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Oakville Public School pedestrian and traffic safety improvements a step closer
The business paper just published for next week’s Council meeting contains a significant update for those in the Oakville community. I have been fighting for upgrades to the footpaths, parking, traffic and pedestrian safety around Oakville Public School for many years. I am pleased to report is that detailed costings and engineering plans have finally been completed in an effort to make the project “shovel ready”, but the program is only partially funded.
Happy 215th Birthday to the Hawkesbury!
Happy birthday, Hawkesbury! Recently we celebrated the 215th anniversary of Governor Lachlan Macquarie proclaiming the names and locations of what we now know as the "Five Macquarie Towns".
Interview on Hawkesbury Radio – December 2025
Shaun Williams, presenter at the "Common Point" program at Hawkesbury Radio told me we were overdue for a chat. I thought this was a good opportunity to recap the year on Council. We covered a lot of territory! I'll be breaking this up in to more digestable fragments over the Christmas / January break.
Hawkesbury Council’s 39% Rate Hike
At its November 2025 meeting Hawkesbury Council decided in an 7:4 vote to hike everyone's rates by 39.4% over four years. I voted against it. Here's what you need to know.
The Australian Local Government Assembly 2025 (and why our funding model is broken!)
I've spent time this week at the Australian Local Government Association National Government Assembly down in Canberra.
It's a great opportunity to hear speakers and trade ideas about what works in Local Government. I was grateful for some release from my teaching work to go down and take place.
The highlight for me was being able to confront the Federal Minister for Local Government, Kristy McBain about the growing shortfall of funding Local Governments are facing and how this has deteriorated over the years.
The Refurbishments to Windsor Mall
I recently took the opportunity to walk through the whole of the refurbished Windsor Mall. Now the work is substantially done, I have to say it's looking amazing. New sandstone flagstones greatly exceeds the original sandstone; the sponsored pavers are now proudly on display. The garden beds are now being planted with a range of attractive species.
Does Dressage have a future at Hawkesbury Showground?
This week I was a signatory to call rare extraordinary meeting of Council to address a dispute between the Hawkesbury District Agricultural Association, Dressage NSW and Equestrian NSW. The subject was a dispute over the future of dressage facilities at the Hawkesbury Showground.
Vivid 2025 – Sydney’s Amazing Festival of Lights
What a wonderful city we live in! Vivid Sydney has been just amazing this year, covering multiple sites and showing off our city’s architecture old and new. This is my tribute to VIVID, which we did in perfect weather! #vividsydney
Dual Occupancy – Approved in principle! (Labor opposes)
Council approved my Notice of Motion to permit Detached Dual Occupancies after seven years of delay and disappointment with our moribund LEP process. There's some way to go yet.
The 2025 Australian Federal Election – the view from Macquarie
For those of you who asked me what my opinion is of yesterday's Federal Election, I humbly offer you this. I try to provide a Global, National and Local (to the seat of Macquarie) explanation of What Just Happened.
Mics are dropped.
I want to know what you think.
The Effects on Insurance Premiums from Hawkesbury Flooding and Council\’s Planning Policies
The skyrocketing costs of home insurance is a massive issue for people in the Hawkesbury.
Damage from flooding could cost us billions, but the risks of living in on a floodplain have driven up Insurance costs even when the sun is shining.
Councillor Nathan Zamprogno
The page of Independent Hawkesbury City Councillor Nathan Zamprogno
𝐎𝐚𝐤𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥 𝐩𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐫
The business paper just published for next week’s Council meeting contains a significant update for those in the Oakville community.
I have been fighting for upgrades to the footpaths, parking, traffic and pedestrian safety around Oakville Public School for many years. Congestion has been worsened by the influx of people and vehicles since the school became a transport interchange for students from other schools. The school has swelled with students coming Hills Shire suburbs like the Gables from east of Boundary Road. This will remain the case until a new Primary school is built there, easily still over a year away.
Thanks are also due to the advocacy of the school under successive Principals, the Oakville PS P&C, and Jane Soper its President.
The new development I am pleased to report is that detailed costings and engineering plans have finally been completed in an effort to make the project “shovel ready”. They have been endorsed by our local traffic committee, and parts are already funded.
The bad news is that the most needed parts of this plan remain unfunded unless I can persuade my colleagues to prioritise it for the 2027-2028 budget.
An upgrade to intersection of Oakville, Ogden and Hanckel Road will be funded under the Federal blackspot program. This will include new median strips with pedestrian refuge islands.
Extending kerb and guttering on the school sides of both Ogden Road and Oakville Road has been provisionally costed at $155,000 and is unfunded.
Creating new kerb and guttering on the opposite sides of both Ogden and Oakville Roads have been provisionally costed at $250,000 and is unfunded.
1.5m footpath works to fill in the gaps between the existing footpaths and extend down the school side of Oakville Road have been provisionally costed at $80,000 and is unfunded.
I attended this school, as did my sister, my son and (now) both my Nephews. Our association goes back to 1978. I will continue to advocate for these works. I am told that these plans make it easier for Council to make the case for grant funding.
