Category: Newcastle News

Firearms, drugs and jewellery have been seized after a man was arrested following a pursuit through the Port Stephens-Hunter region overnight.
Officers from Port Stephens-Hunter Police District saw a Toyota Hilux utility being driven along Government Road at Nelson Bay about 11.15pm (Saturday 22 May 2021), and directed the driver stop due to him being wanted on outstanding warrants.
Police will allege the driver, a 38-year-old man, instead accelerated and a pursuit was initiated through the suburbs of Nelson Bay, Salt Ash and Medowie, reaching speeds of up to 130km/h.
Two police vehicles were allegedly struck by the utility in Ferodale Road, Medowie, which continued at low speed due to sustaining significant damage. No police were injured.
About 11.50pm the driver left the ute on Federation Drive and ran into bushland.
Assistance was sought from the PolAir with the crew locating the man hiding in bushland a short time late. He was arrested without further incident.
When the ute was searched police seized a homemade firearm, a starter pistol, methamphetamine, and jewellery believed to be stolen
He was taken to Raymond Terrace Police Station, where he was charged with three outstanding warrants including a conviction warrant, revocation of parole warrant and breach of correctives order.
He has been refused bail to appear in Newcastle Local Court today (Sunday 23 May 2021).
Charges are pending relating to the pursuit and seizure of the firearms, drugs and jewellery.

A report recommending that the community be invited to have their say on an updated vision for Wickham, providing attractive public spaces, more connections and safety improvements will be considered at Tuesday’s Ordinary Council meeting.
The Wickham Masterplan was developed in 2017 in partnership with the community and guides the City’s planning decisions and delivery of urban renewal within Wickham. The updated Masterplan will guide the future redevelopment of land in the area and also deals with the challenge of mine subsidence.
City of Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the Wickham Masterplan aims to protect Wickham’s suburban character while ensuring public facilities and infrastructure supported the growing population.
“Wickham is experiencing increased investor interest and has attracted new developments due to its proximity to the growing Newcastle West, new transport interchange and the harbour, along with the availability of larger sites zoned for mixed use,” Cr Nelmes said.
“The updated Wickham Masterplan steers future development and will influence the mix of land use, connectivity, the public domain and what is built throughout the suburb.
“Better access and connections to Wickham Park, improved cycleways and investment in community infrastructure will support the increasing local population.
“Planned urban renewal will deliver greater road and pedestrian links within Wickham and to adjoining areas, improved public amenity as well as buildings and infrastructure that reflect the area’s unique character.”
Deputy Lord Mayor Declan Clausen said the updated Wickham Masterplan supports the strategic relocation of Newcastle’s city centre to Newcastle West under its urban renewal strategy.
“Wickham’s role continues to evolve from a once semi-industrial area at the outer fringe of the Newcastle City Centre into an urban neighbourhood supporting the emerging commercial hub within Newcastle West,” Cr Clausen said.
“We look forward to hearing from the community and working with key stakeholders like Greater Lifestyles of Wickham during the public exhibition period.”
City of Newcastle Manager Regulatory, Planning and Assessment Michelle Bisson said the updated Wickham Masterplan has revised the housing types within the Village Hub precinct and recommends an amendment to the Local Environmental Plan to facilitate a broader range of housing types, as has been raised in initial community feedback.
The updated Wickham Masterplan also deals more directly with the issue of mine subsidence. “Recent assessments by Subsidence Advisory NSW have found that the risks of subsidence from old mine workings in Wickham are more extensive than previously anticipated.
“Subsidence Advisory NSW’s advice is that a complex and expensive bulk grouting solution would be, required to remedy the undermined areas of Wickham, which would require State Government funding,” Ms Bisson said.

Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Maitland and Port Stephens Libraries are joining forces in a bid to refresh the Hunter region’s poetry scene by offering a program of workshops and special events to both emerging and more experienced poets across the region.
The ‘Stand Up for Poetry’ program, led by Newcastle Libraries, is designed to promote a deeper appreciation of written and spoken word poetry by encouraging poetic expression, written and performance skills development.
The program will deliver skills development workshops and special events, as well as slam poetry town heats as part of the Australian Poetry Slam.
Four poets, one representing each Local Government Area, will be selected to contribute towards program planning and evaluation, in order to encourage community input into the development of the poetry program.
Each poet will contribute their ideas to develop the program by attending two meetings in June and the ‘Stand Up For Poetry’ program events will be delivered from July through to October 2021.
Applications are now open and close on Wednesday 26 May 2021.
To apply, visit Newcastle Libraries webpage.

