The entire Ivanhoe Park site including Manly Oval is listed as a Heritage item in Manly Local Environment Plan (LEP) 1988, yet this has not been considered by Manly Council as part of its Oval car park development. This listing prohibits any excavation or development unless a proper assessment of the impact on the items Heritage significance has been carried out and yet Manly Council has made no assessment as part of its Manly2015 Plan which includes digging up Manly Oval to create a two-level car park underground. According to local historians The Oval and Ivanhoe Park are of extremely high value to Manly both in a heritage sense and in Urban Design terms as the "village green” and is an integral part of the historic and current fabric of Manly. It is believed that Manly Oval, in its natural context, is the best example in Sydney and possibly Australia of a Public Recreation Oval integrated into a "village" area. For this reason together with the rich history of recorded events which have taken place in the Park, careful preservation and celebration of this place is essential and is currently at serious risk. Former Manly Council Town Planner and Urban Design Consultant, Rob Burgess, has headed a team of local historian which has championed the documentation of the heritage significance of Manly Oval in the light of the proposal to build a major car park under the site. "Whilst design details on the works to the Oval are limited, a number of Architects, Planners, Engineers & Quantity Surveyors agree that the extent of building work will devastate the Park and destroy this much loved place. The structure will involve massive excavation in excess of 100,000 cubic meters of material and construction of a two level mechanically ventilated 800 space car park." he said. "The structure will be below the water table and will interfere with the underground creek which traverses the site. Numerous exhaust stacks will extend above ground level and dewatering pumps will be used extensively. There will be three substantial vehicular ramps providing vehicular access from Sydney Road and extreme traffic disruption is predicted, with impacts to the whole of the area" Mr Burgess concluded. Of greater concern is that inevitably due to cost, ventilation and reduction of ramp lengths issues, the concrete structure will be above existing ground level, at least in part, and thus will destroy for all time the historic 'village green'. Manly resident, Jeremy Bingham , former Lord Mayor of Sydney and eminent Local Government Lawyer and the person most responsible for the preservation and restoration of the Queen Victoria Building and Sydney's Capitol Theatre, is also seriously concerned at the ramifications of Council's destructive plans. “The whole of Ivanhoe Park, including Manly Oval, was added by Manly Council to the heritage list in Manly LEP 1988 after a heritage report in 2010. I am staggered that at no time in the recent debate over the Manly 2015 Plan did the General Manager draw this recent heritage listing to the attention of the Council", Mr Bingham said. Clause 18 of Manly Council’s LEP prohibits any excavation or development of a heritage item unless a proper assessment of the impact on the item’s heritage significance has been carried out. It is essential this be done before Council proceed any further with the Oval car park plan. "There is no doubt in my mind that the proposed Oval car park will destroy the heritage elements of Manly Oval/Village Green,” Mr Bingham concluded. At the public meeting on Saturday 22nd February, organiised by Good For Manly, over 400 attendees unanimously opposed the Council's plans to build a car park under the Oval and demolish the existing Whistler Street car park and 18 year old library. A report on the proposal from the Office of Local Government is imminent.
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Community representation wasn't enough to sway the Manly Independent Assessment Panel which approved Manly Council's development application to replace the popular 25 metre outdoor swimming pool with a purpose- built polo pool at the Boy Chartlon Swim Centre. Addressing the Panel, concerned residents and regular users of the pool cited the detrayal they felt by Manly Council's backflip after they had publicly reassured residents that the 25 metre pool would be retained as part of the $15million redevelopment of the Swim Centre. Main issues raised were the lack of community consultation (the DA was lodged on December 23 when most people were on holidays); claims that the DA was not displayed at the Swim Centre until the date for submissions had close; the reduction in on-site parking with the new development; increased patronage; lack of public transport to the Centre and disbelief that the Council proposed to replaced a well-used community pool with a deep-water polo pool that would not be suitable for young children, swimming lessons or rehabilitation patients who currently use the 25 metre pool it will replace. Water Polo has become a major sport on the Northern Beaches with some 300 members currently training in the evenings using the existing 50 metre pool at the swim centre. Funding is yet to be found for the building of the polo pool. The Manly community will lose its much-loved local hospital when the new Northern Beaches Hospital opens in 2018. However the Manly Hospital site will not be sold off to private developers - it will be retained for community use. That's the promise from local MP and State Treasurer Mike Baird. And the community will have a say on the future of the 7 hectare, hilltop site. The Manly Hospital Community Advisory Group has been set up to facilitate community discussion, with group member Denise Keen kicking off the consultation process at recent local resident precinct meetings. Speaking at Little Manly precinct meeting this week Ms Keen said that while nothing has been ruled in, some things have definitely been ruled out. "We have no preconceived ideas about what happens on the Manly Hospital site," Ms Keen said. "But there will not be a hospital or a trauma centre on the site. That's not going to happen. And we are not selling it off to developers." She said ideas put forward so far include mental health facilities, a wellbeing centre, a rehabilitation centre, affordable housing, aged care facilities and a centre for terminally-ill children currently being cared for at Bear Cottage, but who are obliged to leave once they turn 18. Suggestions from the precinct meeting included moving the Royal Far West Children's Home up to the hospital site, and handing hospital land between the cliff line and Collins Beach back to the National Parks and Wildlife Service. Other options