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· A new chapter in the fight to save Catherine Hill Bay 12th June 2009
· National Trust disappointed at Minister Garrett's decision 28th February 2009
· See our report on the Protest Rally in Hyde Park 19th October 2008
· National Trust calls on Peter Garrett to save Catho
· Sartor's approval of Rose Concept Plan
· Wallarah Peninsula Update on the developments
· Independent Panel Pans Rose Concept Plan
· Front Page SMH 12th April 2008 - "Secret files expose the sway of Developers" - Read how the Government ignored its department and let developers pick the eyes out of conservation land
· Front Page Review section SMH 12th April 2008 - "Paving Paradise to Save It "
· Rose Group's secret bombshell - Two hotels for the Bay?

· How Sartor ignored his Department's advice against development - Read the FOI documents
· Parliamentary "Call for Papers" relating to Rose Group and Coal & Allied
· Sartor accused of giving developers preferential treatment - "Favouritism Slammed"
· Latest News - Rose Group
· Latest News - Coal & Allied
· Read the Progress Association submission on the C&A development proposals
· Artists impression of the Rose Group development footprint
· Artists impression of the Coal & Allied development footprint
· Media - Media Kit, TV, Radio, Newpaper coverage
· See photos of the Protest Rally - Sunday 24th February 2008
· Other Information
| A new chapter in the fight to save Catherine Hill Bay - 12th June 2009 | The part 3A approval by the former Minister for Planning, Frank Sartor, to allow Rose Group to build 600 dwellings at Catherine Hill Bay and 187 dwellings at Gwandalan is presently being challenged in the Land and Environment Court . The basis for the challenge is bias on the part of the Minister. The Gwandalan/Summerland Point Action Group is being represented by the Environmental Defenders' Office NSW and barrister Mr Jeremy Kirk. For further information check out the EDO website: http://www.edo.org.au/edonsw/site/casework_key.php#catherine Read the EDO NSW Bulletin . Read the chronological list of Rose Group history See latest newspaper coverage |
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| CHBPA response to Federal Govt concerning the presence of federally threatened flora and fauna - 21st Sept 2008 | Attached is the response from the CHBPA to the referral by Rose group to the federal government concerning the presence of federally threatened flora and fauna on the area in which Rose group wishes to develop | |
| Please email or write to Peter Garrett | The Federal Government still has to sign off on the Rose Group proposal for 600 houses. Former Minister for Planning Frank Sartor signed the approval on the 2 nd September. The Federal Government has 30 working days before it signs off as well.The clock is ticking!! Please email or write to Peter Garrett. Form letter attached |
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| Sartor's approval of Rose Concept Plan - 2th September 2008 | Attached ... On the 2nd September 2008 , the former Minister for Planning, Frank Sartor signed the consent document that gave approval to the Concept Plan (MP_0330). The Rose Group is allowed to build up to 600 houses at Catherine Hill Bay . | |
| WPA update on the developments - 10th July 2008 | Attached ... This is an up-date from the WPA and as we have received contradictory information in a previous meeting with the Minister and the Department CHBPA is awaiting the formal Minister's determination to confirm details. We anticipate this to be made public in the coming days and will immediately provide the community and supporters with further information at that time. |
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| Independent Panel Pans Rose Group's Concept Plan - 8th April 2008 | An independent Panel set up by the government to assess the development proposal at Catherine Hill Bay has sent it back to the drawing board, saying the project is still not “consistent” with coastal policy and sound planning principles. Read the IHAP report. Read the media release from the Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association | |
| Rose Group's secret bombshell - Two hotels for the Bay? - 16th April 2008 | WPA response attached ...
But tucked away in the small-print, is the bombshell evidence: an option for two hotels at the Bay, one on the headland, one at Wallarah House.
Click here for Rose Group's project web site: www.chbconceptplan.com.au |
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| Update on the Rose Group development plans - 22nd February 2008 | IHAP finished their report to the Minister of Planning, Mr Frank Sartor before Christmas. Their report has not been made public and sits on the desk of the Department of Planning or the Minister of Planning. However the decision from the Minister is IMMINENT. |
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| Objection letters from CHBPA - 29th December 2007 | Attached is a copy of the objection letter sent from the Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association to the Department of Planning regarding the Rose Group proposals. | |
| Independent Hearing and Assessment Panel presentations - 30th October 2007 | On Tuesday 30th October the Independent Hearing and Assessment Panel came to Catherine Hill Bay . The Community Reference group presented their objections to the latest Rose Group Concept Plan. These submissions were in addition to the 3000 objections that have already gone to the Planning Department. This latest proposal continues to have significant adverse impacts on the heritage and environmental significance of Catherine Hill Bay . Attached are some of the presentations made by the Progress Association Planning (16MB) |
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| Objection letters from LMCC and WPA - 29th October 2007 | Attached are 2 objection letters to the Rose Group proposals. The first is from Lake Macquarie City Council, and the second from Walarah Peninsula Alliance. | |
| Rose's Moonee Hamlets Concept Plan Deficiencies - 25th October 2007 | The development committee has now reviewed the multiple documents which comprise the current Rose Group submission and presents the points attached as key deficiencies in Rose's Moonee Hamlets concept plan. WE ONLY HAVE UNTIL 12TH OCTOBER TO LET THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT KNOW THAT WE OBJECT TO THIS NEW CONCEPT PLAN. DEAR FRIENDS PLEASE USE THE INFORMATION IN THIS DOCUMENT TO FORM YOUR OBJECTION LETTERS |
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| There are serious concerns with Rose's new proposal - 11th September 2007 | LAST CHANCE TO SAVE CATHERINE HILL BAY AND MOONEE BEACH THERE ARE SERIOUS CONCERNS WITH ROSE'S NEW PROPOSAL Sign and send off the following letter or write your own, being careful to include the project name and location, stating that you object and giving reasons for your objections. Also attached is an additional typical letter,
one of many objection letters sent to the Planning Department, objecting to the new Rose Group concept plan. Please feel free to use any part of this letter in your own objection letter. For more information please contact Sue Whyte 49762310 suewhyte1980@bigpond.com.au |
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| Rosecorp's new proposal "aired" - 1st June 2007 | RoseCorp's new proposals for development at Catherine Hill Bay and Gwandalan are expected to go on public display in mid-July, followed by a 30-day minimum period for public submissions. |
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| RoseCorp's plan "unacceptable" -- Independent Panel advises government - Thursday 3rd May 2007 | The Independent Assessment Panel has damned the RoseCorp proposal and vindicated the community's case against the development. The RoseCorp development, in its various forms, has been a dud since was mooted in 2002. (Click here to read the Independent Assessment Panel's report. Click here to read the Minister's Office Media Release) There is widespread and increasing community opposition to it, Wyong and Lake Macquarie Councils spurned it, and it failed to stand up in the Land and Environment Court on appeal. Now it has failed to clear even the first hurdle of a State Government assessment process designed to facilitiate such developments. It is a shocker of a development and the Independent Panel deserves every credit for baulking at giving it credence. The Panel says that there is scope for development on the RoseCorp site, and the Progress Association has always accepted this. But the Catherine Hill Bay community wants quality development in scale and sympathy with the village and landscape, not a dud. RoseCorp has been invited to prepare an amended proposal, consistent with statutory planning requirements. The Progress Association remains sceptical of the developer's intentions and believes that an amended proposal should be re-exhibited for public scrutiny and comment to ensure transparency, before any decision is made by the Minister. Brian Cogan - hon Secretray Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association |
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| Wyong Shire Council report recommends rejection of Rosecorp DA - Wednesday 9th May 2007 | Wyong Shire Council was to decide Wednesday 9th May 2007 on a recommendation of the officers that the RoseCorp DA for 900 houses at Moonee be refused. The Wyong Shire Council report is attached. See pages 23 onwards. The report makes scathing mention of the development.
RoseCorp withdrew its application just prior to the meeting. |
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| Rosecorp Development - $$$m's in costs transferred to the community | Click here to download the Progress Association's presentation to the Independent Assessment Panel advising Minister Sartor (27nd February 2007) |
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| Formal Objection to the Rosecorp Concept Plan by the Progress Association to the proposal | The formal objection by the Progress Association is available to download below: Objection letter |
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| Independent Panel Report on Coal & Allied Concept Plan - 17th July 2008 | The Independent Hearing and Assessment Panel states that any development in Middle Camp should be located only on land that has been previously disturbed and that is visually separate from the existing village. There will be no development behind the houses to the west of the village (area C) or in Slack Alley (area D). Read more from the CHBPA. Click here to read the the IHAP report. |
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| Formal Objections to the Coal & Allied proposal - 25th February 2008 | Below is the formal objection sent to the Department of Planning by the Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association to the development proposed by Coal & Allied. C&A submission main text |
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| Independent Hearing and Assessment Panel presentations - 12th February 2008 | Some of the presentations from the Progress Associaiton to the Independent Hearing and Assessment Panel Middle Camp (29MB file) |
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| Update on Coal & Allied's development proposals - 22nd February 2008 | The period of public exhibition has been extended until Friday, 29th February so there is now only a week left to send in your objection letters. Unfortunately the meeting with the Independent Hearing and Assessment Panel was not changed to a date after all submissions were in, and took place on Tuesday, 12 th February. This meant that community members and interested parties had to rush their presentations. Typically a submission began “I have not completed my submission but it is along the lines of….” .A letter to the Director of Strategic Assessments has been sent requesting a further meeting with IHAP to take place after the exhibition period has closed. | |
These reports were prepared for the Progress Association on the impacts of the Coal&Allied development in Middle Camp. - 22nd February 2008 |
Environment impacts
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| IHAP presentations scheduled for 12th February 2008 | Please note that you must let the Department of Planning know by the 7 th of February if you wish to make a presentation before the Independent Hearing and Assessment Panel. The panel will be meeting with the community on the 12 th of February. Even though we have been granted an extension until Friday 29 th February to put objections into the Department of Planning against the Concept Plan proposed by Coal&Allied for Middle Camp, the times that the community can meet with the Panel have not been altered. If you wish to make a presentation to the Panel contact Paula Poon Paula.Poon@planning.nsw.gov.au |
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| There are serious concerns with the Coal and Allied proposal - 2nd January 2008 | A concept plan by Coal and Allied Operations Limited has been submitted to the Department of Planning. Details below. This development proposal will have severe impacts on the village of Middle Camp. The proposal entails building houses to the north, south, east and west of the village and, as such, will be highly visually intrusive. 300 new houses on top of the existing 54 will smother the heritage village Further details |
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| Coal and Allied Concept Plan - 2nd January 2008 | Details of the Coal and Allied concept plan can be viewed by going to the Department of Planning website. Click here. You can scroll down or search for the Middle Camp proposal. Details are also available on the Coal and Allied website. Click here. |
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| Coal & Allied Charette - Some thoughts about the process - 17th September 2007 | Attached ... The communities and their representatives are upset that there was no consultation or involvement with the community and landholder or government about location, size or yield ie in the case of Catherine Hill Bay, 300 new dwellings on top of Middle Camp, an historic settlement of 50 cottages. | |
| Coal & Allied briefing to the Community Reference Group - 23rd August 2007 | Attached are the briefing notes C&A provided to the Community Reference Group on Thursday 23 rd August. Community representatives are engaged in a 3 day workshop at the moment with C&A where they will be endeavouring to explain that the 300 dwellings that C&A want are not appropriate or achievable. Rio Tinto Briefing handout (1 MB) |
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| Coal & Allied begins its push to develop the Wallarah Peninsula - 22nd August 2007 | Coal and Allied, part of the massive Rio Tinto group of companies has begun its push for development on the Wallarah Peninsula |
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| Coal & Allied Community Consulation - 8th July 2007 | COAL AND ALLIED has begun its community consultation program with the distribution of a brochure about its broad intentions for land it owns at the Bay, Nords Wharf , Gwandalan, Minmi and Black Hill. The brochure was re-lettered boxed at the Bay this week after the first delivery was damaged or misplaced in wet weather. An electronic copy has been distributed in association with our newsletter. |
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| Save the Bay Campaign | The Save the Bay campaign has thousands of supporters throughout Australia and overseas. They all want to Save the Bay because they know it is "a special place" unique in Australia . They support our campaign financially and by making their protest known in objections to the NSW Government, through letter-writing campaigns and lobbying. You can join this campaign. Click on Things you can do to help Save the Bay. This web site will keep you updated. Click News and Events for latest news. We will provide advice during February on this web site on how to make your protest most effective. You can join The Friends of Catherine Hill Bay and receive updates direct to your email. |
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| Things you can do |
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| Why the development is so bad | Catherine Hill Bay is a heritage village of about 100 mainly small miners' cottages, whose scale, character and appearance is much as it was in the 1890s and early 1900s. soon after coal mining was established.
