15th May 2022. Edition One. In this edition:
President's Report, BCCT eNews,
ANZAC Day,
Autumn walk,
Trust Correspondence with Local Government,
Hornsby Council request Portal,
Hornsby Library Newsletter,
Pennant Hills Civic Trust,
Hornsby Council Newsletter,
Parramatta Newsletter, Recent Development Applications,
Latest Police Reports.
Message from the President Dear fellow members and residents of Beecroft and Cheltenham,
This month another significant document was made available by Hornsby
Shire Council for comment. This is the detailed, but reasonably high
level plan for expenditure by the Council. There is a close correlation
between the advocacies of the Trust and how Council spends money and so I
will set out some of the points that arise from my perspective.
Council endeavours identified for action
The Trust set out its strategic concerns for our villages in its
submissions to the draft Hornsby Shire Council’s Community Strategic
Plan. This plan has now been finalised and so the next step is for
Council to produce a draft Delivery Program 2022-2026 and an Operational
Plan 2022-2023. These drafts are available for comment on the Hornsby
Shire Council website in the “Have your say” section CLICK HERE. The
Trust will make a submission on these draft plans.
The primary issues as identified by the Trust are:
Following
the improvement of the Railway Gardens, it was so pleasing to see that
they were being extensively used during the pandemic. They have
established a benchmark for improved usage of other local parks
especially the Beecroft Village Green, Fearnley Park and Lyne Road
Reserve.
Planning
for the Beecroft Village Green needs to make sure that how this path
connects into Epping does not have an impact and that there is
preliminary community consultation about how the Village Green is used
for the benefit of the community. For example some people have asked to
re-install a band stand, others to open up more of the Community Centre
to face the Green or to build structures for play equipment of bikes to
create more exciting activities for our active adolescents and to
minimise damage to bushland where they have taken self-help measures. As
the Village Green has Beecroft Road on one side and the railway on the
other, it doesn’t have anyone living on top of the space and so
questions of noise can be taken into account. It is only when these key
features are decided that a general masterplan can be designed.
Council
parks elsewhere across Sydney provide some excellent examples of more
interesting and active children’s play equipment than we currently have.
Our
bushland needs more effort in weed control to assist our ever
hardworking and vigilant bushcare volunteers. This is present everywhere
but especially on the Crown land adjoin Lyne Road Reserve.
The
Beecroft retail centre needs greater thought on how to improve its
physical attributes so as to make it a place of destination: rather than
a stop off for limited last minute shopping. This should include
improved pedestrian access (especially in crossing Hannah Street),
street lighting and seating and enhanced plantings in addition to better
traffic flow all to recognise that it is in a heritage conservation
area which should be enhanced rather than having incongruous additions
which won’t draw people in.
We
need to be thinking of the future and the long term impacts stemming
from recent lockdowns with consideration of what might be the needs of
residents working from home.
We are working jointly with Epping Civic Trust to involve both Parramatta City Council and Hornsby Shire Council in:
Completing a footpath along the west side of Beecroft Road from the bridge over the motorway towards Carlingford Road.
Pedestrian
passageway between North Epping and Cheltenham beside the motorway (and
similarly from Lyne Road reserve to Cheltenham Oval) to support the
development of walking tracks to enhance physical activity and open
connections.
Remediating
the island wasteland that is the Great North Road ford over Devlins
Creek being the island between the rail line, motorway and Beecroft
Road. For one of the last remnants of one of the most significant
infrastructure projects of the mid 1800s we aren’t even sure about who
has responsibility.
I
would welcome any comment on these or other areas of concern or whether
the identified issues are the right ones. I can be reached on president@bcct2119.com.au.
Other initiatives that the Trust is closely monitoring include:
Hornsby Shire Council’s implementation of its acceptance of the recent report on Byles Creek Valley.
Any steps to improve traffic at the Kirkham Street/Beecroft Road intersection.
Heritage and Hornsby Shire Council
The Trust and the Beecroft Cheltenham History Group are responding to
separate consultants engaged by Council on the following topics:
Aboriginal history of the Shire
Industrial remnants of rural and remote workings primarily from the 19th century
Individual heritage items
Possible individual heritage items built from the 1940s until more recently
The interpretation of the history of the Shire.