A more detailed version of this post with additional maps, diagrams and links to the Council reports is at my website:
councillorzamprogno.info/2026/03/07/oakville-public-school-pedestrian-and-traffic-safety-improvem...
It was exceedingly unwise for the Liberal Party to seek to bury the report it commissioned into its loss at the last Federal election. I and others made submissions to it, recalling that the Party promised to make it public.
So here it is. I've put the link below. It's just a shame that for those who want the Liberal Party to do better or who simply wanted to read it, the document had to be tabled by the Prime Minister during question time, which must add to the humiliation.
In case you're interested, Macquarie is not mentioned once. The reason is that Macquarie is no longer 'the most marginal seat in the nation', and is now a notionally safe ALP seat. I explained the reasons for this in my own analysis which I offered after the election (see the youtube link below).
My own take on this report is framed by what the report largely leaves out.
The review makes exactly one reference only to Climate Change. Here's the quote: "Young people can be alarmed by false claims, as many have been on climate change..." Wow. Talk about a tin-ear.
The report glosses the co-opting of campaigning by the presence of volunteers from Exclusive Brethren cult at polling places by stating "The Plymouth Brethren are also not the only support group who has been accused of poor behaviour on polling booths; union officials, for example, are frequently criticised for their harassment of voters."
For critical thinking nerds like me, this is a textbook "tu quoque" fallacy and it fails to grasp the serious issue of a cult damaging the brand of the Liberal Party.
The NSW division's internecine factional brawling – something that led to the entire State Council being sacked (and remain sacked to this day) is absent from the report.
What is mentioned is the hobbling of candidates to run effective local campaigns through overly centralised control and a difficulty in getting a response or commitments from head office on funding and issues, which the party definitely suffered from in Macquarie.
The report is fascinating reading. Trying to ban it has caused a massive 'Streisand effect'.
www.smh.com.au/interactive/hub/media/tearout-excerpt/55158/Liberal-Party-election-review-December...
youtu.be/0qCTyrC3lXE?si=MV94blmWiP1KCz3L
Looking forward to the inaugural TEDxHawkesbury event at Richmond School of Arts on Saturday April 18th.
Have you bought your tickets yet?
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When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it, or it's been deleted.
Belmont House is a hidden gem of the Hawkesbury set in the grounds of St John of God Richmond Hospital on Grose Vale Road at North Richmond. It is a magnificent mansion in a high Victorian Italianate style built using locally quarried sandstone. It was built for Philip Charley (a founding member of BHP), his wife, eight children and over a dozen staff. The foundation stone was set 134 years ago today!
Today, it is part of a complex devoted to mental health, but the site has a fascinating history that includes the original grant to Archibald Bell (Snr and Jnr, as in Bells line of Road), the Rum rebellion, the future King Edward VII and Breaker Morant!
We had a lovely tour of the house by the Friends of Belmont House led by Brother Julian, Neil Renaud, Joy and Judy. The house would rival any grand estate anywhere in Sydney or even Australia, gilded and crafted in Jarrah and Cedar. No expense was spared, and the grounds are beautiful. The house has been lovingly restored but the work (and expense) are ongoing.
I especially valued the reminiscences of Brother Julian, who has devoted a lifetime in vocation to the site and the work there. He carries a living history of his Order and of the evolution of approaches to mental health.
Another tour will be conducted in June, and will reward any lover of history. Express your interest through their Facebook page.
It’s always exciting to see a new business open in Windsor. Congratulations to Hannah on the grand opening of Hanmade’s Bakehouse in Thompson Square. We stopped by for a meal. I had the Spanish Bread, the Banh Mi and a cuppa. Delicious! @hanmadesbakehouse
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When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it, or it's been deleted.I am so pleased that Scott will be speaking at the upcoming TEDxHawkesbury event on April 18th. Tickets are available now.
This content isn't available at the moment
When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it, or it's been deleted.
The Thomas James Bridge was built by convicts in 1830 (it just pips the Lennox bridge at Penrith - 1833).
In 2022 it was severely damaged by the floods. Before Christmas we had the pleasure of re-opening it. 1800 sandstone blocks were individually numbered so they could be placed back to within 20mm of their original placement.
The whole project - managed by Hawkesbury Council but with State and Federal Disaster reconstruction money, came in under budget at $22.07M due to the great work of Delaney Civil. It's a good news story!
This is the last segment from my interview with Shaun Williams from Hawkesbury Radio.
I am interested in your views, so please let me know what you think.
If this interests you, the whole interview is available on my YouTube (please subscribe for updates).
When Council does poorly, the buck should stop with the elected chamber.
If we fail the community by not delivering capital improvements and maintenance to Council assets, progressive policies, or efficient services, then that should be on us, as Councillors.
This is the next segment from my interview with Shaun Williams from Hawkesbury Radio.
I am interested in your views, so please let me know what you think. How do you think Council is doing?
If this interests you, the whole interview is available on my YouTube (please subscribe for updates).
