted at financial year end by the total interest refunded on repayment of bonds. As Council constantly receives and refunds bonds, it is difficult to accurately determine the quantum of these refunds.

Certification

I hereby certify that the investments listed within this report were made in accordance with Section 625 of the Local Government Act 1993, clause 212 of the Local Government (General) Regulation 2005 and Council’s Investment Policy.

Nicole Spencer

Responsible Accounting Officer

Attachments

1. Port Macquarie-Hastings Council Investment Report - July 2022

2. Port Macquarie-Hastings Council Portfolio Valuation - July 2022

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 11.16

Subject: Improvement Plan - General Fund Operating Performance

Presented by: Business and Performance, Ashley Grummitt

Alignment with Delivery Program

1.5.1 Manage Council’s financial assets and provide accurate, timely and reliable information.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the importance of the key financial and asset ratios, and in particular the Operating Performance ratio, as indicators of Council’s long term financial sustainability.

2. Note the Improvement Plan as outlined in this report to address the General Fund operating performance ratio over the coming years.

3. Request the Chief Executive Office provide biannual update reports to Council in February and August each year detailing progress made against the Improvement Plan.

Executive Summary

This report provides an outline of the Improvement Plan proposed to address Council’s financial sustainability, in particular the General Fund operating performance ratio and infrastructure backlog over the coming years.

The Operating Performance ratio measures Council’s achievement of containing its operating expenditure within operating income, and is measured as a percentage “Operating Revenue excluding capital grants and contributions minus Operating Expenses, divided by Operating Revenue excluding capital grants and contributions”.

The benchmark set by the Office of Local Government for this ratio is 0% or greater.

An operating deficit occurs when operating expenses are greater than operating income.

Discussion

At the Extraordinary Council meeting held on 28 April 2022, Council considered a report on the suite of draft Integrated Planning and Reporting documents prior to public exhibition, and resolved as follows:

06.02 DRAFT DELIVERY PROGRAM 2022-2026, DRAFT RESOURCING STRATEGY, DRAFT OPERATIONAL PLAN AND BUDGET 2022-2023

RESOLVED: Roberts/Pinson

That Council:

1. Place the following Draft Integrated Planning and Reporting (IP&R) documents on public exhibition for a period of not less than 28 days:

a. Draft Delivery Program 2022 - 2026

b. Draft Resourcing Strategy 2022 - 2026, with the following components:

i) Long Term Financial Plan

ii) Workforce Management Strategy

iii) Asset Management Strategy

c. Draft Operational Plan 2022 - 2023

d. Draft Fees and Charges 2022 - 2023

e. Draft Revenue Policy 2022 - 2023

f. Draft Rating Maps 2022- 2023.

2. Note that as per the Council Resolution dated 16 February 2022 Item 09.09 Notice of Motion - Rate Freeze, the draft 2022 - 2023 Operational Plan has been prepared with Ordinary and Special Rates retained at the 2021 - 2022 level, and the draft Long Term Financial Plan has been prepared with Ordinary and Special Rates retained at the 2021 - 2022 level for the period 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2025 inclusive.

3. Note that as per the Council Resolution dated 16 February 2022 Item 12.03 Notice of Motion - Town Centre Master Plan, the draft 2022 - 2023 Operational Plan (and the draft Long Term Financial Plan) have been prepared with the removal of the Town Centre Master Plan (TCMP) component from the Port Macquarie CBD business rate sub-category.

4. For the reasons outlined in the body of the report, note that the Chief Executive Officer will prepare an Improvement Plan to address the general fund operating performance ratio over the coming years and will present a report to a future meeting of Council for consideration.

5. Note that a further report will be tabled at the June 2022 meeting of Council detailing the submissions received from the public during the exhibition period.

6. Note the additional funding for projects of strategic importance across the 2022-23 and 2023-24 financial years:

a. Lorne Road $5M

b. Footpath works $3.47M

c. Bridges and Road Resealing Works of $5M

d. Drainage Maintenance and Renewals $5M

e. Parks and Recreation areas maintenance and renewals $2M

f. Tree maintenance $600K

7. Note the strategic use of Council Reserves to deliver additional works.

8. Make provision in the final 2022 - 2026 Delivery Program, 2022 - 2023 Operational Plan and Budget a Contingency allocation of $20M from Reserves and or loan borrowings as appropriate for possible contribution to dollar-for-dollar or co-contribution funding opportunities for significant road, footpath/cycleway, water, sewer or water security projects of strategic importance, for use in collaboration with the State and or Commonwealth Governments, noting that any funds to be allocated, first be the subject of a Report to Council before commitment and or expenditure.

9. Provide as part of the 2022 - 2023 Suite of Documents for approval at the June 2022 Ordinary Council Meeting, a detailed Program of Total Works for the financial year ahead.

CARRIED: 6/3

FOR: Griffiths, Lipovac, Maltman, Pinson, Roberts and Slade

AGAINST: Edwards, Intemann and Sheppard

This report addresses Resolution 4 above, and the requirement for the Chief Executive Officer to prepare an Improvement Plan to address the General Fund operating performance ratio over the coming years and to present a report to a future meeting of Council for consideration.

The benchmark set by the Office of Local Government for this ratio is 0% or greater.

An operating deficit occurs when operating expenses are greater than operating income.

The Long Term Financial Plan adopted by Council at the Extraordinary Council meeting held on 29 June 2022 included the following graph of Council’s operating performance over the next 10 years, forecasting significant General Fund operating deficits.

While Council currently has a strong balance sheet position with strong cash and investment reserves, noting that the majority of these are externally restricted by legislation, it is clear from the above graph that Council will face some financial challenges in the years ahead. In addition, the key asset ratios present some challenges, in particular the asset renewals ratio which impacts the overall infrastructure backlog. We need to focus on generating operating surpluses to ensure that we can continue to meet our community’s expectations and maintain our infrastructure through higher investment in asset maintenance and renewals.

To address this issue, and generate operating surpluses in future years to support the long term financial sustainability of Council and facilitate the required levels of asset maintenance and renewals, a targeted Improvement Plan (see Attachment 1) has been developed. This Plan will include the following key components / reviews:

· Long Term Financial Plan (LTFP)

· Business rating model (including TCMP / CBD business rate)

· Asset Management

· Workforce Management

· Transformation Program

· Technology Improvements (DT Roadmap)

· Service Reviews, including service level, efficiency reviews.

Other improvement initiatives may be added to the Plan in line with the Australian Business Excellence Framework subject to the outcome of the above reviews. Each of the components identified above will contribute in part to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the delivery of Council services to our community, within the financial resources available.

Long Term Financial Plan

The Long Term Financial Plan (LTFP) is an important part of Council’s strategic planning process. It is a decision making and problem solving tool that is designed to inform and plan for the financial needs and implications arising from Imagine 2050 (our Community Strategic Plan (CSP), Delivery Plan (DP) and Operational Plan (OP). It captures the financial impacts of asset and resource management, as well as service delivery, and covers 10 year projections of revenue, operating expenditure, capital projects and funding sources.

The review of the LTFP aims to ensure that our LTFP tool / model has the functionality and flexibility to support Council’s long term sustainability and financial planning functions in line with industry best practice.

Business rating model (including TCMP / Port Macquarie CBD business rate)

The review of Council’s business rating model has been identified as a priority action by Council (refer Ordinary Council Meeting held on 16 February 2022, and Extraordinary Council Meeting held on 7 March 2022). This component of the Improvement Plan is complementary to the LTFP, and will involve a detailed independent review of Council’s business rating model including the TCMP component of the Port Macquarie CBD business rate, historical TCMP processes and management structures, and will provide recommendations for the funding options and rating structures for future development and maintenance of the Port Macquarie CBD and potentially other defined urban centres across the local government area.

Asset Management

Council owns and manages a broad range of valuable community assets. These assets are valued at over $2.6 billion.

Our asset management practices vary in levels of maturity depending upon the asset class. Recent attention and improvements to our practice means that we are reviewing each of our current asset plans and progressing towards achieving core asset maturity, as defined by the International Infrastructure Management Manual. This work includes reviewing our asset management framework and policies in line with international standards.

The asset management review will provide a critical input to improving Council’s long term financial planning and ensuring that adequate funding is available in future years for the effective maintenance and renewal of our valuable community assets.

Workforce Management

Effective workforce planning is fundamental in meeting the community’s needs now and into the future. Our Workforce Management Strategy outlines our commitment to ensuring we have both the capability and capacity within our workforce to deliver positive outcomes for the organisation and ultimately, for our community.

This component of the Improvement Plan aims to continue to develop and improve our workforce planning capability to support the efficient and effective delivery of services and infrastructure for our community.

Transformation Program

Council has already embarked on an ambitious Transformation Program to ensure we deliver the community's vision to be the most liveable, sustainable, and innovative place in Australia.

The Transformation priorities are: building robust governance, strong leadership, investing in our community infrastructure, and skillful planning for the next seven generations.

This includes a focus on:

· new ways of working

· upgrades to our technology that enhance our customers and employee experience

· updates to our policies and governance frameworks so they’re fit for purpose

· ensuring our staff have a clear focus and direction as part of their work

A key part of the transformation is modernising the way we do key processes, like procurement. Procure 2 Pay (P2P) is a digital solution for our procurement which will revolutionise how we conduct business.

Technology Improvements (DT Roadmap)

The DT Roadmap forms a key component of the Improvement Plan and Transformation Program, and aims to implement a range of technology improvements aligned with business needs to better enable service delivery and better manage data to support effective, data driven, decision making.

Service Reviews

Understanding our community’s expectations around priorities and service levels is a key component of the Integrated Planning & Reporting (IP&R) system. It involves understanding the range of services the community wants, the service standards they expect and the infrastructure that will be required to deliver them.

Undertaking formal service reviews is a fundamental requirement of the IP&R system to encourage continuous improvement in the efficiency and effectiveness of Council’s operations.

Options

This is an information report. It is proposed that the Chief Executive Office provide biannual update reports to Council in February and August each year detailing progress made against the Improvement Plan.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

Internal consultation has been undertaken with:

· Chief Executive Officer

· Executive Team

· Executive Manager Transformation

· Group Manager Financial Services

Planning and Policy Implications

There are no planning and policy implications in relation to this report however the components of the Improvement Plan will contribute to improving the maturity of Council’s planning and policy framework, for example asset management, long term financial plan etc.

Financial and Economic Implications

The Improvement Plan will be funded via ongoing budget allocations across a number of areas such as Transformation and Digital Technology. Relevant procurement processes will be followed for the individual components as required. This will include verifying that there is an approved budget / funding source for the work. Should further Council approval be required for these allocations, this approval will be sought through the monthly finance reports.

Attachments

1. General Fund Operating Performance Improvement Plan

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 11.17

Subject: Glasshouse Biannual Report and Update on Glasshouse Plan 2020 - 2022 Actions

Presented by: Business and Performance, Ashley Grummitt

Alignment with Delivery Program

1.5.3 Develop, manage and maintain Council Business Units through effective commercial management.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council note the information provided in the Glasshouse Biannual Report and Update on Glasshouse Plan 2020 - 2022 Actions report.

Executive Summary

This report provides details of the Glasshouse finances for the 2021-22 financial year (as at 30 June 2022), including the updated status of Glasshouse loan balances.

The Report also provides an update on progress achieved against the Actions identified in the Glasshouse Plan 2020 – 2022.

Glasshouse operations were impacted during the financial year as a result of COVID-19 and associated Public Health Order restrictions, including a venue shutdown between 15 August and 14 September 2021. The venue returned to 100% capacity with unrestricted access to patrons on 15 December 2021.

Discussion

At the Ordinary Council Meeting held on 15 February 2017, Council resolved to replace quarterly Glasshouse reporting to Council with six monthly reporting in February and August each year detailing key performance measures and financial information for the previous financial year period:

Accordingly, this report provides details of the Glasshouse finances for the 2021-22 financial year as at 30 June 2022, including the updated status of Glasshouse loan balances, and provides an update on progress against the Actions identified in the adopted Glasshouse Plan 2020 - 2022.

Glasshouse Finances

This report and the attached Financial Statement present the financial performance of the Glasshouse Venue for the fourth quarter of the 2021-22 financial year (1 April 2022 to 30 June 2022) and the overall 2021-22 financial year (1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022), and is indicative of an end of year result. End of year journals relating to Council overhead distributions are yet to occur. For the purposes of this report, the annual budgeted figure for Council overheads has been used.

The commentary in this report refers to the operating deficit / shortfall (before interest and depreciation).

Income received in the fourth quarter of the 2021-22 financial year (1 April 2022 to 30 June 2022) was 26% higher than budget, reflecting strong performance during this period as COVID restrictions eased.

While forecasting the impact of COVID-19 restrictions was challenging throughout the year, in summary, while income is down 17% on the 2021-22 annual budget, operating costs have also been reduced by 17%, resulting in the operating deficit at 30 June 2022 being under budget - a position that is $453,605 better than predicted.

The operating deficit for the financial year to 30 June 2022 (before interest and depreciation) is a deficit/shortfall of $2,136,440 against a budget of $2,590,045.

To provide some historical context on the end of year result, the deficit / shortfall for the Glasshouse for the 2011-12 financial year was $3,020,491. The annual operating results since this time are represented below:

Following a change in strategic direction, the average operating deficit has been in the order of $2.1 million per annum since 2014-15. The increase in 2019-20 was a direct result of COVID-19 and the closure of the venue in March 2020. During the fourth quarter of the 2019-20 financial year, no net income was received, however operating costs were still incurred with staff managing the significant number of event cancellations, reschedules and promotor refunds, along with crediting, transferring or refunding patron tickets during the period.

While the venue has again been impacted by COVID-19 restrictions through the 2021-22 financial year, income and expenditure have been able to be monitored closely in order to effectively manage the business in line with NSW Government public health orders, capacity restrictions, and corresponding venue utilisation to achieve a successful year-end budget position.

Glasshouse Loan Balances

Loan borrowings assisted in the funding of the Glasshouse at the time of construction. Of the total cost, $27,975,954 was sourced through loan borrowings that are repaid through Council general revenue. It should be noted that there was also $10,873,801 sourced through loan borrowings that are paid from the S94 restricted asset for community facilities. Councils often use borrowing as a way to fund additional infrastructure whilst maintaining intergenerational equity outcomes.

The outstanding balance of the borrowings that are repaid through general revenue, as at 30 June 2022, is $6,249,162. This demonstrates that approximately $21.7 million has already been repaid, with loans expected to be repaid by 2027.

Glasshouse Plan 2020 - 2022 Actions

At the Ordinary Council Meeting held on 15 July 2020, Council adopted the Glasshouse Plan 2020 - 2022.

Progress achieved against the key outcomes and actions identified in the adopted Plan is summarised in the attached Update on Glasshouse Plan 2020 - 2022 Actions - August 2022 with some specific outcomes discussed below.

4.7 Cultural performance measure

The following table includes Key Performance Indicator (KPI) data associated with Glasshouse utilisation and occupancy rates (noting that the results are reported to 30 June 2022):

Performance Indicator	2018-19 Actual	2019-20 Actual	2020-21 Actual	2021-22 Actual
Visitation (Glasshouse)	266,766	196,967	97,584	86,831
Visitation (Gallery)	61,534	31,286	28,448	22,648
Visitation (VIC)	57,424	56,740	N/A	N/A
Visitation (website)	183,646	146,738	125,415	161,106
Utilisation (%) (theatre)	50%	32%	18%	25%
Utilisation (%) (studio)	32%	35%	20%	22%
Utilisation (%) (meeting rooms)	42%	28%	23%	18%
Average attendance (%) (theatre)	73%	70%	51%	61%
Average attendance (%) (studio)	83%	72%	63%	51%
Number of tickets processed	78,947	47,058	37,427	33,269
Percentage of tickets sold online	33%	44%	30%	48%

The KPI results show the impact on visitation and utilisation of the COVID-19 capacity restrictions.

In line with the strong financial performance achieved in the fourth quarter, the Glasshouse delivered the following events during the April to June 2022 period:

· Adelaide Writers Week

· Guess How Much I love You - 2 performances

· Girls with Altitude - 3 performance

· Luke Kidgell - 2 performances

· Mirusia

· Rocking Through the Ages

· The Songs of James Taylor & Carole King

· Echoes of Pink Floyd

· The Tap Pack

· The Celebration of Swing

· 3 Legends

· CSU - Graduation

· Black Cockatoo

· Kate Miller-Heidke

· Dreams Just Wild About Harry

· Gala Night of Dance - 3 performances

· Peter Williams

· La Vive Studios Film Screening

· Sydney Writers Festival

· Sydney Symphony Orchestra

· Opera Australia Children’s Chorus Auditions and Rehearsals

· Arj Barker

· I Am Sailing

· A Salute to Roy Orbison

· Creedence Clearwater Revival Show

· Cosentino

· Ross Noble

· Teddy Tahu Rhodes, Josh Piterman & Guy Noble in Concert

· World of Musicals

· Jane Eyre - 2 performances

· Melbourne Comedy Festival

· LEAP

· An Afternoon at the Proms

· Stars on Hastings Dance for Cancer

· Queen Forever

· PMPA Mid-Year Showcase

· David Strassman

· As Seen on TV

· Backstage Beauty School

· Amy Shark

· To the Lighthouse

· Lower North Coast Festival

· U3a Seniors Variety Concert

· 29 non-performance events in the conference and meeting rooms.

Options

This is an information report.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

The information provided in this report has been reviewed by Council staff.

Planning and Policy Implications

This report is consistent with the key outcomes, actions and governance and reporting arrangements identified in the adopted Glasshouse Plan 2020 - 2022.

Financial and Economic Implications

The attached Financial Statement provides details of the Glasshouse finances for the 2021-22 financial year as at 30 June 2022, including the updated status of Glasshouse loan balances.

