Category: Newcastle News

A police operation has now concluded following two authorised protests in the Sydney CBD and Newtown today.
A high-visibility operation was launched in response to the planned protests today (Saturday 20 November 2021), to ensure the safety of participants, as well as the community and local businesses.
The protests were authorised after NSW Police Force received a Form 1 prior to the events, which took place in Sydney’s CBD at 12pm and Newtown at 1pm today.
General duties officers from Sydney City Police Area Command, Inner West Police Area Command and across the Central Metropolitan Region were assisted by specialist police from the Public Order and Riot Squad (PORS), ODIN, Police Transport Command, Traffic and Highway Patrol Command and the Mounted and Dog Unit.
No issues arose at the protests, with estimated crowd numbers reaching 120 people at the Newtown protest, and up to 10,000 people at the protest in the Sydney CBD.
No arrests were made, and no infringements were issued during the protests.
Two further protests, for which a Form 1 was not received and therefore unauthorised, took place at about 10.30am in Newcastle and 11am in Newtown.
A small group attended the unauthorised protests and they conducted without any incident.
Central Metropolitan Region Commander, Assistant Commissioner Peter Thurtell, said overall, police were pleased with crowd behaviour and the majority of attendees conducted a peaceful protest.
“NSW Police worked closely with other agencies to execute a widespread and robust police operation that extended across the Sydney CBD and inner west, and included a significant presence across major public transport routes and roads,” Assistant Commissioner Thurtell said.
“Overall, the protests were conducted peacefully with minimal disruption to the community, and I’m pleased to see that the vast majority of people complied with police directions.
“We take the safety of the community and our police officers extremely seriously and we are glad our policing response, supported by road and transport strategies, effectively resulted in peaceful protest activity.
“I want to thank the community who did the right thing today and acknowledge the more than 600 police officers who were deployed across the Sydney CBD and inner west for their professional response during today’s activities,” he said.

New street signs are being installed in key locations across Newcastle as part of a grassroots initiative to show that racism is not welcome within our community.
Council unanimously resolved in March, following a Lord Mayoral Minute, to support the #RacismNotWelcome campaign which is a national community-led initiative that acknowledges the existence of racism in the community and encourages anti-racist behaviour.
Image caption (L-R): Zara’s House Sister Diana Santleben, Zara’s House Financial Administrator Mary Amponsah, #RacismNotWelcome ambassador and former Socceroos Captain Craig Foster, Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes, and Zara’s House Project Coordinator Farida Baremgayabo.
Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said Newcastle is a diverse and inclusive community with a proud multicultural history.
“Newcastle has a long and proud history as a progressive, welcoming city and is officially a Refugee Welcome Zone,” Cr Nelmes said.
“City of Newcastle has taken the lead in tackling racism and will consistently advocate when it comes to providing support for refugees and migrants settling in Newcastle.
“We are proud to join this grassroots campaign by erecting #RacismNotWelcome street signage and will continue to send out the powerful message that racism will not be tolerated in our community.”
Former Socceroos captain, human rights campaigner and #RacismNotWelcome ambassador Craig Foster said the street sign campaign was devised to get to the heart of communities where racism lives.
“The street signs are the physical manifestation of the underlying principle that racism exists, it is real, damaging and deeply harmful to many Australians and that we all have a responsibility to confront it, every day,” Mr Foster said.
“The path ahead for every local council and for us as a country is to proclaim loudly, publicly and visibly that we’re united together as people against division, against discrimination on all grounds and, in this context, race.
“I’d like to thank City of Newcastle for getting behind this important movement by declaring the Newcastle Local Government Area rejects discrimination of all kinds.”
The backing of the street sign campaign complements programs funded by City of Newcastle earlier this year to encourage the social inclusion of people from diverse background in our community. Under the Community Support Grants Program 2021, funding assisted a wide range of multicultural and community projects such as the Afghan Community Festival, Unity and Diversity Festival, Newcastle Arab Youth Festival, Multicultural Pop-Up Library, and Syrian Community Festival.
#RacismNotWelcome street signs will be erected in the following locations over the coming weeks:
· Shortland Esplanade, Newcastle Beach
· Corner of Council and Darby Street, Cooks Hill
· Newcastle Interchange, Hannell Street, Wickham
· Corner of Victoria Street and Maitland Road, Mayfield
· Corner of Beaumont Street and Donald Street, Hamilton
· Blue Gum Road, Jesmond
· Wallsend Library
· Hunter Stadium, Turton Road, Lambton
· John Hunter Hospital entrance road, Kookaburra Circuit, New Lambton Heights.
For more information, visit City of Newcastle’s Community Services webpage

