The April NF1 Report

Convenor Warwick Erwin reports on issues affecting the 2508 district.

Total closure of community centre

Helensburgh Community Centre has been closed permanently due to rising damp and mould throughout the building making it unsafe for use.

The building will now be sealed and no access allowed until after the UCI Road World Championships (Sept 18-25), when it is expected the building will be demolished and the land turned into green space.

This is a clear example of Council not maintaining the building by not responding quickly to maintenance issues.

The result of this and the very slow delay in the new Community Centre and Library project means the community of Helensburgh does not have a community centre and is still using an over 45-year-old temporary building library.

New Community Centre Project

A site at the Helensburgh swimming pool is the preferred site due to being less fire-prone compared to the site at Walker Street, where the present library stands. This is due to the additional cost of a building on the recently purchased sites next to the current library site, which would have to meet the current bushfire standard. Again, Council is looking at the cheapest option rather than the best option for the community of 2508. The pool site will have impacts on the parking available for the pool, sports fields and the all-day parking used by workers in the CBD of Helensburgh. Council Officers will be attending the NF1 May meeting to present further information.

Helensburgh Town Centre Project Work

Council are working on Walker Street. It is getting reprofiled and parts of Walker St between Lilyvale and Parkes streets will be closed for that work. Council has assured NF1 that locals will be able to access the shopping centre at all times and work will be during the day time so as to not disturb residents during the night. NF1 has recommended detours that locals would use as being Gibbons Lane southbound and Stuart St northbound. Council officers have promised all works on Walker St will be completed before September’s UCI Road World Championships and that after the race the Western Terrace area will be undertaken. Council Officers have excluded the footpath on the eastern side of Walker St, from Oat and Honey to Witty Rd, from the work, even though this was a separate project that Council has just dropped. No further information has been forthcoming from Council as to why the approved project has been dropped.

NF1 has challenged the use of a traffic blister in Short St, southern side, at the intersection with Walker St due to it preventing two lanes of westbound traffic – allowing one to turn left and one to turn right – on the basis of pedestrian safety having a higher priority. There are many examples of right-turn traffic out of Short St being allowed by traffic in Walker St when traffic is stopped on Walker St to allow pedestrians on the pedestrian crossing. Council traffic officers have refused to move on this and are clearly not listening to the community. Approaches to councillors have also not been able to have this blister removed. Residents are also reporting that the delivery semitrailers to the supermarket take up the full existing width of Short St when turning into it.

Liquor Licence Application for corner of Walker and Short St by Coles Group

At the ILGA community meeting in early April the Authority heard objections to the licence application from many local residents. ILGA has given another opportunity for community submissions. Unfortunately, the period for these submissions will close on Sunday, 1 May, possibly before you receive this magazine. At the April 4th meeting, speakers expressed anger at Coles shutting the deli and fruit shop, downgrading the supermarket and lacking concern for the community. Many speakers claimed Coles does not support local sports organisations or local charities. A submission by Coles, filed after the April meeting, claimed that existing businesses have orchestrated the opposition to its application.

DA-2021/1058 Lot 2 Short Lane, H’burgh

This is the laneway next to Bear Trader. This DA was rumoured to have been withdrawn by the applicant, but that was not the case and the DA was rejected by Council. The applicant has placed the DA and Council’s rejection before the Land and Environment Court. Wollongong Local Planning Panel recommended rejection and defence of the rejection in court.

UCI 2022 Road World Championship course

Helensburgh will be the start of the road races for the weekend of 24 and 25 September. Refer to wollongong2022.com.au for details. There will be road closures during the week before and weekend of the road race. There will also be an influx of teams and their support people around this time.

Next meeting of NF1 will be 11 May 2022 at 7pm at Otford Community Hall.