In other words the heritage village would be hemmed in between new development which would increase the place's size by 10 times. Despite their combined impact on the community, the Government is treating these as separate projects, with about eight months between publication of the two concept plans. You can check details of these plans, with maps by clicking here |
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| Key Issues in the campaign to save Catherine Hill Bay | The Government has jettisoned its own established planning policies to force intrusive, overwhelming urban development on the heritage village of Catherine Hill Bay by Coal and Allied and RoseCorp. Updated Rosecorp plan showing 600 houses! Click here, then scroll down to the "State Significant Site and Major Project (concept plan) application for redevelopment of Catherine Hill Bay and Gwandalan" section. Hard copies are on display at Lake Macquarie and Wyong Council chambers and Department of Planning offices in Newcastle , Central Coast and head office ( 23-33 Bridge St Sydney ). One man - the Planning Minister Mr Sartor - has the power to
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| Comment | Attached is the full article "...the Planning Minister and Premier's office appear to have misled the community about their intentions, indicating support for heritage protections but not delivering in the face of developer demands for development rights where none currently exist. |
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| Comment | In the following documents, obtained under FOI legislation, the Department of Planning ranked 91 possible sites in the Hunter in terms of suitability for development. Catherine Hill Bay was ranked the second least desirable location for development. In approving development in the Bay, Mr Sartor has ignored his own department's advice, and pushed it to the top. (Click here to download all files - 3MB) |
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| Explanation | Department of Planning Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA) for assessing potential development areas in the Hunter. |
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| Tables | Department of Planning tables for each of the 91 areas. Note that Catherine Hill Bay is area RS253, and this area came in second last. |
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| Map | Department of Planning map showing the area numbers Map (right click to save to disk and view in more detail) |
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| National Trust ‘disappointed' at Garrett decision - 28th February 2009 | Attached ... We are disappointed at Minister Garrett's decision given that Catherine Hill Bay had been nominated by the National Trust for the National Heritage List. Had the Listing been accepted the Minister would have had the power to reject this dreadful development. | |
| Unsustainable Coastal Development - National Trust December 2008 | Page1 ... Page2 ...The local community, the National Trust and the environmental movement have been fighting major housing developments at idyllic Catherine Hill Bay... | |
| Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association receives an award for Community Involvement from the NSW Coastal Conference - 8th November 2008 | Attached ... Association President, Sue Whyte, accepted the award on behalf of the Catherine Hill Bay community. Nominated by the Mayor of Lake Macquarie, Councillor Greg Piper, the award recognises the “Catho” community's exceptional level of involvement in promoting and protecting coastal communities and environments. | |
| Protest Rally in Hyde Park on 19th October 2008 - 10am | Attached ... The NSW government has changed the laws governing planning, environmental assessment and heritage protection. The Planning Minister now has extraordinary power to override local councils, community wishes and expert opinion.
Rally Against Inappropriate Development on Sunday, 19th October 10.00 a.m. – 2.00 p.m. , Hyde Park near St James station marching to Parliament House. Be part of state-wide action. |
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| National Trust calls on Peter Garrett to save Catherine Hill Bay - 4th September 2008 | Attached ... Due to the presence of threatened species at Catherine Hill Bay, development has been deemed a ‘controlled action’ under the Commonwealth Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. Final development approval is required from the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment, Peter Garrett. Additionally, the Trust has nominated Catherine Hill Bay for the National Heritage List on the basis of its environmental and built heritage significance. Minister Garrett may decline development approval under the Act or place an emergency National Heritage Listing on the site to protect it. We also now have some new people in the NSW Government to whom we should be writing. Please write letters to Peter Garrett backing up the call from the National Trust to intervene to save Catherine Hill Bay. Attached are some addresses. |
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| Climiate Change Submissions - 11th July 2008 | The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Climate Change, Water, Environment and the Arts held a meeting on the 10 th July that representatives of the Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association attended. This committee is inquiring into and reporting on issues related to climate change and environmental pressures experienced by Australian coastal areas, particularly in the context of coastal population growth. It was interesting that of the 10 members of the House of Representatives, who are on the committee, only the 5 Labor Party committee members attended. Barry Laing, a long time member of the CHBPA, made a presentation and commented that “the committee were listening well and understood how CHB illustrates the predicament of people wanting to protect coastal communities and environments in NSW under the Part 3A regime. They made it clear that they felt powerless to do anything about the current developments but they were interested to hear our suggestions as to what they could do at a Federal level, as in our submissions (federal coordination of coastal policy, research and data collection, reinstatement of the coastal projects terminated by the Howard Govt, education campaign, new laws for coastal policy). They are interested to know how far the federal endangered species laws extend into controlling whole developments such as the CHB one” The Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association submission and Barry Laing submission are attached. |
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| National Trust (NSW) Nominates Most At Risk For World Heritage Day - 18th April 2008 | Attached ...The National Trust is strongly opposed to the current proposals from two developers (Rosecorp and Coal & Allied) to build 900 homes. Mr Quint says the developments, one of which will dominate the coastal headland of the village, will increase the number of homes at Catherine Hill Bay 10 fold. “The Trust has major concerns about the environmental impact of the development, and the destruction of the historical value of the tiny village.” |
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| Subversion of the Planning Process - 14th April 2008 | The lack of transparency which surrounded the government's dealings with large landholders in the Lower Hunter in 2006 still persists. Planning Minister Frank Sartor in May 2007 released the first report by the Independent Hearing and Assessment Panel on the Rosecorp concept plan in Catherine Hill Bay , to the public with such comments as: |
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| Ms Sylvia Hale delivery in parliament - 9th April 2008 | Ms Sylvia Hale, from the Greens,delivered in parliament on the evening of the 9th April these observations, following the successful call for papers detailing the Rosecorp and Coal and Allied dealings with the Minister for Planning, Mr Frank Sartor. Attached is her speech | |
| Response from Federal Parliament - Peter Garrett AM - 7th April 2008 | The Progress Association has referred both development proposals from Rose Group and Coal and Allied to the Federal Government. Attached is the update on the status of those proposed development proposals. | |
| Parliamentary Call for Papers relating to the application by Rosecorp and Coal & Allied for approval under Part 3A - 8th April 2008 | On Tuesday Sue Whyte from Catherine Hill Bay, Kevin Spencer from Gwandalan, Sue Wynn and Peter Morris from URGE went to State Parliament to ask the cross benches to support a call for papers by Sylvia Hale of the Greens. The documents that were requested from the Department of Planning relate to any application by Rosecorp and Coal and Allied for approval under part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 to carry out residential subdivisions of sites at Catherine Hill Bay, Moonee Beach, Nords Wharf and Gwandalan. As well documents relating to any proposal for listing sites in these areas as State Significant and any reports on the ecology of these sites were also requested. This call for papers went through today with no debate. The documents will be available on the 24 th April, at State Parliament |
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| The War on Heritage - National Trust of Australia - Dr. Zeny Edwards - 22nd February 2008 | Attached ... Then there is Part 3(A). On Sunday, 24 February, the National Trust will be in the forefront of a mass rally to prevent the development of over 900 dwellings in the Central Coast coalmining workers' settlement of Catherine Hill Bay, a historic beachfront village of 100 homes. The place is a rare gem, rich in cultural heritage, featuring intact buildings and streetscapes from 1870s and notable for the biodiversity of its setting, home of many identified endangered species. A development of this scale would destroy its heritage and environmental values. The Interim Report to Minister Sartor by an Independent Panel led by Heritage Council Chair Gabrielle Kibble considered developer Rosecorp's original proposal for 600 houses ‘unacceptable'. That development was rejected by the Land and Environment Court . The Department of Planning recommended against development at the Bay. Yet once again the dreaded Part 3(A) rears its ugly head. Minister Sartor has the authority to override State environmental and heritage legislation to green-light the Catherine Hill Bay proposals. | |
| National Trust supports our campaign - 19th February 2008 | Attached ...Newsletter sent to National Trust members urging their support to help a coastal gem from destruction | |
| Protest Rally Sunday 24th February 2008 | Attached ...Come and draw a line in the sand to say "NO MORE DEVELOPMENT ON THE WALLARAH PENINSULA" | |
| Meeting Sunday 20th January 2008 | The three communities of the Wallarah Peninsula , Catherine Hill Bay , Nords Wharf and Gwandalan met on Sunday 20 th January to discuss the proposed developments on the Wallarah Peninsula . The deadline for public comment draws near for the development proposals that will add 1090 new homes to these areas. All objections have to be in to the Department of Planning by the 1 st February. Many residents have concerns about environmental impacts, traffic safety and damage to heritage areas. The Mayor of Lake Macquarie Greg Piper and the Federal member Jill Hall attended and offered their support. A decision on the Rose Group proposal for Catherine Hill Bay , which will add another 600 houses plus1800 squares of retail and further holiday accommodation plus apartments on the clifftop, is still waiting a report from the Planning Department before going to the Minister for Planning Mr Frank Sartor for a final determination. As part of this Rose Group proposal a further 220 houses will also be built at Gwandalan. Altogether nearly 2000 new homes will be built on the fragile Wallarah Peninsula , an area that for the last 40 years everyone including the Council, all Planning Bodies and the State Government said should have NO DEVELOPMENT. |
