The next Ordinary Council meeting will be held in Council Chambers from 9am on Tuesday 19 October.
The meeting will be live-streamed via Council’s YouTube page and on the Kempsey Shire Council website.
For a full outline of the meeting and the discussion points, please refer to the Agenda and Business Papers.
Securing land for Stuarts Point Sewerage Scheme
Council will discuss the compulsory acquisition of land required for the Stuarts Point Sewerage Scheme project.
The lot of land located on Fishermans Reach Road will allow Council to construct and operate a modern wastewater treatment plant to service the Stuarts Point, Grassy Head and Fishermans Reach communities.
Council consulted with relevant stakeholders such as the Kempsey Local Aboriginal Land Council, NSW Land Council, the National Native Title Tribunal and the NSW Department of Planning and Environment with no objections provided to acquiring the land.
The Stuarts Point Sewerage Scheme will have a positive environmental impact, eliminating odours and water quality issues associated with onsite sewage management systems. These arise from the area’s shallow groundwater tables and systems operating with only small effluent disposal areas.
This project sits in the 2022-23 budget item of progressing the development of the Stuarts Point Sewerage Scheme. A total of $37.2 million has been allocated during the period 2022-2025 for the construction of the Stuarts Point Sewerage Scheme, with $8.0 million allocated in 2022-23. This is funded through grant and Council contributions
If Council agrees to acquire this land, the next steps will be providing an application to the Minister and Governor to secure the land which will then be classified as operational land.
Declaring the 2023 Kempsey Cup and Show as part-day local events
Council has received applications for part-day (afternoon) local event days in 2023 for:
- The Kempsey Show – Wednesday, 19 April 2023
- The Kempsey Cup – Friday, 10 November 2023
Both events are significant social events for the Kempsey Shire attracting both residents and visitors to the area.
For the Minister to declare a local event day or part-day under the Public Holidays Act 2010, the Minister must be satisfied that the community will observe the day or part-day as being of special significance.
The applications were advertised online for submissions from businesses and the community with no feedback received.
Council is being asked to consider if the requests from the Kempsey Show Society and Kempsey Race Club Inc to have their respective events forwarded to the Minister for consideration as part-day local event days are not unreasonable.
Allowing timber bridges over flood drains on private property to be replaced
Council is being asked to amend the 2022-23 Fees and Charges to allow property owners to obtain development consent to replace timber bridges on private land over flood mitigation drains on the Lower Macleay floodplain.
If property owners ask to replace these timber bridges, no charge will apply for all Council related development fees and charges and Council will undertake modelling of flood impacts if resourcing allows.
The proposed amended development assessment fees and other support were placed on public exhibition for 28 days with no submissions received.
Council Christmas and New Year shut down period
Council is being asked to approve the closure of its offices from 1pm Friday 24 December 2022 through to Monday 2 January 2023 during the Christmas and New Year period. Council offices would then re-open on Tuesday 3 January 2023.
Each year Council’s Administration Centre, Libraries and Depot are closed during the Christmas and New Year Period.
This year Christmas Day and New Year’s Day fall on Sundays and their public holidays are scheduled on weekdays.
With Boxing Day falling on Monday, the Christmas Day Public Holiday will fall on Tuesday 27 December and New Year’s Day Public Holiday will fall on Monday, 2 January.
This will have no impact on Council’s Financial Sustainability as all employees will have either sufficient hours by working additional hours during the year to take leave (3 days) during the shutdown or will use their annual leave.
Disclosure of interests
Council’s Code of Conduct requires Councillors and designated persons to submit a disclosure of interests.
Council will note the lodgment and tabling of the Disclosure of Interest Returns.
Development activity in the shire between July and September 2022
Each quarter, development activity and any planning approvals that included changes to the Kempsey Local Environmental Plan are reported to Council. This includes the number of development applications determined, their approximate value and the number of dwellings approved.
There has been only one approved amendment to the Kempsey Local Environmental Plan 2013 being the continued Use of an Existing Shed as a Detached Dual Occupancy.
Month | Number of development applications determined | Approximate value of approvals | Approximate number of new dwellings approved |
July | 27 | $4.7 million | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
August | 42 | $10.8 million | 28 |
September | 37 | $9.6 million | 21 |
Quarterly totals | 106 | $25.1 million | 51 |
Council is being asked to receive and note the Quarterly Development Activity Statistics & Local Environmental Plan Variations for the first quarter of the 2022-2023 financial year.
Order of Business considered in open session
9.1 Stuarts Point Sewerage Scheme – Land Acquisition
9.2 2023 Local Event Day Applications
9.3 Amendment to FY2022-2023 Development Assessment fees
9.4 Council Offices, Libraries & Depot 2022 Christmas – New Year Closedown
9.5 Disclosure of Interest Returns
9.6 Development Activity and LEP Variations – Quarterly Snapshot – 1st Quarter
9.7 Statement of Cash and Investments – September 2022