Homicide Squad detectives have charged a further two people following investigations into the fatal shooting of a man at Newcastle earlier this year.
About 12.45pm on Thursday 22 July 2021, emergency services were called to a unit at Darby Street, Cooks Hill, following reports of shots fired.
Upon arrival, police located a 40-year-old man inside the unit with a gunshot wound to the chest.
Despite the efforts of emergency services, he died at the scene.
The man has been formally identified as Wesley ‘Wes’ Prentice from Rutherford.
Officers from Newcastle City Police District commenced inquiries, before detectives from the State Crime Command’s Homicide Squad took carriage of the investigation under Strike Force Hibbard.
Following extensive investigations, a 35-year-old man was arrested near a caravan park at Bonny Hills on Sunday 1 August 2021.
He was charged over his alleged role in the incident and remains before the courts.
Following further investigations, strike force detectives executed a search warrant at Wickham Road, New Lambton, from 8.30am today (Friday 19 November 2021).
Several items relevant to the investigation were seized and will undergo further forensic examination.
Two people – a 38-year-old woman and 19-year-old man – were arrested during the operation.
The woman was charged with accessory after the fact to murder, while the man was charged with conceal serious indictable offence of other.
The pair were both refused bail and appeared at Newcastle Local Court today.

A motorcyclist has died following a crash in the state’s north yesterday.
About 1.30pm (Friday 19 November 2021), emergency services were called to Mirrabooka, about 9km east of Morisset, after reports of a crash.
Police believe the motorcycle was travelling along Dandaraga Road before it struck a caravan that was parked in the driveway of a home.
The rider died at the scene is yet to be formally identified but is believed to be aged 31.
Officers from Lake Macquarie Police District established a crime scene and commenced an investigation into the crash.
A report will be prepared for the information of the Coroner.

In September 2021, a three-year-old boy went missing at a rural property in the Hunter Valley.
Following a three-day multi-agency search, the boy was found by PolAir in bushland and reunited with his family.
Detectives from Hunter Valley Police District commenced an investigation into the boy’s disappearance.
That investigation has now concluded, and the incident has been determined to be as a result of misadventure.

It’s not unusual for a museum to turn back the clock to celebrate the way things were.
But Newcastle Museum is focussing on the past to draw attention to the present, with an exhibition designed to highlight how the cityscape has changed during the last decade.

The exhibition was curated to celebrate the Museum’s 10^th year of operation in the former Railway Workshops at Honeysuckle.
Aptly titled, Oh yeah, I forgot about that: A decade of change seen through the eyes of Mr Trevor Dickinson, Artist, it features more than 20 works by the much-loved Newcastle artist, including two new pieces commissioned for this show.
Newcastle Museum Director Julie Baird said Dickinson’s art had played an influential role in establishing the museum’s visual character at the Honeysuckle site, making him a natural fit for this anniversary show.
“Trevor’s colourful, larger-than-life murals have formed an intrinsic part of the Museum and its surrounds since we opened the doors here in August 2011,” Ms Baird said.
“This included commissioning him to create our quirky photowalls in Museum Park, which not only liven up the landscape but also create a way for locals to become part of the Museum’s story by snapping a selfie and sharing it with our Facebook page.”
Ms Baird said the inspiration for the exhibition came from the massive transformation that has taken place around the Museum since it opened its doors at Honeysuckle.
“In the grand scheme of this country’s ancient history 10 years is like the blink of an eye, but to Newcastle Museum it is our entire history at Honeysuckle and for Newcastle, it has been a period of rapid transformation,” Ms Baird said.
“We quickly forget what has changed in our city as new landscapes become normal. For our 10th anniversary, Newcastle Museum wanted to remind people of the alterations to our normal and often unnoticed cityscape.
“Through the artwork chosen for this exhibition, Trevor presents his own view of Newcastle, curating the identity of the natural landscape in the same way we curate its history, highlighting the specialness within the ordinary to present a personal visual portrait of the city during a time of great change.
“From depictions of a dilapidated Merewether Surf House to the former Newcastle Signal Box and Queens Wharf tower, the works all portray aspects of the city landscape that have changed in the decade since Newcastle Museum threw open its doors to welcome millions of visitors to explore and enjoy our exhibitions of history, science, culture and our city’s identity.
“To celebrate Newcastle Museum’s own journey, we also commissioned Trevor to create two new artworks, capturing something constant and something that has changed within the Museum. These are being seen for the first time in this exhibition.”
Oh yeah, I forgot about that: A decade of change seen through the eyes of Mr Trevor Dickinson, Artist is open to the public from 18 November 2021 until 27 February 2022.