The impacts of the pandemic and the associated public health orders have been challenging across the industry. From a financial perspective, while income is down 17% on the 2021-22 annual budget, operating costs have also been reduced by 17%, resulting in the operating deficit at 30 June 2022 being under budget - a position that is $453,605 better than predicted and a successful year-end budget result.

Attachments

1. Glasshouse Financial Statement - 30 June 2022

2. Update on Glasshouse Plan 2020 - 2022 Actions - August 2022

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 11.20

Subject: Policy Review - Compliance and Enforcement Policy - Post Public Exhibition

Presented by: Community, Planning and Environment, Melissa Watkins

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:

1. Adopt the Compliance and Enforcement Policy.

2. Rescind the Regulatory Enforcement Policy.

Executive Summary

At the Ordinary Council Meeting held on 16 June 2022, Council resolved to place the draft Compliance and Enforcement Policy on public exhibition.

The draft Policy (Attachment 1) was subsequently placed on public exhibition from 23 June 2022 to 21 July 2022. During the exhibition period, two (2) submissions were received suggesting changes to the proposed amended Policy.

Discussion

At the Ordinary Council meeting held on 16 June 2022, Council resolved as follows:

11.08 POLICY REVIEW - COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT POLICY

BLOCK RESOLVED: Roberts/Lipovac

That Council:

1. Publicly exhibit the revised draft Enforcement Policy for a period of not less than 28 days.

2. Note that a further report will be tabled at the July 2022 meeting of Council, detailing the submissions received from the public during the exhibition period.

This revised Policy outlines how Council will respond to, investigate and enforce matters of alleged unlawful activity for which Council is the regulatory authority. In particular, maintaining effective communication with customers and carrying out the quickest and most informal enforcement option with the aim of achieving compliance and education with the most effective use of Council resources.

The Compliance and Enforcement Policy, previously titled the Regulatory Enforcement Policy, was developed based on both the previous Policy and the NSW Ombudsman Model Compliance and Enforcement Policy for Councils.

Following public consultation, the Draft Compliance and Enforcement Policy (Attachment 1) has been reviewed with the following additions/amendments to wording as shown in bold below:

1. Section 1 Introduction:

The policy intends to outline the procedures, methodology and service levels to be applied, based on risk management principles, when responding to reports of alleged unlawful activity from members of the community, government agencies and staff.

2. Section 2.2 Confidentiality:

The identity of a person may be apparent due to the nature or location of the matter being investigated. Council may have to disclose information that identifies a person in the following cases:

3. Section 2.2 What Council expects from people who report allegations of unlawful activity:

Council expects that wherever possible, attempts have been made to resolve an issue directly with the person carrying out the activity prior to reporting the matter to Council.

4. Section 2.8 Role of Council where there is a private certifier:

The Council will lodge concerns with NSW Fair Trading, through the CEO or delegated officer, if it considers that a PCA has not acted in accordance with their obligations under legislation or has not acted in the public interest.

Public Exhibition

The public exhibition period is now complete with the outcomes of the exhibition process discussed below.

There were:

· 105 visits to Council’s engagement website page during the exhibition period.

· Twenty-eight documents were downloaded or viewed.

· Two (2) submissions were received, recommending minor changes to the proposed Policy.

A summary of the submission issues raised are detailed in the attached Engagement Report (Attachment 2). Issues and responses are also included in the table below.

Options

Council has the option to amend or not to amend the Compliance and Enforcement Policy identified within this report or seek additional information.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

Community Engagement

The draft Policy was placed on public exhibition from 23 June 2022 to 21 July 2022. The following tables summarise the submissions and provides responses.

Submission Compliance and Enforcement Policy			Issue
	Submission 1		1. Define why no investigation was required. 2. Ensure confidentiality of the people who report allegations. 3. Private Certifiers Private certifiers must follow Council building and construction compliance. Private certifiers must notify surrounding landowners, providing 14 days waiting period for replies. Replies must be responded to within 7 days. Improve objection process to private certifiers design / building proposals. Stronger policy required for private certifiers to obtain development consent and/or compliance certificate.
	*Response/* *Comment*:	1. The Policy details circumstances to be considered in determining enforcement action to be taken. Outcomes are communicated to the customer where possible. 2. As outlined in the policy there are circumstances where disclosure may be appropriate. Council staff maintain confidentiality unless these circumstances apply and will advise the customer if details must be released. Note an addition has been made to the policy to clarify that the identify of a person may be apparent due to the nature or location of the matter being investigated (example: a complaint about a light shining in a window) 3. Department of Fair Trading is the regulatory authority for breaches of legislation or business practices relating to private certifiers

Submission Compliance and Enforcement Policy			Issue
	Submission 2		1. Staff were not consulted or made aware of the draft policy. 2. Reports not only received from members of the community but are also received from government agencies, businesses and staff. 3. Introduction needs to be condensed to focus on compliance section vision, responsibilities, objectives, purpose and principles and should include statements on education, enforcement, accountability and maintaining community confidence. 4. Less focus on keeping informant updated due to limited resources and staff. 5. Sections of the draft need to be clear in what is required by Council, and that the identity may be apparent due to nature or location of the issue. 6. Policy should promote good neighbourly relations, encouraging neighbours to resolve their concerns prior to involving Council. 7. Suggestion to simplify by removing tables for risk categories and response timeframes for prioritising investigations. 8. Section 2.4 as it is written is the wrong approach and suggests enforcement action should not consider the full circumstances, facts of the matter and the public interest but instead be based on the legislative breach, the environmental impact and whether the subject is a recidivist offender. 9. Expanded list of enforcement options provided. Draft Policy lacks information on prosecution and legal proceedings. 10. Section 2.6 should change in wording from "A decision whether or not to implement proceedings will not be influenced by:" to "Council and staff have to ensure that its exercise of prosecutorial discretion is not influenced by any inappropriate considerations, such as:" 11. Section 2.8 should state that all accredited certifiers are subject to the Building and Development Certifiers Regulation 2020 and if a breach is detected by Council a complaint will be lodged with the department of Fair Trading to investigate and take their own action. Further, there should not be any decision or leniency towards a potential breach by a private certifier when Council is not the regulator, preventing corruption or favouritism by Council staff towards private certifiers. 12. Section 2.9 of the policy should state any involvement, interruption or influence to a Council officer in the carrying out of an investigation or prosecution from a Councillor or the Mayor should be reported by the CEO to the NSW Independent Commissions Against Corruption. There should be no association from Councillors or the Mayor within compliance and enforcement. 13. The draft policy should include the enforcement of all Acts and their associated Regulations, Standard and Rules administered by Council staff.
	*Response/* *Comment*:	1. Consultation was carried out with staff as detailed in the report. 2. Reports from staff, business and government could still be considered as coming from members of the community however amended to include government agencies and staff. 3. Policy is not limited to Compliance section. Purpose, objectives, meeting community expectations are included under Policy Statement and Scope section. 4. Communication with our customers is essential to managing expectations and achieving outcomes. Customer service is to be improved with responses to be provided for all enquiries within agreed service levels. 5. Amended to include "The identity of a person may be apparent due to the nature or location of the matter being investigated." 6. Added to Section 2.2 -“Council expects that wherever possible, attempts have been made to resolve an issue directly with the person carrying out the activity prior to reporting the matter to Council.” 7. Table is not intended to be exhaustive and include examples only of the types of incidents. Focus is on which risk category incidents fit into to determine the response timeframe. Further detail can be included in internal procedures. No amendment required. 8. No changes considered necessary. Approach is consistent with model NSW policy and considerations suggested are included when considering the full circumstances and facts of the matter. 9. No changes considered necessary. Suggestions are an expansion of options already provided. Could be included in an internal procedure if further detail is required. Similarly, prosecution processes are more suited to an internal procedure and will usually be guided by legal representation. 10. Wording change would not alter intent. No amendment required. 11. Current wording is essentially supporting this position. Change 'may' to 'will'. Also include 'or delegated officer'. 12. CEO and Code of Conduct determines process to be followed for non-compliance with Council policy. CEO or Council may resolve to deal with any matter in the manner it chooses, providing it is legal. 13. Policy applies to the whole of the organisation with topics covered by the policy listed in Section 2. Legislation, Standards, rules and guidelines are continually changing and policy would require updating regularly if these were listed to remain current. Internal procedure may be more appropriate for this information.

Internal Consultation

The draft Policy was distributed for comment directly to the following staff, many of who are authorised officers, and feedback has been incorporated where relevant:

· Director Community, Planning and Environment

· Group Manager Customer Experience and Communications

· Group Manager Development Assessment

· Governance and Legal Officer

· Environment and Regulatory Services Group

· Development Assessment Planning Coordinator

· Building Certification Coordinator

· Senior Arborist

· Trade Waste Inspector

· Senior Leadership Team

Planning and Policy Implications

This report recommends amendments to the current Council Policy, being the Regulatory Enforcement Policy 2017. This Policy will be repealed and if adopted, it will be replaced with the new Compliance and Enforcement Policy.

Financial and Economic Implications

There are no financial or economic implications in relation to this report.

Attachments

1. Compliance and Enforcement Policy

2. Engagement Report - Compliance and Enforcement Policy

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 12.05

Subject: Recreation Action Plan - Annual Update

Presented by: Community, Planning and Environment, Melissa Watkins

Alignment with Delivery Program

2.3.2 Provide a range of inclusive sporting and recreational opportunities and facilities to encourage a healthy and active lifestyle.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note progress achieved to date in implementing the current Recreation Action Plan 2021-2025

2. Note that a further report will be provided to October 2022 Council meeting with an updated draft Recreation Action Plan for Council’s consideration

Executive Summary

The original Recreation Action Plan (the Plan) was developed using information from the Recreation Needs Study (produced by ROSS Planning in 2014), as well as consultation with the community, land managers, government agencies and other organisations with an interest in sport and recreation.

The purpose of the Plan was to outline sport and recreation project priorities for future implementation. These were determined over a ten-year annual program to ensure the current and future needs of sport and recreation in the Port Macquarie - Hastings were met.

The purpose of this report is to inform Council of key actions within the Recreation Action Plan that have commenced or been completed during the 2021-2022 financial year, and to present the approach to developing an updated Recreation Action Plan to Council for consideration.

Discussion

In August 2021, Council endorsed the updated Recreation Action Plan 2021-2025 (Attachment 1) for implementation.

The Plan identifies three timelines for delivery of priority projects:

Immediate 2021-2022

Short term 2022-2023

Medium term 2023-2024 to 2024-2025

A significant number of the Recreation Action Plan 2021-2025 Priority Actions have commenced or been completed providing benefits to passive recreational users and organised sports across the LGA. Prioritisation of delivery of these projects was needed due to the impact on resources following severe weather events with some projects being paused within the planning phase.

Progress continued to be made on planning against Council’s four major sporting infrastructure projects that will address capacity demand constraints across our rapidly growing region. Construction commenced on the Rainbow Beach Sporting Fields, concept design commenced for the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility and detailed design on the Thrumster Sporting Fields and the Hastings Regional Sporting Complex continued. Noting the significant resourcing requirements associated with delivery of these projects, re-prioritisation of each was considered at the July 2022 Ordinary meeting of Council whereby it was resolved:

That Council:

1. Note the information contained within this report.

5. Through the Chief Executive Officer, provide a report to Council on the outcome of discussions with the Federal and State Members prior to a specific order of prioritisation.

carried: 5/3

For: Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Roberts and Slade

Against: Edwards, Griffiths and Sheppard

Following the above resolution, all four major sporting infrastructure projects will be identified as short term priorities for delivery in the updated Recreation Action Plan.

An overview of the delivery of outcomes in the last 12 months under the Recreation Action Plan 2021-2025 is presented in the table below:

Area	Facility	Project Detail	Status
Camden Haven	Laurieton Sports Complex	Commence Master Plan Upgrades	Complete
	Camden Haven Surf Club Building	Design and approvals for replacement of facility	Planning commenced. Land tenure issue with reserve to be resolved.
	Kendall Tennis Club	Construct tennis Court	Complete
	Riverview Reserve, North Haven	Playground Upgrade	Yet to commence. Land tenure issue with reserve to be resolved
King Creek	Narran Park	Playground replacement at end of useful life	Complete
Lake Cathie / Bonny Hills	Bonny Hills Community Hall Reserve	Playground Upgrade	Complete
	Rainbow Beach Sports Fields	Commence Construction of Stage 1	Construction underway. Completion due end 2022.
	Community Reserve, Lake Cathie	Construction of Basketball Court	Complete
	Rainbow Beach Reserve	Reserve Upgrade	Complete
Port Macquarie	Blair Reserve, Lighthouse Beach	Provision of accessible public toilets	Construction commenced. Completion due end of first quarter of this FY
	John Dick Reserve	Playground replacement	Complete
	Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility	Continue Pre-construction activities	Design process commenced
	Town Beach Reserve	Construct basketball Court	Complete
	Port Macquarie Bicentennial Walk	Continue Pre-construction Activities	Complete
	Port Macquarie Regional Stadium	Sports Facility Upgrade	Commenced. Completion due end 2022.
	Westport Park	Detailed Design for Playground Renewal	Complete.
	Westport Park	Boat Ramp Facility Upgrade	Complete
	Tacking Point Lighthouse Reserve	Accessible Ramp Design and Approvals	Design commenced
	Town Beach Reserve	Detailed Design for Town Beach Amphitheatre	Complete, works to construct to be completed by March 2023
	Town Green West	Construction of Playground	Commenced. Completion due end of first quarter of this FY.
	Wayne Richards Park	Construction of Bike Pump Track	Complete
Telegraph Point	Log Wharf Reserve	Reserve upgrade	Commenced. Completion due end of first quarter of this FY.
Thrumster	Thrumster Sports Fields	Detailed design and approvals.	Commenced. Completion due end 2022.
Wauchope & Hinterland	Bain Park	Detailed Design of Bain Park Revitalisation (Stage 1)	Commenced, with construction to be completed March 2023
	Pioneer Park, Comboyne	Reserve Upgrade	Complete
	Long Flat Recreation Grounds	Reserve Upgrade	Complete
	Hastings Regional Sports Fields	Finalise Detailed Design	Detailed design ongoing (excl. grandstand and indoor centre) scheduled for completion late 2022.
Various	Crown Reserves	Develop Plans of Management for Council Crown Land Managed sites.	Commenced.

In addition to the above projects delivered by Council under the Recreation Action Plan, a number of community and sporting groups have continued to proactively seek funding from Council and other external revenue sources to improve their facilities. Where feasible, Council supports these groups with their endeavours through the provision of letters of support, owner’s consent, reviewing grant funding applications and project guidance/advice. The time and proactive effort of these groups, whom are mostly volunteers) is acknowledged, with significant benefits being achieved for members of our community through these projects.

There are a number of great recreational projects identified as priorities for the current financial year. Current recreational projects identified for delivery under this year’s Operational Plan include, but are not limited to:

· Rainbow Beach Sporting Fields, Lake Cathie/Bonny Hills - stage 1 construction of this new facility is due for completion at the end of 2022. The design for this project has been developed in consultation with a number of key community stakeholder groups who are excited to see this new sport and recreation facility develop within this growth area.

· Hastings Sporting Fields, Wauchope - completion of the detailed design for a majority of this exciting new sport and recreational facility is scheduled for late 2022.

· Thrumster Sporting Fields - detailed design of this new sports facility will be finalised at the end of 2022. Council staff are currently working with developers and sporting stakeholders to progress the project and to investigate options for funding construction of this facility in coming years.

· Wayne Richards Regional Sporting Complex - Design for Stages 3 & 4

· Sports Field Upgrades for Lank Bain (Lighting), Regional Stadium (Drainage) and Wayne Richards Park (Drainage)

· Playground Upgrades for Norrie Reserve (Kendall), Charlie Watt Reserve (Telegraph Point), James Street Reserve (Wauchope), Moroko Park (Pembrooke), Rotary Park (Port Macquarie), Westport Park Livvi’s Place (Port Macquarie), Apex Park (Laurieton) and Endeavour Park (Lake Cathie).

· Bain Park Master Plan Implementation - Construction of Stage 1 to commence including playground upgrade

· Town Beach Amphitheatre - Construction of this new facility will be undertaken this financial year.

· Vince Inmon Sports Ground grandstand - Construction to be undertaken this financial year.

· Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility - Community consultation will continue on this project to inform the final concept design for the facility. Development of a facility concept by the appointed designers will also be accompanied a business case for the facility as well as securing development approvals required for this exciting project to progress. Once a business case has been finalised and developments approvals granted, staff focus will shift to securing funding for this project to progress.

The following priority actions have not been carried forward as Immediate priority projects for the reasons outlined below:

Facility	Project Detail	Project Status
Riverview Reserve, North Haven	Playground Upgrade	Land tenure issue with reserve to be resolved. Discussions with Crown Lands ongoing.
Camden Haven Surf Club Building	Design and approvals for replacement of facility	Land tenure issue with reserve to be resolved. Discussions with Crown Lands ongoing.
North Shore Ferry Reserve	Boat Ramp Renewal	Priority to be reviewed following consultation with the North Shore community for updated Plan.
Flynns Beach Reserve Upgrade	Reserve Upgrade	Design for this project to be identified as immediate priority in the updated Plan. Construction to be a short term priority.
Town Green Central	Reserve Upgrade	Project was reprioritised following consultation with former TCMP sub-committee, to be included in updated Plan as a short term priority
Bindi Close, Wauchope	Playground Upgrade	Condition rating determined as ‘good’. Playground still within guide of 10-year life-cycle. Priority to be updated to short term in the updated Recreation Action Plan.
Ellenborough Reserve	Renewal of Amenities	Project to be identified as an immediate priority in the updated Plan. Budgeted for in 23-24 FY.
Rocks Ferry Reserve	Commence Reserve upgrade	Site greatly impacted by the 2021 and 2022 floods

The Revised Plan - Recreation Action Plan 2023-2028

Due to the significant number of actions in the 2021-2025 Recreation Plan being completed or commenced a new plan needs to be developed in consultation with the community.

