Draft Gosford Beaches Coastal Zone Management Plan to be sent to the Minister for the Environment

A Plan to manage the coastline of the former Gosford City Local Government Area (LGA) was considered by the Council, and will now be sent to the NSW Minister for the Environment for certification.

The Draft Gosford Beaches Coastal Zone Management Plan will not take effect until it is certified by the Minister.

Council Administrator, Mr Ian Reynolds, said the Plan provides the foundation for the development of appropriate planning controls that will protect the coastline now and into the future.

“This will be welcome news for those who live along the coast as it will provide firm guidelines on what can and cannot be built on privately owned or public land,” Mr Reynolds said.

“The Plan sets out clear roles and responsibilities of private landowners, Council and other public authorities to plan and manage the coastline as well as respond to coastal hazards as the need arises.

“Our beaches are one of our greatest natural assets and we need to ensure there is a proper framework in place that balances the need for sustainable development where it can happen while ensuring our coastal environment is protected and enhanced now and well into the future.”

The Draft Plan was originally prepared by the former Gosford Council and submitted to the then Minister for Planning and Environment, who returned it requesting revision in consultation with a NSW Government Agency concerning the management of land at Patonga and Pearl Beach.  Those consultations have resulted in agreement about the future management of those sites, and enabled the amended Plan to be endorsed for submission to the new Minister.

Consistent notification of development applications proposed for the Coast

Council is moving to streamline the way Development Applications (DAs) are notified to the community so the same rules apply across the Central Coast.

Council tonight endorsed draft amendments to Chapter 1.2 of Development Control Plan 2013 – Development Controls for Wyong Shire and Chapter 7.3 of Gosford Development Control Plan 2013 to bring them into line and will now put the changes out on public exhibition.

Council Administrator, Mr Ian Reynolds, said the two former Councils had different approaches to the way DAs were notified.  With all the development happening on the Coast it is important to streamline the process so there is consistency in the rules and about how and when the community have a say.

‘Like a lot of policies we have found since the merger, there are currently different ways DAs are notified if you live in the former Wyong Shire or Gosford City Council area,” Mr Reynolds said.

“This needs to change.  Staff have reviewed the two policies and come up with a new way forward to ensure similar DAs are notified the same way across the Coast and we will be seeking community feedback on the proposed changes.”

One of the key changes is that all significant DAs will now be notified for 21 days – in the past in most cases DAs were notified for just 14 days.

“Enshrining this new 21 day rule will allow the public additional time to provide their views to Council,” Mr Reynolds said.

“Community input is an important part of the Development Assessment process. It allows the pros and cons of a development to be considered by those who will be living near the development.”

Another proposed change is that minor, small scale development types like single storey dwelling houses (including ancillary structures like garages) which comply with building heights and setbacks are not proposed to be notified.

“This means smaller scale developments which the average homeowner wants to undertake will be able to be assessed much faster if they comply with the relevant planning controls,” Mr Reynolds said.

“I urge those with an interest to have a look at the proposed changes and to provide comment – community feedback is a key component of the Development Application process.”

The proposed changes to the Development Control Plans will be exhibited shortly and will be available at www.yourvoiceourcoast.com.

Webcasting of Council meetings to continue

Live webcasting of Central Coast Council meetings is set to continue following adoption of a recommendation by Council tonight.

One of the first decisions of the new Council was to trial live webcasting of Council meetings due to the need to service a large local government area and to ensure the decision-making processes of Council were accessible to as large an audience as possible.

Council Administrator, Mr Ian Reynolds, said Council had received a lot of constructive feedback over the past six months and was now taking the necessary steps to improve the service for the Central Coast community.

“I believe it is important the decisions of the Council are as open and accessible as possible and webcasting can help deliver that effectively,” Mr Reynolds said.

“Over the next few months there will be refurbishments made to both Chambers to accommodate the fifteen newly elected Councillors and at this time adjustments will be made to incorporate webcasting, including improving the sound quality.”

“That was the feedback we got – that sometimes the audio dropped out so we are making appropriate steps to fix this issue.”

The webcast will be available for viewing until the next meeting of Council, meaning those who cannot view the meeting at the time it is broadcast will have an opportunity to do so at a time that suits them.

Live webcasting of Council meetings can be viewed via Council’s Website and YouTube Channel.

Council adopts key finance policies to provide transparency to the community

Council tonight adopted four policies to provide consistency in the areas of pensioner rebate applications, debt recovery and hardship, debt management and investment management across the Central Coast.

The adopted policies are largely consistent with the policies that operated under the two former Councils. The policies comply with the relevant legislation, including the Local Government Act 1993, regulations and Ministerial Orders.

Council Administrator, Mr Ian Reynolds, said the adoption of the policies for investment and debt management is part of Council’s approach to ensure it is managing its investment and debt portfolio in a responsible manner.

“The pensioner concessions and debt recovery and hardship policies are designed to ensure there is a consistent approach to assessing pensioner rebate applications and better engaging with community members going through financial hardship.

“We need to ensure we are collecting rates and managing these funds from our community in the simplest and most appropriate way and these policies, which are publicly available, will deliver that.”

The policies have now been referred to the newly established Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee for review and report back to Council.

Independent Members appointed to Council Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee

Council has formally appointed three independent members to its inaugural Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee to oversee all Council’s operations, including compliance financial management and governance.

Mr Colin Gellatly AO, Mr John Gordon and Mr Carl Millington have been appointed after responding to an Expression of Interest process to join the Committee.

Council Administrator, Mr Ian Reynolds, said the Committee would help provide a foundation for sound decision making in Council and a vehicle to help deliver improvements in how Council delivers services to the community.

“We had over 50 applications for membership of this Committee and the quality of the applicants was very good.  These three people really stood out,” Mr Reynolds said.

“I am pleased to have the opportunity to appoint such highly skilled and widely respected community members to this Committee.”

Dr Colin Gellatly who has had a long and distinguished career in the public service including as Director General of the Premiers Department.  He has extensive experience in local government too most recently as the Chair of Newcastle City Council’s Audit and Risk Committee.   Dr Gellatly has also been appointed Chair of the Committee.

Mr John Gordon has spent the last 40 years practising as a Chartered Accountant, Certified Practising Accountant and Chartered Secretary specialising in audit, risk management and corporate governance.

Mr Carl Milligan is a senior audit and assurance partner in a Charted Accounting firm in Sydney and has held a number of senior roles on the Local Government Auditors Association of NSW.

“Their extensive experience in local government and financial matters will hold the new committee in good stead and I look forward to working with them to deliver positive results for Council and the community,” Mr Reynolds added.

Administrator Ian Reynolds and CEO Rob Noble will make up the two other positions on the Committee until the election of the new Council in September 2017.