With summer just around the corner, it’s a great time to look for new ways to stay healthy and active, and enjoy the beautiful environment we live in. To complement the community’s enthusiasm for staying active, we are building more shared pathways around the Coast – making it safer for pedestrians, and protecting and showing off our natural beauty at the same time.

Whether you use a path to walk, run, ride, jog, skate or stroll, we are working hard to build more around the Coast.

Killarney Vale boardwalk

Early next year, work will start on a 200-metre loop boardwalk along Lucinda Avenue to help prevent further deterioration of a saltmarsh community along the lake’s edge.

The area is an old bike track and is often used by pedestrians and cyclists as a thoroughfare, not realising the damage being done to the saltmarsh.

It’s important we protect our saltmarsh communities as they play an important role in our estuary system to help dead seagrass material break down naturally.

They also provides habitat, shelter and breeding grounds for fish, wildlife, migratory birds and many threatened species.

To complement the 200-metre loop boardwalk, staff will complete saltmarsh and bush regeneration work in the area, and install signage explaining the important role saltmarsh plays in the ecosystem.

The area will become more accessible and safer, making it possible for local schools and community groups to use it and learn about the local environment at the same time.

Budgewoi boardwalk

As part of the Budgewoi Masterplan, a key initiative of the upgrade in the East Village Centre is to build a brand new boardwalk.

The boardwalk will run along the waterfront of Budgewoi Creek near the Circle, and includes a new floating concrete pontoon with gangway and a fixed timber jetty. We will replace the of nearby footpaths and rebuild a section of the rockwall, greatly improving the overall amenity of the area.

The overall aim is to help reactivate this part of the Coast, making it even more attractive to residents and tourists to visit.

The Masterplan has 33 initiatives to enhance the distinctive character of the Budgewoi Village, including creating dedicated public spaces, facilitating pedestrian and cyclist activity as well as encouraging greater utilisation of the public space.

Bateau Bay footbridge

The finishing touches are being put on the replacement of a footbridge near Anne Findlay Place.

The existing bridge, which connects residents to the EDSACC sporting precinct and local shopping centre, needed major repairs and was below the required flood level.

The new footbridge has been built next to the existing one and will be a wider, safer, more durable and aesthetic structure.

Other works

We have recently completed several other works around the Peninsula and Lakes Beach and works are continuing along Colongra Bay Road, adding to our ever-growing shared pathway network. We have a number of other projects in the pipeline planned to start early next year at Mannering Park, Lake Munmorah and Shelly Beach.

With more than 150 kilometres of shared pathways around the Coast, and there is bound to be one near you to enjoy.