Category: Newcastle News

Summerhill Waste Management Centre will be transformed into an innovative regional recovery hub under a 20-year vision to reduce waste, increase recycling rates, strengthen the economy and create new jobs in Newcastle.

The vision has been outlined in City of Newcastle’s (CN) draft Our Sustainable Waste Strategy, which will be tabled at tomorrow’s Council meeting ahead of a proposed six-week public exhibition period.

Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said developing a sustainable solution for waste was crucial for the future of our planet, our people and our prosperity, while also ensuring we’re able to manage the waste generation associated with ongoing population growth.

“During the next 20 years, Newcastle’s population is expected to grow by more than 15 per cent, which in turn will lead to an increase of almost 18 per cent in waste generation,” the Lord Mayor said.

“Our Sustainable Waste Strategy focusses on reducing the amount of waste going to landfill and changing the way we return, reuse, repair and recycle resources.

“Our draft Strategy will deliver significant benefits to the planet by preserving our finite resources and reducing emissions, while also protecting and creating new jobs in Newcastle and unlocking economic opportunities for local businesses and industry through the circular economy.”

“This is an important milestone for City of Newcastle in our journey to reduce our emissions, protect our environment and implement our commitments to sustainability under our adopted Climate Action Plan and Community Strategic Plan.”

Newcastle Deputy Lord Mayor Declan Clausen said the Strategy proposes a mix of infrastructure and service provision supported by educational campaigns and includes construction of the planned material recovery facility and organics processing facility at Summerhill.

“We’re committed to increasing our capabilities for the recycling and reuse of products in order to meet the State and Federal targets of diverting 80% of recycling and 50% of food waste from landfill,” Cr Clausen said.

“This includes investing in the infrastructure needed at Summerhill to allow residents to easily increase their recycling rates, with a recent kerbside waste audit showing that more than half of the waste in our red-lidded bins has the potential to be recovered in an organics processing facility, which can then be processed into compost for reuse in agriculture, landscaping and home gardens.

“By capturing more of the value from more of our waste, we’re localising a new resource steam, which may have significant benefits to local businesses and industry, kick-starting a local circular economy.

Pending approval from Councillors at tomorrow night’s meeting, the draft Our Sustainable Waste Strategy will be placed on public exhibition for six weeks before returning to Council later this year for adoption.

A mesmerising mass dance performance at Civic Theatre will provide a spectacular start to City of Newcastle’s flagship cultural festival when New Annual officially kicks off today.

Promising 10 days of unforgettable performances across the city centre from 23 September until 2 October, New Annual will allow locals and visitors to discover a different side of Newcastle through an immersive program of dance, music, theatre, visual arts and Indigenous workshops.

As part of the New Annual festival, City of Newcastle has also brought the multi-sensory experience of Van Gogh Alive to Newcastle’s premier major events space, Foreshore Park. As a major installation, Van Gogh Alive will extend beyond the New Annual festival, running to 23 October 2022.

Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said she was thrilled to see 12 months of preparation come to fruition today ahead of a packed schedule of events.

“Months of planning and hard work have culminated in a dynamic event that has broad appeal, attracting new audiences to the wealth of talent that exists within our thriving arts and cultural scene while also providing a platform for national artists to showcase their work in the city,” Cr Nelmes said.

“There is so much to see and do throughout the city during the 10-day festival period, including a busy program at the purpose-built Civic Park Stage, which acts as the festival hub for the duration of the event and will showcase everything from art-making workshops and dance performances to the National Young Writers Festival and Future Innovators Summit.

“The Civic Theatre will also play host to a myriad of shows throughout the festival, including the incredible spectacle of COLOSSUS, which makes its Newcastle debut tonight and features a cast of 50 dancers performing as one in a hypnotic display created by internationally renowned Australian choreographer Stephanie Lake.

“As with our inaugural New Annual, this year’s festival has a strong First Nations program that reflects our rich Indigenous heritage, with the Pavilion of Sand installation providing a base for indigenous cultural expression in Wheeler Place while the landmark musical showcase This Land celebrates the sound, soul, and spirit of the many nations in this country through an incredible line-up of First Nations artists curated by Jacob Ridgeway.