The Plan will be updated to reflect the following:

· Changing community, Council and state government priorities;

· Changes of uses of recreation spaces during Covid and the importance of recreation space;

· An assessment of user groups needs today and into the future;

· Opportunities to reduce overall project cost and minimise impact on user groups by aligning project stages where appropriate;

· Condition based asset information, providing clarity as to when assets need to be replaced;

· Likely availability of funding sources and consideration of alternative funding sources; and

· A desire to optimise the use of existing open spaces and recreation faciliities.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

For the current plan consultation occurred with the community, land managers, government agencies, Council staff, and other organisations with an interest in sport and recreation at the time of the implementation of the original Recreation Action Plan.

A range of community engagement activities have been undertaken during the life of the current plan. It included engagement with sporting and community user groups associated with provision of new or upgraded sporting facilities such as the Port Macquarie Aquatic Facility, Hastings Sporting Fields, Rainbow Beach Sports Fields, Thrumster Sporting Fields and Laurieton Sports Complex.

No further engagement was considered necessary in the August 2020 and August 2021 updates given the nature of the updates to the plan reflect the Operational Plan and Port Macquarie-Hastings Open Space Contribution Plan, both of which were adopted following an extensive community engagement process.

Since implementation of the 2020-2025 Recreation Action Plan, a significant number of priorities have been completed or are currently underway. Further our LGA has experienced a number of challenging weather events along with the Covid pandemic which has seen a shift in priorities. It was therefore determined that a detailed review of the current 2021-2025 Recreation Plan was required and that community engagement should take place in updating the Recreation Action Plan to the 2023-2028 version, so that the new Plan reflects current and future community needs.

Engagement activities will include:

· Stage 1: Open consultation – 1 August - 9 September 2022. Open consultation to include HYS targeted to wider community, CCAT’s and Progress Association and direct consultation with sporting user groups via email, phone and site meetings.

· Review engagement findings and prepare draft Recreation Action Plan – 1-30 September 2022.

· Report Draft Recreation Action Plan 2023-2028 to Council, seeking approval for public exhibition – October 2022

· Stage 2: Draft Recreational Action Plan on Public Exhibition 28 days – October/November 2022.

· Report to Council, adoption of Action Plan December 2022.

Options

This report is presented for notation; however, Council may choose to seek additional information.

Planning and Policy Implications

There are no planning and policy implications in relation to this report.

Financial and Economic Implications

Projects identified within the 2021-2025 Recreation Action Plan for delivery in 2022-2023 are included within the adopted 2022-2023 Operational Plan.

Projects identified for delivery from 2023-2024 onward are subject to priority review and budget endorsement through subsequent Operational Plan development, they have been identified in the 10-year Works Program.

The planning and delivery of high-quality recreational and sporting assets is expected to provide a positive economic impact for the Port Macquarie-Hastings LGA by contributing to the area being a great place to live.

Attachments

1. Recreation Action Plan 2021-2025

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 13.03

Subject: Destination Management Plan Annual Update

Presented by: Community, Planning and Environment, Melissa Watkins

Alignment with Delivery Program

3.1.4 Implement the Destination Management Plan.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the second annual progress report on implementation of the 2020-2024 Port Macquarie-Hastings Destination Management Plan.

2. Note the update on performance and challenges for our local visitor economy.

Executive Summary

Implementation of actions under Council’s 2020-2024 Destination Management Plan (DMP) continues the work to manage and enhance our local visitor economy. A diverse range of projects are underway, with progress being achieved as a result of collaboration between Council, the Greater Port Macquarie Tourism Association, regional and state government agencies, National Parks, Forestry Corporation and local business and industry. Priorities and progress of the Plan’s implementation is no longer being overseen by Council’s Economic Development Steering Group. This report provides an update on the implementation since the DMP was adopted 24 months ago.

In addition to implementing the Plan’s actions, it is important to acknowledge that 2021/2022 proved to be very challenging as Australia came to terms with “Living with COVID”. The events of the past 2.5 years have required an additional focus on support for and economic recovery of local business, industry and our economy. This response has been echoed through all levels of government demonstrating the importance of this sector to our economy and local communities.

This report provides an update on progress of implementation of the Destination Management Plan.

Discussion

In adopting the 2020-2024 Destination Management Plan, Council resolved to monitor implementation by way of an annual report on progress against actions.

The Plan was considered to be a renewal rather than a divergence from the previous plan and continued with the following four key strategic priorities:

1. Destination Management

2. Destination Experience Development

3. Destination Event Development

4. Destination Marketing.

Attachment 1provides detail on the range of actions and initiatives that have been completed or progressed in the period since the last report to Council in June 2021.

Some key outcomes over the past twelve months include:

• Finalisation of the Destination Brand Strategy, extensive consultation with community and industry looking to the future and considering how to position the region to manage tourism into the future;

• Finalisation of the delivery of the Tourism Trade and Product Development Project activity, focused on targeting visitors we want to come to the region and increasing yield;

• Finalisation of delivery of a range of Council, State and Federal-funded bushfire and COVID-19 recovery projects;

• Ongoing industry updates as the region continues to navigate recovery;

• Ongoing work with Forestry Corporation, Koala Hospital and Bunyah Land Council to support and facilitate the development of the Guulabaa / Cowarra Tourism precinct;

• Continuation and update of Taste Trails, increasing dispersal of visitors and locals across the region - https://portmacquarieinfo.com.au/whats-on/trip-ideas/trails;

• Development and delivery of the HumanKind Campaign over peak visitor periods to support all local businesses as they struggled to find staff and return to business as usual;

• Development and delivery of an autumn and winter marketing campaign to encourage visitation during a traditional off-peak period. Anecdotal evidence supports high visitation during this period;

• Generated over $2 million worth of positive media coverage for the region to support recovery in a difficult environment;

• Initiation of the Destination Eco Certification, a co-funded bushfire recovery project designed to assess the entire region’s tourism destination management practices and work with industry to adopt more sustainable business practices to save money and manage tourism sustainably into the future, currently on-hold due to NPWS withdrawing support;

• Input to renewal of the Cultural Plan, specifically ensuring continued leverage of Cultural Tourism opportunities;

• Assisting event owners navigating the comeback of major events onto the calendar;

• Altering our criteria for the Major Event Grants to allow sporting events to spend the grant on things other than marketing;

• The team at Port Macquarie-Hastings Council was awarded a Silver Local Government Award for Tourism and the Tourism Star Judges’ Award in the NSW Tourism Awards.

• Partnered with DNSW through the Flagship Funding Program to deliver a digital marketing campaign to drive visitation for ArtWalk 2022 which resulted in a considerable increase in visitors from outside the region attending the event on June 10th.

Priorities for the next 12 months include:

• Refreshing the destination website to reflect the new Destination Brand;

• Development of a new official visitor guide leveraging the new Destination Brand;

• Delivery of Product and Experience development workshops and mentoring to align with the new ‘lifestyle’ Brand, pulling together a wider range of businesses to collaborate and assist in attracting targeted visitors to the region and increase yield;

• Development of a new 3-year Marketing Strategy and implementation of the new brand;

• Continue to work to secure positive media coverage for the region using the new Brand as a lens to differentiate and target visitors we want to visit the region;

• Leverage the new website and product and experience development workshops to deliver a Brand launch campaign strongly targeted to the type of visitor we want in region and increasing their yield;

• Collaboration to continue to support delivery of the Cultural Plan 2021-2025;

• Work with National Parks and Wildlife Service to determine if endorsement can be gained to continue the Destination Eco Certification;

• Scope Industry Crisis Preparedness Project and look for options to collaborate in delivery of the Destination Eco Certification not available;

• On-going efforts to reinvigorate previous and new air services/routes;

• Support to local Tourism Association and business networks;

• Support for IRONMAN;

• Ongoing work with Forestry Corporation, Koala Hospital, Wild Nets and Bunyah Land Council to support and facilitate the development of the Cowarra Tourism precinct.

Destination Management

Over the years Councils have emerged as key players in the development and management of tourism at the destination level, this includes a variety of functions depending on specific regional needs. Now more than ever managing the growth of tourism responsibly and intelligently is critical to preserve destinations for locals and visitors alike. As a traditional and well-loved holiday destination and a high growth area Port Macquarie Hastings Council's involvement and effective management provides capacity to undertake new innovations and respond to trends, it boosts resilience to potential challenges and disruptions, helps avoid social and cultural conflicts and prevents tourism from negatively affecting local values.

Destination Management functions include strategic planning, implementation of the destination management plan, tourism product development, marketing strategies to target ‘identified’ visitors, crisis management, quality improvement and assurance, workforce development, and sustaining the cultural heritage of the destination.

The recent work done to develop and adopt a new Destination Brand is central to Destination Management. Across Australia, there are many destinations and local government areas competing for the attention of potential visitors to ensure a sustainable and vibrant visitor economy. In this context, a distinctive destination brand and identity is the key to success. Brand identity is strongly linked to the value of the destination and an essential driver to implement successful marketing strategies to the target market.

Tourism in NSW is the 2nd largest NSW industry in terms of exports of merchandise and services (behind Mining and ahead of Manufacturing). The recent disruptions have highlighted this importance to our local economy and Australia wide. On the North Coast Tourism supplies 9.4% of the region’s employment including 24,032 persons who are directly employed and a further 8,366 who are indirectly employed. Economically, tourism businesses directly deliver $1.5 billion (5.9%) of the region’s Gross Value Added – over 81% of which is delivered by our Accommodation, Food Service, Retail, Transport and Education establishments. According to the Deloitte 2015-2020 Tourism Labour Force survey, over 78% of tourism job vacancies are filled by local residents of the area where the business is located.

Tourism and the visitor economy play a key role in our region, it affects how our region is perceived, influences liveability for our local community, drives relocation and investment and supports a strong ecosystem of businesses and employment. The Destination Management Plan provides a community endorsed strategic framework to work effectively in this space. Continued delivery of the Destination Management Plan will help Council achieve the vision to be ‘the most liveable, sustainable and innovative place in Australia’.

Options

Council could adopt the recommendations and note the report or request further information.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

Community Engagement

The Strategy implementation is undertaken working with local business and industry, and other levels of Government and relevant stakeholders.

Internal Consultation

Strategy action implementation has been undertaken by/in collaboration with a wide range of Council staff.

Planning and Policy Implications

There are no planning and policy implications in relation to this report.

Financial and Economic Implications

It should be recognised that there is the potential for significant benefits to the visitor economy and local community in the Local Government Area if the outcomes identified in the adopted Plan are achieved.

Attachments

1. Destination Management Plan Reporting Matrix August 2022

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 13.04

Subject: Artwalk - Future Direction

Presented by: Community, Planning and Environment, Melissa Watkins

Alignment with Delivery Program

3.2.1 Support vibrant commercial, tourism, recreational and/or community hubs across the region.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Endorse the continuation of ArtWalk as a signature local event for a further three-year period with the support of a cross-council delivery model including the development of a cross-council representative internal working group.

2. Request that the Chief Executive Officer confirm funding for the recruitment of a Cultural Events Officer to lead event planning and seek additional funding to support event delivery.

Executive Summary

Delivery of the ArtWalk event in June 2022 concluded a resolution from Council in 2019 committing to fund the event and a Cultural Events Officer position to coordinate delivery of two ArtWalk events noting the event was cancelled in 2021 due to COVID. The role was also tasked with delivery of the 2021 Bicentenary. At this time more broadly Council resolved to support the growth of Artwalk to become one of Council’s signature events in 2020 and beyond.

A report to the July 2022 Council meeting provided an event wrap up report and indicated a further report would be put to the August meeting outlining options for future delivery of the event as follows:

That Council:

1. Note the success of the ArtWalk 2022 event.

2. Commend all staff involved with the planning, logistics and for their attendance at the event.

3. Note that a report will be presented to Council in August 2022 outlining options for the future delivery of the event.

ArtWalk as an event has straddled two event categories, it is quite clearly a Cultural Event but over the years it has grown and moved strongly into the Signature Event category, providing an anticipated annual community celebration and spectacle that activates the broader CBD and attracts visitation from outside the region. It is also the only event of this scale and complexity that Council delivers. This gives rise to a range of challenges for Council with resourcing.

It is important to note that initially the ArtWalk event was established as a grassroots cultural arts event to activate the CBD at night and showcase our regions artists/creatives. Throughout the events six-year history, the event offering and footprint has grown substantially; as have the level and number of experiences on offer during the event, alongside the growing expectations of participants and visitors to/of the event. The event now stretches throughout the wider CBD including a number of live activation sites featuring performances by musicians and dancers, digital installations, a significant artists market, a silent disco, interactive workshop sites and more. ArtWalk has certainly blossomed from the once ground-roots arts event it started out as.

Noting the above, and the allocation of funding to deliver the event in 2023 but no resourcing to support delivery, it is timely to consider Council’s commitment to the event, agree a clear strategic direction to drive specific outcomes, and confirm investment required.

This report recommends that Council eendorse the continuation of ArtWalk as a signature local event for a further three-year period with the support of a cross-council delivery model including the development of a cross-council representative internal working group and requests the Chief Executive Officer to confirm funding for a Cultural Events Officer to assist in the delivery of this event.

Discussion

Event Overview

The growth of the ArtWalk over the years means it now necessitates support from across Council. Particularly noting expectations of community, business and the creative industries as evidenced in the data from this year’s surveys detailed below in External Consultation.

To continue to deliver the current successful model for the event demands an integrated cross-Council approach in terms of planning, approvals, management and delivery. The event has out-grown the capacity of one team to deliver, due to its transition to a signature event, and requires significant and specialised resourcing for delivery and increased budget.

There is a strong alignment with the region’s premier cultural venue The Glasshouse, along with expertise in other Council delivery areas including Community, Events, Electrical Services, Roads and Transport, Parks and Recreation, Communications and Waste, underscores responsibility in successful event delivery. The Glasshouse is the natural home for this creative and cultural event and it is proposed that from 2023 onwards there is increased involvement and participation from the venue in event planning and delivery. The event supports delivery of many actions within the Glasshouse Plan.

Funding has been allocated to deliver the event in 2023 only, it does not include resourcing to support event delivery nor is there a clear strategic direction for the event to guide operational efforts. The information detailed below outlines the considerable staff time and budget required to deliver this year’s event. Event funding in 2022 was 60% higher than the current budget for 2023, this was due to COVID and other grant funding secured.

Events and cultural activations are an important part of our place development and instil community pride and ownership in our identity, a sense of place and enhanced liveability. Council’s Cultural Plan talks to 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 ArtWalk in 2023 and beyond, noting limited resources. It suggests that our focus continues to be on developing Artwalk as a local signature event. It recommends that to support the budget allocation in the 2022/23 FY there is allocation from the adopted budget to secure a Cultural Events Officer, and as a priority actively sourcing additional grant funding. Further consideration of a multi-year resourcing commitment will be requested as part of the 2023/24 Council budget development and ongoing strategic grant funding.

Artwalk has been developed and delivered by Council’s Destination and Cultural Development team, 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 and support Council's vision, investment in a dedicated event development and implementation resource is essential alongside the commitment for cross-Council delivery and multi-year funding.

The way ahead

Noting Council’s limited resources and the assessment of opportunities to support the Council vision, it is recommended that our focus continue to be on developing Artwalk as the local signature event for the next three years. Current staffing and budget allocations are not sufficient and it is recommended that Council engage a dedicated Cultural Events Officer and commit to fund event delivery for the same period. This term will cover the event delivery in June 2023 and a subsequent two annual Artwalk events, after which it is recommended another review of Artwalk and its future direction take place.

It recommends that budget for the Cultural Events Officer role be sourced from within the adopted budget this FY, and development of a cross-organisation working group to participate in event planning and delivery. Further, staff will pursue grant funding opportunities and request consideration of resourcing and delivery as part of the 2023/24 Council budget development.

Options

Council may choose to:

1. Resolve as recommended;

2. Request further information from staff on other preferred resourcing options.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

Artwalk engagement and feedback, both internal and external, was noted in the Artwalk 2022 Event Wrap up Report presented for Council consideration at the July 2022 meeting. Internal consultation has been included again to support the recommendation for cross-organisation support and demonstrate the extensive scope of this event.

Internal Consultation

The scope and scale of ArtWalk 2022 required support from 1 FTE position and input from a broad cross-section of Council teams. The table below details the hours these teams worked on the event.

Council Team	Hours	Details
Waste	2	Event Waste processing
Communications	15	Communications launch and promotions
Parks	3	Parks & Reserves Event Processing
Infrastructure	1	Event planning around on-going infrastructure projects
Insurance	21	Event insurance
Glasshouse	10	Additional to paid hours detailed above
Facilities	1	Support with Council facilities
Inclusion	3	Volunteering
Destination & Culture	489	Event Planning, logistics, promotion, set-up and pack-down
Events	33	Event set-up and pack-down
Grants & Ec Dev	16	Grants assistance, event set-up and pack-down
Electrical	60.5	Event planning, set-up and pack-down
Casual labour	8	Labour to assist with infrastructure deliveries and set-up on event day
Casual Art Installer	44.5	Assistance with lanterns installation and other logistics and implementation activities
Totals	707

It is important to note:

· Glasshouse activation including opening the Gallery, programing the light show and technical equipment and support for live sites was paid out of the budget and totalled $8,000.

· Staff time for electrical assistance was also paid and totalled $3,862 however the use of equipment was supplied as in-kind support.