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| Rosecorp is threatening legal action over our website | Rosecorp's solicitors have written to the Association demanding that the "before" and "after" images of a notional schematic development. The company threatened legal action if they were not removed. The Association has removed the material Rosecorp complained about, and has invited Rosecorp to provide information in response to specific questions within a specified period. The Association's solicitors rejected the Rosecorp demands as spurious. |
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| Coal & Allied's meeting - Friday 17th November 2006 | Coal and Allied, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, and the communities of Catherine Hill Bay and its neighbour, Nords Wharf , met in somewhat strained circumstances on Friday 17 November 2006. Coal and Allied plodded through its story at an Information Session, but when the people had heard enough they voted against the company's proposed development and most walked out. Not a good beginning, and indicative of the community's deep anger at the deal between Mr Sartor and Coal & Allied and RoseCorp to facilitate development on land zoned for environmental protection. The Progress Association is hopeful of a constructive relationship with Coal and Allied in the mid-term, similar to that created with Stockland and its predecessor at North Wallarah. See the images and video of this meeting and protest rally. | |
| Press Release - Wednesday 15th October 2006 | On Tuesday tiny Catherine Hill Bay, in the Swansea electorate, had its true worth recognised when it was named by Keep Australia Beautiful as the friendliest beach with the best "beach spirit" and winner of the KAB Clean Beach Challenge in the Hunter. |
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| Jack Mundey joins the fight! | Jack Mundey, an authentic working class hero who stood up to developers to protect the State's heritage, has agreed to be the Patron of the Campaign to Save the Wallarah. | |
| Press Release - Sunday 22 October 2006 | The State Government has sacrificed the unique heritage village of Catherine Hill Bay to create a half billion dollar windfall for a developer, the town's Progress Association said today. |
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| Gov to facilitate development at the Bay - Newcastle Herald - 3rd Oct 2006 | "Government jettisons Coastal Policy, planning rules to facilitate development at the Bay" This week or next the State Minister for Planning, Mr Sartor, intends to announce that about 10,000 hectares of privately-owned land in the Hunter Valley are to become parks in public ownership. |
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| Land & Environment Court July 2006 | COURT REJECTS ROSECORP DA AT THE BAY! |
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| Introduction - 8th Feb 2007 | ||
| The Facts - 8th Feb 2007 | Download Word document Download PowerPoint document |
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| Contacts - 8th Feb 2007 | ||
| Channel 10 News - Wednesday 31st January 2007 | Download the 10MB movie file (courtesy of Channel 10) | |
| Explain yourself Mr Sartor - Alan Jones - 2GB - 27th February 2008 | Attached ... Today's story is about a property developer who donated more than $160,000 to the New South Wales ALP and has been given a $200 million windfall in a land rezoning deal, despite the Government's own expert panel warning Planning Minister Sartor against the move. | |
| ABC's national program Australia All Over - 6th February 2008 | Catherine Hill Bay has reached the national airwaves. Ian McNamara, from the ABC's national program Australia All Over, visited Catherine Hill Bay on 6th February 2008. He recorded conversations with a number of locals and played these over the following two Sundays. The plans by developers Rose Group and Coal&Allied for Catherine Hill Bay he thought were “criminal” and would destroy this special place on the coast of NSW . Telephone calls came from Tasmania , Western Australia and Victoria wondering how such destruction was being allowed to take place. | |
| An expert panel has knocked back plans for a major redevelopment at Catherine Hill Bay - Rowan Barker - 2GB Thursday 3rd May 2007 | Attached ...An expert panel has knocked back plans for a major redevelopment at Catherine Hill Bay on the Hunter Coast. Locals claimed the proposal would have destroyed the area's unique features, special significance as a heritage and environmental site, and public access to the beach and lake | |
| 2GB Ray Hadley - 13th February 2007 | Download the 5MB audio file excerpt from the show (courtesy of 2GB) | |
| No Retrospective on $300m Plans - Herald - 18th June 2009 | Attached ... PLANNING Minister Kristina Keneally revealed yesterday that she had no intention of introducing retrospective legislation to ensure that a $300 million development at Catherine Hill Bay and Gwandalan proceeds. | |
| Dubious Deeds Come Undone - SMH Editorial - 10th June 2009 | Attached ... ADVICE obtained by the State Government and reported in yesterday's Herald suggests that the way the former planning minister Frank Sartor negotiated land-swap arrangements in 2006 with developers of several large-scale projects may well have been beyond his powers and so illegal | |
| Deal or no Deal? Developer sits tight - SMH - 10th June 2009 | Attached ...Any move by the Government to retrospectively legalise these dodgy deals will demonstrate just how arrogant and unaccountable this Government has become... | |
| Huge Land Deals "Illegal" - SMH - 9th June 2009 | Attached ... MULTIBILLION-DOLLAR land deals the State Government signed with two big Labor Party donors are likely to be ruled illegal by the Land and Environment Court | |
| Development Deals: It's All About MOU - SMH - 9th June 2009 | Attached ... To work out where best to put them, the department produced a list of the 91 best development sites. Catherine Hill Bay came second last, ahead only of Sweetwater, also known as Huntlee. Despite the view of professional planners that these were the worst of the lot, both sites got the nod from Mr Sartor and the then environment minister, Bob Debus. | |
| BigEnd Court Challenge - Newcastle Herald - June 2009 | Catho's Castle |
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| Catho residents slam "disastrous" decision - Newcastle Herald 28th February 2009 | Attached ... CATHERINE Hill Bay residents said they were disappointed but not surprised by federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett's decision to approve the Rose Group's development in their suburb. | |
| Beautiful retreat deserves heritage listing - Newcastle Herald 6th January 2009 | Attached ...Catherine Hill Bay and its surrounds are the only large area of relatively intact bushland between Nelson Bay and Port Hacking | |
| Catherine Hill Bay keen for Heritage listing - The Herald 3rd January 2009 | Attached ... CATHERINE Hill Bay residents are hopeful their village will be added to the state heritage register in the near future. The listing would strengthen the community's campaign against large-scale development in the area, such as that proposed by Rose Group and Coal & Allied. |
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| Not in our Village - Sun Weekly new 11th December 2008 | Attached ... Angry residents of Gwandalin and Summerland Point are preparing for a court battle to prevent a large scale housing development which they say threatens to disturb the tranquil lifestyle of their villages | |
| Land battle goes to court - Express Advocate 9th December 2008 | Attached ... IN a David and Goliath action, Gwandalan Summerland Point Action Group is set to take on the NSW Planning Department in the Land and Environment Court . | |
| Stark stance of sacrifice contrasts with our moral pygmies - SMH 13th November 2008 | Attached .... our politicians sacrifice our most sacred coastal treasures, our bays and inlets, lakes, villages, heritage. Currawong, Pitt Town, Bermagui, Sandon Point, Catherine Hill Bay, Anvil Hill; all sacrificed to the gods of absolute waterfront, mateship and that great three-in-one deity, coal-carbon-cash. | |
| Strong interest in Catherine Hill Bay housing plans - ABC 6th November 2008 | Attached ...
Catherine Hill Bay residents say they are not surprised two big housing developments planned for the village have generated more public feedback than other projects in New South Wales.
The State Government's develop monitor for the past year shows 5,500 submissions were received for the Rosecorp and Coal and Allied proposals. That is 30 per cent of the total submissions received by the Government for all projects. |
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| Currawong, yet another black mark against Labor - SMH 22nd October 2008 | Attached ... The bleak humour of which is recognised in the Greens' 2008 Bad Developer Awards. The coveted Golden Toaster was deservedly taken out by Wollongong's Frank Vellar. But the residential category was shared by three standouts: Keith Johnson's Pitt Town development, Rose Corp's Catherine Hill Bay and Linz and Litver's Currawong. | |
| Coalition vows to scrap minister's powers on big projects - SMH 20th October 2008 | Attached ... THE Coalition says that if it wins government it will scrap one of NSW's most controversial planning laws, which hands control of coastal areas and contentious development sites to the planning minister. | |
| Protesters rally to save Catho - Herald 20th October 2008 | Attached ... Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association president Sue Whyte took part in the Hyde Park rally to call for protection against development on sites from the Hunter Region to the North Coast .
Carrying banners and donning shirts that read "Save Catho", the protesters want to scrap Part 3A of the state's planning legislation. |
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| Garrett may stop housing development - ABC News 1st October 2008 | Attached ... The federal Environment Minister has indicated he may block a massive coastal housing project south of Newcastle , in the New South Wales Hunter Valley , similar to his stance against the Nobbys Lighthouse redevelopment. | |
| How one man could single-handedly kill our coastline - Tracks Magazine Oct 2008 | Attached ... The Department of Planning advised against development, the Department of Environment and Conservation suggested the land be bought back and preserved by the State. Two local councils knocked back the developer's plans, as did an independent assesor. Sartor's call? Start your bulldozers. If the developers get their way the sleepy hamlet will be none times the size and its unique characted obliterated. | |
| Greens push for ICAC to review Sartor deals - SMH 14th September 2008 | Attached ... SIX major developments personally approved by former planning minister Frank Sartor have been referred to the anti-corruption watchdog after it was revealed the developers had donated almost $1million to the NSW Labor Party. .... Rosecorp donated $143,500 during the planning process. | |
| Sartor's spirit needs exorcising - 13 September 2008 | Attached ... LIKE an army in retreat, former planning emperor Frank Sartor caused as much damage as he could before he was dumped.