“With its mix of free, ticketed and family-friendly events, New Annual will allow everyone to experience the fun, festival atmosphere of our flagship event and I can’t wait to see everything it has in store for us.”

With the Civic precinct at its heart, New Annual will extend across the city to bring a diverse range of locations to life, including iconic sites such as Fort Scratchley, Civic Theatre and The Station, which will become temporary film sets as part of RADIAL, a collaboration between Civic Theatre, Tantrum Youth Arts’ Accelerate Ensemble and the internationally acclaimed Back to Back Theatre.

New Annual will also provide plenty of opportunities for the community to get involved in the action, including workshops by family-friendly favourites Curious Legends that invite festival-goers of all ages to help create a large-scale giant illuminated puppet, culminating in a community celebration on the last day of the festival.

Cr Nelmes said New Annual would provide an important economic boost across the arts, hospitality, and tourism sectors, while also celebrating and showcasing our creative city and was made possible with the support of presenting partners University of Newcastle and Hunter and Central Coast Development Corporation, major partner Newcastle Airport and supporting partners Crystalbrook Kingsley, Foghorn Brewery, Equip Multimedia, Holiday Inn Express & Suites Newcastle and Newcastle Transport.

To check out the full New Annual program, purchase tickets or keep up-to-date with the latest information including wet weather cancellations, visit www.newannual.com

City of Newcastle (CN) will bring together 100 people of all walks of life to help shape how the community’s voice can best be heard to guide the city’s future.

‘Your Newcastle, Your Voice’ is a public workshop to be held at Wallsend Library on 15 October as an initiative to inform CN’s new four-year Community Engagement Strategy.

Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said CN’s approach to engagement was based on inclusiveness, transparency, and responsiveness and the new strategy would build on this to ensure all Novocastrians feel a part of the Council decision making process.

“By involving the community in shaping our community engagement strategy, CN will better understand how the community want to be engaged but also if there are barriers to participating in providing feedback that will help us adapt our approach,” Cr Nelmes said.

“We are committed to genuine consultation beyond any statutory requirements because we recognise the immense value of engaging early with the community to achieve better planning outcomes.”

Earlier this year, CN released its Community Strategic Plan, Newcastle 2040, which was developed based on the input of 4,500 people from a broad representation of the community who shared their aspirations and priorities for Newcastle’s future.

“Whether developing key strategies like Newcastle 2040, or major projects like Newcastle Ocean Baths upgrade, we achieve better outcomes with the community actively engaging in decision-making,” Cr Nelmes said.

“We want all members of our community to have the opportunity to shape the future of this city and through the ‘Your Newcastle, Your Voice’ workshop we will hear directly from the community about the best ways to achieve this.”

Using a series of past project case studies, the ‘Your Newcastle, Your Voice’ workshop will seek feedback from community participants on what has been effective and where CN can improve engagement with the community.

The ‘Your Newcastle, Your Voice’ community workshop will be held on Saturday 15 October from 10am to 1pm at Wallsend Library. The community can express their interest to participate in the workshop via City of Newcastle’s website.

A century-old bridge over Cottage Creek in Newcastle West is set for renewal, with City of Newcastle seeking to engage a consultant to progress the design for a replacement structure.

Hidden on Hunter Street, between Bellevue Street and Steel Street, the bridge plays a critical role in traffic movement in and out of the CBD.

City of Newcastle has been inspecting and assessing the condition of the bridge on a regular basis as part of its Asset Maintenance Program.

Interim Director of Infrastructure and Property Joanne Rigby said replacing the historic bridge is on the agenda for delivery in the coming years.

“We are currently looking at options for the replacement of the bridge, so we can deliver a solution that is fit for purpose into the future within this busy section of Hunter Street,” Ms Rigby said.

“There has been a lot of change in this area in the last decade and as our city continues to evolve, it is important that our infrastructure continues to support this.”

Early history of the bridge is unclear, with historic plans of the area showing a concrete structure was in place around the late 1880s.

In September 1900, newspapers reported the construction of a new bridge on Hunter Street spanning Cottage Creek in Newcastle West was underway.

NSW Public Works then widened the Cottage Creek stormwater channel running under the bridge and completed other improvements in 1927 to allow for the construction of shops along the Hunter Street frontage.