Council staff support totalled approximately 707 hours, or 20 weeks, alongside the full time equivalent (FTE) Cultural Events Officer role. Staff time was funded primarily from existing salary lines. Significant staff time is required across the organisation to deliver this event.

Internal Consultation:

· Community Team - Facilities, Inclusion,

· Electrical Services

· Parks & Recreational Services

· Glasshouse

· Roads & Transport

· Communications

Planning and Policy Implications

The support and delivery of Events is identified through our Community Strategic Plan which links to a range of adopted documents including the Inclusion Plan, Cultural Plan, Events Plan and Destination Management Plan. Support for major events has historically been identified through our Economic Development Strategy.

ArtWalk is identified in the 2022-2023 Operational Plan under Liveability - Lead Delivery Strategy: L 3.3 Foster a community that celebrates arts, culture, innovation and creativity and our connection to place, Principal Activity: Cultural Development.

It is clear from the ArtWalk survey results that events improve community perceptions of liveability. This is important noting Council’s vision is to create the most liveable, sustainable and innovative place in Australia.

Financial and Economic Implications

The 2022 event budget was $217,655, augmented by recovery funding and successful grant applications ($110,793), plus an FTE Cultural Events Officer funded separately. The program was delivered through the Destination and Cultural Development budget noting a temporary 2 year dedicated FTE resource tasked with event planning and delivery that has now concluded. The event delivery budget consisted of:

· Destination and Cultural Programs Budget - $75,108

· Final reallocation of Tasting on Hastings budget - $11,763

· Council COVID-19 Relief Reserve funding - $20,000

· Destination NSW Flagship Funding - $20,000

· Regional Event Acceleration Fund - $90,793

Bringing the event budget to a total of $217,664, final event delivery costs of $195,849. It is important to note that there is $81,200 funding allocated for event next year without a FTE Cultural Events Officer resource to plan or deliver.

Project Expenses	Cost
Marketing	$42,738
Equipment	$6,755
Pre/Post Event Delivery	$15,560
Event Delivery	$9,037
Volunteers	$716
Artist fees (incl. REAF $90,073)	$121,061
Total Project Expenses	$195,849

It is anticipated that a range of grant funding opportunities will be explored and if endorsed as a signature local event for a three-year period Council will be asked to give consideration to budget for Artwalk and staffing commitments as part of the 2023-2024 budget development.

Attachments

Nil

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 14.04

Subject: Wastewater Treatment Plant Capacities

Presented by: Community Utilities, Jeffery Sharp

Alignment with Delivery Program

4.1.3 Plan, investigate, design and construct sewerage assets ensuring health, safety, environmental protection and the future growth of the region.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the capacity issues of the Port Macquarie-Hastings Sewerage Schemes, as outlined in this report.

2. Note that a Process Capacity Review and Optimisation Study for the Port Macquarie Wastewater Treatment Plant has been commissioned.

3. Not proceed with any existing or new Planning Proposal requests to rezone land that will increase the sewage loading to the Port Macquarie, Kew / Kendall and Wauchope Wastewater Treatment Plants as identified in this report.

4. Divert resources to the completion of higher order strategies that will be used to complement and inform the Blueprint.

5. Request the Chief Executive Officer to provide a further report to Council regarding Council’s approach to Planning Proposal Assessment in the Port Macquarie/Thrumster Sewerage Scheme catchment once the outcomes identified in 2 (above) are known.

Executive Summary

The Port Macquarie Hastings Sewerage Scheme comprises the following eight Wastewater Treatment Plans (WwTP’s):

· Port Macquarie

· Kew/Kendall

· Wauchope

· Lake Cathie/Bonny Hills

· Camden Haven

· Long Flat

· Comboyne

· Telegraph Point

This report talks to the first five WwTP’s outlined above.

Port Macquarie-Hastings has experienced significant growth over the past decade, with the NSW Government’s 2021 dwelling projections estimating the demand for 11,950 new dwellings between 2016 and 2041 to meet estimated growth (around 480 new dwellings each year).

This growth has resulted in a significant increase in the demand for wastewater treatment capability across the five WwTP’s, particularly in relation to the Port Macquarie WwTP (PMWwTP), which is currently assessed as working at or over its original design capacity. Although plans are in place for a new WwTP at Thrumster, which will ease the current demands on the Port Macquarie WwTP (bringing it under the original design capacity) and cater for future growth, the commissioning of this new WwTP is still at least 5 years away.

Studies recently completed to assist with the finalisation of Council’s Integrated Water Cycle Management Plan included one report prepared by the NSW Government’s Public Works Advisory titled “Sewerage Scheme Load Analysis and Forecasts Report (August 2020) for Port Macquarie Hastings Council”. Whilst findings are continuing to be further analysed and investigated, the report identified capacity issues within three of the five major schemes, including significant ingress of water into the system beyond levels expected.

Key findings from the report are:

- Port Macquarie WwTP is currently operating at or over its original design treatment capacity both hydraulically and biologically. The original design capacity of the plant is 52,000 equivalent persons (EP) with an estimated 55,000EP currently going to the plant.

- Kew / Kendall WwTP is currently at or over its original design treatment capacity, both hydraulically and biologically. The original design capacity of the plant is 1720EP with an estimated 2800EP currently going to the plant.

- Wauchope WwTP is currently at or over its biologic load treatment capacity, however it is still within its hydraulic inflow capacity. The original design capacity of this plant is 8000 EP with an estimated 8700EP currently going to the plant.

- Lake Cathie / Bonny Hills WwTP is currently within its design treatment capacity of 9000EP. Based on projections with current zoned land, the plant is predicted to be at capacity (9000EP) by 2034.

- Camden Haven WwTP is currently within its design treatment capacity of 15,000EP and this is not predicted to be exceeded prior to 2050 based on projections with current zoned land.

Preliminary investigations of the Port Macquarie WwTP in 2020 indicated that the plant’s ultimate treatment capacity is actually 63,500EP, 11,500EP (22%) above its stated design capacity of 52,000. This additional capacity is likely due to original design conservatism and efficiency gains in treatment processes since the last augmentation in the late 1990’s. Based on this more recent investigation and current projections, this additional capacity will cater for the next 7 to 8 years of population growth within the Port Macquarie / Thrumster WwTP catchment areas (1000 to 1200EP per year).

Detailed investigations are now underway into the Port Macquarie WwTP to conclusively confirm the ultimate capacity of the plant and determine more detailed predictions around growth. This assessment will also outline practical treatment process optimisation measures and augmentation actions that could be implemented such as increases to items such as surface aeration or blowers, pipework diameters, number and volume capacity of transfer pumps, solids handling and UV disinfection, to ensure the plant can continue to service the growth within existing zoned areas until the new Thrumster WwTP is commissioned.

In other schemes, expansion of the Kew/Kendall WwTP is planned to commence this financial year and be completed in 2024. Preliminary investigations into the expansion of the Wauchope WwTP is currently planned to commence in the 2023/24 Operational Plan. The upgrade of the Lake Cathie / Bonny Hills WwTP is scheduled for 2030/31 - 2031/32 with planning work to commence in 2027/28.

Across the reticulation network of each scheme, Inflow and Infiltration (I&I) investigations are continuing which will significantly reduce the amount of water entering the system during rainfall. In addition, there will be repairs to ‘leaky’ mains identified that are allowing ingress of water year round which is placing increasing pressure on treatment capacities in each scheme.

Based on the identified over capacity issues, this report recommends that Council does not proceed with any further rezoning of land resulting in increases in sewage loading within the catchments of the Port Macquarie, Kew / Kendall and Wauchope WwTPs until such time as all approvals and design works are in place for the respective upgrades.

Given there is capacity within the Lake Cathie / Bonny Hills WwTP that is predicted to be exhausted by 2034 based on current projections, it is also recommended that any planning proposals or requests for rezoning be supported detailed analysis and reviewed in detail on a case-by-case basis by Council.

It is considered that existing zoned land in each of the schemes provides significant opportunity for continued growth to support the housing demand in the short term, however this approach will not be sustainable in the medium to long term.

Accordingly, strategic planning resources should be diverted from speculative rezoning and consideration/assessment of Planning Proposals within the impacted areas to focus on delivering the higher order strategies, such as the Infrastructure Strategy that will inform the proposed Blueprint for Port Macquarie-Hastings.

Discussion

The Port Macquarie-Hastings Sewerage Scheme comprises the following eight Wastewater Treatment Plants (WwTP’s):

· Port Macquarie

· Kew/Kendall

· Wauchope

· Lake Cathie/Bonny Hills

· Camden Haven

· Long Flat

· Comboyne

· Telegraph Point

This report talks to the first five WwTP’s listed above and their associated reticulation networks.

Port Macquarie-Hastings continues to experience significant growth, with the NSW Government’s 2021 dwelling projections estimating the demand for 11,950 new dwellings between 2016 and 2041 to meet estimated growth (around 480 new dwellings each year). Over the last decade, the population has increased by over 11,300 people with more than half (65%) of that growth occurring in the last 5 years. The majority of this growth has occurred in the Port Macquarie / Thrumster areas.

This growth has an effect on all of Council’s services and particularly an expanding sewerage network. A network that relies heavily on pumping and pipeline capacity because of topography in our Local Government Area (LGA) and the current treatment capacities at our WwTP’s to treat and manage the sewage generated.

To obtain a strategic review of the impact of this growth on sewerage services, a report was commissioned as part of Council’s Integrated Water Cycle Management planning. The report was completed by NSW Government Public Works Advisory Department, titled “Sewerage Scheme Load Analysis and Forecasts Report (August 2020) for Port Macquarie Hastings Council”.

This report reviewed the performance of each of the main sewerage schemes, baselining to 2019 with projections out to 2050. The report summarised the current and predicted performance of each scheme assessed and subsequently highlighted issues to be further investigated.

With the recent release of the 2021 census data, staff can also now confirm that whilst the original 2019 projections used appear to have been following a high growth scenario, the conservatism in the original projections generated from Council’s consultants .id, used has covered the actual growth as well as the increased local demand created by COVID. That is, the predicted overall anticipated growth in the projections has not been realised to date.

Port Macquarie Wastewater Treatment Plant

Port Macquarie is serviced by a conventional gravity sewerage reticulation system with 95 sewage pumping stations (SPS’s) located throughout the town, 102km of rising mains and approximately 343km of gravity pipelines. There is also a pressurised sewer system that services the North Shore as part of the scheme.

The Port Macquarie WwTP had an original design capacity of 52,000 EP (equivalent persons). Recent studies have concluded that the plant is catering for approximately 55,000EP, being at least 3,000EP over its design capacity. Whilst the exact volume is unknown, this volumetric loading is estimated to include significant infiltration (up to 40%) of dry weather flow within the Port Macquarie catchment.

The current load being treated at the Port Macquarie WwTP includes the community being established at Thrumster. The critical issue of the Port Macquarie WwTP already having potentially reached its design capacity is increasingly acute given the rise in infill development, continuing rapid expansion of the Thrumster area and the Thrumster WwTP currently scheduled for completion in 2028.

In addition to the current capacity issues, performance issues at the Port Macquarie WwTP have recently included odour complaints. Hunter H2O Holdings Pty Limited (HH2O) assisted Council in addressing these odour concerns and in the associated study identified that whilst the current hydraulic load of the Port Macquarie WwTP may be nearing its design capacity in wet weather flow, the existing aeration and solids handling capacity at the WwTP still have capacity up to at least 63,500EP.

This additional capacity is likely due to original design conservatism and efficiency gains in treatment processes since the last augmentation in the late 1990’s.

To meet the ongoing demand, and based on the original HH2O work, Council has recently engaged HH2O to undertake Process Capacity Review and Optimisation Study for the Port Macquarie WwTP. The study and strategic work will identify a path forward to address the short-term performance and capacity issues and also set the direction for the long-term.

Amongst the key aims of the Process Capacity Review and Optimisation Study for the Port Macquarie WwTP are to determine:

1. The absolute ultimate capacity (hydraulic and biological) of the Port Macquarie WwTP.

2. The remaining treatments capacity time given expected growth in the catchment

3. Augmentation actions that can be undertaken to ensure that the EPL (Environment Protection Licence) requirements can be met until Thrumster is commissioned and is operational.

Based on current projections and the identified capacity at this time at the Port Macquarie WwTP, the additional capacity will cater conservatively for the next 7 to 8 years of population growth (1000 to 1200EP per year) within the Port Macquarie / Thrumster WwTP catchment areas.

Current project planning for the new Thrumster WwTP outlines that the commissioning of the new plant will begin in August 2027 (5 years from now) with the project completion scheduled for March 2028.

The Thrumster WwTP will be designed (Stage 1 - 40,000EP capacity) to take the current and projected load from the new community as well as the diversion of several existing Sewage Pumping Stations (SPS) from the Port Macquarie catchment. When the load is redirected, the Port Macquarie WwTP will be well under its design capacity thus allowing for continued urban consolidation in the existing scheme.

Based on the preliminary capacity assessment, capacity within the existing Port Macquarie WwTP will allow continued growth of zoned land, including infill development until the new Thrumster WwTP is operational.

It should be noted however that there is very limited, to no contingency margin, with this additional capacity, and whilst the current study could provide additional benefit, this issue needs to be carefully managed.

Due to this limitation, it would be inappropriate for further land to be rezoned within the Port Macquarie WwTP catchment (including Thrumster) that results in intensification and increase of sewage loads until such time as Council has all the relevant approvals, design works and construction contract for the delivery of the new Thrumster WwTP.

Kew/Kendall Waste Water Treatment Plant

The Kendall/Kew area is serviced by a conventional gravity sewerage reticulation system with nine pumping stations and approximately 21km of pipelines.

The Kendall/Kew WwTP has a design capacity of 1,720EP and based on recent in-flow data for the plant, it is assessed that the plant is currently catering for approximately 2700EP.

There is currently an upgrade project for the Kew/Kendall WwTP underway with construction works scheduled to commence in the latter half of 2023, pending the release of a detailed design and construction tender in the coming months. This project will see the plant upgrade to 5000EP in the first stage with provisions for a further 5000EP upgrade under a second stage in 10+ years.

Due to this limitation, it would be inappropriate for further land to be rezoned within the Kew/Kendall catchment, which would further increase the loading on the WwTP until such time as Council has entered into a construction contract for the upgrade of the plant.

Wauchope Waste Water Treatment Plant

Wauchope is serviced by a conventional gravity sewerage reticulation system with 19 pumping stations and approximately 76km of pipelines. Parts of Beechwood village within the scheme are serviced by a pressurised sewer system. The Wauchope WwTP has a design capacity of 8,000 EP. Based on recent in-flow data for the plant, it is assessed that the plant is catering for approximately 8,700EP, therefore the current design capacity has been exceeded.

Investigation works reviewing the inlet to the plant have commenced with further detailed capacity investigations to commence in the 2023/24 Operational Plan. A significant upgrade to the Wauchope WwTP is not likely to occur until 2026/27 at the earliest based on other current projects.

It is anticipated that the existing WwTP configuration can operate above the design capacity and meet current growth of existing zoned land. As with other schemes, due to this limitation it would be inappropriate for further land to be rezoned within the Wauchope catchment, which would further increase the sewage loading on the WwTP until such time as Council has entered into a construction contract for the upgrade of the plant.

Lake Cathie / Bonny Hills Waste Water Treatment Plant

Lake Cathie/Bonny Hills is serviced by a conventional gravity sewerage reticulation system with 18 pumping stations and approximately 65km of pipelines. The Lake Cathie / Bonny Hills WwTP has a design capacity of 9,000 EP. Based on recent in-flow data for the plant, it is assessed that the plant is catering for approximately 7,200EP, still well below the design capacity. Based on growth projections and the zoned land within the area, the remaining capacity is predicted to be exhausted by 2034.

This WwTP is regularly exceeds its volumetric limit of 4,000 kL/day during wet weather events. The Lake Cathie/Bonny Hills WwTP has other performance concerns, including odour issues at inlet works and ex-filtration trench system discharge complaints received from the local community.

Works are underway to connect this WwTP to the dual reticulation recycled water scheme, which will reduce discharge to the ex-filtration trench system. Some delays have been experienced during the auditing of connected properties, which in turn has extended the go live date from early 2022 to December 2022, however this is still subject to final State Government approval.

As there is still capacity within the WwTP, any rezoning which would further increase the loading on the WwTP should be assessed in detail on a case-by-case basis by Council’s Utilities Planning and Design Group.

Camden Haven Sewer Treatment Plant

The Camden Haven sewerage scheme is serviced by a conventional gravity sewerage reticulation system with 31 pumping stations and approximately 83km of pipelines. The design capacity of the plant is 15,000EP with assessed current loading being approximately 8,500EP. Based on current projections, the design capacity of 15,000EP is not predicted to be exceeded prior to 2050.

It is assessed that WwTP capacity is not a limiting factor for any development within the Camden Haven and therefore future rezoning can be considered within this sewerage catchment area. It should be noted that other infrastructure maybe a limiting factor and would need to be investigated with any planning proposals.

Strategic Planning

At its Ordinary meeting in February 2022, Council resolved to establish a working group to develop an Action Plan for the development of a draft Port Macquarie - Hasting Blueprint as follows:

“That Council:

1. Immediately establish a Project Working Group to develop an Action Plan for the development of a draft Blueprint for Port Macquarie-Hastings for consideration by Council at its April 2022 Ordinary Meeting effective immediately following the February 2022 Ordinary Meeting to include consideration of the key strategic priorities for the Local Government Area, with a focus on but not limited to the following:

· Roads, traffic management and delivery

· Affordable housing and housing affordability

· Land use planning

· Infrastructure (water, sewer and stormwater) planning and delivery

· Amenity

· Vegetation management

· Sporting facilities

· Connectivity (physical and digital)

· Emergency and risk management

· Industry, tourism and economic development opportunities

2. Appoint the Mayor and Deputy Mayor to Co-Chair the Project Working Group with the administrative support of the Chief Executive Officer and Council Staff as determined by the Chief Executive Officer.

