City management consultation held

Gosford Council's community consultation about its City Management Plan held on the Peninsula last month attracted only 10 residents.

Meetings were also held on weekends and at night at other locations in a bid to boost community participation, council general manager Mr Peter Wilson said.

Mr Wilson told the meeting that a telephone survey of 500 residents had been undertaken by the Central Coast Research Foundation in May and June this year.

Issues of greatest concern were the need for more footpaths, local employment opportunities, safety of local roads, youth facilities and services, cycleways, public transport, future direction and the planning and management of development.

Mr Wilson said it was difficult for Council to address all these needs because of a finite budget.

"If we spend more on footpaths, then the money must come from somewhere else," he said.

Resident, Mr Rob Molin, queried the need for Council to continue to charge a drainage levy.

Mr Wilson said the drainage levy was originally brought in to attract matching State and Federal Government funding.

He said the Peninsula had a backlog of drainage works (about 15 per cent had been completed) due to past development policy.

New developments were now forced to pay a contribution.

"New developers can't and should not pay for the backlog caused by past development," Mr Wilson said.

"We haven't addressed the $50 million worth of backlog (city-wide).

"We haven't raised near enough from the levy or government funding."

Council's director of development and the environment, Mr John Murray, said: "A lot has been spent towards the Peninsula.

"Unfortunately, Council can't spend the funds before the development happens," Mr Murray said.

"You build the community and then put the school in," he said by way of example.

The city management plan divided the municipality into a number of "local area profiles", with one applying to the Peninsula.

Each local area profile covered local business activity, community life and spirit and the natural environment.

These three areas were further broken down into strengths, weaknesses and opportunities for Council and the community.

In local business activity, the Peninsula's strengths were described as:

Clean industries and businesses, good shopping, library, road network and telecommunications.

The advent of an increase in professional services, large local unskilled workforce, and powerful community groups.

Tourism activities such as holiday rentals, guest-houses, bed and breakfasts, cruises, boat hire and restaurants.

Weaknesses included: A lack of variety in retail outlets, increasing traffic pressure and speeding vehicle threats, bank closures and vacant shops, poor public transport and narrow roads, tasteless overdevelopment and the threat to the environment from increased tourism.

Council saw opportunities in resisting inappropriate overdevelopment, providing financial incentives for green businesses and promoting communication between the Council and community groups.

Council said the community could realise potential by organising more street tree planting and by participating in formalised community groups.

In the area of community life and spirit, strengths were seen as a diverse population across age and income, regular local events, festivals, the Mainstreet program, Peninsula News, improving youth facilities such as the Web and PCYC, safe recreational activities and good schools and ovals.

Weaknesses included a lack of local employment opportunities, the need for facilities for low-income families, proposed overpopulation, lack of police, lack of a civic centre and insufficient open space and playgrounds, jetski problems, lack of infrastructure, the need for vehicle-speeding deterrents, lack of evening community activities especially outdoors and a lack of access for pedestrians and cyclists.

Council saw opportunity in improving public transport, assisting in planning for crime prevention, the provision of a civic centre and sporting and recreational facilities for all age groups.

The natural environment's strengths included safe and clean beaches, swimming areas, bushwalks, tree cover and bird habitat, the input of the community in maintaining dunes, tree cover and creeks, a waterfront pool and the lack of kerbing and guttering.

Weaknesses included flooding and bushfire risks, increase in visitors putting pressure on the environment, the expansion of Woy Woy tip, lack of pollution monitoring, lack of litter traps for waterways, the management of foreshores, tasteless overdevelopment, inadequate tree planting, sedimentation, untidy appearance of the entrance from Woy Woy Rd, lack of clean roads and lack of drainage.

Council saw opportunity in maintaining parks, beaches, planting trees, developing a kerb and guttering strategy for the Peninsula, and encouraging the community to report environmental infringements.

Carl Spears, September 14