A tender for a detailed design consultant will be issued in the coming weeks to help develop the most suitable option for the eventual replacement of the bridge.

Industry Super Australia (ISA) analysis of 2018/19 tax file data shows 73,950 workers in the federal electorates of Hunter, Newcastle, Shortland and Paterson were short-changed on their super, those impacted lost on average $1,879 in a year.

This year the $450 threshold was removed – which means workers who earn less than that amount a month are now paid super – and the super rate increased from 10% to 10.5% of wages.  

But 29% of the region’s workers won’t get the full benefit of these changes because they are being ripped off on their entitlements. Missing out on super contributions can cost a worker up to $60,000 at retirement.   

To end the Hunter’s unpaid super scourge the government should change the law to require all employers pay super with wages.

While most employers do the right thing, some are exploiting an outdated rule that allows them to pay super quarterly, often despite what is written on the payslip. Without alignment of super and wages, workers lose track of payments and only discover they’ve been underpaid when it is too late.

Because super can be paid quarterly some small business owners also succumb to the temptation of using their employees’ super contributions for cashflow, which also leads to underpayments.

Paying super with wages would level the playing field for all employers, stopping the unfair commercial advantage exploitative bosses get by not paying their workers’ full entitlements.

The Australian Tax Office’s patchy enforcement action has only recovered a dismal 15% of unpaid super. With limited enforcement a growing chorus of organisations have backed paying super with wages to fix the problem, including industry super funds, Super Consumers Australia, employer representatives, unions, think-tanks, accounting bodies, law firms and two senate inquiries.

The Labor government’s commitment to creating enforcement targets and including super in the National Employment Standards are welcome but will not stop underpayments occurring, the only way to address the problem at its source is to mandate super is paid with wages.    

Super should also be added to the Fair Entitlements Guarantee, the government fund that pays unpaid wages after a company’s liquidation. Many businesses go bust owing substantial amounts of super to workers.  

Industry Super Australia Chief Executive Bernie Dean said:

“With super going up, and thousands of lower-paid workers finally eligible to receive it, it’s even more important for the government to make sure workers get what they are owed.” 

“There’s a growing number of organisations calling on the government to change the law to make all employers pay super to their employees when they pay wages.”

“By not mandating employers pay super with wages, politicians are effectively standing in the way of millions of workers getting money they’ve earned and undermining their future economic security.”

Table 1: Unpaid super by NSW federal electorate in the Newcastle and Hunter regions in 2018-19

Electorate	Persons	Percentage of electorate	Average underpaid	Total ($m)
Newcastle	18,650	28%	$1,995	$37.2
Shortland	18,150	31%	$2,017	$36.6
Paterson	18,800	29%	$1,871	$35.2
Hunter	18,350	29%	$1,633	$30.0
Regional total	73,950	29%	$1,879	$139.0

National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) members at all University of Newcastle (UON) campuses will strike for 24 hours on Wednesday 21 September, following exhaustive efforts in Enterprise Bargaining to progress claims centred on job security, safe working conditions and fair pay.

Two weeks ago, NTEU members at the Callaghan, City, and Central Coast campuses voted overwhelmingly to escalate industrial action.

“Negotiations with UON management for have dragged on for more than a year,” said NTEU Newcastle Branch Vice-President, Associate Professor Terry Summers.  

“Our members are disappointed by a lack of movement on key issues such as safe workloads, a fair pay offer and job security. Staff are now taking action to defend the excellent higher education that we are committed to provide.”

“Last year, despite the University making a record surplus of $185 million, hundreds of colleagues were impacted by job cuts. Most staff at UON are employed casually or on short-term contracts. Job insecurity makes it harder for staff to provide the quality of education our students and our community deserve. We need protections against job cuts and improved pathways to more secure jobs.

“Because of these cuts, we have fewer staff being asked to do more with less. These staff are already overworked. This impacts quality of education and research.  We need improved leave rights and enforceable protections against overwork and unreasonable working hours to improve work-life balance.

“We also need fair pay to recognise UON’s strong financial position, productivity gains and the escalating cost of living pressures. Staff must be paid for all hours worked and have protections to stop rampant wage theft.

