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Clover Moore on extending her reign as Sydney Lord Mayor

Page 19

DEC

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CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

HubNEWS

Young Sydneysider calls for climate action (See p. 12)

Company seeks ten-year lease for signage

BY EVA BAXTER dvertising company oOh!media is seeking approval for a ten-year consent term for the display of the existing advertising signage on the Glebe Island Silos.

Roof signage has existed on the Glebe Island Silos for 29 years from 1992 when the southern and western facades of the silos were decorated with an Olympic mural during the bidding process for the 2000 Sydney Olympic games.

The advertising structure remained on the silos, and a requirement to limit the display of advertising signage to a threeyear period was adopted in December 2004.

In 2019 a DA was approved to extend the duration of the use of the Glebe Island Silos for advertising to a total of ten years, the maximum consent duration possible for a roof sign.

Consent to display advertising signage was granted to oOh!media in 2018, ceasing operation on the 11th of April 2022, which introduced a 1am curfew for the illumination at night and implemented a public benefit offer to Inner West Council.

Eye Drive Sydney Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of oOh!media has lodged a development application with the DPIE.

A HubARTS: The Return Of Theatre Royal There is nothing quite like live theatre and what better time to revive the theatre scene than right now?

(See p.21)

PUBLISHED DATE 11 NOVEMBER 2021 Published monthly and freely available throughout the Inner City.

Copies are also distributed to serviced apartments, hotels, convenience stores and newsagents throughout the city.

Distribution enquiries call 9212 5677.

Published by Altmedia Pty Ltd. While every effort is made to ensure accuracy of content, we take no responsibility for inadvertent errors or omissions.

ABN 52 600 903 348 Group Editor & Publisher: Lawrence Gibbons Publisher Assistant: Mal Moody Advertising Manager: Mal Moody 0484 042 615 Advertising: sales@altmedia.net.au News Editors: Daniel Lo Surdo, Eva Baxter Contributors: Daniel Lo Surdo, Eva Baxter, Daniela Osiander, Peter Hehir, Aston Brown Cartoonist: Sam Mcnair Arts Editor: Jamie Apps Contributors: Irina Dunn, Rita Bratovich, Madison Behringer, Mark Morellini, Renee Lou Dallow, Rida Babar, Olga Azar, Jarrod Wolfhunter, Lucinda Garbutt-Young, Tessa Pelle, Mark Mordue, Aston Brown Cover Photo: Mark Dickson. Clover Moore will be seeking another term as Sydney Lord Mayor Designer: Nadia Kalinitcheva Mail: PO Box 843 Broadway 2007 Email: news@altmedia.net.au, arts@altmedia.net.au Ph: 9212 5677 Fax: 9212 5633 Website: cityhubsydney.com.au If you have a story, or any comments you’d like to share with us: news@altmedia.net.au @CityHubSydney

SILOS IN SIGHT

Matt and his partner are residents of Glebe. Their apartment overlooks Rozelle Bay with the Glebe Island Silos visible from their balcony and bedroom.

“The silos themselves are fine, from what I understand they are heritage listed.

However, the billboard atop the silos is incredibly obtrusive,” Matt told City Hub. “What we essentially have is a 200m long advertisement aimed directly at our, and every other apartment/house along the bay.”

A condition outlined in the DA is the potential for developments undertaken in the future for the Draft Bays West Place Strategy, which considers maximising opportunities to “transform the Silos into an incredible landmark for the Precinct.”

Should residential or hotel development occur within the immediate vicinity of the silos during the 10-year consent duration, then the existing luminance of the signage can remain unchanged, but the curfew of the signage would be brought forward to 11pm at night (from 1am).

Advertising company oOh!media is seeking approval to display the existing advertising signage on the Glebe Island Silos for a decade. Photo: oOh!media

According to Matt, the signage is already too bright.

“The billboard is by far the brightest thing visible. It is significantly brighter than any lights coming from the ANZAC bridge.

“It is so bright that even with the blinds drawn my partner uses an eye mask to fall asleep,” said Matt.

Electrolight was commissioned to undertake a lighting impact assessment.

The day time visual impact ratings for the views assessed vary from moderate to negligible.

The night time visual impact rating in Glebe was found to be moderate to high–moderate, and in Pyrmont the visual impact rating was found to be highmoderate.

“The existing signage has been in place for many years, and it could be determined that this plays a part in further reducing the visual dominance of the signage for surrounding users,” Electrolight said.

Annie Burgess is a Glebe resident, she told City Hub the advertising is her bedtime view.

“I love the advertising as it just feels very urban and that has its own excitement.

“But it would be great if the images were beautiful, evocative or inspiring, rather than simply loud, big or forceful.”

NEGATIVE LIGHT

Joni Freeman is a Forest Lodge resident and volunteers with the Animal Rescue Cooperative (ARC).

She told City Hub light pollution is having a negative impact on native bat species.

“The sign could still be illuminated, but in a lower light frequency that is less disruptive.

“Bat populations are under enough stress from climate change already, the least we can do is make our urban spaces more safe for them,” she said.

A pre-application meeting was held with planning officers of Inner West Council on Friday, 4th June this year.

Council officers were concerned that the signage may impact the heritage significance of the Glebe Island Silos and noted there is no dedicated heritage interpretation of the Glebe Island Silos and their setting.

It was agreed the general public needs to better understand the cultural significance of the Glebe Island Silos site.

 The billboard is incredibly obtrusive The DA proposes the continuing of payments to Inner West Council of an annual monetary contribution of $125,000 each year of the consent duration.

The current contribution is used

by Council to fund local heritage conservation projects.