include attracting innovation to the site, particularly information technology, or a village-style development with restaurants and cafes. All the buildings on the site, except those with heritage listing, are slated for demolition, meaning purpose-built facilities can be built once the site's future has been resolved. Local member Mike Baird has said he favours, but is not committed to, building aged care facilities, and disability service provider Sunnyfield has already expressed interest in the site. The advisory group, which had its first meeting late last year, aims to engage the broad Manly community in the discussion and identify two or three options to put before the state government. The group is chaired by Kathryn Ridge of Ridge legal. Members include representatives from Manly Council, Manly Community Centre, Salvation Army, HEAL Northern Beaches, Manly Hospital Auxiliary, Just Better Care and Manly Chamber of Commerce, as well as Manly MP Mike Baird and community members Judith Burgess, Anne Lanham, Robert McKenzie and Denise Keen. The Little Manly precinct meeting also discussed the Northern Beaches Hospital redevelopment project after hearing speakers for and against the project. The new Level 5 hospital is progressing at the Frenchs Forest site, despite ongoing concerns about traffic congestion and the destruction of rare bushland and vital wildlife corridors. Dr Michele Franks, Director of Emergency Medicine at Manly Hospital and Clinician Lead on the Northern Beaches Redevelopment Project said there was no doubt the Northern Beaches needed a new high-level hospital. She said the current set up of two small hospitals - one here at Manly, the other at Mona Vale - meant medical services were split up and complex treatments were not able to be provided. She said the new Northern Beaches Hospital would have a total of 420 beds, of which at least 250 would be public - a big increase from the present situation of Manly and Mona Vale providing a total of 250 beds, of which 170 are public. Responding to community concerns about the lack of emergency medical facilities in Manly after 2018, Mr Baird has suggested a 24-hour GP clinic at Queenscliff, which would at least provide treatment for minor illnesses and injuries. More information about the Manly Hospital site and the advisory group is at mikebaird.com.au/mhcag Residents can email the group via manly@parliament.nsw.gov.au Former Mayor of Manly, Sue Sacker, has initiated a petition to the NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell, Treasurer Mike Baird and Minister for Local Government Don Page, following the huge attendance at the Public Meeting organised by Good For Manly against Manly Council's plans to build a car park under Manly Oval and demolish existing infrastructure. (See Manly 2015 Stories below) The general sense that Manly Council is 'just not listening' to community concerns has motivated Ms Sacker to move the issue to another level. To Stop the Mega Debt - Sign Petition here. Following major concerns from our community Precincts, and in particular Little Manly and North Harbour, Manly Council has now undertaken to focus on our street trees by commissioning a Street Tree Inventory of the entire Manly local area; and the development of a Street Tree Policy. This $70,000 project is now underway. One of the first steps is to take an inventory of what we have - how many street trees there are, what they are, which ones are significant and which ones are missing. This is a big task and the council is now asking for help from local precincts to document our tree scape. Once the information is in, it will inform council policy on managing trees in our area. Following recent concerns about the way that Ausgrid butchers our trees, at a recent council meeting Good For Manly councillor Candy Bingham asked the council to take the issue up a level and push for greater rights for all NSW councils over street tree management and the current practices of Ausgrid. This matter will be raised with Local Government NSW and with the Minister of Local Government. Have you had trouble with Ausgrid lopping trees in your street? Let us know here. Manly Council's introduction of a new digital car parking system for residents have caused major confusion and upset many locals. Replacing the old 'sticker on the windscreen' system, residents are now required to register their car number plate on-line, at the Council's website or Customer Service Centre. Instead of the convenient park and go system previously, residents are now need to go to the meter, punch in their rego number for for selected time period and then leave the ticket on their dashboard. The new system has particularly angered regular users of the ocean front who were under the misapprehension that they could park for free for four hours (the time limit as actually two). Council has now changed it to four hours following a motion by Mayor Jean Hay who admitted she was confused too. (This will be effective late March) So, if you haven't already registered your vehicles on-line, Click Here - otherwise you risk getting a nasty parking fine. Latest news from Westfield is plans to further expand Warringah Mall with an additional 80 - 100 shops and more parking. The plans, which have already been approved, allow for a new parallel mall linking between the supermarkets and Myer, as well as a new multi-deck car park. Many locals believe that the opening of Warringah Mall was the start of the bleed of good general shopping out of Manly and that this expanded Mall will further contribute to that. Although unfortunately we continue to see the closure of small shops in Manly, the area is undergoing a renaissance, becoming the place to go for restaurants & cafes with many high-profile establishments recently opening in the area. Manly Council has also just put up for tender the lease for the Old Kiosk at Shelley Beach and the name of the winning tenderer is expected is to named shortly. I'm sure locals will be delighted with the winning tender. Manly Sea Life Sanctuary now has 14 Little Penguins in their colony following the addition of two females from Taronga Zoo this week. Named Twirl and Velma they will balance out the gender ratio in the popular Penguin Cove area of the Sanctuary and it is hoped that their addition will be active in the breeding season which typically happens between June to February. |
AuthorCandy Bingham, Deputy Mayor & Manly Ward Councillor on Northern Beaches Council. Background in marketing, public relations and community engagement. Author of five business books. Former Lady Mayoress of Sydney. Aka Candy Tymson. ........................................
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