“Today’s action is a further expression of the NTEU’s desire to deliver fair enterprise agreements for all staff,” added Associate Professor Summers.  “Members want management to work with us to deliver new Enterprise Agreements for all staff that acknowledge our excellent work with fair working conditions.”

NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) Director, David Gathercole said council operates the dam to collect and treat dirty water at the premises.

“EPA officers observed contaminated water in the dam at a level that was far too high,” Mr Gathercole said.

“The equipment used to measure dam levels appeared to be installed incorrectly, giving a false indication that dam levels were lower.

“Officers also found that council had allegedly failed to physically check the water levels leading to contaminated water discharging through the dam spillway.

“These breaches run the risk of creating large-scale pollution events which can be destructive on both the environment and community.

“Every licence holder has a duty to understand its obligations and keep equipment in good condition.”A $15,000 Penalty Infringement Notice (PIN) is the largest fine the EPA can issue under its legislation.

People can report concerns regarding water pollution incidents to the EPA on 131 555. Calls made to the Environment Line are directed to EPA officers in the field so they can target those areas of most concern to the community.

Penalty notices are one of the tools the EPA uses to achieve the best environmental or human health outcomes. Our regulatory approach includes a wide variety of options. Find out more about them here https://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/about-us/publications-and-reports/regulatory-strategy.

City of Newcastle, together with Iris Capital, have unveiled the winning designs of an architectural design competition to complete the $880 million redevelopment of its award winning East End development.

A three-member independent competition jury unanimously selected the architectural design submitted by SJB, Durbach Block Jaggers and Curious Practice for stage three and four of Iris Capital’s development of 3 Morgan Street and 22 Newcomen Street.

The winning design features 235 dwellings across five buildings, as well as 1,731 square metres of retail floorspace and approximately 300 parking spaces, with an estimated overall construction cost in excess of $150 million.

Strong design elements supported by the jury include a Market Square public space concept and perimeter colonnade, multiple public viewing corridors to the harbour, integration of green spaces, and a distinct character for each building.

Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes congratulated SJB, Durbach Block Jaggers and Curious Practice on their stand-out design and commended Iris Capital for their ongoing commitment to the revitalisation of Newcastle’s East End.

“Newcastle’s East End is transforming before our eyes, with architectural design excellence bringing the history and heritage of this harbour precinct into the modern era,” Cr Nelmes said.

Deputy Lord Mayor Declan Clausen said the city was a step closer to seeing the complete vision for the East End precinct come to life.

“The architectural design competition presented an exciting opportunity to bring together a shared vision between City of Newcastle and Iris Capital to complete the final stages of the city’s revitalised East End including the vision for a public corridor to connect the Harbour to Cathedral Park,” Cr Clausen said.

“The East End will become a landmark urban precinct for the enjoyment of residents and visitors for generations to come.”

The architectural design competition was run by an independent jury process under the governance of City of Newcastle and the NSW Government Architect’s Office. It was administered by consultants Urbis on behalf of Iris Capital.

Iris Capital’s CEO Sam Arnaout complemented the competition process and expressed his gratitude at the high quality of design that all the architects displayed.

“This is a critically important and significant development for the city, that will bring to life across Iris’ land, a long-held vision to connect Newcastle Harbour to Cathedral Park,” Mr Arnaout said.

“The winning design has unquestionably delivered on its purpose to achieve design excellence and has maintained the Christ Church Cathedral as the city’s prominent landmark structure with a family of beautiful buildings that follow the topography and mesh with the built form of the hill.

“Like stage one, which has been embraced by the community and is critically acclaimed, the final stages will be similarly recognisable though the adaptation of designs that draw inspiration from existing Newcastle architecture and retention of key heritage buildings.

“The competition has been the catalyst that will enable Iris Capital to deliver a truly world-class amenity through an efficient design that future residents will be proud to call home.”

SJB director Adam Haddow said the SJB team are over the moon to once again collaborate with Durbach Block Jaggers and Curious Practice to deliver the final stage of this once-in-a-lifetime project.

“SJB has been investigating this unique precinct in Newcastle since 2013, having worked on the original masterplan as architect and collaborator for the East End’s stage one development,” Mr Haddow said.

“Our vision for the East End is rooted in a fine grain response that reimagines the retail offering and pedestrian activity of Hunter Street. The new public Market Square has great potential to connect into Council land creating the link with Christ Church Cathedral and Newcastle Harbour – to become the centre of the East End.