3. Receive and consider the Project Action Plan from the Project Working Group, including estimated costings and timeframes to develop a draft Blueprint for Port Macquarie-Hastings for consideration by Council at its April 2022 Ordinary Meeting.”

The Blueprint acknowledges that planning requires a higher level strategy to ensure that our plans, strategies and policies are all aligned. The intention is for the Blueprint to provide a living document, which will outline requirements for accommodating population growth over the next 20 years.

A key higher order strategy, which will inform the Blueprint is the Infrastructure Strategy, and in March 2022 Council resolved to:

1. Note the progress of the development of the draft Infrastructure Strategy as outlined at the Councillor Briefing in February 2022.

2. Note the importance of ensuring that the draft Infrastructure Strategy aligns with the future Port Macquarie - Hastings Blueprint should it be adopted.

3. Request the Chief Executive Officer arrange a Councillor Workshop to review the draft Infrastructure Strategy prior to it being finalised for further consideration by Council for public exhibition.

Alignment with the Draft Infrastructure Strategy

The March 2022 report to Council outlined the vision and objectives of the Draft Infrastructure Strategy and Council’s intended response, as summarised in the following diagram:

As identified in the diagram above, it is intended that Council prioritise looking after existing infrastructure before planning for and responding to growth.

Given that one of the intentions of the draft Infrastructure Strategy is to ‘identify significant issues and challenges for infrastructure assets…and provide principles and priorities to guide investment and resourcing to address these issues and challenges’, it is considered prudent to put all planning proposals that will lead to an increased loading on the sewer system in catchments where capacity limits have already been or are very close to being exceeded, on hold until such time as detailed upgrade planning has progressed to a point where Council has entered into construction contracts for the upgrade works.

Staff resources urgently need to focus on delivering the higher order strategies, such as the Infrastructure Strategy that will inform the Blueprint, rather than working on individual land rezonings/Planning Proposals that are not aligned to this strategic direction.

As previously mentioned, Council has recently engaged Hunter H2O Holdings Pty Limited to undertake Process Capacity Review and Optimisation Study for the Port Macquarie WwTP. This study will include capacity, investigations and options relating to the expected growth, expected load increase on the WwTP’s capacity and overall plant optimisation. This work is expected to be completed by December 2022.

The abovementioned study and strategic work will identify a path forward to address the short-term performance and capacity issues and also set the direction for the long-term.

Accordingly, a key recommendation of this report is therefore to not proceed with further consideration of existing and new Planning Proposals that will contribute to an increase in sewage loading at the Port Macquarie, Kew / Kendall and Wauchope WwTPs. Consideration to again proceed could occur once Council has a detailed understanding of the available WwTP capacity, and any performance issues and projected future load requirements are addressed by having all relevant approvals and design work completed, to facilitate the necessary upgrades at each site.

Unfortunately, to continue with rezoning land until there is greater certainty would only result in the issue being pushed to the next step in the development process. Details such as this are critical to development outcomes and would result in further delays to future development applications for instance, while the works are undertaken or Council would have no choice but to refuse development applications due to the infrastructure/capacity not being adequate to support the development.

Options

Council has the option to:

1. Continue to assess planning proposals and risk resourcing constraints affecting the timeframe around completion of the higher order strategies and the Blueprint.

2. Discontinue assessment of existing planning proposals and not accept new planning proposals that will result in increased loading on the sewer system.

Council staff recommend Option 2 as this will allow staff resources to focus on the higher order strategies that will strategically inform the sustainable future growth of our region.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

Council’s Strategic Land Use Planning and Planning & Design teams have been consulted to inform this report.

Planning and Policy Implications

The recommendations of this report are consistent with regional and local planning policy positions as follows:

NSW Government’s Local Environmental Plan Making Guideline 2021

The above guideline specifies ‘the need and capacity for local and regional infrastructure to support the future development resulting from the proposal should be considered upfront in the LEP making process’.

North Coast Regional Plan 2036 (NCRP)

Direction 21 of the NCRP is to: Coordinate local infrastructure delivery, which provides that new development should be located to take advantage of both existing and new road, water, sewer, social and stormwater infrastructure.

Local Strategic Planning Statement Shaping Our Future 2040 (LSPS)

Planning Priority 19 of the LSPS is Plan, priorities and deliver integrated infrastructure, specifically the Key Principle to: Align infrastructure delivery with land use planning. In the LSPS, Council’s infrastructure includes essential services infrastructure; transport and movement infrastructure; social infrastructure and green infrastructure. The LSPS recognises that the effective, efficient and sustainable development of urban growth areas is dependent on the delivery of required local infrastructure in a timely and cost effective manner. As a key action in the LSPS, Council is currently developing an LGA-wide Infrastructure Strategy to ensure integration in the planning, delivery and funding of all forms of our infrastructure. A report on this matter was considered at the March 2022 Ordinary Council meeting.

Operational Plan

Council’s Operational Plan for 2022-2023 requires ‘sewerage schemes to operate in accordance with relevant legislation and licences, and PMHC service standards’. This is important to protect and improve the health of our waterways and to safeguard the wellbeing of our community. Subsequently, it is imperative that we are planning and managing the capacity and performance standards of our treatment plants.

Financial and Economic Implications

There is potentially significant cost to Council in pursuing rezonings that are not supported by effective sewer infrastructure.

It is noted that a prolonged pause on any rezoning may have a negative impact on the region’s economy. therefore Council will need to prioritise implementing the required sewer treatment capacity upgrades within the next 5 to 10 years.

Attachments

Nil

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 14.06

Subject: Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal

Presented by: Community, Planning and Environment, Melissa Watkins

Alignment with Delivery Program

4.5.1 Carry out strategic planning to manage population growth and provide for co-ordinated urban development.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the Alteration of the Gateway determination in relation to the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal, with the revised timeframe for completing the subsequent Local Environmental Plan being 13 November 2022.

2. Note that infrastructure demand, cost and funding mechanisms associated with the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal have not been fully determined as detailed within this report.

3. As a result of the above, note that the Proposal does not adequately demonstrate consistency with Action 4.1 of Council’s Community Strategic Plan, Planning Priority 19 of Council’s Local Strategic Planning Statement, Action 21.1 of the North Coast Regional Plan and Ministerial Direction 6.1 under section 9.1 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

4. Given items 2 and 3 above, request the Minister for Planning and Homes determine that the matter not proceed pursuant to section 3.35 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

5. Note the detailed investigations undertaken to date and the merits of the proposal, however, note the critical importance of resolving infrastructure issues before land is rezoned to a higher use in accordance with Council and NSW Government requirements.

6. Continue to resource and progress infrastructure planning associated with the Fernbank Creek, Sancrox and Thrumster localities, which may assist to support future urban development within the Le Clos Sancrox site and subsequent potential amendment to the Port Macquarie - Hastings Local Environmental Plan 2011.

Executive Summary

The “Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Environmental Plan (LEP) 2011 (Amendment No 59) - Le Clos Sancrox” Planning Proposal (the Planning Proposal) seeks to amend Port Macquarie-Hastings LEP 2011 to rezone Lots 1-52 DP 776681, Sancrox (collectively known as Le Clos Sancrox) from RU1 to R1, R3, B2, C2, C4 and RE1 and amend the applicable minimum lot size, floor space ratio and height of buildings provisions that apply.

The intended effect of the Planning Proposal is to facilitate a change in land use zones from rural to urban and environmental uses, including medium density and general residential, public open space, business, environmental conservation and environmental living. This change is intended to facilitate the development of a variety of residential and supporting uses and to conserve areas of high environmental value within the site.

In addition to other matters associated with the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal that are required to be resolved in accordance with the Gateway determination, Council has sought to prepare draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation. The intent of this process is to ensure proposed infrastructure and public benefit outcomes in connection with the Planning Proposal are documented and made available to the public.

Council Staff have worked with the applicant to progress the development of the above draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation. However, given the draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation were still being developed when this matter was last reported to Council during its Ordinary Meeting of 21 April 2022, this directly compromised the timeframe for completion of the LEP as required by the associated NSW Government Gateway determination.

In consideration of the above, at its Ordinary Meeting of 21 April 2022, it was resolved:

That Council:

1. Acknowledge the current Housing Crisis identified by both the Federal and State Governments.

2. Write to the Department of Planning and Environment (DPE) to request an extension of time of up to six (6) months be granted for the Le Clos Planning Proposal due to a number of identified issues which require further time to resolve, as outlined in the report.

3. Request the Chief Executive Officer to write to The Hon Anthony Roberts, the Minister for Planning and the Minister for Homes informing Minister Roberts of the impediments faced by Council which create obstacles, and cause delays and additional cost to the delivery of housing in the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Government Area.

CARRIED: 5/4

FOR: Griffiths, Maltman, Pinson, Roberts and Slade

AGAINST: Edwards, Intemann, Lipovac and Sheppard

In accordance with Item 2 of the above, Council Staff have written to DPE to request an extension of time of up to six months be granted for the Le Clos Planning Proposal. The subject extension was granted on 27 May 2022 and is included within Attachment 1 to this report.

Subsequent to the above extension, Council Staff have worked with the applicant and relevant Government agencies including the Biodiversity Conservation Division (BCD), the Local and Regional Planning and Planning Delivery Unit Sections of DPE and Transport for NSW (TfNSW) to resolve outstanding matters associated with the Proposal. As a result of this work, matters raised by BCD and TfNSW within their submissions to the referral of the Planning Proposal in accordance with the Gateway determination have generally been addressed. The minutes of DPE working group meetings are included as Attachment 2 to this report.

Notwithstanding the above, various matters in relation to infrastructure and servicing as detailed within Attachment 3 of this report have not been addressed as detailed within Attachments 4 and 5 of this report. As a result, Council Staff have been unable to confirm infrastructure and service demand, cost and funding arrangements associated with the Proposal.

It can also be noted that much of the evidence base for this work, such as traffic, sewer and water modelling appears not to have commenced as outlined within Attachment 2 of this report. Based on the current status of this work, it is anticipated that approximately 12 months would be required to complete all outstanding actions. Given that the LEP must be made by 13 November 2022, there appears to be insufficient time complete all outstanding actions.

It can also be noted that DPE has advised within the Gateway Alteration correspondence included within Attachment 1 to this report and during a meeting with Council Staff on 27 August 2022 that should a further Gateway extension be requested; it is unlikely that such an extension would be granted.

Without the above infrastructure and servicing information, the Proposal does not adequately demonstrate consistency with:

1. Action 4.1 of Council’s Community Strategic Plan

2. Planning Priority 19 of Council’s Local Strategic Planning Statement

3. Action 21.1 of the North Coast Regional Plan or

4. Ministerial Direction 6.1 under section 9.1 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

In consideration of the above, Council Staff have recommended that Council request the Minister for Planning and Homes to determine that the matter not proceed pursuant to section 3.35 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

Notwithstanding the above, it is noted that substantial investigations have been undertaken in consultation with various community and Government stakeholders in relation to this Proposal. The merits of the Proposal in providing housing and community development opportunities have also been noted. As such, Council Staff have also recommended that Council continue to resource and progress infrastructure planning associated with the Fernbank Creek, Sancrox and Thrumster localities, which may assist to support future urban development within the Le Clos Sancrox site and subsequent potential amendment to the Port Macquarie - Hastings Local Environmental Plan 2011. This planning includes a committed and resourced Sancrox, Thrumster and Fernbank Creek Traffic Study and water and sewer planning and assessment associated with the Thrumster Sewerage Treatment Plant and the upgrade of the Cowarra Dam.

The continuation of the above work will also benefit the wider community, in ensuring that any future planning proposals within the area are supported by appropriate infrastructure planning. This will provide greater certainty for landholders, prospective developers and the wider community in relation to the servicing of any future development.

Discussion

The “Port Macquarie-Hastings LEP 2011 (Amendment No 59) - Le Clos Sancrox” Planning Proposal (the Planning Proposal) seeks to amend Port Macquarie-Hastings LEP 2011 to rezone Lots 1-52 DP 776681, Sancrox (collectively known as Le Clos Sancrox) from RU1 to R1, R3, B2, C2, C4 and RE1 and amend the applicable minimum lot size, floor space ratio and height of buildings provisions that apply.

In relation to the above, at its Ordinary Meeting of 17 March 2021, it was resolved:

That Council:

1. Note the preparation of the draft Fernbank Creek and Sancrox Villages Structure Plan and endorse this document for public exhibition for a period of not less than 28 days, subject to Item 2 below.

2. Note that public exhibition of the draft Fernbank Creek and Sancrox Villages Structure Plan will not commence until such time as a Gateway Determination in relation to the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal, facilitating public exhibition of this Planning Proposal, is issued by the New South Wales Minister for Planning and Public Spaces.

3. Endorse the Planning Proposal in Attachment 3 of this report (the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal) pursuant to section 3.33 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 to amend the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Environmental Plan 2011 in relation to Lots 1-52 DP0776681 and part of Lot 1 DP1009991 in accordance with the Planning Proposal.

4. Forward the Planning Proposal to the New South Wales Minister for Planning and Public Spaces for a Gateway Determination under section 3.34 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, and request that the Gateway Determination authorise Council to be the local plan-making authority.

5. Delegate authority to the Chief Executive Officer to make any required minor or administrative amendments to the above documentation prior to public exhibition, should the documents proceed through to public exhibition.

6. Request that the Chief Executive Officer prepare draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation in relation to the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal.

7. This documentation is to be provided to Council for consideration of concurrent public exhibition with the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal and the draft Fernbank Creek and Sancrox Villages Structure Plan.

8. Receive a further report following the public exhibition of the above documentation, should a Gateway Determination be received, providing information on any submissions received.

9. Receive a further report detailing the reasons why a Gateway Determination was not received if such a determination is not received to allow Council to consider alternative options in relation to the draft Fernbank Creek and Sancrox Planning Investigation and Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal.

CARRIED: 5/0

FOR: Alley, Hawkins, Intemann, Pinson and Turner

AGAINST: Nil

Subsequent to Items 3 and 4 of the above resolution, the Gateway determination in relation to the ‘Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal’ was issued by the (former) NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces on 13 May 2021. In accordance with Clause 5 of this Gateway determination, this LEP amendment was to be completed by 13 May 2022.

In addition to other matters associated with the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal that are required to be resolved in accordance with the Gateway determination, Council has sought to prepare draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation and to report this information to Council. The intent of this process is to ensure proposed infrastructure and public benefit outcomes in connection with the Planning Proposal are documented and made available to the public.

At its Ordinary Meeting of 3 November 2021, Council resolved:

That Council:

1. Progress to public exhibition of the “Port Macquarie-Hastings Local

Environmental Plan (LEP) 2011 (Amendment No 59) - Le Clos Sancrox” as

included as Attachment 1 to this report, for a period of not less than 28 days.

2. Progress the draft contributions and finance documentation (draft Planning

Agreement) for the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal to cover all relevant

contributions.

3. Ensure that all relevant documentation (including the draft Planning

Agreement) is exhibited, approved by Council, and ready for submission to

Regional Planning before 13 May 2022.

CARRIED: 5/0

FOR: Alley, Hawkins, Intemann, Pinson and Turner

AGAINST: Nil

Subsequent to Item 2 of the above resolution, Council has sought to progress draft contributions and finance documentation for the Planning Proposal. As such, Council Staff have worked with the applicant to progress the development of the above draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation. However, whilst this process has been significantly progressed, to date, a final heads of agreement has not been achieved. Given the draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation is still being developed, this directly compromised the timeframe for completion of the LEP as required by the Gateway determination and Item 3 of the above Council resolution, to the extent that this timeframe was not likely to be achieved.

In consideration of the above, at its Ordinary Meeting of 21 April 2022, it was resolved:

That Council:

1. Acknowledge the current Housing Crisis identified by both the Federal and State Governments.

CARRIED: 5/4

FOR: Griffiths, Maltman, Pinson, Roberts and Slade

AGAINST: Edwards, Intemann, Lipovac and Sheppard

In accordance with Item 2 of the above, Council Staff wrote to DPE to request that an extension of time of up to six months be granted for the Le Clos Planning Proposal. The subject extension was granted on 27 May 2022 and is included within Attachment 1 to this report.

It can also be noted that DPE has advised within the Gateway Alteration correspondence included within Attachment 1 to this report and during a meeting with Council Staff on 27 July 2022 that should a further Gateway extension be requested; it is unlikely that such an extension would be granted.

Without the above infrastructure and servicing information, the Proposal does not demonstrate consistency with the following:

· Action 4.1 of Council’s Community Strategic Plan: ‘provide (appropriate) infrastructure and services including water cycle management, waste management and sewer management’,

· Planning Priority 19 of Council’s Local Strategic Planning Statement: ‘plan, prioritise and deliver an integrated infrastructure program’,

· Action 21.1 of the North Coast Regional Plan: ‘undertake detailed infrastructure service planning to support proposals for new major release areas’; or

· Ministerial Direction 6.1 under section 9.1 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, which includes: ‘(2) A planning proposal must, in relation to land to which this direction applies: (a) contain a requirement that residential development is not permitted until land is adequately serviced (or arrangements satisfactory to the council, or other appropriate authority, have been made to service it),’.

In consideration of the above, Council Staff have recommended that Council should request the Minister for Planning and Homes to determine that the matter not proceed pursuant to section 3.35 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

Options

Alternative options to the recommendations of this report are provided below:

Option 1 - As per the Recommendations of this report

Option 2 - Proceed with preparation of a Voluntary Planning Agreement in relation to the Proposal based on available information

This option would involve the preparation of a Voluntary Planning Agreement based on infrastructure and servicing work undertaken to date.