One of his last decisions, just days before he was axed by his own party, was to approve a major development at Catherine Hill Bay the last unspoilt and undeveloped gem on the Central Coast. It was, you might say, a symbolic end to a reign of terror. |
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| The deal is done, but all is not lost at Catho | Attached ...The State Government's decision last week to approve the massive development for Catherine Hill Bay is a sad and tragic outcome for the people of NSW and especially the folks in the Hunter | |
| Green's recount doubles value of gifts to Labor - SMH 8th September 2008 | Attached .... A controversial proposal from Rosecorp to build hundreds of apartments in the hamlet of Catherine Hill Bay, on the Central Coast, was approved last week by the then minister for planning, Frank Sartor. In the 14 months to June, Rosecorp - a generous donor of long standing - donated another $117,700 to the state Labor Party. | |
| Residents ready to use Green Bans - SMH 3rd September 2008 | Attached ... AUSTRALIA'S architecture body has described State Government approval of a plan to build almost 800 dwellings at Catherine Hill Bay as "gross over-development", while residents have threatened to use green bans to block it. | |
| New development will destroy area's heritage - ABC Newcastle 3rd September 2008 | Attached ..."It is still an enormous number of houses to put in an area with no infrastructure, and the whole idea of coastal policy these days is to only build in areas leave the rest of the coast alone." Greens MLC Sylvia Hale says the development should not be allowed to go ahead under any circumstances. "Once again the Minister for Planning has failed to listen to the community," she said. "The people he appears to listen to are the major donors to the Labor Party. Rosecorp, in the lead up to the 2007 state election, donated $143,000 to the ALP." |
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| Town of Few Set To House Hundreds - SMH 3rd September 2008 | Attached ... The new housing represents the type of overdevelopment that is causing problems with water and infrastructure elsewhere on the Central Coast, says the Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association, which wanted the whole peninsula declared a national park. | |
| Sartor to ignore his own panel - SMH 2nd July 2008 | Attached ... The State Government is expected to approve within days a controversial project to build luxury homes on the headland at Catherine Hill Bay, even though an independent panel has recommended significant modifications before approval. | |
| Buried report reveals bay plan rejection - SMH 9th May 2008 | Attached ...REVISED plans for a controversial development of more than 600 houses in the Central Coast township of Catherine Hill Bay were rejected by an independent panel appointed by the State Government. | |
| Greens take allegations to ICAC - SMH 5th May 2008 | Attached ...
On behalf of the Greens, the MP Sylvia Hale is calling on the Independent Commission Against Corruption to investigate donations from property developers to political parties and candidates, alleging that it "represents a systemic corruption of the planning system in NSW". ...
Rosecorp Pty Ltd donated $143,600 while seeking State Government approval for its projects at Breakfast Point in Sydney and Catherine Hill Bay south of Newcastle. |
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| No Record of Donation from Developer - SMH 5th May 2008 | Attached ... The Planning Minister, Frank Sartor, who gave his approval, also did not declare a $1000 donation which Rosecorp Pty Ltd recorded as giving him on March 31, 2006, in its returns to the NSW Election Funding Authority. | |
| Councillors want ban on Donations - Express Advocate 2nd May 2008 | Attached ... Information available on the Election Funding Authority ' s website showed Cr Best received more than $55,000 in donations for his State election campaign last year. The largest donations were from developers, including $9000 from Coastal Hamlets Pty Ltd, | |
| Hunter fate set behind Sydney 's closed doors - Newcastle Herald 24th April 2008 | Attached ... Most shocking of all was the inclusion of proposed developments at Catherine Hill Bay and Huntlee (these places were ranked 90 th and 91 st on a Departmental list of 91 potential sites for development), as well as Gwandalan, Nords Wharf , Minmi and Sanctuary Villages . Neither of these places provides the access to public transport, services, or work opportunities required to justify large scale development. | |
Heritage listing prompts call to ban Catherine Hill Bay housing plan - ABC 21st April 2008 |
Attached ... The New South Wales Government has been urged to ban a large scale housing development at Catherine Hill Bay , now that the area has been named as one of the state ' s most endangered historic sites.
The National Trust has listed the township among three rare heritage sites in NSW that it believes should be protected. |
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| Watch it, Morris, or we ' ll rip yer bloody arms off - SMH 16th April 2008 | Attached ... Now, more than ever, we need a minister who will stand for what is right, someone who will not trade a piece of the Blue Mountains National Park for a Dubai-funded, helicopter-serviced eco-village, or a piece of Ku-ring-gai National Park for luxury McMansions, or a tiny coastal mining village like Catherine Hill Bay for tacky, car-based suburbia, or a piece of Pitt Town flood plain for residential subdivision. | |
| Iemma Must Show He Is In Charge - Editorial SMH 15th April 2008 | Attached ... As reinforced by the Herald reports about Catherine Hill Bay and Sweetwater in the Hunter region, the nexus between state Labor and developers is unhealthy and corrupting. The suspicious coincidence of government grants to the Transport Workers Union matching the union ' s donations to Labor, the sleaze around the dismissed Wollongong council and the rush to remove local council powers all add to the public impression of a ruling party that has lost its moral bearings. | |
| O'Farrell Outraged At Papers Absence - SMH 14th April 2008 | Attached ... THE Opposition has accused the Government of contempt of Parliament by failing to disclose four documents containing criticisms of a deal to allow development on land that Planning Department staff had rejected as highly unsuitable. ...
Mr O ' Farrell said the real problem with the Hunter Regional Plan was that it was a deal done behind closed doors by Mr Sartor and developers with no transparency or community involvement. |
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| It's About Social Cohesion, not Bricks and Cement - SMH 14th April 2008 | Attached ... When the Lower Hunter Strategy was released, the Total Environment Centre and local groups pointed out that Frank Sartor on the one hand had negotiated for significant private land to be protected in conservation reserves, but on the other acquiesced to allow the wrong development in the wrong places, contrary to good planning and sustainability principles. | |
| Secret Files Expose the Sway of Developers - SMH 12th April 2008 | Attached ... THE State Government dismissed advice from its own planners and allowed developers to clear valuable bushland to build housing estates away from existing towns and transport, after months of aggressive lobbying by developers. Documents seen by the Herald - some withheld from Parliament - reveal details of an unprecedented land swap in which some of the state ' s most generous donors to the NSW Labor Party were given the go-ahead to build on sensitive woodland and coastal areas in the Lower Hunter. | |
| Paving Paradise to Save It - SMH 12th April 2008 | Attached ...
If ever there was a place unfit for development it was Sweetwater, a 2340-hectare spread of untouched lower Hunter spotted gum and iron bark forest. Kilometres from the nearest town, rich with rare vegetation and home to several threatened species, it was never considered a likely site for housing. It was so unsuitable it came last on a NSW Department of Planning survey of 91 sites where best to put new homes for the 125,000 people expected to settle in the region by 2031.
Just one place above it on the list was Catherine Hill Bay, an old mining village on the Wallarah Peninsula, 80 kilometres south-east of Sweetwater. Surrounded by coastal heath and bordered by unspoiled surf beaches, it is the last barrier holding back Sydney ' s suburban sprawl in its relentless march north to Newcastle. |
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| Strategy documents the house never saw - SMH 12th April 2008 | Attached ... As staff in the Newcastle office were sidelined from negotiating the Hunter Regional Strategy, they copied four documents pivotal to understanding what happened. They put them in a yellow envelope and hid them in the office. | |
| White shoes, white elephants - SMH - 8th March 2008 | Attached ... it has given me sympathy for locals who fight against overdevelopment at beach destinations such as Byron Bay or Catherine Hill Bay, who I might have otherwise have dismissed as nimbys. | |
| Campaign mounts against Catherine Hill Bay housing plan - ABC regional - 10th March 2008 | Attached ... The Catherine Hill Progress Association says it is not surprised the New South Wales Government has received more than 2,500 submissions against a proposed housing development in the area. | |
| Lake Macquarie survey finds rare plant - ABC Newcastle - 3rd March 2008 | Attached ... Surveys conducted as part of Coal & Allied's plans for residential development at Lake Macquarie have unearthed large numbers of one of the Hunter's most threatened plant species. | |
| Town fights to preserve a little bit of paradise - SMH 1st March 2008 | Attached ... He says Mr Sartor's view is that proponents would keep coming until protection zoning crumbled. "Our view is that might be so, but it's worth fighting to stop it," says Mr Cogan. And if it gets the go-ahead, he says, property owners along the coast will demand development rights as they see fit. | |
| Frank Sartor's crash landing - SMH editorial - 28th Feb 2008 | Attached ... IT DOESN'T look good. An independent panel opposes a major rezoning of land near Canberra Airport but the NSW Planning Minister, Frank Sartor, approves it anyway. It doesn't look good at all when the developer concerned is a big donor to the Labor Party. Mr Sartor, however, refuses to see the problem. | |
| Iemma Sartor ICAC Donor Links - Daily Telegraph - 28th Feb 2008 | Attached ... PREMIER Morris Iemma and his Planning Minister Frank Sartor had thousands made out to them in donations as part of a $100,000-plus ALP gift from a developer investigated by ICAC. | |
| It's time to be frank, Sartor - Daily Telegraph - 27th February 2008 | Attached ...A PROPERTY developer who donated more than $160,000 to the NSW ALP has been given a $200 million windfall in a land rezoning deal - despite the Government's own expert panel warning Planning Minister Frank Sartor against the move. | |
| Minister approved project of company that donated - Sydney Morning Herald - 27th February 2008 | Attached ... THE company behind a controversial development under Canberra Airport's flight path that was approved by the Planning Minister against the recommendation of an independent panel has emerged as a big donor to NSW Labor. | |
| Residents rally against Catherine Hill Bay development - ABC Newcastle - 25th February 2008 | Attached ...
"People are terribly concerned that if approved, the massive Catherine Hill Bay development will totally engulf the village," she said.
