Bushfire Recovery (13 June 2020)

Once the easing of COVID-19 restrictions allowed community halls to reopen with restrictions, Coffs Harbour City Council’s Community Recovery Officer, local support agencies and other organisations created the opportunity to meet with bushfire affected residents at Nana Glen – and I was very glad to be invited along.

No one doubts for a moment that locals in the Orara Valley have a very long way to go in recovering from the bushfires, but it’s good to know that so many organisations and people are there to help and will be there for the long haul.

These community outreach meetings will occur fortnightly at the Nana Glen Community Hall. As well as recovery officers, they are also supported by the Red Cross, Salvation Army, Life House and HeartStart Glenreagh.

For more information on bushfire recovery, go to haveyoursay.coffsharbour.nsw.gov.au/bushfire-recovery-program-coffs-harbour-orara-valley or email [email protected]

Great News for Northern Beaches

The announcement of a $10m Australian Government grant towards the West Woolgoolga Sports Complex was fantastic news for Woolgoolga and the Northern Beaches.

The local community was definitely the driver behind this great result. Their support and drive – particularly that of the committee led by Alastair Milroy – have been vital in seeing this project come to life.

The project is forecast to cost $24.7m. Council has provided $6.7m, the NSW Government $8m and the Australian Government has now announced a further $10m. It’s always good to see all three levels of government come to the table on a project and it highlights how important we all see this development for the future of Woolgoolga, the Northern Beaches and the wider area.

Detailed design, funded by Council, is already well underway. Some site works are due to begin later this year with major construction works to start in early 2021. Construction is anticipated to take two years.

The West Woolgoolga Sports Complex has three main components:

West Woolgoolga Playing Fields catering for AFL and Cricket, as well as multi-use fields with lighting, drainage and amenities (Playing Fields stage 1). Northern Beaches Multi-Purpose Centre with two indoor courts (Basketball and Netball), stage, kitchen, multi-purpose rooms, amenities (Multi-Purpose Centre stages 1 and 2). Civil works including roadways, shared pathways, carparks and services.

Ref-YOU-Gee Week 2020

This year’s Refugee Week runs from June 14-20. With COVID-19 restrictions, Council and its community partners are taking the party online and inviting everyone to ‘put yourself in the picture’ with an exciting array of online live events via coffsharbour.nsw.gov.au/refugeeweek Join in the fun, it’s going to be good!

Pictured above at the Bushfire Recovery Outreach are (back row left to right): Council’s Community Recovery Officer Melinda Brooks, Peter Ainsworth of Life House, Mayor Denise Knight, Carrie Lewis, NSW Health Bushfire Recovery Clinician, and Helen Cumming, Salvation Army Bushfire Recovery Outreach Worker. Front row: local resident Ian Watson and Red Cross Woolgoolga Emergency Services Team Leader Judy Jackson.