This option would not result in the resolution of matters raised by Council Staff as detailed within Attachments 3, 4 and 5 of this report. Without resolution of these matters, significant and generally unquantified risk and liability would exist for Council as the demands of the subject development and associated cost of infrastructure and servicing associated with the Proposal has not been adequately identified.

This approach would also be inconsistent with the Action 4.1 of Council’s Community Strategic Plan, Planning Priority 19 of Council’s Local Strategic Planning Statement, Action 21.1 of the North Coast Regional Plan and Ministerial Direction 6.1 under section 9.1 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

Option 3 - Proceed to request making of the LEP, without detailed supporting infrastructure arrangements being in place

This option would involve proceeding with a request for the LEP to be made without a fit for purpose framework being in place for the provision of infrastructure and services associated with the Proposal.

As with Option 2, this approach would also be inconsistent with the Action 4.1 of Council’s Community Strategic Plan, Planning Priority 19 of Council’s Local Strategic Planning Statement, Action 21.1 of the North Coast Regional Plan and Ministerial Direction 6.1 under section 9.1 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

This option may also result in substantial community burden to ensure suitable infrastructure and services (if feasible) are provided to cater for the proposed development.

This report recommends Option 1.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

Community Engagement

The Planning Proposal was placed on public exhibition for a period of 50 days from 24 November 2021 to 12 January 2022. During this time feedback from the community was sought through:

· Addressed letters posted to landholders and neighbours.

· Provision of information on Council’s website.

· Provision of hard copy information at Council’s libraries and administration centres.

· Advertisements in local print and digital media.

Responses to issues raised within the submissions received were provided within a subsequent report to Council’s Ordinary meeting of 21 April 2022.

Internal Consultation

Ongoing internal Council consultation has been undertaken as part of work associated with the Planning Proposal. This process has involved collaboration between Council’s Strategy, Infrastructure Planning, Community and recreation,

Natural Resources, Community Engagement and Development Assessment teams.

Planning and Policy Implications

This Planning Proposal is being progressed in accordance with Council’s Planning Proposal Policy and relevant NSW Government guidelines, policies and legislative requirements.

Financial and Economic Implications

With regard to the preparation of draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation in relation to the Planning Proposal, this work is intended to ensure that proposed infrastructure and public benefit outcomes in connection with the proposal are documented and made available for public inspection and feedback.

The above draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation is a critical component of the strategic planning process associated with large and complex proposals such as Le Clos Sancrox, particularly given that the proposal is generally not captured by Council’s current infrastructure planning and contributions framework. As such, the thorough and transparent implementation of this process will ensure that infrastructure and public benefit outcomes are accurately identified and communicated with the wider community. This process will seek to ensure equity in the delivery of the proposal and minimise liability for the community through ensuring appropriate developer contributions towards demand for infrastructure and services associated with such development.

Attachments

1. Attachment 1 - Letter to Council and Alteration of Gateway determination

2. Attachment 2 - DPE Le Clos Sancrox Meeting Minutes

3. Attachment 3 - Correspondance dated 3 December 2021

4. Attachment 4 - RFI PMHC Traffic

5. Attachment 5 - RFI PMHC Sewer Water

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 14.07

Subject: Lake Cathie Natural Resource Management Monthly Update

Presented by: Community, Planning and Environment, Melissa Watkins

Alignment with Delivery Program

4.2.1 Develop and implement coastal, estuary, floodplain, and bushfire management plans.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council note the progress of natural resource management projects/initiatives within the Lake Cathie / Lake Innes / Cathie Creek waterway and the progression of the Coastal Management Program.

Executive Summary

Council is currently involved in a number of projects involved in the management of the Lake Cathie/Lake Innes/Cathie Creek waterway (referred herein as Lake Cathie) and its surrounds. This report addresses Item 7 of the Council resolution from Extraordinary Council Meeting held on 13 January 2022 (included in discussion below) which requests a monthly update report. It provides an update on Lake Cathie/Lake Innes/Cathie Creek waterway natural resource management projects/initiatives and the progression of the Coastal Management Program (CMP) that have occurred since the report presented to the April 2022 Ordinary Council Meeting.

Works currently being undertaken and outlined in this report include:

1. Hydrodynamic Model of Lake Innes / Lake Cathie / Cathie Creek

2. Illaroo Road Coastal Hazard Protection Options Review and Co Design

3. Illaroo Road Stormwater Redirection Project

4. Sensitive Receptors - Catchment Management: Bushfire Affected Coastal Waterways Project

5. Dredging Lower Cathie Creek

6. Coastal Recreational User Needs Analysis

7. Review of the Opening Strategy

8. Invasive Weed Management

9. Development of other CMP Chapters

Discussion

At the Extraordinary Council Meeting on 13 January 2022 Council resolved in part as follows:

That Council:

7. Request the Chief Executive Officer to provide a monthly update report to Council on the progress of items above.

In response to Item 7 of the Extraordinary Council meeting, this monthly report advises Council of the progress undertaken to address the items identified in the abovementioned resolution, the progression of the CMP and address other subsequent Council Resolutions concerning the management of the Lake Cathie/Lake Innes/Cathie Creek waterway.

The following provides an overview of the progress since last month of Council projects and initiatives within the Lake Cathie/Lake Innes/Cathie Creek waterway.

1. Hydrodynamic Model of Lake Innes/Lake Cathie

Royal HaskoningDHV have provided an update on works complete to date as follows:

· Most of the fieldwork program has been carried out. This has included:

o Deployment of water level loggers at four locations (installed since 6 April). Routine inspection of water level instruments and data download.

o Tidal gauging for a spring tide (27 April) and neap tide (6 June).

o Deployment of ADCP current instruments at two locations since early May. The ADCPs were retrieved in mid-June.

o Four rounds of routine monthly water quality sampling and analysis.

· Field measurements are being quality assured and processed for use in the modelling investigations.

· A mosaic Digital Elevation Model of Lake Innes-Lake Cathie was prepared using the latest available hydro survey and bathymetric datasets. RHDHV is also investigating the possibility of obtaining Satellite-Derived Bathymetry (SDB) for the entrance compartment from EOMAP. (https://www.eomap.com/services/sdb-online/).

· Stage 1 model development is underway. An initial tidal hydrodynamic model calibration exercise was carried out using the previous tidal gauging datasets available for the estuary. Field measurements are being processed to calibrate the hydrodynamic model over the next month or so.

· Once the tidal hydrodynamic model is developed, RHDHV will calibrate/validate the morphodynamic model to simulate entrance breakout events. Wave modelling will be carried out as well.

· Progress on catchment modelling (continuous and design event hydrology) has commenced – these models will provide an estimate of runoff volume received by the estuary during rainfall events or small to moderate flood events. The continuous hydrology model will eventually include water quality to provide an estimate of suspended sediments and nutrients (TN and TP) delivered from the catchment to the estuary.

2. Illaroo Road Coastal Hazard Protection Options Review and Co-Design

Rhelm/Bluecoast are currently finalising the Stage 4 Workshop Report.

A Councillor briefing was held on 4 August 2022 to discuss the preliminary findings of the workshop report with Councillors.

In the previous Lake Cathie NRM report it was reported that DPE Principal Coastal Specialist, Phil Watson, advised staff that the Minister was considering a new position in regards to the apportionment of costs for these works that may have an implication on any future funding models and that this advice was likely to be received in the coming weeks.

Subsequently, Council staff have now received correspondence from the Department of Planning and Environment advising that this is no longer the case and to continue under the existing frameworks required under the Coast and Estuary grant program for apportionment of benefit.

Following the Councillor briefing on 4 August 2022 it is intended that the following actions be taken, with dates to be determined:

· Meeting with Decision Makers: Following a request from Co-Design workshop attendees, a meeting with Council decision makers including Executive Staff and Councillors will be organised. The Local Members of Parliament will also be invited to hear the discussion directly. At the meeting, participants will be given an opportunity to share their findings, preferred approach and ask questions relating to process, funding and prioritisation. Council staff will provide a schedule for this meeting in the coming weeks.

· Wider Community Survey: The wider community will have the opportunity to provide feedback on the proposed options via a survey. Along with the survey, we will provide an information package that will include more detailed drawings and visual representations of options, factsheet and/or FAQs. The survey content and format is yet to be finalised.

· Council Report: Following the co-design with directly and indirectly affected residents and the wider community consultation, results will be reported to Council for a decision on a Council adopted pathway.

3. Illaroo Road Stormwater Redirection Project

An Extraordinary Council Meeting was held on 28 April 2022. In the meeting it was resolved:

That Council:

1. Note the findings of the Illaroo Road Stormwater Redirection Project Engagement and that the issue of the Illaroo Road Stormwater Redirection Project was also raised at the Illaroo Road Coastal Hazard Protection Options Review and Co Design Project Community Engagement session held on 27 April 2022.

2. Note the revised cost estimates undertaken in late 2021 for the Illaroo Stormwater Redirection Project amounts to $1,929,000 if this project is to proceed.

3. Request the Chief Executive Officer to submit a request for variation to NSW Department of Planning and Environment (DPE) to fund the shortfall in the current funding allocation under the Coastal and Estuary Implementation Grant.

4. Address the long-term erosion around the two stormwater outlets off Illaroo Road as a component of the Illaroo Road Coastal Hazard Protection Options Review and Co Design.

5. Address the short-term erosion hazard around the southern stormwater outlet off Illaroo Road by using dredged material from lower Cathie Creek to nourish the shoreline around the outlet utilising the existing approved dredging Development Application.

6. Undertake emergency works around the existing stormwater outlet should engineering advice determine if there is any imminent risk to Illaroo Road.

7. Proceed to undertake the Asbestos Remediation Works to the extent that addresses immediate risk and within the available budget of $121,554 as noted in the report.

8. Agree to waive the waste disposal fees (excluding the waste levy) associated with Asbestos Removal on the Illaroo Road embankment.

9. Request the Chief Executive Officer to provide a report to a future meeting of Council on the stormwater issues in the immediate areas surrounding Illaroo Road, including but not limited to Aqua Crescent and Kywong Street.

The DPE Coast and Estuary Grant has been finalised with a variation to amend the scope and funding to works completed to date approved by DPE. Future application to the Coast & Estuary grants stream will be considered to fund the remainder of the project through the CMP process.

Action 5: The dredging and nourishment project is discussed further below in Section 5 of this report.

Action 6: on July 28 Council staff submitted a grant application to the Significant Open Coast Hazard grant stream of the Coast and Estuary Grants to construct coastal protection works primarily to protect Council’s existing stormwater asset, which was observed to develop cracking, triggering the grant process. The grant application was developed with supporting documentation of concept design and costing from coastal engineering consultants Bluecoast Consulting. If successfully funded this protection measure will remediate the damage caused by the erosion around the stormwater outlet and reinstate the profile of coffee rock in the location to provide long term protection to the stormwater assets and the road in this area. The proposed works will coordinate with the planned dredging and nourishment actions, and also be incorporated into the coastal protection option being developed for the coastline along the entire length of Illaroo Road. A determination from DPE Grants is expected within 2 months.

Action 7: The Natural Resource Management team are working with the Infrastructure delivery team to progress the asbestos remediation works, and working with DPE Crown Lands to understand the financial co-contributions available.

4. Sensitive Receptors - Catchment Management: Bushfire Affected Coastal Waterways Project

NSW Soil Conservation Services (SCS) are continuing to finalise their report into the recovery of the Lake Innes/Lake Cathie/Cathie Creek waterway following the 2019/2020 bushfire/drought event. The final report is expected in September 2022.

Aquatic Science and Management are continuing to develop water quality management plans as a component of this grant. These plans are expected to be completed in August 2022.

5. Dredging Lower Cathie Creek

Council’s Natural Resource Management staff were notified on 20 June 2022 that the Crown Lands licence to allow Port Macquarie-Hastings Council to dredge lower Cathie Creek was executed on behalf of the Minister for Lands and Water over the next five years (until May 2027). The terms of the licence (RN 628585) are in accordance with a recently modified Development Application (DA2013/151.2) which now allows Council to dredge material for sand nourishment in response to coastal erosion adjacent to Illaroo Road, as well for recreational amenity every five to ten years.

The trigger to undertake dredging in response to coastal erosion adjacent to Illaroo Road is: If the zone of reduced foundation capacity (ZRFC) encroaches onto the road assuming a storm bite of 75 m3/m, there is 20,000 m³of sand available within the approved dredge footprint and the lake is closed, then the lake can be dredged to nourish the beach.

Council staff completed a survey of the beach profile adjacent to Illaroo Road following the East Coast Low on July 20, and the sand resource in the approved dredge footprint area to confirm current conditions against this trigger. The results show that the dredging trigger has been met at both survey profiles and that the amount of available sand in the approved dredge footprint is 21,010m³.

Once the lake closes all permit conditions will be satisfied, allowing dredging and nourishment to proceed.

Council staff will now commence the procurement process to engage a contractor to undertake the works. Given the expected value of the project, a formal public tender is required in accordance with the PMHC Procurement Policy. Budget for dredging activity at Lake Cathie has been included in the 2022/2023 Operational Plan, however the preliminary estimates of a dredging activity require a Budget Variation Request to cover an estimated $115,000 shortfall. NRM staff have prepared a grant application under the Significant Open Coast Hazards grant stream to provide matched funds and will submit once Council’s funding is confirmed.

6. Coastal Recreational User Needs Analysis

Council staff submitted a funding application on 22 April 2022 to DPE to undertake a Local Government Area (LGA) Coastal Recreational User Needs Analysis. A grant application of $66,667 was made. This grant requires 2:1 funding and requires Council to commit an additional $33,333.

Council is currently awaiting a determination of the grant application before proceeding with procurement.

7. Review of the Opening Strategy

The hydrodynamic model being developed by Royal HaskoningDHV will assess various management options for the Lake Innes/Lake Cathie/Cathie Creek waterway, including the permanent opening.

8. Invasive Weed Management

The PMHC Natural Resource Management team and contractors have undertaken the following invasive weed management works around Lake Cathie over the past month including:

· 14 July - Contractors have controlled approx. 1ha of priority weeds: Ground asparagus, Bitou bush, Lantana, Cassia and Giant bird-of-paradise on the northern side of the lake entrance. A combination of herbicide spraying and hand weeding was used.

· 22 July - Contractors have controlled approx. 2ha of priority weeds: Bitou bush, Ground asparagus, Cassia, Giant bird-of-paradise, Lantana, Cocos palm and Umbrella tree on the northern side of the lake entrance. A combination of herbicide spraying and hand weeding was used.

· 27 July - Contractors have controlled approx. 1ha of priority weeds: Ground asparagus, Lantana, Bamboo, Ginger lily and Crofton weed on the eastern side of Cathie Creek (behind houses on Evans St). Mainly hand weeding and cut and paint methods were used.

9. Development of other CMP Chapters

Although these projects are located outside of the Lake Innes/Lake Cathie/Cathie Creek waterway, the findings of these projects will feed into the CMP.

· Hastings River Estuary Bank and Riparian Assessment

Fruition Environmental are continuing to develop a bank and riparian assessment of Hastings River Estuary to inform future management actions to be incorporated into the Hastings River Estuary CMP.

Initial field assessments have been completed and 5 priority sites selected for further investigation. Council staff attended site with Fruition on 4 August 2022. The priority reaches will have further work done to develop options for protection, enhancement and/or remedial intervention.

· Hydrographic Dilution Study Kooloonbung Creek

The purpose of this is to investigate the impacts of sewage overflows on oyster leases in the lower Hastings River estuary. The scope of works provides a staged approach to improving an understanding of the exposure of Hastings River oyster leases to sewage overflows, and development of a decision supporting matrix to guide authorities in determining aquaculture industry closures following sewage overflow events. University of NSW has been engaged to undertake this work and it is expected that this project will commence July 2022.

Council staff have provided UNSW Water Research Laboratory previous estuary models and datasets to allow the new model to be validated.

· Hydrographic Dilution Study Camden River

The NRM team confirmed a contribution to a further assessment of the Camden River using the same methodology as the Kooloonbung Creek project. This joint project between DPI Fisheries, Council and UNSW WRL will investigate the impacts of sewage overflows and pollutants on oyster leases in the Camden River estuary and provide valuable findings for the Camden Haven CMP chapter.

Options

This report is provided for information.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

This report is provided for information only.

Community consultation has been undertaken in some of the abovementioned projects, as mentioned in the discussion section of this report.

Planning and Policy Implications

There are no planning or policy implications in relation to this report. However, the outcomes of the various investigations and activities referenced in this report will guide the content of the Lake Cathie Bonny Hills and Hastings River Estuary Chapter of the Coastal Management Program.

Financial and Economic Implications

A Budget Variation Request is being prepared to fund the projected shortfall in the budget for dredging of Lake Cathie and nourishment of the beach in front of Illaroo Road. Matched funding must be confirmed prior to submission of a grant application.

A funding application was made to DPE Coastal and Estuary Grants Program on 30 June 2022 for additional workshops and visualisation material associated with this project. An application was made for $15,120, assuming a commitment of $7,560 from PMHC. The variation request has not yet been finalised.

Funding currently allocated to the projects outlined in this report are detailed below:

Project	Grant Funding ($)	Council Contribution ($)	Total Estimated Project Cost ($)
Lake Cathie/Lake Innes/Cathie Creek
Hydrodynamic Model	300,000	150,000	450,000
Illaroo Road Coastal Hazard Protection Options	86,835	43,418	130,253
Bushfire Affected Coastal Waterways Program	265,000	30,000	295,000
Illaroo Stormwater Redirection Project including variations for Asbestos Remediation and Aboriginal Cultural Heritage	456,825	456,825	913,650*
SUB TOTAL	1,102,325	677,075	1,779,400
Hastings River Estuary
Hastings River Estuary Bank and Riparian Assessment	76,954 (DPE) 33,000 (DPI-Fisheries)	38,477	148,431
Hydrographic Dilution Study Kooloonbung Creek	70,001	35,000	105,001
SUB TOTAL	179,955	73,477	220,432
TOTAL	1,282,280	750,552	2,032,832

* The latest cost estimate to undertake the Stormwater Redirection project was $1,929,000. Currently Council has $720,000 for the civil works and $121,553 for asbestos remediation around the proposed stormwater outlet - totalling $841,553 (split 1:1).