Immediate responses
The Trust has raised with Hornsby Shire Council the flooding during
heavy rains of the entry to the pedestrian underpass on the Sutherland
Road side and a number of significant trees that have been left
unprotected during building works.
Village Events
The ANZAC Day event was voted by all who attended as very moving and an
appropriate local response to the horrors of war that we see every night
on our news. Congratulations to Beecroft Rotary and John Simpson.
John Simpson has been very busy because he also (together with former resident Bruce Piper) featured in a Sydney Morning Herald
article on a statue removed many years ago from the former General Post
Office. Stuart Pittendrigh featured in the magazine of the Garden Clubs
talking about Barangaroo. The e-news would like to hear of other
residents who have featured in publications that aim for audiences
outside of our Villages.
The Trust’s Autumn Walk had great weather and an interesting passage
through the Pioneer Track to Ray Park. Numbers were however down on
previous years.
Beecroft Cheltenham Civic Trust eNews. The
Trust publishes this monthly eNews newsletter. If you would like
to receive this newsletter on a regular basis, please CLICK HERE to subscribe to the eNews.
ANZAC Day Service at the Beecroft War Memorial The
Rotary Club of Beecroft in association with the past members of the
Lions Club of Beecroft organised the ANZAC Day Service on Monday the 25th at the Cenotaph in Wongala Crescent.
Autumn Walk. Sunday 1st May 2022 The Trust held its annual Autumn Walk on Sunday afternoon the 1st May. This year the walk visited the Ray Park area.
Beecroft Cheltenham Civic Trust. The
Trust on behalf of the community, makes regular submission to Local
Government. All correspondence with Council can be viewedon the
Trust's website. CLICK HERE to view the documents.
Byles Creek Valley Last week Hornsby Shire Councillors voted
unanimously in favour of implementation of all of the
Byles Creek Planning Study recommendations without any changes as below:
Rezone the R2 land within the study area to E4 Environmental Living.
Increase the minimum lot size for land to be zoned E4 Environmental Living to 40 hectares .
Strengthen
the wording of the objectives for minimum lot size, Clause 4.1 of the
Hornsby Local Environment Plan to protect and enhance existing bushland
and significant vegetation.
Insert
a new Local Provision Clause for Riparian Land into the Hornsby LEP
2013 and provide supporting riparian corridor mapping .
Increase community engagement programs targeting the Study Area.
Submissions to Hornsby Shire Council We
have been advised by Council that members of the community who wish to
report issues of concern such as non-compliance with Development
Applications; can now use an online portal to register a service request
for investigation. Online Services Portal | Hornsby Shire Council (nsw.gov.au)
Hornsby Library
Hornsby Library is celebrating it's 50th Anniversary. CLICK HERE for the newsletter.
The Pennant Hills District Civic Trust latest newsletter can be viewed CLICK HERE
Hornsby Shire Councl's Latest News Bulletin May eNews can be viewed CLICK HERE
City of Parramatta's Latest News Bulletin ePULSE can be viewed CLICK HERE
Recent Development Applications The
Beecroft Cheltenham Civic Trust's Web Site now has links to recently
submitted Development Applications in the 2119 postcode area for both
Hornsby and Parramatta Shire Councils. This page will be updated
with every eNews publication. CLICK HERE To access them.
Latest Police Reports CLICK HEREfor
the latest reports. Just a reminder that these reports are
regularly provided by the Ryde Police Area Command which includes the
entire suburbs of Beecroft & Cheltenham.
Annual Memberships for 2022 became due in March... CLICK HERE
Keep our two suburbs strong and informed by being a member!
To support or join the Beecroft Cheltenham Civic Trust, please visit our website. CLICK HERE.The
eNews has become our main method for disseminating information to the
community. Currently we have over 1090 email addresses. We
encourage residents who receive the eNews to tell their neighbours and
friends. The eNews letter is available to all who subscribe.
Trust Membership is not a requirement.
The eNews archives are available HERE. To subscribe to the eNews: CLICK HERE.The Trust has always had an unwritten policy to assist any resident regardless of their membership status.