"It would set a precedent along the entire New South Wales coastline, raising developers' expectations that they could develop headlands and conservation areas and precious places like this." |
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| Developers coughed up to dine with Planning Minister - SMH 18th February 2008 | Attached ... FRANK SARTOR hosted a Labor Party fund-raising dinner attended by more than 30 development companies and which raised more than $500,000 - at the same time the Government was set to make decisions on development applications by some of those companies. | |
| Labor delivers for big donors - SMH - 2nd February 2008 | Attached ... SOME of the business world ' s biggest winners from NSW Government decisions have emerged as the Labor Party ' s most generous donors. Rosecorp, which is involved in controversial projects such as Breakfast Point and Catherine Hill Bay, gave $110,000. |
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| Developer accused of hypocrisy - Manly Daily - 25th January 2008 | Attached ...A Palm Beach developer denies being a hypocrite for objecting to six townhouses being built in his own suburb while proposing 600 houses at iconic Catherine Hill Bay | |
| Development Deadlines loom for Coastal Hamlet - Sydney Morning Herald - 22nd January 2008 | Attached ... Construction of up to 900 homes could go ahead this year if residents fail in their attempt to have the projects scaled back. In the last census there were only 153 people in the coastal hamlet, 100 kilometres north of Sydney. | |
| Developer's Protest a bit rich - Daily Telegraph - 21st January 2008 | Attached ...But, despite objecting to development in his own backyard, Mr Rose ' s company plans to build up to 600 homes in the tiny former mining town of Catherine Hill Bay, south of Newcastle. | |
| Call for Sympathetic Development - Star 9th January 2008 | Attached ... While the Catherine Hill Bay Progress Association has protested the proposed developments, it says it is not against all development in the area, it just wants any development to be sensitive to the existing village and its heritage and environmental values. | |
| New plan for heritage town comes up smelling of roses - Sydney Morning Herald 6th September 2007 | Attached ... REVISED plans for a controversial development around the Central Coast heritage town of Catherine Hill Bay have been released by the State Government, with residents saying they have been improved.
However, concern remains about the prospect of more than 800 new houses being built around the old mining village. |
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| Forum a "charade" - Newcastle Herald 31st August 2007 | Attached ... Catherine Hill Bay representative Jennifer Hill said the comany has a preconceived notion of what it wanted, and "didn't seem interested in community consultation" | |
| Peninsula Planning - Herald 31st August 2007 | Attached ...residents seem no happier about the idea, labelling a "closed-door" planning "charette" a charade. | |
| Talks fail to quell housing plan concerns - ABC Newcastle 31st August 2007 | Attached ... Community groups say four days of talks with Coal and Allied on its proposed multi-million dollar housing projects has failed to address their concerns about overdevelopment on Lake Macquarie ' s coastline in the New South Wales Hunter region. | |
| Battle for Catho - A Struggle Against Impossible Odds - Financial Review - Thursday 22nd March 2007 | Attached ... Tiny Catherine Hill Bay 's refusal to be bullied by developers typifies community anger over state planning power... | |
| Move Along Please - Syndey Morning Herald Editorial - Wednesday 21st March 2007 | Attached ... The result, as seen most recently in Catherine Hill Bay and in the decision to approve vast new development at Star City , disenfranchises local communities - frequently for no good reason. Neither of these two projects is vital to the state's future; they are important only because they have been proposed by people with a lot of money. | |
| Sartor Offset Land Already Protected - Sydney Morning Herald - Tuesday 20th March 2007 | Attached ... A STATE GOVERNMENT deal to offset proposed development at Lake Macquarie by asking developers to set aside land for conservation has been attacked.... the land was of limited development potential and was already zoned for environmental protection, says a planner at Lake Macquarie City Council. | |
| Sartor Overrides Conservation Advice - Sydney Morning Herald - Monday 19th March 2007 | Attached ... THE Planning Minister, Frank Sartor, would have to rezone land from conservation to residential to allow developers to build around the heritage town of Catherine Hill Bay .
Documents marked "Cabinet in Confidence" show that the Department of Planning advised the minister in May last year that "no development occur at Catherine Hill Bay ". In fact, the Department of Environment and Conservation thought land in the area was so important it should be bought by the state. |
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| In Full Swing - The Newcastle Herald - Saturday 17th March 2007 | Attached ... At least four Lower Hunter seats could change hands next Saturday, significantly changing the region ' s political landscape, and that of NSW. | |
| Wyong a Bay Critic - The Daily Telegraph - Friday 9th March 2007 | Attached ... THE controversial 600-house Catherine Hill Bay redevelopment has gained another critic, with Wyong council writing a scathing submission against the plan. | |
| Jetty out on a limb - The Newcastle Herald - Saturday 3rd March 2007 | Attached ... THE historic jetty at Catherine Hill Bay is set to be demolished unless money is found to maintain it.... A spokeswoman for Planning Minister Frank Sartor said the jetty should be discussed in the context of any infrastructure contribution that Rosecorp makes with its plan to develop 600 houses at the bay. | |
| "Infastructure? ...What Infastructure??!' - The Newcastle Herald - Wednesday 28th February 2007 | ![]() |
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| Pressure On Ocean Village - Newcastle Herald - Wednesday 28th February 2007 | Attached ... The Lake council, for its part, says ratepayers could be left with an $11.5 million infrastructure bill unless the Government squeezes more out of the developer. | |
| No Detailed Studies to Support Development - Newcastle Herald - Wednesday 28th February 2007 | Attached ...
CATHERINE Hill Bay Progress Association said yesterday that a concept plan for Rosecorp's 600 houses at the bay should be refused because detailed studies had not been done to support the development...
Mr Sartor appointed an independent panel to study the plan and Mr Cogan presented the association's objections to the panel yesterday. Mr Cogan said the developer had not made a "comprehensive case for the size and design of the proposal". |
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| 11.5M$ Utilities Bill Not Settled - Newcastle Herald - Wednesday 28th February 2007 | Attached ... FEARS that ratepayers will be left with an $11.5 million bill to pay for infrastructure at Catherine Hill Bay have been raised in a Lake Macquarie City Council report. | |
| What independence - Despite panel ' s finding, Minister Sartor can do what he likes - The Daily Telegraph - Wednesday 28th February 2007 | Attached ... QUESTIONS have been raised about the influence and independence of a panel assessing Rosecorp ' s proposed development at Catherine Hill Bay . | |
| Couple sees trouble on Horizon - Newcastle Herald - Wednesday 28th February 2007 | Attached ... THEY have lived in Catherine Hill Bay for more than 60 years and intend to stay there for the rest of their lives.
But Barry and Pauline Wiltshire fear they will end up living in a suburb they dislike. They say plans for 900 houses in the village of 100 homes will destroy its character. |
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| Quote Unquote - Newcastle Herald - Wednesday 28th February 2007 | Attached ... "Having a thousand houses in the place will ruin it. It's a nice little town and it should stay that way." | |
| Council Caustic on Bay development - The Daily Telgraph - Tueseday 27th February 2007 | Attached ...
ROSECORP ' S proposed development at Catherine Hill Bay is allegedly too close to the coast, fails to provide adequate community services and thumbs its nose at government planning laws. A scathing Lake Macquarie council report due to be tabled last night sets out more than 60 concerns about the plan, from its heritage impact to a perceived lack of public transport. |
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| Council opposes 'outrageous ' plan - Newcastle Herald - Tuesday 27th March 2007 |
Attached ... SYDNEY developer Rosecorp ' s plans to develop 600 houses at Catherine Hill Bay came under fire at last night's Lake Macquarie City Council meeting...
Mayor Greg Piper said the plan was outrageous...
"There is not one sound planning principle applying to the agreement," Cr Piper said. |
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| In a manner of speaking, it's all just coming up roses - Australian Financial Review - Saturday 24th Febraury 2007 | Attached ...The plan of Sydney developer Bob Rose's Rosecorp to build 600 homes in the tiny seaside hamlet of Catherine Hill Bay was blocked by councils and naysayers in the courts before Planning Minister Frank Sartor rode to the rescue, declaring the plan a national treasure. | |
| Livid and planning to revolt - Daily Telegraph - Saturday 24th February 2007 | Attached ...It is the town that has turned its back on Labor .. "People here do feel like they've been betrayed. A lot of them are lifelong Labor voters and they're saying there's no way they'll vote for the party" | |
| United We Stand - Daily Telegraph - Saturday 24th February 2007 | Attached ...Its a scenario once considered unthinkable in a blue-colla town where most children learned to vote Labor almost from the same time they learned to write. | |
| Canditates Combine Over Developments - The Daily Telegraph - Thursday 22nd February 2007 | Attached ...
A Daily Telegraph investigation has found that three of Newcastle's five candidates oppose Landcom's Royal Newcastle Hospital redevelopment, all of Swansea's candidates reject development plans for Catherine Hill Bay and Upper Hunter candidates remain uncommitted to the proposed Anvil Hill coalmine. The spread of opposition across major parties and independent candidates suggests a surge in community angst with the three proposals, with candidates jumping on board to win votes. |
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| Fix Up Our Backyard - Sunday Telegraph - Sunday 18th February 2007 | Attached ... But residents want other problems in their own regional back yard fixed.... They also want a guarantee that the old mining town of Catherine Hill Bay will not be developed, and improved water quality in Lake Macquarie . | |
| Developer Rejects Council Assessment - Newcastle Herald - Thursday 15th Febraury 2007 | Attached ...
The Herald reported yesterday that a Lake Macquarie City Council assessment of Rosecorp ' s concept plan was "confusing, poorly labelled or incorrectly labelled".
The assessment criticised the plan as misleading for referring to land that had been rehabilitated as "despoiled". |
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| Plans Slammed - Newcastle Herald - Wednesday 14th February 2007 | Attached ...
THE NSW Government is facing increased pressure over its support for new housing at Catherine Hill Bay with the emergence of a secret government document recommending against development in the historic village.
A confidential draft cabinet document, obtained by The Herald, concluded that: "No development [should] occur at Catherine Hill Bay." |
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| Village Joins In Protest - Newcastle Herald - Monday 12th February 2007 | Attached ... Planning power blasted. Catherine Hill Bay residents joined a rally in Hyde Park, Sydney, yesterday to protest against controversial government planning powers they believe will destroy the seaside suburb | |
| Tough-as-nails hamlet takes on developers - Sydney Morning Herald - Saturday 10th February 2007 | Attached ... Rosecorp's development plans have had a very public airing since it paid $4.25 million for 374 hectares in 2002. Rejected by the Lake Macquarie City Council and thrown out on appeal by the Land and Environment Court in July last year, the company - headed by Bob Rose, chairman of the NSW Urban Taskforce lobby - finally found a sympathetic ear in Mr Sartor.... The promise of land for a national park is poor compensation for the loss of such an important settlement to the history of NSW," its conservation director, Jacqui Goddard, wrote to Mr Sartor. |
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| A Little Bare-Faced Cheek - Sydney Morning Herald - Wednesday 7th February 2007 | Attached ...