Attachments

Nil

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 14.08

Subject: Urban Growth Management Strategy Update

Presented by: Community, Planning and Environment, Melissa Watkins

Alignment with Delivery Program

4.5.1 Carry out strategic planning to manage population growth and provide for co-ordinated urban development.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note that this item was deferred from the July 2022 Ordinary Council meeting to be considered at the August 2022 Ordinary Council meeting.

2. Note the progress of actions from Council’s Urban Growth Management Strategy as detailed within this report.

3. Endorse the information and associated timeframes contained within this report, in relation to the proposed continued progression of actions as detailed within Council’s Urban Growth Management Strategy.

Executive Summary

The Urban Growth Management Strategy 2017-2036 (UGMS) provides a framework for urban planning in the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Government Area (LGA), with a focus on key actions in the 5-year period to 2022-2023. The UGMS was adopted by Council in June 2018 and endorsed by the former NSW Department of Planning in November 2018.

The purpose of this report is to provide a status update on the progress of the implementation of the actions as detailed within the UGMS. This report also recommends re-evaluation of some actions based on current identified opportunities, constraints and priorities.

Discussion

At the time of adoption of the UGMS in June 2018, Council resolved to “receive an annual update report in relation to the implementation and status of the Urban Growth Management Strategy actions during preparation of Council’s annual Operational Plans.” The full resolution is shown below:

RESOLVED: Hawkins/Turner

That Council:

1. Note the submissions received and recommended amendments to the draft Urban Growth Management Strategy contained in the attached Consultation Report.

2. Adopt the revised Urban Growth Management Strategy attached to this report.

3. Submit the revised Urban Growth Management Strategy to the Director General of the NSW Department of Planning for approval.

4. Delegate to the General Manager the authority to make minor amendments and corrections to the Strategy during referral to the Department of Planning.

5. That Council receive an annual update report in relation to the implementation and status of the Urban Growth Management Strategy actions during preparation of Council’s annual Operational Plans.

6. That Council amend the revised Urban Growth Management Strategy attached to this report to address an ambiguity and ensure the body of the Strategy is consistent with Key Action #6, as follows: Page 62 be updated to reflect the combination of Fernbank Creek and Sancrox such that the wording is amended as follows: “The priority order for long term investigations around Port Macquarie in terms of land capability and suitability is Fernbank Creek and Sancrox, and then Lake Innes.”

7. Note the resolution from the Ordinary Council Meeting of February 2015 that the General Manager is to provide a report to Council on the Greater Sancrox Area after the Urban Growth Management Strategy is endorsed/adopted by Council.

8. Request that the report be presented at or before the Council Meeting of September 2018 and that the report consider in more detail the timing of investigations and the resourcing requirements to achieve an earlier commencement.

carried: 7/0

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

Against: Nil

This report is intended to provide a progress update for item 5 of the June 2018 Council resolution and demonstrates how Council has proceeded to action the September 2018 resolution in relation to UGMS priorities.

Actions – Status Summary

The UGMS contains 33 Actions for delivery indicatively in the period 2018/19 – 2022/23. The Actions relate to Housing, Economic Development and Making It Happen (i.e. the delivery of essential planning and services) to cater for projected population growth in the Port Macquarie - Hastings region.

A summary of the actions, their current status and the proposed delivery in 2022-2023 are provided in the table below.

Note: Year 1 of the Strategy is 2018-2019. As stated in the UGMS, the timeframes shown are “indicative only and will be confirmed in Council’s annual operational plans.”

Housing Actions
Action		UGMS Year	Status at July 2022	Proposed 2022/23 Delivery
1	Review Local Environmental Plan (LEP) and Development Control Plan (DCP) provisions to promote appropriate housing choice options	1-2	The Draft Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Housing Strategy 2021-2041 (LHS) has been developed in consultation with Council and the community. The LHS has been placed on public exhibition and submissions received are currently being reviewed and summarised. These submissions are intended to be reported to Council in late 2022 to allow Council to consider the submissions received and whether to adopt the LHS. The LHS includes consideration of LEP and DCP provisions to promote appropriate housing choice options.	Delivery of Local Housing Strategy.
2	Review planning for the Wauchope CBD and adjoining mixed use area	3-4	Due to competing priorities, this project has not commenced in 2021/22.	Re-evaluation of this action as part of the upcoming UGMS review and Blueprint investigations.
3	Undertake neighbourhood planning in Kendall	4-5	Due to competing priorities, this project has not commenced in 2021/22.	Re-evaluation of this action as part of the upcoming UGMS review and Blueprint investigations.
4	Review LEP and DCP provisions to promote development of the Yippin Creek Urban Release Area	1-3	Specialist support studies have been progressed and are at varied stages of completeness. Following the preparation of a draft Surface Water Management Strategy, Council Staff met with relevant project representatives on 23 September 2021 to discuss arrangements for access to the site in consideration of potential flooding impacts and potential isolation of future residents within the site in the event of flooding. Following this meeting, general principles for access to the site during flood events were communicated between Council Staff and project representatives, with an intent to resolve/mitigate flooding access constraints. To date, no response in relation to this matter has been received by Council Staff.	Identification of appropriate access to the site in consideration of potential flooding impacts or re-evaluation of this action as part of the upcoming UGMS review and Blueprint investigations.
5	Investigate options for development and review LEP and DCP provisions in the West Lake Cathie Investigation Area	2-3	A planning proposal pre-lodgement meeting for this site was held on 25 January 2022. A planning proposal has not been lodged.	Council Staff to continue liaising with relevant project representatives as applicable in relation to this proposal.
6	Preparation of an Outline Plan (Stage 1 investigations) for the Fernbank Creek and Sancrox potential future growth areas	1-3	The subject Draft Structure Plan (previously referred to as an Outline Plan) has been prepared. At its Ordinary Meeting of 17 March 2021, Council Resolved to place this document on public exhibition for a period of not less than 28 days subject to the issuing of a ‘Gateway Determination’ in relation to the Le Clos Sancrox Planning Proposal and preparation of associated draft infrastructure contributions and finance documentation. Submissions in relation to this public exhibition have been received. These submissions will be summarised and reported to Council, along with the provision of recommendation(s) in relation to the progression of this project.	Delivery of the Fernbank Creek and Sancrox Villages Structure Plan or re-evaluation of this action as part of the upcoming UGMS review and Blueprint investigations.
7	Investigate options for limited rural residential development at Telegraph Point and review LEP and DCP provisions	4-5	Due to competing priorities, this project has not commenced in 2021/22.	Re-evaluation of this action as part of the upcoming UGMS review and Blueprint investigations.
8	Review LEP provisions for small lots around nominated rural villages and the merits of permitting detached dual occupancy with consent in all rural zones	4-5	Due to competing priorities, this project has not commenced in 2021/22 in its entirety. However, a report has been prepared in relation to the facilitation of secondary dwellings in rural zones for consideration during Council’s Ordinary meeting of 21 July 2022.	Consideration and potential implementation of an LEP amendment to facilitate secondary dwellings in rural zones. Re-evaluation of this action as part of the upcoming UGMS review and Blueprint investigations.
9	Monitor rates of subdivision and development in the LGA	1-5	The monitoring of subdivision and development in the LGA is ongoing. Rates of subdivision and development will also be reviewed in detail as part of the upcoming review of the UGMS.	Ongoing.
10	Review LEP and DCP provisions for land at West Lindfield, previously deferred from the Thrumster urban release area	1-2	The commencement of this project was brought forward to 2018/19 by Resolution of Council in September 2018.	Following the subject Council Resolution, Council has contacted Landowners who have indicated an unwillingness to contribute to the planning proposal. Therefore, this project will be deferred until 2022/23 as per previous Council Resolution in relation to the UGMS annual update.
11	Commence Stage 1 investigations and the preparation of an Outline Plan for the West Bonny Hills investigation Area	4-5	Due to competing priorities, this project has not commenced in 2021/22.	Re-evaluation of this action as part of the upcoming UGMS review and Blueprint investigations.

Economic Development Actions
Action		UGMS Year	Status at July 2022	Proposed 2022/23 Delivery
12	Review LEP and DCP provisions for the Port Macquarie CBD	3-4	Superseded by Local Strategic Planning Statement (LSPS) Action 13.5 (Review LEP and DCP provisions for the Port Macquarie CBD to ensure that the CBD continues to be the primary retail and business centre in the Port Macquarie Hastings).	Delivery of review of local environmental plan and development control plan provisions for the Port Macquarie CBD.
13	Council led precinct planning for the proposed Health and Education Precinct	1-3	Strategic planning investigations to support the development of a planning proposal and revised development control and development contributions framework have substantially progressed. Traffic and transport, bushfire, economic analysis, urban design and development control plan procurement packages are currently being progressed.	Completion of initial specialist studies to support precinct strategic planning. Completion of draft Council initiated planning proposal report.
14	Develop a new Destination Management Plan for the Port Macquarie - Hastings	1-2	Endorsed by Council in June 2020.	N / A - Completed.
15	Planning for the development of a Business Park at the Port Macquarie Airport	1	Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Environmental Plan (Amendment No 56) relating to Council’s Airport, Thrumster lands and adjoining private property commenced on 10 September 2020.	N / A - Completed.
16	Planning for the ‘gateway sites’ at the intersection of the Pacific and Oxley Highways in Port Macquarie	1-2	Amendment to the Port Macquarie - Hastings Local Environmental Plan 2011 in relation to a proposed new highway service centre on the south western side of the intersection of the Pacific and Oxley Highways was approved in August 2019. Planning for the north western gateway site is proposed to be undertaken as part of the Fernbank Creek and Sancrox Villages Structure Plan, as detailed within Item 6 above.	Planning for the north western gateway site as part of the progression of the Fernbank Creek and Sancrox Villages Structure Plan.
17	Investigate the capacity of land at the intersections of Ocean Drive with Houston Mitchell Drive for light industrial use and at the intersection of Ocean Drive with Bonny View Drive for light industrial development or for use as a school	1-2	At its Ordinary Meeting of 19 May 2021 Council endorsed the planning proposal in relation to Lot 10 DP 615775 and Lot 6 DP 1210904, corner Houston Mitchell Drive and Ocean Drive and Resolved to take steps in order to give effect to the planning proposal. A planning proposal in relation to land at the intersection of Ocean Drive with Bonny View Drive was lodged on 21 April 2022 and an associated assessment is being undertaken.	Completion of planning proposal assessment in relation to land at the intersection of Ocean Drive with Bonny View Drive.
18	Investigate options for future service industrial land in the Camden Haven	5	Scheduled to commence in 2022/23, as per adopted Strategy.	Scheduled to commence in 2022/23, as per adopted Strategy.
19	Review planning controls for rural and environmental areas in relation to recreation, agri-business and nature-based tourism	3-4	Superseded by Action 15.1 (prepare a Rural Land-Use Strategy with a focus on protecting our agricultural farmland from inappropriate uses) and Action 15.2 (review planning controls and permissible uses in rural zones to facilitate land uses that will support and serve rural industries and encourage tourism) of the LSPS in relation to rural areas. Due to competing priorities, review of planning controls in environmental areas has not commenced.	Rural areas action to be completed by 2022 and 2025 respectively as detailed within the LSPS. Re-evaluation of the environmental areas action as part of the upcoming UGMS review.

Making it Happen Actions
Action		UGMS Year	Status at July 2022	Proposed 2022/23 Delivery
20	Council will review population statistics and growth forecasts annually	1-5	A reoccurring forecast review is proposed to be completed by the end of 2022/23.	A reoccurring forecast review is proposed to be completed by the end of 2022/23.
21	Collaboration with the NSW government to prepare a Regional City Action Plan (RCAP) for Port Macquarie	1-2	The RCAP has been developed by the NSW Government, in collaboration with Council, to help Port Macquarie fulfil its potential as a thriving regional centre and build on the city’s growth, strong employment base, diversified economy and local character.	N / A - The RCAP has been made and finalised.
22	Commence UGMS review to coincide with the next review of the North Coast Regional Plan	4-5	Council Staff have worked in collaboration with the NSW Government in relation to the review of the North Coast Regional Plan. Whilst this draft Plan has not yet been finalised or exhibited, review of the UGMS is anticipated to commence in 2022/23.	Scheduled to commence in 2022/23.
23	Review Major roads contributions plan	1-2	Council has commenced a review of the development contributions framework, including the major roads contributions plan.	Finalisation of a development contributions framework review.
24	Review open space contributions plan	5	Council has commenced a review of the development contributions framework, including the open space contributions plan.	Finalisation of a development contributions framework review.
25	Review the Water and Sewer Development Servicing Plans	2-3	Council has commenced a review of the development contributions framework, including the Water and Sewer Development Servicing Plans.	Finalisation of the review of Water and Sewer Development Servicing Plans.
26	Preparation of a Regional Integrated Transport Strategy	1-2	Council has prepared a draft Regional Integrated Transport Strategy (RITS). This RITS was considered at Council’s Ordinary meeting of 17/3/2022. However, during this meeting Council did not Resolve to proceed through to public exhibition of this document. Rather, it is anticipated that the RITS will be required to align with the future Port Macquarie-Hastings Blueprint, which is yet to be developed.	Public exhibition of a Draft Regional Integrated Transport Strategy, subject to the development of a future Port Macquarie-Hastings Blueprint.
27	Preparation of an Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy (IWCMS) for the Port Macquarie - Hastings	1-2	In consideration of upcoming changes in the IWCM process requirements (currently under review), Council has opted to not complete the IWCM in the formal structure. However, much of the background work has been completed, and will be used to form a Water Security Plan (expected to be finalised before the end of the calendar year), which will cover the same aspects as the IWCMS. A new IWCMS will be completed once the updated guidelines and regulatory requirements are finalised and implemented.	Water Security Plan expected to be finalised before the end of the 2022. Commencement of the preparation of a new IWCMS once the updated guidelines and regulatory requirements are finalised and implemented.
28	Complete Biodiversity Strategy and implement key actions	1-5	In relation to the implementation of key actions from the Biodiversity Strategy: - The Port Macquarie -Hastings Council specific management actions generated from the Hastings Wild Deer Program have continued to be implemented. - An internal procedure for offsetting koala food trees and hollow bearing tree nesting cavities has been finalised. - The Flying Fox Camp Management Plan has continued to be implemented. - Investigation of engineering opportunities to reduce native fauna road strike continues to be undertaken.	In relation to the implementation of key actions from the Biodiversity Strategy, Council Staff will: - Continue to implement the Port Macquarie - Hastings Council specific management actions generated from the Hastings Wild Deer Program and deliver feral animal control actions where applicable for Koala plans of management. - Continue the development of an internal procedure for Part 5 projects for offsetting impacts to koala habitat, threatened ecological communities and hollow bearing tree nesting cavities. - Continue to implement the Flying Fox Camp management plan. - Deliver actions to reduce native fauna road strike with focus on koala throughout Port Macquarie area where most koala road strikes are recorded. - Undertake weed management and ecological restoration to improve bushland reserves. - Implement educational and communications resources created as per the koala recovery strategy - Undertake biosecurity weed inspections and management of weeds throughout the LGA.
29	Complete strategies in relation to koala populations and implement key actions	1-5	On 12 August 2020 Council resolved not to proceed with finalisation of the Draft Coastal Koala Plan of Management (CKPoM) and to commence a review of the adopted Koala Recovery Strategy. At the Ordinary Council meeting of 17 March 2022 the results of the Koala Recovery Strategy Review were presented in a Report to Council which outlined the following: o Of the 26 actions within the Koala Recovery Strategy, 16 were found to be unachievable due to being a) based on the adoption and ratification of the CKPoM, b) beyond the scope of Council resources or c) outside of Council’s remit. o 7 of the remaining 10 actions have been delivered, 5 through Operational Plan (OP) 2021-2022 including; the Koala Road Strike Report & Guidance document (3 actions), an Education program (on-going action), future Road strike risk addressed during Development Application process (on-going). 2 of the 3 remaining actions have been included in the adopted OP 2022-2023 being; 1) Koala population assessment - budget allocated with proposed project officer pending and; 2) Rezone environmental lands. The third requires Part 5 offsets land acquisition to be presented to Councillors in a brief and Council report.	Key actions proposed to be delivered in the upcoming reporting period (as detailed within the OP) include: a) · OP 2022-2023 OP NRM 12.1 ES 1.1 - Draft Koala Recovery Action Plan to be delivered once State Government agencies provide information relating to Private Native Forestry and relevant mapping. Inclusion of NSW Koala Strategy funding possible for Koala Habitat mapping in the LGA. b) · OP 2022-2023 NRM 21.1 ES 1.1 Council KPoM compliance budget $122K allocated requires Project Officer support to deliver (new role under negotiation). c) · OP 2022-2023 NRM 16.1 ES 2.1 Conservation Zones. · OP 2022-2023 NRM 19.1 Long Term Biodiversity Planning - audit / studies for potential offset sites. · OP 2022-2023 NRM 20.1 ES 1.1 Koala Road Strike project reported and moved into next phase.
30	Develop Community Plans and Local Strategic Planning Statement (LSPS) in consultation with key communities	1-5	Community Plans have been completed and endorsed by Council for 11 communities: Bonny Hills, Comboyne & Byabarra, Lake Cathie, Pappinbarra, Telegraph Point, Camden Haven, Kew/Kendall, Rollands Plains, Hastings Hinterland, Wauchope and Beechwood / Pembrooke. A plan for North Shore is in draft and is intended to be reported to Council in the 2022/23 reporting period. Port Macquarie-Hastings Council adopted its Local Strategic Planning Statement (LSPS) ‘Shaping Our Future 2040’ on 30 September 2020. The LSPS is published on the NSW Planning Portal.	In addition to completing the North Shore plan, Council is intending to work with all communities with endorsed plans on implementing identified actions. Council has also committed to developing Community Masterplans to complement the Community Plans, these are intended to help identify the communities’ top priorities for future community and infrastructure needs to support our growing population. In the 2022/23 Operational Plan, council has committed to the development of two Masterplans to commence this process.
31	Review the Port Macquarie-Hastings Heritage inventory	1-2	Superseded by Action 10.2 of the LSPS (update the Heritage inventory in the Port Macquarie-Hastings LEP 2011).	To commence in 2022.
32	Complete a review of the Port Macquarie-Hastings Development Control Plan	1-2	The Port Macquarie-Hastings Development Control Plan (Amendment 13) has been finalised and commenced on 17 June 2020. A detailed review of the DCP is also likely to be undertaken following the provision of guidance from the NSW Government in relation to potential standardisation of DCPs.	N / A - The Port Macquarie-Hastings Development Control Plan (Amendment 13) has been finalised. Further review of the DCP is likely to be undertaken following the provision of guidance from the NSW Government in relation to potential standardisation of DCPs.
33	Preparation of a Coastal Management Program	2-3	Council has commenced preparation of Coastal Management Program Stage 2 Chapter 1: Lake Innes/Lake Cathie to Rainbow Beach and Stage 2 Chapter 2: Hastings River.	- Fast tracked development of Coastal Management Program Stage 2 Chapter 1: Lake Innes/Lake Cathie to Rainbow Beach. - Continue development of Coastal Management Program Stage 2 Chapter 2: Hastings River. - Commence Costal Management Program Stage 2 Chapter 3: Camden Haven River.