Tonight’s Committee meetings will be held in the Council Chambers. To ensure COVID safe practices for City of Newcastle’s Council meetings, arrangements have been made for members of the public to observe the meeting from the digital library space on the ground floor of the City Administration Centre, in accordance with Public Health Orders.
City of Newcastle’s COVID Safe Plan for the digital library space restricts the number of people who can attend and requires members of the public to check-in via QR code, be fully vaccinated, and wear face masks. Members of the public are also able to view the proceedings via the livestream.

City of Newcastle is powering ahead with its commitment to renewable energy, celebrating the success of its solar farm while also rolling out more rooftop solar systems at key facilities.
This month marks two years of operation of the five-megawatt solar farm, which was built at the Summerhill Waste Management Centre on a capped landfill site.
Covering an area of around five football fields, the solar farm’s 14,500 photovoltaic solar arrays are producing enough electricity to meet the equivalent annual power needs of more than 1300 Newcastle households.
The project is expected to save ratepayers around $9 million, after costs, over its 25-year lifespan, and ensures City of Newcastle is meeting 100 per cent of its power supply through renewable energy sources, in conjunction with a power purchase contract that sources electricity from the state’s largest windfarm.
Individual rooftop solar systems are also adding to City of Newcastle’s clean energy mix, with more than 800 kilowatts of photovoltaic systems installed across 16 key council sites including the City, Wallsend and New Lambton libraries, No.1 and No.2 sportsgrounds, Newcastle Art Gallery, Newcastle Museum, the City Administration Centre at 12 Stewart Avenue, the Visitor Information Centre and the Works Depot.
An additional 100 kilowatts are being installed this year, with systems recently commissioned at Fort Scratchley and Summerhill Waste Management Centre, while planning is underway to add a rooftop solar system to the Civic Theatre.
This commitment to renewable energy is among the range of strategies being implemented under the Climate Action Plan 2021-2025, which are designed to allow City of Newcastle to achieve its adopted target of net zero emissions for its operations by 2030.

There is no agreement to take any waste from Sydney with Transport for NSW (TfNSW). TfNSW contacted City of Newcastle (CN) in September requesting a meeting to discuss future waste from the Northern Beaches Link project.
At that meeting we explained that in order for any waste to be considered for landfill disposal at the Summerhill Waste Management Facility it must meet our strict requirements set under the EPA’s Waste Classification Guideline for General Solid Waste.
We also stressed that any waste would need to be independently tested to confirm that it meet our strict licensing requirements.
TfNSW undertook from that meeting to come back to us when they knew with more confidence about the make up of the waste. To date we haven’t heard anything more.
A decision regarding the disposal of any material offshore would be made by the Federal Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment.

Police are appealing for public information following a large industrial fire in Kurri Kurri yesterday.
About 10.40am (Sunday 14 November 2021), emergency services were called to an industrial complex on Mitchell Avenue, Kurri Kurri, following reports of a large fire.
Fire and Rescue NSW have multiple crews on scene and are continuing efforts to extinguish the blaze.
The building is believed to have been unoccupied at the time and no injuries have been reported.
Detectives from Hunter Valley Police District have commenced an investigation into the incident.
Anyone who may have information or footage, including dashcam, from the area is urged to contact Hunter Valley Police Station or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.