Proposals to redevelop Catherine Hill Bay have been around for years. Opposed not only by locals but by the National Trust and the Government's own departments of planning and of the environment, they've also been refused by both Wyong and Lake Macquarie councils, whose boundary the site spans, and rejected by the courts, including the Court of Appeal....
In November, with the courts proving so unkind, Rosecorp was able to invoke Part 3A in requesting the minister's help. The plea, the developer's new statewide refrain, was that the minister pluck its Catherine Hill Bay bid from the turbid morass of public opinion and shine upon it the clear light of ministerial love. And lo, the minister did pluck.... A copycat agreement with Coal & Allied, signed the very next day, supports a further 300 houses at Catherine Hill Bay, making a total of 900 new dwellings; a 900 per cent increase in this tiny 100-house hamlet, notwithstanding the Planning Department's firm advice to cabinet that "no development [should] occur at Catherine Hill Bay". |
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| Bay Braces For Battle - The Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Post - Wednesday 7th February 2007 | Attached ... Mr Cogan was not convinced the government was serious about addressing public concerns. “People feel as if the government has just walked over them and they're angry,” he said. |
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| Fourth Council Member Stands - Newcastle Herald - Tuesday 6th February 2007 | Attached ...
LAKE Macquarie City councillor Laurie Coghlan will stand as an independent candidate at the March state election in the seat of Swansea....He was outraged that NSW Planning Minister Frank Sartor had stripped the council of its planning powers over development plans at Catherine Hill Bay. "Somebody needs to stand up in Parliament and say his decision was wrong and it needs to be revisited." |
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| Upset Catho residents spell it out - The Sun-Herald - Sunday 4th February 2007 | Attached ... Residents of Lake Macquarie 's quiet coastal hamlet of Catherine Hill Bay have taken a very public step in their stoush with developers Rosecorp and Coal & Allied. Scores of banners, signs and slogans began appearing last week on local houses, light poles and buildings. | |
| Developers a force to be reckoned with - The Sun-Herald - Sunday 4th February 2007 | Attached ... They called it the NSW Urban Taskforce, a cleverly crafted name giving the impression of a semi-official governmental body. In reality, it is controlled by a who ' s who of Sydney developers. | |
A traffic nightmare - Bay report `devastating ' - Daily Telegraph - Thursday 4th Januray 2007 |
Attached ... THE quiet streets of Catherine Hill Bay will be turned into busy thoroughfares for hundreds of new residents under development plans before the State Government. | |
| Bay Plans Go On View - Daily Telegraph - Wednesday 3rd Januray 2007 | Attached ...
DETAILED plans of Rosecorp's Catherine Hill Bay development go on display today. The controversial blueprint includes a new ``coastal village ' ' of up to 600 homes, a new access road to the Pacific Highway and 310ha set aside for conservation. |
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| Panel On Bay Gets Slammed - Daily Telegraph - Wednesday 20th December 2006 | Attached ...
A STATE Government move to appoint an independent panel to assess Rosecorp ' s development at Catherine Hill Bay is nothing more than a ``Mickey Mouse ' ' attempt to win more votes, according to the NSW Greens. Greens MP Lee Rhiannon made the claim yesterday, saying two of the panel ' s three members had direct links to the Government. |
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| Bay Homes Scrutinised - Daily Telegraph - Tuesday 19th December 2006 | Attached ... State Planning Minister Frank Sartor said yesterday the three-member panel -- former Planning Department director-general Gabrielle Kibble, NSW Heritage Council chairman Michael Collins and architect Andrew Andersons -- would hold public hearings in February before reporting to the State Government. | |
| From 100 houses to 1000 residences - Newcastle Herald - Monday 18th December 2006 | Attached ... CATHERINE Hill Bay Progress Association is concerned that the Bay ' s heritage values will be obliterated by massive housing developments. | |
| Bay Meeting Disappoints - Newcastle Star - Tuesday 21st November 2006 | Attached ... the most significant outcome of the meeting is that Coal and Allied can be in no doubt of the community ' s opposition to the development. | |
| March In Protest - Daily Telegraph - Friday 17th November 2006 | Attached ... CATHERINE Hill Bay residents will march on a public meeting this evening to protest against what they claim is overdevelopment of their quiet seaside village. ... ``In total, that is 10 times the size of the existing village, three times bigger than Swansea Heads and a third bigger than Pelican and Nords Wharf combined. ' ' | |
| Common Grounds - Newcastle Herald - Saturday 11th November 2006 | Attached ... COMMUNITY groups disillusioned with large developments planned for sensitive Hunter sites will join forces to try to protect their areas. | |
| Potential candidates for seat stand up - Newcastle Herald - Friday 10th November 2006 | Attached .... oppponents to development at Catherine Hill Bay will stand an independent candidate in the state election...... Our platform will be about integrity in government, honest dealing with the community and the hollowing out of coastal policy to suit developers.... | |
| "Don't Bank on this Phoney Fix" - Sydney Morning Herald - 8th November 2006 | Attached .... The former prime minister Paul Keating called Frank Sartor the "mayor for Triguboff". Here ' s why. Biobanking is moulded to Harry Triguboff ' s recent call for a south-east Queensland approach to NSW coastal development. Forget national parks; send the bush inland. Make all coast Gold Coast.
Triguboff calls it "sensible" city building. In fact, though, sensible cities protect wilderness by keeping humans corralled. He believes Sydney has "too many forests and parks . we should be building on this area". Well, here ' s his chance. |
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| "Double Stardards & the 3A Process" - Architecture Bulletin Nov 06 | Attached ... Many people believe that the NSW Coastal Policy guards against this type of deal. It hasn't and the precedent it sets for the Coastal Policy is disastrous... | |
| "3A projects add a new dimension to rules" - Sydney Morning Herald - 25th October 2006 | Attached ... hidden among 3A ' s smoke and mirrors are a number of lesser projects whose statewide significance isn't immediately obvious.... a huge development, also by Rose Corp and refused by both council and court, on ecologically sensitive land at the coastal mining town of Catherine Hill Bay.... No wonder this is a club every developer in town wants to be in... | |
| "Mr Sartor's deal" - Newcastle Herald - Editorial - 24th October 2006 | Attached ... it will be tragic if the national park has to be obtained at the cost of destroying the historic Catherine Hill Bay villages and landscape. The development footprints on the maps suggest that the villages will be swamped by big housing estates... | |
| "Suburbia inflicted on quiet seaside hamlet" - Newcastle Herald - 24th October 2006 | Attached - FRIGHTENING! Progress association secretary Brian Cogan said the town would be swamped by development. CATHERINE HILL BAY aerial maps of the proposals also appeared with this story. | |
| "Favouritism Slammed" - Newcastle Herald 29/9/06 | Attached ... NSW Planning Minister Frank Sartor has been accused of giving developers Hardie Holdings, Rosecorp and Coal & Allied preferential treatment in striking deals with them for housing at Branxton and Catherine Hill Bay . Critics claim Mr Sartor has ignored his own department's advice in negotiating the developers' housing plans... |
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| Stop building 'egg crate' flats: Keating - Sydney Morning Herald - 31st October 2006 | ||
| Mr Sartor's deal - Newcastle Herald - Editorial - 24th October 2006 | ||
| NSW Coastal Conference 2006 Presentation | All coastal communities face potentially dire consequences as the State Government changes established planning policies and processes to give development rights to coastal lands where no such rights exist under "the rules". The Wallarah Peninsula Alliance put the case for the coastal communities at the NSW Coastal Conference at Coffs Harbour on 7 November 2006. Read the speech, and view the powerpoint presentation (10MB) |
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| Wallarah Peninsula Alliance protest | The WPA protest letter is attached |
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| If your group supports us, email us now for listing here. | ||
| Newcastle Council | Read their resolution of 5th December 2006 | |
| Nature Conservation Council | Read the resolution of the Nature Conservation Council condemming this development |
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| National Trust | Read their letter opposing this development |
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| Letters | |
Sydney Morning Herald - 11th June 2008 Is it possible that the Robert and Margaret Rose who were appointed members of the Order of Australia for "service to the building and construction industry … particularly in the area of sustainable urban development and planning" are Bob Rose of RoseCorp and his wife, whose Breakfast Point development is mired in controversy and who are planning the inappropriate overdevelopment of Catherine Hill Bay? Elisabeth Goodsall Wahroonga |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 17th April 2008 Catherine Hill Bay already zoned for conservationBob Rose (Letters, April 16) continues to promulgate the myth that having a green buffer between Sydney and Newcastle is somehow contingent on him winning approval for his outrageous development at Catherine Hill Bay. The land is already zoned for primary conservation - let's leave it that way. Ian Roffey Oyster Bay |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 17th April 2008 So nice to read that the State Government has done a "swap" with the Rose Group of environmentally sensitive coastal land at Catherine Hill Bay - apparently to the great benefit of the people of NSW. Does it then come under the control of Lands Department? That would mean it can lease sections for 50 years to Babcock and Brown to build 200 "eco-friendly" units, because the department alleges it cannot afford to maintain the area? This is what has happened with the beautiful Killalea State Park at Shellharbour on the South Coast. Helen Harle Wollongong |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 17th April 2008 Courting the public with the name Rose Group eh, Bob? That a property developer by any other name should smell so sweet. Seth Richardson Enmore |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 14th April 2008 Assault on planning process leaves councils vulnerable Since late 2006 Hardie Holdings has been trying to impose a large, dense development on the small town of Dunoon, 20 kilometres north-east of Lismore. Some of the methods you reveal ("Paving paradise to save it", April 12-13) are familiar to us: going for the maximum lot yield (nearly 60 lots compared with a recently developed 16 lots on an adjacent site of similar size); seeking to cross zoning boundaries to accommodate lots; alienating prime agricultural land (in this case, for a sewerage plant within 200 metres of the town); and bombarding the local council with consultants' reports. The Hardie technique seems to focus on outflanking the planning authority while ignoring community concerns and legitimate objections. After the company first lodged its development application a packed meeting in the town expressed overwhelming opposition. Our letter requesting consultation was ignored. What alarms us is the modus operandi, revealed in your article, of assaulting the planning process and then pressuring and isolating planners who are trying to do their job. If the company can do this to a state government department, what pressure might it exert on a local council? Paula McDougall Dunoon Community Group, Dunoon |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 14th April 2008 Not only was the NSW Government completely stupid to trade off unsustainable development and the clearing of sensitive bushland in return for a measly bit of undeveloped land that it could have zoned open space anyway, but thinking that no one would ever spot the link between this deal and Labor Party donations is incredibly naive ("Secret files expose sway of developers", April 12-13). It's as if the Government doesn't care any more, and will happily offer planning approval or dish out any other benefits in exchange for party donations. Brad Ruting Woolloomooloo |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 14th April 2008 Frank Sartor's credibility is shot. His claim that "A lot of these people don't get their own way" is like saying that a child who gets nine ice creams when they want 10 is not getting their own way. Developers, like other pests, are resourceful, adaptable, unscrupulous and absolutely determined. They are to be tolerated, not encouraged. Having said that, if Morris Iemma wants to rebuild his Government's credentials, the first thing he should do is to show his