As shown in the table above, there are a range of land use planning actions related to housing, economic development, infrastructure and service delivery that are proposed for implementation in 2022-2023.

The delivery of these actions will generally be coordinated by Council’s Strategy Group, with input from other sections of Council.

The following section of this report provides further detail in relation to some key projects from the above table.

1. UGMS Review

The UGMS is reviewed on a five yearly basis. As such, it will be required to be reviewed in 2022-2023. During this review, the UGMS (or equivalent strategy) is intended to be updated to align with current relevant Council strategies, plans and policies such as the LSPS and the future Blueprint as applicable. The review will also consider any new documentation or updates to relevant NSW Government strategies, plans and policies, such as the North Coast Regional Plan and the Port Macquarie Regional City Action Plan.

2. Local Housing Strategy

The Draft Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Housing Strategy 2021-2041 (LHS) has been developed in consultation with Council and the community.

The LHS was placed on public exhibition for a period of 60 days from Wednesday 14 July to Sunday 12 September 2021. Submissions received in relation to this public exhibition are currently being reviewed and summarised. These submissions are intended to be reported to Council in late 2022 to allow Council to consider the submissions received and whether to adopt the LHS.

A Councillor briefing on the LHS will be undertaken on 11 August 2022, with an industry forum to follow.

3. Contributions Planning

Council’s Contributions Planning Team have continued with the management of the existing contributions system over the 2021/22 period, particularly development assessment, the deferral of contributions for Torrens title lots and voluntary planning agreement (VPA) implementation. This work will continue throughout the 2022/23 period.

In addition to the above, a major focus for Council’s Strategy Team during the 2022-2023 period will be on reviewing Council’s existing Development Contributions Framework with the intent to identify:

· Any aspects of current contributions plans that are outdated or require revision,

· Opportunities to streamline the planning framework, to create a framework that is more easily applied and administered,

· Opportunities for potential improvement to support Council’s infrastructure delivery; and

· Identify any changes likely to be required as a result of the NSW Government’s recent infrastructure contributions reform.

The above review has commenced and its findings, along with a recommended implementation plan, are intended to be reported to Council during the 2022-2023 period.

Options

A large program of strategic and land use planning is proposed in 2022-2023 to deliver a variety of actions in accordance with the UGMS. Some of these actions are required to implement Council’s legislative responsibilities. Others are necessary to plan for coordinated housing, economic development and expected population growth.

This report outlines the current status of these tasks and proposed delivery methodology and timeframes in order to ensure the practical and efficient achievement of tasks associated with the UGMS.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

Community engagement and internal consultation has been undertaken in relation specific projects on a case by case basis. Consultation with the NSW Government is also undertaken on an as needs basis in relation to specific projects.

Planning and Policy Implications

The UGMS was adopted by Council in June 2018 and endorsed by the NSW Department of Planning on 2 November 2018. The continued implementation of the UGMS would ensure that Council continues delivery of work in accordance with the current applicable strategic planning framework.

Financial and Economic Implications

The implementation of Council’s strategic planning framework, including the UGMS, is intended to inform the sustainable cultural, economic, environmental and social management of Council’s strategic planning activities.

Attachments

Nil

AGENDA Ordinary Council

18/08/2022

Item: 14.09

Subject: Urban Growth Management Strategy - Background and Next Steps

Presented by: Community, Planning and Environment, Melissa Watkins

Alignment with Delivery Program

4.5.1 Carry out strategic planning to manage population growth and provide for co-ordinated urban development.

RECOMMENDATION

That Council:

1. Note the three areas of focus for Council as identified in the adopted 4-year Delivery Program namely:

· Setting the foundations for our region’s future by taking a strategic approach to planning, while

· Delivering excellent services to our community and

· Managing our organisation effectively.

2. Note the role of the Local Strategic Planning Statement Shaping Our Future 2040 as the principal strategic land use planning document for Council.

3. Note the background to and status of the Urban Growth Management Strategy (2017-2036).

4. Note the program of projects (and associated performance measures) identified as actions within the adopted 2022/23 Operational Plan relating to Strategic Land Use Planning.

5. Note the requirement to review Council’s Local Strategic Planning Statement Shaping Our Future 2040 and Urban Growth Management Strategy to ensure there is alignment with NSW State Planning requirements and directions and also alignment between strategic land use planning strategies and supporting strategies.

Executive Summary

The Urban Growth Management Strategy 2017-2036 (UGMS) provides a framework for urban planning in the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Government Area (LGA), with a focus on key actions in the 5-year period to 2022/23. The UGMS was adopted by Council in June 2018 and endorsed by the former NSW Department of Planning in November 2018.

At the time of adoption of the UGMS, Council resolved to “receive an annual update report in relation to the implementation and status of the Urban Growth Management Strategy actions during preparation of Council’s annual Operational Plans.”

This annual report was presented to Council at the July 21, 2022 Ordinary Council Meeting. It was resolved at this meeting as follows:

RESOLVED: Sheppard/Edwards

That Council:

1. Defer consideration of this item pending receipt of a Councillor Briefing on the Urban Growth Management Strategy.

2. Determine that the matter be considered further at the August 2022 Council Meeting following receipt of the Councillor Briefing referred to in 1 above.

carried: 7/1

For: Edwards, Griffiths, Intemann, Lipovac, Pinson, Sheppard and Slade

Against: Roberts

The above mentioned report is to be considered by Council as a separate item on this agenda.

This report responds to the above resolution and provides Councillors and the community with the following:

- Background information on the role of the UGMS and its place in the strategic land use planning framework;

- A description of the current UGMS;

- A discussion of the review of Council’s land use planning strategies (including the UGMS).

This report also provided the background to the Councillor Briefing which took place on Thursday 11 August to address Item 1 of the above resolution.

Discussion

Role of the UGMS

The UGMS addresses urban development in the defined area of Port Macquarie-Hastings LGA. A goal of the UGMS is to identify opportunities and provide Council and the community with a framework to help make decisions related to economic development and housing, to meet the future needs of our growing community as well as the social and physical infrastructure required to service and support this growth.

The Strategy uses population projections and identifies the expected demand for new dwellings within our major towns and villages where urban growth is expected to occur. It has a particular focus on Port Macquarie which has been identified by the NSW Government as one of three key centres on the North Coast to accommodate future growth along with Tweed Heads and Coffs Harbour.

Background to the current UGMS

Council’s current UGMS was prepared in 2017 and adopted by Council in June 2018. The UGMS was prepared to align with the goals, directions and actions specified in the North Coast Regional Plan (NCRP) 2036 prepared by the NSW Government and released by the Minister for Planning in March 2017.

The North Coast Regional Plan forms the basis for regional and local planning decisions and Council is required to ensure that local land use management strategies and planning controls reflect the priorities contained in the Regional Plan. Attachment 1 details the strategic planning framework for land use planning and provides strategic context for the UGMS.

It is an intention of the NSW Government that all levels of government, the private sector and communities work together to deliver the NCRP.

The current UGMS (2017-2036) is the first review of the UGMS - the original being prepared by Council in 2010 in response to the requirements of the former regional plan - The Mid North Coast Regional Strategy.

The UGMS has provided a strategic planning framework for all forms of urban land use, including residential, large lot residential and employment lands.

The Strategy was developed with a forward-looking horizon of 20 years, with the intention of accommodating the predicted future needs of our community.

The UGMS was prepared in 2 volumes:

1. Volume 1 provides a summary of the key data including forecast population growth, historic growth and housing supply and identifies proposed short-term actions (to 2023);

2. Volume 2 provides a more detailed discussion regarding urban growth issues and proposed actions to 2036.

The content of Volume 2 is presented in the following Parts:

Part 1 provides and introduction, including the Port Macquarie-Hastings Vision (which was current at the time of adoption of the Strategy): A sustainable high quality of life for all.

Part 2 provides context for the UGMS including key information regarding:

- Planning for the North Coast Region

- A description of our local places

- Demographic statistics and projections (based on 2016 census data) and

- Environmental and natural resource factors

Part 3 of the UGMS provides a planning framework in relation to housing, including an analysis of the housing supply (at the time of preparation of the Strategy) and longer-term growth options.

The stated aim of the UGMS with regard to housing is to provide Housing Choice - now and in the future, and identifies two key aspects of housing in order to achieve that goal:

1. Achieving a better fit between housing types and the changing needs of our community and

2. Establishing residential zoned land for population growth that limits any adverse impact on the environment and other costs to community.

In summary, the Strategy identified a projected demand for 10,000 new dwellings to accommodate the 23,000 new people that were expected in the Port Macquarie-Hastings by 2036. The Strategy concluded that we were generally well-placed to accommodate this projected growth within the existing undeveloped residential areas.

Eleven housing actions were proposed for the period 2017-2022.

Part 4 of the Strategy looks in more detail at the actions needed to plan for employment growth with the aim of achieving a prosperous and diversified economy. An analysis is provided of strategic planning for retail and industrial growth, for key current emerging industry sectors including health, education, tourism, creative industries and aviation.

The Strategy concluded that in relation to retail and business uses, the current centres hierarchy is well-placed to accommodate the forecast growth in retail and commercial demand to 2036. Similarly, the current supply of industrial land is also well-placed to accommodate projected demand to 2036.

Eight economic development actions were proposed for the period 2017-2022.

Part 5 of the Strategy provides a summary of “Making It Happen Actions” that were identified to support the growth of our community relating to strategic planning, supporting services infrastructure (including road, water, sewerage and stormwater), environmental management, community facilities, open space, place making and community engagement.

Fourteen supporting actions were proposed for the period 2017-2022.

Current Status of the UGMS

As with all Council strategies, actions identified to support the objectives of the strategy are considered for inclusion in the development of each annual Operational Plan taking into account the available resourcing and priorities across all of Council’s areas of business.

Progress on the delivery of the thirty-three (33) proposed actions identified in the UGMS for the period 2017-2022 as at the date of this report are summarised and the subject of further detail regarding the status of each action provided in the separate report on the UGMS progress included in this agenda which was deferred from the July Council meeting.

Land Use Planning Operational Plan Actions for 2022/23

The following strategic land use planning actions have been endorsed by Council in the 2022/23 Operational Plan:

This program of work is commencing with the audit of existing and planned capacity of our infrastructure (OP action LUP 03_ L 1.1) to ensure that the any land use development is able to be supported by the appropriate infrastructure.

Review and Update of Council’s Land Use Management Documents

As identified above, both the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Strategic Planning Statement (LSPS) “Shaping Our Future 2040” and the UGMS are to be reviewed this financial year.

“Shaping Our Future 2040” is the core strategic land-use planning strategy for the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Government Area and sits at the top of Council’s Strategic Planning Hierarchy along with the Community Strategic Plan Imagine 2050; and the Resourcing Strategy. It outlines the vision for land-use planning in our local area over the next 20 years and sets the direction for our community’s environmental, social and economic land-use needs. The LSPS bridges the space between the Community Strategic Plan and the North Coast Regional Plan and must be responsive to both documents.

The LSPS is a principles-based statement which guides all land-use documents and planning decisions into the future and identifies the planning priorities for the LGA. It guides the character of our centres and neighbourhoods and give direction to the decisions we will make to preserve and enhance the wellbeing of our people, our environment and our lifestyle.

While strategic documents like the UGMS and LSPS are developed with a 20-year horizon, the documents can only reliably provide detailed plans for the short term due to a range of factors including:

- the uncertainty in long term demographic projections;

- changes in assumptions that informed the development of the strategy;

- new directions, policy and guidelines from the NSW Government that need to be incorporated and addressed in strategic work;

- progression in the development of Council’s own strategic work;

- any changes to the direction of the strategy in response to changes in community sentiment, Councillors’ priorities and/or available resourcing.

Shaping Our Future 2040 will be reviewed this financial year to:

· ensure alignment with Council’s new Community Strategic Plan Imagine2050 which was adopted by Council in June of this year, and also the updated North Coast Regional Plan 2041 which is currently on public exhibition and due for publication in November 2022.

· take into account recently released NSW Government guidelines and policies including the consolidated State Environmental Planning Policies

· reflect strategic planning work that has been completed since the adoption of the LSPS

· include updated assumptions following on from development of an LGA-wide demographic dashboard and model - OP Item SP 02.1_AHP 3.3) based on 2021 ABS census data

The requirement for Councils to develop an LSPS was introduced by the NSW State Government post the endorsement of Council’s current UGMS. As a result of this, there is some conflict and duplication between the two documents.

Additionally, following the introduction of the LSPS, NSW Councils have typically moved away from the development of growth strategies to more contemporary and holistic land use management strategies which together with other key thematic strategies such as the Infrastructure Strategy, Regional Integrated Transport Strategy and Housing Strategy address the planning priorities identified in the LSPS.

Following Council’s review of Shaping Our Future and the completion of the Housing and Land Supply Model and Monitoring project and infrastructure audit, Council will develop a land use management strategy which responds to the full scope of the LSPS. This will include the review of the UGMS as an element of a broad-based land use management strategy.

Options

This report is provided for information. Council may choose to either:

1. Resolve according to the recommendation or

2. Seek further information relating to this report.

Community Engagement and Internal Consultation

This report is primarily an information-only report and as such no engagement outside of the Strategic Land Use Planning Team was undertaken.

Planning and Policy Implications

This report identifies the requirement to review Council’s Local Strategic Planning Statement Shaping Our Future 2040 and Urban Growth Management Strategy to ensure there is alignment both externally to NSW State Planning requirements and directions and also internally between Council’s key strategic documents (e.g. Infrastructure Strategy).

Financial and Economic Implications

There are no specific financial and economic implications in relation to this report.

Attachments

1. Attachment 1 - Strategic Land Use Planning Framework

Donation of Glasshouse Vouchers to PMQ Combined Netball Club Annual Fundraiser	$200.00
Donation of Glasshouse Vouchers to Centenary of View Club Luncheon and Fundraiser for The Smith Family’s “Learning for Life” Program	$200.00
Donation to New Horizons towards 2022 Homeless Awareness Week - provision of hot meal and drink to 50 people	$500.00
Donation of Glasshouse Voucher to 2-Way FM Radio Competition Fundraiser	$100.00
Total allocation	$1,000.00

Status	Number	%
Not commenced	2	7.1%
Public consultation	7	25%
Submitted to Exec	0	0%
Submitted to Council	0	0%
Review initiated	12	42.9%
Deferred	7	25%

Original Budget as at 1 July 2022	Balanced	$0
Plus adjustments:
July Review	Shortfall	($102,411)
Forecast Budget Position for 30 June 2023	Shortfall	($102,411)

Application	Property	Extent of Variation
DA2021 - 725.1	63 The Summit Road, Port	10.0%
DA2021 - 982.1	62 Surfers Drive, Lake Cathie	5.65%
DA2021 - 897.1	5 First Avenue, Bonny Hills	7.05%
DA2021 - 682.1	14 Manikato Way, Port Macquarie	7.3%
DA2021 - 86.1	11 Sandy Shores Avenue, Lake Cathie	4.0%
DA2022 - 47.1	1596 Rollands Plains Road, Rollands Plains	5.7%
DA2021 - 1218.1	48 The Summit Road, Port Macquarie	5.18%
DA2022 - 23.1	34 Sinclair Drive, Bonny Hills	9.9%

Phase 1	Date	Participants
Stakeholder one-on-one interviews (online and in person)	Nov 21 - May 22	15
Consultation with Council’s Town Centre Advisory Committee	Dec 21	15
Consultation with Council’s (former) advisory groups	Dec 21	8
Phase 2	Date	Participants
Project information page views	28 Feb - 27 March 22	943
Online survey	1- 27 March 22	174
4 x Pop-up stalls - Port Macquarie Town Centre	10 - 12 March 22	170+
Youth Pop-up at PM Indoor Stadium	11 March 22	50
Creative business focus group	11 March 22	8
Community workshop	12 March 22	17