From the Council Chamber 18.2.25
By Miranda Korzy, Pittwater Greens Councillor
Tree Management Policy to go out for public comment - Pittwater loses arts funding - Council culture
Tree Management Policy to go out for public comment
Tree huggers will be pleased to know that the council’s new Tree Management Policy will finally go on public exhibition next week - given the controversy attached to protection of our tree canopy since amalgamation.
Councillors voted unanimously to send the policy out for community comment at Tuesday’s meeting.
The policy comes at a time when staff are due to decide on the future of two Flooded Gums marked for removal in Avalon’s Ruskin Rowe, following a new assessment by an arborist independent of council and the local community.
I told the meeting that the Northern Beaches, and particularly Pittwater Ward, are blessed with a spectacular landscape, one of its most prominent features being the extent of our tree canopy.
Overall, as the council papers noted, that canopy covers 59 per cent of the LGA. Much of it is in national parks, but that figure corresponds to canopy cover in Pittwater ward. In Pittwater, multiple endangered ecological communities are associated with the canopy, including the Wagstaffe Spotted Gum Forest and Duffys Forest Endangered Ecological Community.
These forests provide multiple benefits to the community - in addition to supplying wildlife habitat. In areas with an intact canopy, air temperatures can be reduced by up to 10 degrees Celsius, which in turn reduces air conditioning costs and carbon emissions. They improve air quality, prevent soil erosion and trees absorb carbon dioxide as they grow. That’s not to mention their aesthetic value and positive impact on mental health.
However, a week rarely goes by when I don’t hear complaints from residents about trees being cut down.
Against this backdrop, and community outrage about the proposed removal of the Ruskin Rowe Flooded Gums, I believed we needed to quickly plug the gaps in our strategic framework by developing a new tree management policy and then reviewing council’s tree stewardship practices. Hence my motion to that effect in July.
So I’m pleased with council’s change of direction, with the CEO having brought all trees on council land under the aegis of the Environment Division in the second half of last year and now presenting this tree policy.
The draft policy will supersede five earlier versions enacted by the previous Pittwater, Warringah and Manly Councils. It is based on the Tree Canopy Plan, finally introduced in September 2023, after a motion to council calling for it in 2017.
The new draft policy clearly recognises the significant benefit of trees. Its main aims are to maximise tree cover by protecting existing canopy and increasing new and replacement plantings. That also includes enhancing canopy connections between natural areas - which are critical to wildlife survival.
However, it also says that retention of trees is dependent on them remaining healthy so that they don’t pose an unacceptable risk to the community.
Other points of note include the introduction of an Iconic or Significant Tree register, for which residents will be able to nominate examples, along with succession planting to ensure we have a mix of different aged trees, preference for local native species, and community notifications of tree removals.
I believe some residents might find they would like a bit of fine tuning on a couple of these issues but the principles are sound.
I hope residents - especially those with expert knowledge of trees - will comment on the proposed policy.
Caring for trees
I also welcomed a report to council last Tuesday on the council’s tree stewardship - a further response to my motion from last July for a review of council’s practices.
As I mentioned in debate on the draft Tree Management Policy, numerous complaints from residents about local tree felling, and community outrage about the proposed removal of Flooded Gums in Ruskin Rowe, along with the long gestation of our tree canopy plan, contributed to my call for this review.
I was particularly pleased to see its proposal for a full review of the way council cares for trees, to be carried out in the second half of this year - which would consider the benefits of more frequent inspections of them. Given the high priority residents ascribe to the environment and trees on the Northern Beaches, this would ensure that all tree stewardship practices associated with our canopy aligned with the new Tree Canopy Plan and draft Tree Management Policy.
Whilst I believe the $630,000 cost identified in the report to inspect every tree in the LGA each year would be unjustifiable, I appreciate the report’s suggestions that those close to playgrounds, and childcare centres should be prioritised. Perhaps a few other areas should also be considered - such as schools and heavily used parks.
It’s also sensible that those with an elevated level of risk be inspected more frequently, to enable regular pruning or other interventions that would allow those trees to survive as long as possible.
One of the reasons I voted for a Special Rate Variation last meeting was to provide funding for these types of services, especially more frequent tree inspections in high profile and high use areas, that are currently unaffordable.
Additionally, the suggested appointment of a professional services panel for arborists would also be well worth considering.
Finally I emphasised the report’s statement that the draft Tree Management Policy contains detail on public notifications of tree removals - including those that potentially threaten life or limb - and I hope residents will address this issue in submissions on the policy.
This report was also passed unanimously.
Pittwater loses arts funding
Pittwater’s arts community has lost close to $100,000 set aside for a creative art space in the area, which council redirected to urgent works at Glen Street theatre at its meeting last Tuesday night.