Treasurer, Michael Costa, the door. When in doubt about the source of the sickness that infects planning, and other public policy areas, look no further than Costa, the man who thinks planning is a "waste of time". On a more positive note, it is heartening to see that there are still public servants like Steve Brown. Michael Hinchey South West Rocks |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 14th April 2008 Why don't we save all that money spent on organising and running elections and just hand over the running of the state to developers? This would cut out the middle man, reduce the need for lobbyists, and achieve the same result. Don Leayr Albury |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 1st March 2008 Tina Jackson (Letters, February 28) provides cogent reasons why Frank Sartor should not provide approvals for developers to make millions from the destruction of Catherine Hill Bay. But what matters more than how much money the developers poured into Labor Party coffers, is the minister's belief that there is one man alone who exceeds the collective wisdom and expertise of the Heritage Council, the Land and Environment Court, two shire councils and their officers, those who zoned the area as a conservation area, those who nominated it for heritage listing, the officers of his own department who opposed the development proposals and sundry community groups. James Thomson - Dooralong |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 1st March 2008 As a society, we must choose between money and morality. The proposal for 900 new homes in Catherine Hill Bay is morally bankrupt. Governments are elected to serve the people, not to blatantly accept donations that enable them to stay in power. Jack Mundey, where are you? Ashley Berry - Toolijooa |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 29th February 2008 The planning deftness of Sartor continues to astonish I was not at all surprised to learn that Frank Sartor rejected the advice of an independent assessment panel in approving the rezoning of land in Queanbeyan for a housing project built by Village Building Company. It seems he likes to ignore the advice of his department as well. In 2006 the Department of Planning ranked 91 sites in the Hunter region in terms of suitability for development. Catherine Hill Bay was ranked second-last. Why then is Mr Sartor considering rezoning to allow proposed developments that may result in a tenfold increase in the number of dwellings and the destruction of the character of this historic former mining village? The land in question is zoned Conservation (Primary). Again, an independent panel has been appointed but if the minister can ignore its recommendations, what is the point? Morris Iemma reminds us it is not a crime to make or receive political donations. However, the deftness with which Mr Sartor is able to set aside all impediments to contentious projects continues to astonish. Sirpa Poyzer - Warrawee |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 28th February 2008 - First Word - Letters to the Editor Attached ... Under the current state planning laws, 900 new houses may soon engulf Catherine Hill Bay. This idyllic Central Coast coalmining town from the 1870s comprises 100 historic homes and intact heritage streetscapes nestled in rolling green hinterland on a pristine surf beach. The area is rich in social history and abounds in biodiversity and endangered species... Tina Jackson - Executive Director National Trust (NSW) Sydney |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 25th February 2008 I hope the donations to ministers involved with the Gwandalan/Catherine Hill Bay development proposals will be given back to the developers, their ridiculous proposals scrapped, and that sanity returns to these unique bushland areas so endangered plants and animals will be spared. Tell Frank Sartor to back off for starters, Mr Iemma, and then we'll know it's not all hot air. David Sayers - Gwandalan |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 22nd February 2008 Challenge for Sartor Frank Sartor must demonstrate he is not in the pockets of the developers with whom he wines and dines at Labor Party functions ("Developers coughed up to dine with Sartor", February 18). He could do this by putting heritage values over donors' profits when he decides whether or not to approve the construction of 900 houses around the historic coastal mining town of Catherine Hill Bay. Virginia Munro - Clovelly |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 15th February 2008 Sartor' s urban jungle.So Frank Sartor thinks that turning Ballast Point into public green space is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity ("Headland ' s price tag a mystery", February 14). So may it be, but here in Gwandalan and nearby Catherine Hill Bay, we already have the green space, and Frank Sartor wants to turn it into an urban jungle, with no transport, schools, health facilities or other necessary infrastructure in sight. Talk about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ruin a piece of paradise. David Sayers Gwandalan |
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| Newcastle Herald 9th October 2007 Two Friends of Catherine Hill Bay took out the full page advertisement attached in the Newcastle Herald on Tuesday, 9th October asking for local people to write to the Department of Planning demanding that the proposed new development in Catherine Hill Bay be stopped. This shows the depth of feeling that people have for this unique area. Neither of these people live in the Bay, but they do not want to see it destroyed by massive overdevelopment. |
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Sydney Morning Herald - 30th August 2007 Rule rides roughshod over community voices in decision-makingThe timing of Jeff Angel ' s letter (August 28) is pertinent. Not only does Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act sidestep existing processes such as local council, community groups, the Land and Environment Court, the Heritage Office and even the NSW Department of Planning, it belittles recommendations and decisions made by previous generations of these organisations. It so happens that this very week Coal & Allied, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, is sponsoring a workshop to produce several master concept plans that will become part of a submission to justify the construction of more than 1000 homes on lands that are now zoned conservation. The lands affected include the heritage village of Middle Camp next to Catherine Hill Bay and valuable bushland and wetlands of Nords Wharf and Gwandalan at Lake Macquarie. Coal & Allied is rightly proud of its long connection to the lands through the extraction of coal, which provided local employment and healthy profits for the owners for about 130 years. The fact that development was mainly underground has meant that the above-ground flora, fauna, indigenous occupation remains and the historic mining village has stayed almost untouched and is now of state significance - a gem on the doorstep of Sydney ' s suburban sprawl. The workshop comprises about 30 advisers on Rio Tinto ' s payroll, about 12 people representing various government departments but only seven community representatives. Thus concept plans in favour of this development are assured, even though the majority of community representatives have categorically said they do not want any development whatsoever. For more than 35 years, people have debated and negotiated the eventual use of these lands after mining ceased, resulting in the existing conservation zonings, yet Part 3A now puts in place the means by which this may be overturned in a matter of months. Previous generations don ' t always get it right but we should at least pay them the respect of having attempted, through due process, to preserve a heritage coastal village and the adjacent, almost untouched bushland for future generations and not allow it to be overturned by the self-interest (for money) of a few and formalised by what is little more than a kangaroo court. Graham Healy Nords Wharf |
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Newcastle Herald - March 15th 2005 A bridge too far on consultation WHEN the second bridge was built over the channel at Swansea then road minister Laurie Brereton told us it was the bridge the people of Swansea wanted. Now we have a minister telling us that we will have a development at Catherine Hill Bay that people strongly object to. It seems arrogance, not consultation, is the way of dealing with people of the state seat of Swansea. In 12 years of Labor I would like to know what they have actually done for the area. Ian Atkins |
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Published in the Pelican Itch Community Newspaper - March 2007 |
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Published in the Newcastle Herald Saturday 3rd March 2007 I think NSW Planning Minister Frank Sartor has let power go to his head. That sort of action can be dangerous, especially to sensitive areas like Catherine Hill Bay. Historical Catherine Hill Bay will be lost forever if this proposed development goes through. I wonder how many projects have been pushed through in his childhood area of Yenda-Griffith. Jan Holley, West Wallsend |
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Published in The Daily Telegraph, Page 018 (Tue 27 Feb 2007) The proposed Rosecorp development at Catherine Hill Bay reflects poorly on the nature of the relationship that the State Government keeps with industry bodies such as the Urban Taskforce (The Saturday Daily Telegraph, February 24). |
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Published in the Sydney Morning Herald - Wednesday 15th February 2007 - "First Word" Letters to the Editor If we don't stop our heritage from being bulldozed, who will? A total of 316 development projects have been approved by the NSW Government in the past 12 months or so using the Part 3A legislation. This has occurred despite unequivocal rejection by either the Land and Environment Court, the Heritage Office, a local council, the NSW Department of Planning or a local community organisation. In the case of projects such as Catherine Hill Bay, the proposed development was rejected by each and every one of the above over a period of five years. Yet just six months after the NSW Land and Environment Court's rejection of the development, the Government reversed that decision through the Part 3A planning powers. The Department of Planning had earlier assessed Catherine Hill Bay as one of the least favourable locations for residential development in the Hunter region (91st out of 92 locations assessed). The evidence is overwhelming yet the greed factor is so high that all common sense is put to one side so that a few very wealthy individuals can become a little more wealthy. Meanwhile, the environment, natural or man-made, is possibly lost forever. The Rocks and the Queen Victoria Building (with huge financial gains in mind for a few) were destined to be demolished as recently as 1970. They were saved essentially by a small number of people who gained nothing financially but gave the city of Sydney its soul. A soul that today nobody would advocate removing. Each of the above 316 projects has been through a rigorous assessment process over many years and, if saved from the rejected development proposals, could very likely become the soul of their region in much the same way as The Rocks and QVB are for Sydney's CBD. I call on all to stand up and be counted, for our children's sake. Graham Healy Nords Wharf |
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Published in the Sydney Morning Herald - Tuesday 14th February 2007 - "First Word" Letters to the Editor Libs no more convincing than Labor on protecting our heritageIt was gratifying to see so many people on Sunday protesting in Hyde Park against the abuse by our Planning Minister, Frank Sartor, of the Part 3A planning powers ("Despite Frank objections, Debnam stays silent on ban", February 12). Peter Debnam spoke convincingly and promised, if he is elected, that project planning decisions would be judged on their merits. Oh, how I wanted to believe you, Peter. But can I trust you? Early last week your planning spokesman said a Coalition government would dump the Government's plans for high-rise in the redevelopment of East Darling Harbour. By Friday this had been watered down to an undertaking to conduct a thorough review. Tellingly, there was no promise to repeal the abhorrent Part 3A legislation, only to limit its use, and no promise to ban political donations from developers, only the promise of an independent review. Under the Part 3A legislation, the planning minister can declare any project a "major project". In 2005-06, Mr Sartor declared 350 major projects and approved 316 of them, despite objections from residents and councils (the latter effectively having had their planning powers stripped from them). Why is this Government approving just about every project that lands on Sartor's desk, bypassing normal planning controls? I believe the main reason is that this Government is terrified that the "Premier State" will lose its title as a result of our slowing state economy. The Government, short on ideas, is naively hoping for a housing-led recovery. With this mindset, environmental, heritage, coastal protection, amenity and equity concerns are easily set aside. Naturally, the big end of town is delighted to be profiting from the Government's decisions. The losers, the people of this state, are left to watch as their heritage is squandered. Can anything be done to control the excesses of this Government? Will the Liberals be any different, as they helped pass the Part 3A legislation? I would say the best hope lies in electing minority party representatives and independents. Voters disillusioned with both major parties can take what little is left of our democratic processes and use their votes to effect change at the election. S. Poyzer |
