We enjoy a wide variety of bird life on our acreage at Oakville.
A month ago we noticed White-faced Herons (Egretta novaehollandiae) had made a rather ramshackle nest in one of our gums. They're a favourite of mine -- I think they're an elegant bird.
Two chicks are nearly fledged, and have weathered heatwave days and storms with aplomb.
How lovely! ... See MoreSee Less
21 hours ago
This is a great initiative, and Hawkesbury has been generously endowed from the pool of available funds. ... See MoreSee Less
4 days ago
How do you feel?
This year has been a trial. I’m feeling a little frayed at the edges myself.
This graphic really caught my eye. Where are you on it?
I started the year in green, but I’ve spent more time in the yellow zone than I’d prefer, with transient flashes into orange.
Honest self-assessment of how we’re going is the first step to speaking up, seeking support, and rearranging what’s important.
Hang in there, everyone. We’re all in this together. Better times are coming.
Share this if you know someone who could benefit. ... See MoreSee Less
1 week ago
Hawkesbury City Council has no less than 17 different Committees.
They’re a mess – some have been around since Noah. Some have forgotten the reason for their creation. Some took it upon themselves to re-write their own terms of reference. Some are chaired by Councillors, some are not. Some take in members of the broader community as voting members, some not.
Some of the committees do good work, and enrich the decision making processes of Council. Some… not so much. Each committee requires staff resources to prepare agendas, minutes, and convene meetings.
A proposal was advanced at tonight’s Council meeting to restructure our committees for the first time in decades. It was a great idea – it streamlines the number and remit of committees, taking on detailed feedback received by a Council review over the last year.
It ensured that our committee meetings were public and open to public address (they aren’t now). That agendas are pre-published, and that documentation was available in a timely way to Councillors and the public alike.
It promotes the importance of existential threats like floods and bushfires to become the concern of the whole Chamber – not just a subcommittee.
I agreed. Many times I’ve been in a committee meeting and thought ‘I wish all my colleagues were hearing this‘.
I disagreed on one critical point – the proposal, as it was moved, sought to abolish our Heritage Committee.
Our Heritage Committee, which I’ve been a member of for four years, carries a disproportionate weight for Council. HCC doesn’t employ a full-time Heritage Officer. The members of this committee are a rare and special fraternity of heritage wisdom, including scientists, heritage architects, historians, and planning experts. We’re very fortunate to have them give their knowledge to us around the year, completely gratis. Put it this way – if we had to pay for their advice, we couldn’t afford it. The work this committee does fills a huge gap that would be impossible to fill if the committee was dissolved – and the motion before me sought to do just that. It sought to amalgamate its function into a committee with no community representatives and which shared billing with Waste and Environmental Sustainability – fairly poor bedfellows.
So, when the vote came, and despite my support for committee reform generally, I voted for a deferral so we could talk as a group of 12 about a better outcome that both permits reform, and protects our unique Heritage (and this committee). I expect the matter will come back to Council before Christmas.
Picture: Summer Noon, Hawkesbury River; Arthur Streeton, 1896.
councillorzamprogno.info/2020/11/24/council-committees-and-protecting-our-heritage/ ... See MoreSee Less
Council Committees and protecting our Heritage
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Hawkesbury City Council has no less than 17 different Committees.They’re a mess – some have been around since Noah. Some have forgotten the reason for their creation. Some took it upon th 2 weeks ago
The NSW government have announced the removal of warning signs at the locations of speed cameras. No such plans were disclosed before the last election.
It’s not a Council matter, but the Hawkesbury hosts 5 or more fixed speed or red light cameras.
For what it’s worth, I’m opposed to this idea.
Only active, local Highway Patrol policing works to bring the road toll down. Getting a fine in the post two weeks after an infraction is no goad to better driver behaviour.
What galls is that prior to gaining election in 2011, both the Liberal and National Parties -- MPs who went on to become Deputy Premier, Roads Minister (!), and even Police Minister (!!) excoriated the then Labor Government for using Speed Cameras as revenue raisers.
