From the Mayor - 24 January 2024
A warm welcome to 2024 with many households getting back into the swing of work and return to school activities after what I hope was a happy and safe annual summer holiday break.
Council will consider a report at our 6 February meeting on the recent proposed NSW planning changes to low and medium density housing areas in Greater Sydney. These changes to our low and medium density residential zones are significant in their impact on communities and form part of a suite of development reforms needed for the NSW Government to fulfil its ambitious target of 377,000 new homes by 2029.
A principal concern for all councils is the move away from our long-term strategic planning processes which have been carefully constructed with substantial input from our communities and approval from both planning ministers and the now disbanded Greater Cities Commission. Council is currently awaiting a new housing target from the planning minister, which I am sure all residents appreciate will be a significantly higher number than targets set by the independent Commission.
I do not have the space to provide an in-depth analysis of the rental and housing crisis and no doubt there will be many different opinions to what is a complex issue involving a number of key factors and levers. What I will say is please familiarise yourself with the proposed changes and either come along to the Council meeting and have your say or provide direct feedback to the NSW Government.
My first official duty for 2024 will be conducting the Australia Day Citizenship Ceremony at the Drill Hall and announcing Mosman’s Citizen of the Year. Another important community event will be the Dementia Forum, led by Dr Suraj Samtani at the Seniors Centre also on 6 February. Enquiries: 9978 4128.
In closing, it was wonderful to read the article by John McDonald (Sydney Morning Herald art critic) on our current exhibition by Imants Tillers, titled The Mosman Years and the good news is it is still on at the Mosman Art Gallery. I invite readers to make a great start to February with a visit to the Mosman Market on Saturday 3 February and then a visit to the exhibition on Sunday 4 February, its final day before closing.