From the President
Hello everyone,
I hope you enjoyed the Easter period and school holidays and managed to share some quality time with family and friends. Congratulations this month to the Samford Garage, which recently celebrated an impressive 100th birthday! You couldn’t miss the vintage cars and old ‘chevies’ on display around the garage. Congratulations also go to our Samford Scout Group whose ‘Better World Garden’ was formally opened. On a more sombre note, I was honoured to lay a wreath on behalf of Samford Progress at our ANZAC day commemoration ceremony. Lest we forget.
Samford Progress updates
• Main and Junction Streets DA – We continue to wait for the Judge’s decision in the Planning and Environment Court. Irrespective of the outcome, members and residents are questioning why the position adopted by the Council’s legal team in court proceedings blatantly contradicted the community’s views on this matter.
• Planning and Development – Concerns continue regarding the proposed Nexus Church development at Closeburn. Also noted with some interest was a recent development application for twelve (12) short-term accommodation ‘tiny homes’ to be located on 28 acres of bushland on Coonan Road at Wights Mountain.
• Samford Futures – A review of the progress of initiatives originally proposed in the Samford Futures report (samfordfutures.org.au) will commence shortly. The findings will help identify potential planning priorities for our community.
• Councillor Div 11 – Ellie Smith provided members with some updates. Recent Council works undertaken include: the off-leash dog park in the Royal Estate; parking space improvements outside the CWA Hall; and security cameras located at a hooning hot-spot in Samsonvale. Ellie is also keen to hear what types of updates the community wants her to provide, such as regular Q&As in the Village Pump.
• Sustainability – There was a reminder to keep an eye out for local events during National Science Week (15-23 August) this year, which celebrates science and technology. Weeds continue to be a growing widespread threat to our local ecology – with many non-native, invasive plants being unknowingly introduced as ‘decorative’ plants for gardens and ponds.
If any of these matters interest you, please feel free to contact us, or better still, come along to our monthly meetings.
Did you Know?
If you want information about any Development Applications (DAs) in an area, there is a useful free website available which links into local government databases (which are sometimes difficult to navigate). No apps or sign-ins, just type in an address and find information on developments in the vicinity, such as granny-flats, new sheds, and sub-divisions. The site is www.planningalerts.org.au and is an initiative of the Open Australia Foundation, an organisation encouraging easier access to public information in democratic processes.
Gentle reminder
Don’t solely rely on Council’s security cameras to alert authorities to offences like hooning and vandalism. Although these continuous-recording cameras can be a visual deterrent to anti-social behaviour, authorities still rely on the incidents being reported (even anonymously) to Police, Crime Stoppers, or the Council, who can then use the recordings as evidence.
Until next month!
David Harrison (President)
Samford Progress