Here are some quotes from these MP's in Hansard:
"The Hon. DUNCAN GAY (Nationals): My question without notice is directed to the Minister for Roads. Does his Government still acknowledge the value that marked cars and marked cameras offer as a deterrent to speeding? Will the Minister indicate whether the Roads and Traffic Authority has put forward plans to use unmarked police cars and/or hire cars with no signage as stationery speed camera vehicles? Would this mean that the Government has given up on deterrent measures and has resorted to just revenue raising?" (10th May 2007)"
"The Hon. MICHAEL GALLACHER (Liberal): My question without notice is directed to the Minister for Roads. Does the Minister recall on 10 May the Opposition questioned him about plans to use parked, unmarked vehicles with no signage to catch speeding drivers? On that occasion why did the Minister not admit to the public of New South Wales that the Roads and Traffic Authority [RTA] had plans to use covert speed cameras? Whilst the Minister talks about transparency and a preparedness to work with the public, why did he only admit to the plan when the Daily Telegraph published the story on the front page yesterday? (06 June 2007)"
"Mr ANDREW STONER (Nationals): My question is directed to the Minister for Roads. As the Minister said yesterday he had "no doubt" that the number of locations at which motorists can be caught by mobile speed cameras will change, will he now come clean with the motoring public and admit that he is planning to increase them by almost seven times, to 1,000, despite failing to provide any evidence they are anything more than a sneaky way to line the Government's pockets? (11 November 2010)" ... See MoreSee Less
2 weeks ago
The Australiana Pioneer Village turned 50 this week, and I was honoured to represent Hawkesbury City Council at the celebration.
Council has not always been a good friend to the Village, which has defied all expectations under the dedicated work of the The Friends of The Australiana Pioneer Village to become a gem in the Hawkesbury -- a wonderful repository of our living history, and a tourism drawcard given by the healthy crowd there this morning.
Joining us was APV President Kevin Weeks and member of the APV founding family, Chris McLachlan, and Costa Georgiadis Official from the ABC's Gardening Australia program -- full of good advice about composting, worm farming and Chicken rearing!
I've fought to see the APV funded to complete its Conservation Management Plan -- crucial for caring for the heritage on the site, and a key for unlocking other grant funding, and also completing a Flood Study so that the Hawkesbury Valley Men's Shed can erect a new building on the site with a NSW Government grant.
Robyn Preston MP - Member for Hawkesbury
Mayor of Hawkesbury
Hawkesbury Post ... See MoreSee Less
2 weeks ago
Andrew Mortimer
Very extensive,I would love to see you do this for a true representation using the last percentage that was changed by Bob Porter and voted by the last liberal block,because Bowen Mountain were hit hard & our rates rose astronomically,we don’t have all the services you listed that residential have,we are like the rural properties but our land is nowhere near the 3mill mark
I’d like to see them look at all the options, not just this Liberal stuck-in-the-mud 50% one which is not used by virtually any surrounding council’s. Nathan’s numbers also seem to misrepresent the 50% – it is worked out over the whole Hawkesbury, not on individual properties, so the description he gives can be a little misleading. He’s done a great job on it though, just a shame something similar could not be done in time for the councillors to be given a more detailed analysis as part of the decision-making process.
The St Albans, NSW community has been payiing for services which they don’t get for years and yet to get the council to do anything in our area they now want to put our rates up. Not good enough. Its impossible to get decent Road work done, Clearing of noxious weeds, our Local park maintained, paths are over grown with weeds, Council tennis courts left to abandon. Why should our rates go up for services we already pay for but do not receive.
After the great job the St Albans people did in respect to the Commons, it surprises me that we don’t hear more of these problems. With the new General Manager being a very hands-on guy, I’d be getting in touch not only with council but the individual councillors to get some action. Things are changing, and hopefully for the better ?
Belinda Ripolles Astill
Brilliant work
how about we just amalgamate with Hills and throw the current tossers away. Hawkesbury council area has so much tourism potential which is wasted by this ridiculous council. Not to mention the way land gets subdivided in Hawkesbury, no sewer service, just vacuum systems that are guaranteed to fail, how about handing the wastewater assets over to Sydney water, get someone competent to run them. Sydney Water customers pay less for sewage services than Hawkesbury council
Read the Hawkesbury Tourism Strategy? Seen which political party dominates the tourism committee? Seen where the $3 million our State member promised is being spent? I don’t know why you think council is responsible for wasting tourism potential, it’s not like they have the money to advertise ?????. Do some research, get informed and come back with a sensible option instead of bagging the few people who actually are putting their time and effort into trying to rectify the mess they inherited please.
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