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Published in the Sydney Morning Herald - Thursday 8th February 2007 Save the hill Many thanks to Elizabeth Farrelly ("A little bare-faced cheek from the right people works wonders", February 7). Catherine Hill Bay is a treasure to be preserved. I have spent many days surfing there and always relished the difference this community holds in the modern world. To develop it would be un-Australian - and for once I use the term advisedly. What seems to be apparent is that Rose Corp can make a quick buck from cheap land. Frank Sartor, think again. Paul Healy - Potts Point |
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8th December 2006 - Cr Keith Parsons - Newcastle City Council Recent comments by Planning Minister Frank Sartor (Star, Nov. 1) to justify approving 1000 new homes at Catherine Hill Bay (and in doing so destroying its unique character} were outrageous. |
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| 20 November 2006 - Micheal Osborne -
Greens Councillor on Newcastle City Council
At our Newcastle Greens Local Group meeting on Saturday 18 November, 2006 it was resolved that: |
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Published in the Sydney Morning Herald - Friday 10th November 2006 A louder voice needed While allegations against the Swansea MP Milton Orkopoulos are yet to be tested in court, his arrest confirms my long-held fears that the Swansea community has had inadequate representation at state government level. With the Iemma Government's proposals to sacrifice the historic town of Catherine Hill Bay to developers, on top of so many other overwhelming developments in the Lake Macquarie area, I wonder if we've had any meaningful representation at all. The Government needs to redress the situation by reviewing the recent decisions relating to the Swansea region. D. Poyzer Catherine Hill Bay |
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Published in the Newcastle Herald - Saturday 4th November 2006 The NSW Urban Taskforce- a group representing influential property developers-has given democracy in this state a chance to regain some lost ground. The group has called for a ban on corporate donations to political parties, citing concern at the public perception that money from developers is undermining the planning approval process. Members of the group include Hardie Holdings (which has a major profile in the hunter) Macquarie Bank, Meriton ad Multiplex. Critics of the development industry have written off the call as a piece of insincere public relations, arguing that the suggestion has so many strings attached that the donation addicted politicians won't take it seriously. For example, the developers say the ban ought to apply not only to themselves, but also to mining companies, the gun lobby, timber firms and other interest groups. And politicians have been quick to urge that any ban would have to apply nationally. Otherwise, donations could be made in a different state and funneled over the border in disguise. Personally, I'd be happy just to have property developers banned from making political donations in NSW, for all the reasons that former Labor prime minister Paul Keating gave the other day when he addressed an audience of local government representatives. Criticising the centralization of power in the hands of one person, Mr Keating described "the NSW planning minister-whoever that may be from time to time "as "the mayor for the...developers who've got projects over a certain value". Here Mr Keating was bluntly referring to the current practice of the minister "calling in" developments over a certain value, taking them out of the hands of local councils and beyond the reach of meaningful public input to make his or her own decisions. In the Hunter in recent times many projects have been called in, leading one to wonder what is left for the region's local government to actually do, other than fix potholes and pick up garbage. Apart from being allowed to make some impotent observations and remarks on anything from coal mines and industrial infrastructure to office blocks and subdivisions, the councils and ratepayers have become virtually irrelevant. Some worry that this may also apply to the salaried experts in the Department of Planning and other branches of the public service. Cynics point to Minister Frank Sartor's recent decision to strike deals with Hunter developers Hardie Holdings, Rosecorp and Coal&Allied over their land at Branxton and Catherine Hill Bay . Documents obtained under freedom of information laws by the Hunter Community Environment Centre showed Branxton and Catherine Hill Bay were at the bottom of the Department of Planning's 91-site list of development priorities, based on social and environmental factors. Hardie Holdings's Huntlee site at Branxton, formerly known as Sweetwater, was ranked last, and land at Catherine Hill Bay , which Rosecorp and Coal&Allied want to develop, was second last. The sites were exclude from the draft strategy but Mr Sartor offered the three companies development rights in return for them donating land for environment protection. For his part, the Minister said he was trying to "achieve a solution that delivers benefits that would far outweigh the impact of any proposed development". I am not for one moment suggesting that any political donations which may or may not have been made by these developers had any effect on the Minister's decision. But the developers' own Urban Taskforce has pointed out in its call for a ban on political donations, that the industry faces a "perception-rightly or wrongly-from the community that we're getting preference in exchange for money". If donations were banned, that perception would largely evaporate. Mr Keating said this week:" The wall of money coming at a minister in these jobs is phenomenal because as you know, the industry is into political donations, which in my opinion should be outlawed" Greg Ray |
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Published in the Newcastle Herald - Monday 6th November 2006 This is a job for a Super Premier Paul Keating's recent comment that the NSW Minister for Planning, Frank Sartor has become the "mayor for Triguboff" echoes a growing dissent in the community. The unfettered powers of the NSW Minister for Planning could go to his head. His recent deals at Catherine Hill Bay with developers have ridden roughshod over the wishes of Council, residents, National Trust, Heritage Office and even the Land & Environment Court. |
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Published in the Newcastle Herald 30/10/06 "A well written piece in your editorial of 24th October 25, 2006 on "Mr Sartor's Deal". It is quite frightening when one person - Mr Sartor - becomes the almighty in such matters, and history should have taught us better not to let this happen. How is it that in the case mentioned in Catherine Hill Bay that an area rejected by councils, residents, and the Land and Evironment court, is an environmentally sensitive coastal area, has a unique heritage spanning over 140 years, an area at the bottom of the list of 90 potential sites for development assessed by the Department of Planning is suddenly the top spot for a new overwhelming development by Rosecorp and Coal And Allied? Now I understand that projects of "statewide significance" should be interpreted to mean those that are significant to developers in terms of profits, and significant to the people of NSW in terms of loss. David Poyzer |
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| Published in Newcastle Herald - Wednesday 14th February 2007 I agree with the protesters ("Village joins in protest" Herald 12/2). What is planned for Catherine Hill Bay is outrageous. Planning laws allowing the State Government to seemingly run roughshod over local government are absolutely ludicrous and a scourge taking our urban areas. There should be a law passed to cease such plans in order to protect this idyllic, tranquil suburb and others like it against such over-development. Dawn Grimshaw, Cooks Hill |
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Published in Newcastle Herald - Wednesday 14th February 2007 A child can see more clearly "THAT would be wrong, Dad." Those were the words uttered by my 11-year-old son on the way to the idyllic Moonee Beach, south of Catherine Hill Bay. It was in response to hearing about the proposed development earmarked for the very land we were walking on. The statement surprised me as it illustrates concern for the environment from someone so young. It is a shame that our political leaders do not share the same foresight. To have a beautiful and unique landscape, with significant conservation and Australian heritage value for all to marvel at, replaced with dwellings to cater for the elite few is abominable. The people of Catherine Hill Bay are screaming, yet the silence from the politicians and developers is deafening, choosing to turn their backs and be blissfully ignorant of the cries of concern emanating from this community. The Labor Party appears intent on fulfilling developers' dreams. If only they could look through the eyes of a child at our country's future and see that for this particular development to forge ahead would indeed be wrong. Stephen Prior Belmont North |
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"I really appreciate your cause...I lived on the Central Coast for around 30 years, and just loved Catherine Hill Bay...the lovely old miner's cottages etc....please keep up the good work you are doing, I would hate to go back there and see the damage these 'development' companies are doing to such a great place. I don't live around the district now, but am right behind you in your fight." |
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| "With this single decision, Mr Sartor will do more damage than 100 years of mining ever did to this historic area. He will be forever remembered as the person who destroyed this unique heritage area in New South Wales . " | |
| "They would not be permitted to do this in other heritage villages like "Hill End". Why here?" | |
| "Coal and Allied milked the Bay for its resources for generations. You would think they would have endeavoured to preserve the heritage of the area upon their departure, not decimate it." | |
| "These development proposals are a disgrace, and will forever destroy the heritage of the Bay" | |
| "Having come from the UK with so many amazing places protected for us to enjoy as they were, I find it surprising that Australia does not seem to have the same sense of protecting its heritage spots." | |
"Rosecorp and Coal and Allied's proposed development will obliterate the unique heritage value of the Bay's village and surrounding landscape." |
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| "I am appalled at what I see as urban development > intruding into the unique heritage village and coastal landscape at > Catherine Hill Bay on the Wallarah Peninsula. > > Over the years I have camped many times on the beach foreshores and > enjoyed a quiet ale in the Pub whilst listening to live music. The > whole town is an oasis in a sea or urbanity ... it deserves > preservation not desecration ! > > In approving plans for residential housing, the NSW government is > ignoring the views of two Councils and the decision of the Land and > Development Court against the RoseCorp development. It is simply > deceitful to use the Lower Hunter Regional Strategy to over-ride > established planning policy - no 'existing use rights' > can transfer between a mine and residential > development ! > > The State government ought immediately have the whole > village listed on the State Heritage Register. I > understand the National Trust believes the development proposal > "gratuitously compromised" the natural and cultural value of the > village and surrounding landscape. > ...... > Don't expect my vote in March if this proposal proceeds" |
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"Your Government's (NSW) approach to consultation with the Catherine Hill Bay , Wallarah Peninsula , and Lower Hunter Communities doesn't show leadership. It shows an abuse of leadership, and contempt for those communities. It is bad government." |
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"Rosecorp's slogan "Developing tomorrow's heritage" seems most innapproprate, when within the Bay their development will undermine the current heritage of our historic village. |
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| Community Survey | ||
| Jan 2007 Community Survey | The Catherine Hill Bay Community Survey has been conducted every four years since 1994 and provides an informed and comprehensive record of community attitudes over almost 15 years. Click here to view the results. |
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| Protecting the Wallarah Booklet | Available now : A booklet "Protecting the Wallarah Peninsula" is available. Please click here for more information about this booklet, and how you can obtain your free copy. |
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