Central Coast Council and the Central Coast NSW State Emergency Service (SES) held a press conference in Wyong today to update the community on clean up and recovery efforts following the severe wet weather that has seen the region impacted with significant rainfall and king tides.Residents are being urged to contact Disaster Welfare on 1800 018 444 for any assistance if you require support.Over 650 trees and branches have fallen on public land or required maintenance and pruning due to structural defects, nearly 1,600 calls have been logged with the SES and thousands of people were left without power, with many people still impacted.Central Coast Council Mayor Lisa Matthews said Council is coordinating assistance and working closely with the NSW SES, Ausgrid and other agencies to support our community in our time of need.“It has been a tough few months for our community.

Central Coast Mayor Lisa Matthews has welcomed confirmation that Council has been successful in securing $600,000 in funding from the State Government to dredge The Entrance Channel. Central Coast Council applied in June 2019 for funding under the State Government’s Rescuing Our Waterways Program to continue its dredging program and will match the grant with $600,000 of its own funding. Mayor Lisa Matthews said it was great to see the long-awaited funding finally flowing for The Entrance Channel and the State Government on board to helping find a solution.

Central Coast Mayor Lisa Matthews has welcomed the natural disaster declaration for the Central Coast announced by the State Government today. The declaration means that residents who have been affected by the recent event can get assistance and support to recover.

Solutions for the future of The Entrance channelCouncil has heard loud and clear from its community that a long term solution is required for The Entrance channel.The first step will be to set aside budget funding and to also seek grant funding to help guide the actions needed to improve the condition of the Tuggerah Lakes system and The Entrance channel.Preliminary designs for a long-term solution to the channel’s silting will be developed, while a dredging program will be considered in the short-term.Council will draw on previous studies conducted into the 2013 and 2015 to help guide the work.Mayor Lisa Matthews said the weekend’s storm event had been very distressing for all affected residents.“The Entrance channel has been a longstanding issue for the Coast community, and we all want to see the area thrive and residents able to feel secure,” she said.“Finding the best solution is a difficult and complex challenge and we are committed to getting it right.

In a first for the region, two schools have joined Central Coast Council’s pilot program with Plastic Police® to create a localised circular waste stream to build roads out of soft plastics.Budgewoi Public School and St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School have joined the program that will see waste from common lunchbox items such as chip packets, muesli bar wrappers, sandwich bags recycled into a road resurfacing product called Reconophalt.Council Director Roads Transport Drainage and Waste, Boris Bolgoff said roads outside both schools had been renewed using Reconophalt during the summer school holidays to ensure there was no disruption to school communities.“As a result of high traffic flow, school drop off points require increased amount of road maintenance,” Mr Bolgoff said.“There are added benefits to using Reconophalt in our road projects beyond the reduction in waste as they become more durable with the plastic added.“The formulated mixture of recycled products in Reconophalt increases the lifespan of the road, as it is less likely to buckle and crack.  “One of the most common questions we have received from the community since we have started the trial is how they can get involved, which we will announce in the coming months.”The Reconophalt used to pave each of these streets when combined with bitumen contained 15 percent recycled materials, which included: Soft plastic bag and packaging equivalentsGlass bottle equivalentsUsed toner equivalentsReclaimed road (asphalt)Lukela Avenue, Budgewoi221,05341, 1765,04028 tonnesMelbourne Street, East Gosford301,95856,2476,88538 tonnesDirector of the Plastic Police® program, Samantha Cross said she was thrilled to see the program expand into schools and is looking forward to seeing the collaboration with Council progress.“Central Coast was the first Council to come on board following our initial trial and we are really excited about what we will be able to achieve this year as the program expands,” Ms Cross said.“We are passionate about further educating these school communities about the simple actions they can take to help further reduce the waste sent to landfill.“Plastic is a major environmental issue, with almost every piece ever created still in existence;

Central Coast Council is working with the SES, Ausgrid and other services to assist residents following the weekend’s severe weather event. Mayor Lisa Matthews said that safety was a priority for everyone involved. “The severe weather has caused fallen trees and broken powerlines across some roads and properties, in addition to flooding and debris impacting many locations across the coast,” Mayor Matthews said.“I urge everyone to be patient while Council, SES and Ausgrid methodically prioritise and manage the clean-up.

Central Coast Council is inviting dog and cat owners to take advantage of a free microchipping day on 15 February.Residents are encouraged to bring their furry friend to one of the Central Coast Animal Care Facilities at Charmhaven and Erina, to have them microchipped at no cost.Mayor Lisa Matthews said local pet owners are encouraged to take up the service.“Taking care of a pet is a big responsibility and getting them microchipped and registered with Council is an important first step,” Mayor Matthews said.“Domestic pets bring much joy to our lives and having them microchipped could prove crucial in identifying them if they did happen to get lost.

