On May 25 a group of both onshore and offshore residents who have had a long term involvement in the masterplan for Church Point met with Northern Beaches Council to discuss the continuing redevelopment of the precinct with particular reference to the much delayed ferry wharf relocation. Cathy Kubany, Michael Wiener Jennifer Knox, Peter Blanchard and Bill Guy were part of this group.
From the outset the current ferry wharf location was promised to be a temporary measure only as it carved into the small but popular sandy crescent beach at Church Point. After years of talking the Church Point Aesthetics Advisory Group (comprising local residents from Bayview, The Point, Western Shores and Scotland Island) presented a plan to Council for the relocation of the ferry wharf alongside the new esplanade wrapping the Church Point Waterfront café and running parallel to the Old Ferry Wharf.
Sketch on proposed Ferry New Wharf Position
This was agreed to by all parties as part of the masterplan. However, in more recent times, Council has delayed any start on the relocation arguing, among other things, that the barge operators were unhappy as was NSW Transport and prioritised other works such as upgrading the carpark.
At meeting Cathy Kubany recalls that residents were astonished to hear that the Church Point Aesthetics Advisory Group had been disbanded unilaterally. ‘No-one told us, she said, and no Council Officer seemed to be responsible for doing so’.
West Pittwater Community Association President Michael Wiener points out that the number of state entities involved (State Government, Local Government, Waterways and the Department of Roads and Transport) has allowed blame shifting as each of these entities has blamed the other for lack of progress.
The WPCA has written and organised face to face meetings with all the stakeholders as have all the Church Point stakeholders. As a result the Advisory Group was able to remind Council that that the barge operators were happy with the agreed relocation site for the ferry; that the moorings had already been relocated to accommodate the new structure, and that while Council was required to report its plans to Transport NSW for their comments, former local MP Rob Stokes had already advised that Council was responsible as it is Council infrastructure. Finally, given the fact that the community had been waiting for 20 years, the residents wanted the relocation to commence asap.
“With this meeting’, says Michael Wiener, ‘we hope that Council has been made aware of what has been done and needs to be done to put in place this part of the approved master plan to allow the temporary wharf (no DA approval) to be relocated and the amenity at Church Point reinstated for all to enjoy.
Council has promised to gather all the information it needs and assess all possible angles over the next 3 weeks and to report back to the residents representatives.
We wait with bated breath for more developments.