City of Newcastle’s Digital Library is playing host to a series of workshops to teach local young people skills to share stories through modern mediums like virtual reality, augmented reality and animation.
Delivered through a partnership with Newcastle Libraries and Compass Housing’s Grow a Star Project, the workshops create an opportunity for students who would not usually have access to explore these emerging technologies, to develop new skills and express themselves.
Events and Community Relations Manager at Compass Housing Michelle Faithfull, Grow a Star Coordinator Shane Marshall and Councillor Carol Duncan with students participating in the Digital Storytelling Workshops at City of Newcastle’s Digital Library.
A group of local students today embarked on the five-week program which explores the theory of storytelling techniques and narrative development during hands on classes which will equip them with the technical skills to create their own interactive and immersive worlds.
Councillor Carol Duncan said the Digital Storytelling workshops encourage students to harness their creativity and imagination while sharing their experiences through modern story telling techniques.
“The Grow a Star scholarship program provides young people living in disadvantage with opportunities that they may not normally have access to,” Cr Duncan said.
“The workshops are an excellent way to increase digital literacy through creative digital technologies and ‘world building’ and at the completion of the course, the students will have a portfolio that will allow them to follow work experience and tertiary educational opportunities.”
“The young participants will also benefit from mentoring and will develop communication and teamwork skills by working together in small groups.”
City of Newcastle’s Manager of Libraries and Learning Suzie Gately said the workshops are a perfect fit for the Digital Library which is home to a variety of technologies and tools that modernise story telling.
“While the students will apply the traditional skills of storytelling and building a narrative, they will learn how to create video featuring virtual reality presented by a Newcastle virtual and augmented reality studio,” Ms Gately said.
“Immersive storytelling through innovative video is a powerful tool that can truly bring our imagination to life.
“At the end of this program we look forward to showcasing the students’ unique and creative stories on the Digital Library’s interactive story wall for our community to enjoy.”
The program starts on 20 May and runs until 17 June involving 16 young people.

City of Newcastle has finalised the concept design for Stage 1 of the Newcastle Ocean Baths upgrade which focuses on improving the ageing pools and lower promenades.
Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the Newcastle Ocean Baths Community Reference Group (CRG) was integral in the refinement of the concept design for Stage 1.
“We’ve heard valuable feedback from the Community Reference Group, which represents our broader community and Newcastle Ocean Baths users, and adjusted the design to ensure the Baths meets the needs of our community and visitors,” Cr Nelmes said.
“The big winner has been accessibility improvements, with fit-for-purpose ramps for people with a disability or mobility issue to easily get to and from the pools.
“We’ve carefully considered the location of the ramp access into the pools and following advice from the CRG and in consultation with disability advocates have realigned the new ramp to the western edge of the pool to allow long lap swimming.
“We’ve heard our community values the existing rounded central stairs and they’ll be incorporated in the new design within upgraded seating and improvements to ensure they meet modern standards.”
Co-chair, Hunter Regional Committee of the National Trust, Mark Metrikas, said City of Newcastle had genuinely consulted on elements of the concept such as the rounded stairs.
“National Trust was concerned to see the rounded heritage stairs missing from an earlier design of the Newcastle Ocean Baths Stage 1 upgrade,” Mr Metrikas said.
“City of Newcastle has worked closely with National Trust on seeking advice as to how the stairs can be incorporated into the new design, as well as sharing additional information about the engineering and safety considerations, so as we can get a better outcome for this cherished facility.”
Other changes made in response to community feedback include replacing the shade structure with a rainproof shade textile with the potential to be removed during the winter season, the colour scheme of extended bleachers and reducing the visual impact of the new lifeguard tower.
As part of the upgrade, the iconic bleacher seating will be retained, the boardwalk will be renewed and a new pump station which will enable more effective pool cleaning will be installed. The concept design also addresses the undulating rock bottom, while retaining the sand floor to facilitate cleaning of the pools and increase user safety when sand levels are low, with sand continuing to accumulate in the pools via natural ocean processes as it does currently.
The Newcastle Ocean Baths upgrade is a staged project that will begin with the restoration of the pools and promenades in the second half of 2021 as part of Stage 1. Stage 2 will focus on the upper concourse and pavilion building.
Construction on Stage 1 of the Newcastle Ocean Baths upgrade is expected to commence mid-year.
City of Newcastle is committed to funding the renewal of Newcastle Ocean Baths in full and will direct the $9.5 million recovered from the sale of the Frederick Ash Building to the project. The sale was made possible through the relocation of the City’s Administration Centre to its new staff premises at 12 Stewart Avenue, Newcastle West, in October 2019.