Construction work is now underway to rebuild the EDSACC South amenities building, Bateau Bay, to replace the previous facility destroyed by fire in 2015. Council’s director of Environment and Planning Scott Cox said these works will deliver an improved sporting facility for our northern region’s local sports clubs, players and spectators.“The new amenities building, which is due for completion this financial year, has been designed to meet the needs of current users of the EDSACC sporting complex and accommodate the expected future use.

Central Coast Mayor Lisa Matthews will move a Mayoral Minute at the rescheduled Council Meeting calling on the NSW Premier to visit the Central Coast to see firsthand the devastation caused by the recent extreme weather event. Services and infrastructure have been severely impacted on the Coast with numerous roads closed, powerlines down and services out and homes and businesses inundated by floodwaters. Mayor Lisa Matthews said the repair bill was unknown at this time but is growing with each day and recovery will be long. “Following the extended drought, we thought rain was the answer to all our prayers including for our waterways and our dams but we didn’t expect it to come in quite this volume,” Mayor Matthews said.

Central Coast Council has announced a brand new, four-part innovation series that will roll out free events across 2020.

With heavy rain forecast this weekend, Central Coast Stadium has made the difficult decision to postpone its 20th Birthday celebrations scheduled for tomorrow, Saturday 8 February.The conditions forecast for Saturday will make it unsuitable to move forward with the outdoor event.The Stadium will announce the rescheduled event date next week.Council apologises for any inconvenience caused by postponing the event.

Central Coast Council is inviting young gamers to take part in the Ultimate Gamer Tournament.Open to local gamers aged 12-24, the six-round tournament held across the coast commences on Thursday 27 February at Erina Fair.Council’s Director Connected Communities, Julie Vaughan said the tournament is returning following last year’s popular inaugural event.“We are excited to bring the tournament back in 2020 following the success of our pilot program event last year,” Ms Vaughan said.“Last year over 200 people competed, with first, second and third place winners awarded.“This year we have new games for players to compete for a chance to win prizes from a total prize pool of $2,000.”Central Coast Mayor Lisa Matthews said the event connects young people on the coast.“Our youth are an important part of our community and Council is committed to creating opportunities to celebrate their achievements and abilities,” Mayor Matthews said.“The Ultimate Gamer Tournament is an opportunity for young people to showcase their gaming skills, compete, learn new skills, and meet new people in a fun environment."The tournament is open to all levels of ability and gaming experience and may appeal to people who are on the autism spectrum.A chill out tent space will be available for young people to relax or who may need a space to retreat.Each heat will be held in mobile gaming vans, with the capacity of up to 100 gamers per session, located at major shopping centres.Entry is free, with winners of each heat advancing to compete in the semi-finals and grand final in May.All heats will be held on Thursday nights 4.30pm – 7.30 pm at:27 February – Erina Fair12 March – Westfield Tuggerah26 March – Umina SLSC2 April – Lake Munmorah Shopping Centre16 April – Kibble Park, Gosford30 April – Lake Haven Shopping CentreThe semi-finals will be held at Erina Fair on Thursday 7 May, with the grand final at Westfield Tuggerah on Thursday 21 May, both from 4.30pm to 8.30pm.To register or find out more, visit centralcoast.nsw.gov.au/ultimategamer

Central Coast Council is once again encouraging residents to clear any unwanted hazardous chemicals in homes, garages and sheds to be correctly disposed of at the next bi-annual Chemical CleanOut events.The events will be held over two consecutive weekends on Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 February at the Event Park, Kariong (off Kangoo Road) and Saturday 29 February and Sunday 1 March at Long Jetty Depot, corner of The Entrance and Wyong Roads (turn left into Morris Place), 9am-3.30pm each day.Council Unit Manager Waste Services and Business Development, Andrew Pearce said for the first-time residents will be able to drop off up to 100 litres of paint.“It is fantastic to see an increased amount of paint accepted as it is consistently the most collected item, often accounting for more than half of the total amount dropped off,” Mr Pearce said.“All other materials continue to have a 20 litre or 20 kilogram maximum container size per item and paints must also be in containers of 20 litres or less for the health and safety of handlers.“I would urge everyone to use this opportunity and have a good search around their property to ensure safe and responsible disposal of any potentially hazardous items.“This includes any unknown or unidentified items as they will be accepted for identification and correct disposal.”Other items accepted include car and household batteries, smoke detectors, pesticides, gas bottles and fire extinguishers as well as fluorescent globes and tubes.Only household quantities are accepted.