The Quarterly Report published in council papers for the meeting stated that $99,592 remained in the “Merger Savings Fund” from the $1 million the Administrator had allocated to “... Creative Art Space at the northern end of the Northern Beaches local government area (eg Avalon or Newport)”, on June 2, 2018.
The Pittwater arts community had expected studios and a large exhibition space would be developed with these funds. So far, council has set up a studio downstairs in the Avalon Golf Club, known as the Avalon Creative Space, (opened in March 2021), and the Mona Vale Creative Space (opened two months later) with studio/small exhibition space. A stand alone exhibition space has not eventuated.
Meanwhile, staff said a fire curtain hoist at the Glen St Theatre, in Belrose, needed urgent replacement, so proposed putting the $99,592 from the Pittwater creative space allocation towards the $122,000 needed for the work.
At the meeting, I proposed to delete the proposal from the Quarterly Review recommendations.
“I do appreciate that these works might be urgent, however, this transfer of funding is like robbing Peter to pay Paul,” I told the meeting.
“The Pittwater arts community fought long and hard for funding towards arts spaces - meaning studios and an exhibition space in Avalon. That was recognised in funding of $1 million being put aside by the Administrator after the amalgamation.
Further, despite a proposal for a “Community and Cultural Hub” in Mona Vale from 2019, a report to council last June, presented:
• two options for consideration, with estimated capital costs ranging from $13.5 million to $19.7 million, based on construction in the 2028/29 financial year.
• However, the report stated the Mona Vale council building (which includes the library) is now required for operational purposes to relocate existing staff from Vuko Place Warriewood and the Dee Why Civic precinct.
• It also noted the Long-Term Financial Plan did not identify the project for funding and there was “limited opportunity for a return on Council’s capital investment”.
• “To fully realise the potential of either option to convert the site into a vibrant cultural and community hub, an increase in service levels and additional net operational funding per annum would be required,” the report said.
The council voted to accept this report at the time. However, those points do not support the statement in the current Quarterly Review that:
“... the funds remaining in the Merger Savings Fund are no longer required to expand the creative space at Mona Vale”.
The community still expects a creative precinct in Mona Vale and for the funds allocated towards it to be spent in that way.
I would add that we are still waiting for the completion of the Mona Vale Place Plan, in which I know residents want to see an enlarged creative space. I recognise our problems with maintaining assets but this was meant to be an amalgamation sweetener for the people of Pittwater.
Unfortunately, only councillors Rowie Dillon (Pittwater Ward, Your Northern Beaches), Kristyn Glanville (Curl Curl, Greens), Joelene Hackman (Curl Curl, YNB), Bonnie Harvey (Manly, Greens) and I voted for the amendment.
The funding changes were then approved by all councillors except Ms Dillon, Bob Giltinan (Narrabeen, Independent) and myself. Councillor Sunny Singh (Pittwater, Liberal Independent) and Ethan Hrnjak (Greens, Frenchs Forest) were both on leave.
I will raise this issue at the councillor financial workshop in March with the aim of recovering the funding.
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Editor's Note - NB Council's Minutes for: Item 9.6 QUARTERLY REVIEW - DECEMBER 2024 ..
AMENDMENT
Cr Korzy / Cr Harvey
That Council:
1. Note the Quarterly Report on Service Performance for the period ended December 2024.
2. Note the December 2024 Quarterly Budget Review Statement.
3. Approve the changes to the Current Forecast in the December 2024 Quarterly Budget
Review Statement, including:
a. an increase in the forecast surplus from continuing operations, which includes capital grants and contributions, of $4.210 million to $38.526 million
b. a decrease in Capital Expenditure of $3.805 million to $109.983 million with the Glen Street Theatre renewal works of $0.122 million to be fully funded from Depreciation/Working Capital.
4. Note the Quarterly Report on expenditure of funds from the Stronger Communities Fund for the period ended December 2024.
VOTING
FOR: Cr Hackman, Cr Glanville, Cr Harvey, Cr Dillon and Cr Korzy
AGAINST: Cr Robins, Cr Williams, Cr Beaugeard, Cr Grattan, Cr Bingham, Cr Giltinan, Cr De Luca and Cr Heins
LOST
THE AMENDMENT WAS LOST AND DEBATE RESUMED ON THE ORIGINAL MOTION
.
That Council: ....
4. Approve the re-allocation of $99,592 from the internally restricted reserve ‘Merger Savings Fund’ from ‘Creative art space at the northern end of the Northern Beaches’ to urgent works at Glen Street Theatre
Records in the Voting of this Item;
VOTING
FOR: Cr Robins, Cr Williams, Cr Hackman, Cr Beaugeard, Cr Glanville, Cr Harvey, Cr Grattan, Cr Bingham and Cr Heins
AGAINST: Cr De Luca
ABSENT: Cr Giltinan, Cr Dillon and Cr Korzy
CARRIED