City of Newcastle is inviting feedback from the community on the Harbour to Cathedral Corridor (Stairway to Heaven) concept, which proposes to link Christ Church Cathedral to the Harbour via a grand staircase.
The concept seeks to open-up connections and view lines from the Harbour foreshore and Hunter Street Mall to Christ Church Cathedral, aligning with long held strategic objectives of City of Newcastle and the NSW Government to connect the city to the harbour.
City of Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the concept is a once-in-a lifetime opportunity to create a landmark public space for the city.
“City of Newcastle will soon demolish the 59-year old Mall Car Park due to its poor structural condition which brings about the chance to open the vista to the harbour and protect iconic views of the Cathedral for future generations,” the Lord Mayor said.
“With recent developments in Hunter Street Mall, we now have a unique opportunity to provide residents and visitors to Newcastle with a world-class public space to enjoy.
“While we are in the early stages of assessing the viability of the concept, we want to determine the community’s support for this new public space which would feature a 93 metre long and 20 metre public space and stairway extending from Hunter Street to King Street, enabling pedestrian access, active shop fronts, landings and courtyards along the proposed staircase to gather and meet.”
City of Newcastle Director Governance David Clarke said a feasibility assessment found that an integrated approach to delivering the concept which involves City of Newcastle and Iris Capital owned land would provide the best outcome for the city.
“This concept aims to provide a beautiful public asset for our community whilst retaining 380 public car parking spaces in a central location of our revitalised city,” Mr Clarke said.
“Importantly, this concept provides the only opportunity to preserve the view corridor to the Cathedral due to Iris Capital’s East End Stage 3 development, which in its current form, would obscure the line of sight from the Harbour to the Cathedral.
“City of Newcastle is working with Iris Capital on an in-principle agreement on the terms and conditions about how we might progress on the concept.”
Glen Spicer, Director EJE Architects said key property and development organisations in Newcastle including The Property Council and the Urban Design Review Panel (URDP) support the concept.
“Barney Collins of EJE Architects envisioned this concept more than 15 years ago. Now with recent opportunities presenting themselves, it provides the perfect chance to maintain the heritage of the area while enhancing public and visual amenity of the space in a sustainable way,” Mr Spicer said.
“The Property Council and URDP both fully support the City of Newcastle in this exciting endeavour.”
The community is encouraged to provide feedback on the concept via the Have Your Say page on City of Newcastle’s website by Friday 4 June.

Newcastle Libraries is celebrating Australian Library and Information Week with a series of community events highlighting the skills and resilience needed to navigate the digital world.
Library and Information Week celebrates the work that library and information workers do all around Australia and showcases resources and services available to communities through programs and events.
Newcastle Libraries is partnering with ySafe, Headspace and Computer Pals to present cyber safety workshops to parents, young people and seniors about being safe online, gaming, screen time and anti-cyber bullying issues.
The workshops, held between 24-27 May, offer strategies to safeguard people of all ages and experience in the ever-changing digital world.
City of Newcastle’s launch event for Libraries and Information Week is the Humble Lecture at City Hall, featuring the renowned journalist and social commentator Stan Grant.
Grant will discuss the highly relevant topic of fake news while also exploring the importance of independent journalism as covered in his new book With the Falling of the Dusk.
The annual Humble Lecture is a City of Newcastle event established in honour of a young Newcastle Libraries staff member, Jennifer Humble, who passed away from cancer in 2018. Jennie was a passionate information professional concerned about democracy and social justice.
Launch Event – Stan Grant keynote
City Hall 19 May, 6pm – 7.30pm
eSAFETY WORKSHOPS
Digital Library
Anti-Cyber Bullying Awareness for Parents of Primary Students
24 May 12pm – 1pm
Anti-Cyber Bullying Awareness for Parents of High School Students
24 May 3.30pm – 4.45pm
Cybersmart Parents-Gaming and screen time
25 May 11am – 2.30pm
Using the Internet with Confidence and Safety for Seniors
26 May 2pm – 3pm
Wallsend Library
Anti-Cyber Bullying Awareness for Youth
27 May 1pm – 2.30pm – Cyber Safety

Officers from the Marine Area Command have helped rescue a skipper and sinking yacht off Newcastle during a 26-hour operation.
The Marine Area Command (MAC) received reports of a 50-foot Beneteau yacht taking on water 95 nautical miles off the coast of Newcastle about 12am on Friday (15 May 2021).
Port Stephens Water Police with assistance from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority located the yacht 73 nautical miles off the coast about 10am.
In rough seas, the vessel and sole occupant – a 40-year-old UK national – were towed to Newcastle Harbour, arriving about 1.30am yesterday (Saturday 15 May 2021).
The skipper has been processed through immigration by Australian Border Force (ABF) officers.
He was then escorted by police to a hotel in Sydney’s CBD where he will undergo mandatory quarantine.
The vessel remains moored at Newcastle Harbour.