Central Coast Council has made the difficult decision to cancel Love Lanes Festival scheduled for this Saturday 8 February due to the heavy rain forecast across the weekend.Loves Lanes Festival is primarily an outdoor event, with forecasted conditions on Saturday making it unsuitable to move forward with the event.Council is pleased to announce that a smaller scale version of the event will be held on Friday 6 March from 5-9pm with stalls, live entertainment, performances, activities and more.

Level 1 water restrictions will apply across the Central Coast from Monday 10 February, as Central Coast Council moves to further secure the region’s water supply.Restrictions will apply to all outdoor water use, including water from urban rainwater tanks which are connected to, or topped-up by, town drinking water.Storage in Mangrove Creek Dam is 50.09 percent, just above the 50 percent restriction trigger set by Council last year.Despite rain forecast for this weekend, the dam storage level is still expected to dip slightly below that trigger point in coming days.Restrictions will not be lifted until Mangrove Creek Dam’s storage rises above 52 percent.Council’s Director Water and Sewer, Jamie Loader said the restrictions complement Council’s ongoing investment in water infrastructure which has put the region in a strong position to face a prolonged drought.“In the past decade, we have made significant investments in the Coast’s water infrastructure and this has paid off, with our dams levels holding relatively steady in comparison to those in neighbouring regions where restrictions were required some months ago,” Mr Loader said.“Level 1 restrictions will support this water conservation and help us to potentially avoid Level 4 or 5 restrictions and their very stringent measures.“Council continues to invest in our water infrastructure with the upgrading of the Mardi Water Treatment Plant and the construction of the Mardi to Warnervale Pipeline, which will begin early this year.Under Level 1 restrictions, some exemptions will be available for customers in limited circumstances.

Flanked by its iconic palm trees and unique three-sided design, Central Coast Stadium is about to ring in its 20th anniversary in style with the community invited to join in the celebrations.On Saturday 8 February the stadium will open its gates for a fun-filled day of celebration to mark this important milestone.The first 300 people to attend will receive free ice-cream and ‘chips on a stick’.

Central Coast Council’s ‘Chalk the Walk’ will see the pathways and open spaces at Waterfront Plaza at The Entrance transformed with an explosion of chalk art.Locals and visitors are invited to engage with an interactive pavement gallery featuring a large 3D artwork and an additional six pieces by renowned master street artist, Anton Pulvirenti, and a further 10 chalk masterpieces produced by local artists.Central Coast Council Unit Manager Community Partnerships, Glenn Cannard said ‘Chalk the Walk’ will be an exciting celebration of this unique form of street art.“People of all ages and interests will appreciate this great event that showcases the work of a master street artist and incredible local talent, Mr Cannard said.“Chalk art lets artists use the pavement as their canvas and sees physical spaces temporarily transformed in amazing ways.“Head down to The Entrance and experience this year’s chalk art  – interact with the art and enjoy the live music and entertainment throughout the day.”Mayor Lisa Matthews said Chalk the Walk will offer a number of different ways for the community to become part of the creative streetscape.“Children of all ages are free to go wild and express themselves on the chalkboard snake, and there’ll be an opportunity for 10 local artists to take part in the event,” Mayor Matthews said.“We invite the community to grab their cameras, head down to The Entrance and ‘strike a pose’ in front of some of the most creative artworks you will ever see on the pavement.”The free ‘Chalk the Walk’ event will be held on Saturday 22 February, 12-8pm.For more information visit centralcoast.nsw.gov.au/whatson/chalkthewalk

Central Coast Council has engaged an independent consultant to undertake an audit of the key decisions made regarding the development of Central Coast Airport.This review responds to Council’s decision made on 25 November 2019.Four projects have been identified as part of the review which will look at all decision making-processes to understand timelines, documentation, delegations and due diligence processes.The projects identified are:The project to establish a regional airport at Kiar RidgeThe proposal to develop an aviation hub at the Central Coast AirportActivities, including works and development applications lodged, by the current Council or former Wyong Shire Council relating to works at the Airport siteProcesses and decision-making relating the Airport and Wyong Employment Zone.Submissions close Tuesday 17 March 2020.

Central Coast Council welcomed 28 young people to its staff last week as part of its popular Early Career Pathways Program.At a special ceremony, Mayor Lisa Matthews welcomed the group and congratulated 15 others who successfully completed nationally recognised training programs with Council in 2019.During their 12 months with Council, university students complete an Undergraduate Program in areas as diverse as engineering to environmental sustainability and social science.

Central Coast Mayor Lisa Matthews will bring together key stakeholders to improve the economy and amenity of The Entrance Town Centre.