“We truly hope that this new connection will enable Indigenous planting to thrive along the north-facing slope of the East End, once again cradling the silhouette of the Cathedral in a green skirt when seen from the harbour.

“We love the city and people of Newcastle. With the support of Sam Arnout and Iris Capital, and in collaboration with City of Newcastle, we’re confident that as a design team will be able to renew this part of the East End for the entire community to be proud of.”

A development application for the site will be lodged by Iris Capital by the end of this year.

A third teenager has been charged over the alleged assault of a teenager in the state’s Hunter region last week.

On Thursday 8 September 2022, officers from Lake Macquarie Police District commenced an investigation after receiving information regarding a serious assault at a skatepark in Charlestown.

Police were told a 14-year-old male was allegedly assaulted by a group of males, causing him serious facial injuries. The teenager underwent treatment at John Hunter Hospital and has since been discharged.

Following inquiries, two males, aged 14 and 12, were arrested and charged respectively by detectives on Friday (9 September 2022) and Saturday (10 September 2022). They were both refused bail and now remain before the courts.

Investigators arrested a 16-year-old boy at Belmont Police Station about 9am yesterday (Thursday 15 September 2022).

He was charged with assault with intent to rob in company cause grievous bodily harm and granted bail to appear before a children’s court on Monday 10 October 2022.

Refugee children will be supported to play sport and feel welcome throughout the community after receiving a share of City of Newcastle (CN)’s almost $1 million grants and sponsorships funding.

CN’s funding, which includes community support, infrastructure grants, economic development and events sponsorship and partnerships, has increased tenfold since 2014 in response to growing needs in the community and the success of sponsorships driving city activity.

Initiatives ranging from a learn to swim program for refugee women, an Indigenous and disability sports clinic, through to workshops teaching Auslan to the community using popular songs are just some of the programs to be delivered under CN’s community support grant funding.

Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said community grants and sponsorship funding is vital to enhancing community wellbeing and contributing to our city being a great place to live, work, play, visit and invest.

“Whether its funding for a program to help refugees engage with the community or an event to bring thousands of people to the city centre, City of Newcastle’s grants and sponsorships program is helping build a more liveable and inclusive community,” Cr Nelmes said.

“We have significantly boosted grant and sponsorship funding to support the needs of our ever-changing community from almost $130,000 in 2014 to almost $1 million in 2022, representing a tenfold increase.

“Our funding program is targeted to help provide opportunities for locals to reach their full potential, take an active part in our community and live in a more vibrant city.”

Ward 4 Councillor Dr Elizabeth Adamczyk, who joined Northern NSW Football, the Treasurer of the Afghan Association of the Hunter and refugee families to help launch the refugee football initiative, said social inclusion, recreation participation and economic development were at the heart of CN’s grants and sponsorships program.

“Through the City’s financial assistance, we are seeing a wide range of wonderfully inclusive and progressive initiatives aimed at supporting our culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities right across Newcastle, with a strong focus on our western suburbs,” Cr Adamczyk said.

“I’m also thrilled to see such a wide-breadth of local sporting facilities receive funding to support facility upgrades while local businesses at Shortland and Stockton are set for a refresh to their shopfronts through the Façade Improvement Scheme initiative.”

Among the community support grant initiatives to have been allocated funding in this round are a multicultural inclusion program delivered by Northern NSW Football for local refugee students and a sports program run by the Afghan Association of the Hunter for newly arrived Afghan refugees.

“Newcastle has a large number of newly arrived refugee youth and football is a universal language that unites people,” Northern NSW Football Legacy Development Officer Joseph Wright said.

“Thanks to this grant funding, Northern NSW Football will be able to provide player, coach and referee scholarships to children from refugee backgrounds to help them continue their football journey and integrate into the community.”

Forugh Dorani from the Afghan Association of Hunter Incorporated said their sports program and the football program delivered by Northern NSW Football will help Afghan refugees feel welcome and supported across Newcastle.

“Sports programs provide a wonderful opportunity for Afghan refugees that have newly arrived in Newcastle to connect with others in the community through a game that they love,” Mr Dorani said.