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ACT Team Councillors Trevor Mott & Kerrie Christian were today delighted that a vote at Wollongong Council has established resident community representation on the inner city Central Wollongong Planning Committee. Earlier Wollongong Council GM Oxley had recommended that resident community representation was not necessary on the inner city Central Wollongong Planning Committee. The area, which is within Cr Darling and Cr Wood's Ward 3, is covered by Neighbourhood Committee 6, which had been trying to get onto the Central Wollongong Planning Committee for months. In the report the GM claimed that the broader community was already represented by the Lord Mayor and 3 other councillors.
"I was very, very disappointed with the GM's recommendation to Councillors to not permit community membership on this inner city consultative planning committee," stated Cr Mott, "the report said that there was a need for a clear direction to be set - well if you ask me - we must involve NC 6 - it's got to be more than development industry reps such as Neville Fredericks, who sits on this committee."
Cr Mott explained that he believed it was the same council management attitude that has led to extreme community anger over council's handling of planning. He said that the community know their areas the best - and that planners are all too often fairly itinerant - moving onto other jobs and other localities.
Earlier this year the GM had submitted a report to Council, proposing that the councillors delegate their planning powers, to determine development applications, to the Central Wollongong Planning Committee, which includes development industry reps. The motion moved by W3 Crs Darling and Wood, was defeated by by ALP and ACT Team councillors.
Last month fellow ACT councillor Kerrie Christian, apologised that NC6 had been left off when the Committee had been set up and tried to get NC6 to have full representation onto the Central Wollongong Planning Committee - she was not supported by Ward 3 Councillor Alex Darling, and the ALP councillors suggested that a report be provided to council - which is now to be considered tonight.
"Dissatisfaction with community involvement in planning processes is rife", insisted Cr Mott, "it may have been noisiest in the north - but there has been a lot of anger around central Wollongong itself and now around Windang people are getting angry at the prospect of medium density and overdevelopment."
"Communities do not just want to react to proposals put up by professional planning experts and the development industry," insisted Cr Mott ,"they want to have a say from the beginning in mapping out planning proposals for their areas."
Note 1. From Wollongong Council Meeting - July 2002
MEMBERSHIP - CENTRAL WOLLONGONG PLANNING COMMITTEE
Councillor Christian advised that Neighbourhood Committee 6 have expressed concern in relation to the membership of the Central Wollongong Planning Committee which comprises of developers, Government agencies and the South Coast Labor Council. Neighbourhood Committee 6 had requested that Council give consideration to their representation on the above Committee.
Council resolved to have a report be submitted to the August round of Committee meetings in relation to the request for representation by Neighbourhood Committee 6 on the Central Wollongong Planning Committee.
Note 2 :
Earlier this year the ALP, supported by ACT Team councillors, had insisted that the Central Wollongong Planning Committee must report back to the Councillors and not operate independently in its own right - as supported by Ward 3 Councillors Darling and Wood.
ITEM 4 - ENVIRONMENT, PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE - 11 FEBRUARY 2002 - ESTABLISHMENT OF A CENTRAL WOLLONGONG PLANNING COMMITTEE - REPORT OF GENERAL MANAGER (RO) 15/1/02
MOVED Councillor Darling seconded Councillor Wood that -
1 Council establish a Central Wollongong Planning Committee.
2 Council endorse the appointment of Ward 3 Councillors to this Committee.
3 Council extend an invitation to representatives of those organisations identified in the report to be members of the committee.
4 Council endorse this committee to act as a steering group to oversee the Wollongong city centre improvement strategies project.
5 Council delegate authority under Section 377 of the Local Government Act to allow the committee to make determinations in respect of development applications which are referred to it within the boundaries indicated within this report.
21 An AMENDMENT was MOVED by Councillor Kershaw seconded Councillor Yates that -
1 Council establish a Central Wollongong Planning Committee.
2 Council endorse the appointment of the Lord Mayor, Ward 3 Councillors and the Vice Chairperson of the Environment, Planning and Development Committee to this Committee.
3 Council extend an invitation to representatives of those organisations identified in the report to be members of the Committee.
4 Council endorse this Committee to act as a steering group to oversee the Wollongong city centre improvement strategies project.
The AMENDMENT on being PUT to the VOTE was CARRIED.
The AMENDMENT then BECAME the MOTION.
The MOTION was PUT and CARRIED.
Authorised Cr Kerrie Christian - August 14 2002
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