Glebe Island Grain Terminal is a seminal site in the development of the bulk wheat storage and export industry in Australia.

The silos, in particular, are the most visible and easily interpreted elements of that former use and form a powerful landmark.

“Personally, I think the sign should go. We are so exposed to advertising day to day, in all areas of our lives,” said Matt.

“It would be nice to look out our window or sit on the balcony without the view being obstructed by a campaign for Kayo or Pepsi or bourbon.”

CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

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HubNEWS

ELECTION

Contest for the inner city

BY EVA BAXTER ity of Sydney Council has no wards, and a popularly elected Mayor.

The Lord Mayor of City of Sydney Council leads decision making at council meetings and hosts civic and ceremonial events.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore has held the position since 2004. She is the first popularly elected woman and longest serving leader of the City of Sydney.

This election on December 4, five women have stepped up to usurp her.

C

ANGELA VITHOULKAS

Angela Vithoulkas of the Small Business Party is one of two incumbent (currently holding office) councillors in the running.

 Sydney gave me the

to a maximum of three years and establishing public “questions without notice” sessions to support an open and transparent local democracy.

LINDA SCOTT

Incumbent Labor councillor Linda Scott is bidding for Lord Mayoralty.

She formerly served as Deputy Mayor, and as the President of the Australian Local Government Association, was the first woman to be elected as President of Local Government NSW and as Deputy Chair of CareSuper, an industry superannuation fund.

Linda and Labor are committed to accelerated action on climate change, a bold Jobs Plan to kickstart Sydney from COVID and more liveable green spaces and council services.

SHAUNA JARRETT

opportunity to succeed Vithoulkas told City Hub she was not planning to run again after serving nine years on council until the Clover Moore Independent Team announced that they would have a super 8 majority.

Her plan to re-imagine local government includes capping Lord Mayoral terms

An all-female line up of candidates are contesting the Lord Mayoralty this election, December 4.

Photo: Flickr

and it’s about people being able to live in the City of Sydney without being told what’s best for them.”

YVONNE WELDON

Sydney lawyer and governance consultant Shauna Jarrett is the Liberal candidate for Lord Mayor. Jarrett is a first-time political candidate but is married to politician Greg Pearce.

Jarrett told City Hub her agenda is “about a lot more transparency around the decisions that are made by the council,

Yvonne Weldon is a Wiradjuri woman and the first Independent Indigenous Australian to run for Lord Mayor. If elected, she will be the first Independent Indigenous Australian councillor in the City of Sydney’s 179-year history.

Weldon told City Hub she hopes to recognise and celebrate diversity, make city living more affordable, power a genuinely green recovery “we will

aggressively reduce the council’s reliance on gas,” create a safe place for women and girls, support small businesses and entrepreneurs, and reignite culture.

SYLVIE ELLSMORE

The Greens Lord Mayor candidate Sylvie Ellsmore told City Hub people think there are already Greens on City of Sydney council, but there are no Greens currently on council.

The Greens are running on an agenda of a city for everyone, climate and environmental justice and a grassroots council.

After Decades of Calling for Climate Action the Task has Never Been More Urgent While it was a relief to see that the Australian Government has finally committed to a target to achieve net zero emissions - there is still no short term target and no plan to get us there.

2004 - but instead of listening then, the Liberals instead made it a political game to oppose action on the most serious challenge facing the global community.

While the rest of the world has well and truly moved on and most countries are developing ambitious targets to cut emissions by around 50% by the end of the decade, the Liberal National Government have moved on from their tactics of climate denial and are now seeking to delay action as long as possible.

The climate has already warmed by around 1.4 degrees and the impacts are already being felt: the catastrophic 2019 bushfires, 50 degree days in Sydney and coastal erosion are already impacting us, particularly those who are already struggling due to insecure housing and financial stress. We simply don’t have the luxury of time to wait until 2050 before we act.

There were big marches on the streets for climate action back in 2005 - the first climate action I participated in was in @jennyleong.newtown

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CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

IMAGE: Jenny Leong with Irene Doutney at a climate action in Martin Place in 2004. Irene represented the Greens on the City of Sydney Council, including serving as the Deputy Mayor, until her passing in 2018.

Fast forward 16 years, and the Liberals and Nationals have finally moved on from their tactic of denying the consensus of the world’s scientists, banks, global insurance companies, and world leaders, and have accepted that climate change is real. But they are still attempting to delay action for as long as they can by setting a target that is decades away and will endanger lives and livelihoods, especially for younger @jennyleong

generations who will pay the heaviest price.

If only we had acted back in the early 2000s, the challenge today would be far simpler. With every passing year of inaction, the task becomes bigger and more urgent. There are however glimmers of hope: with other major economies like the USA, China and the EU rapidly scaling up their commitments for climate action, there will be global pressure on Australia to act more quickly.

The Greens at a local, state and federal level have a long and proud history of campaigning for climate action, whether it be in the town halls, the parliaments or on the streets.

I’ll be on the streets with climate activists, student strikers and other Greens at every oppertunity for faster, stronger action and I hope you will join me there.

Jenny Leong MP Greens Member for Newtown @jennyleong.newtown

PROTECTING OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES AND OUR COMMUNITY

1 Councillor

ANGELA VITHOULKAS

THE SMALL BUSINESS PARTY

For Sydney Lord Mayor

ELECTION : SATURDAY DEC 4th, 2021

8 POINT PLAN TO RE IMAGINE LOCAL GOVERNMENT 1. Establish an Independent Anti Corruption Mechanism to protect against and weed out abuse of power.

2. Cap on Lord Mayoral Terms - Maximum of three terms.

3. Establish Public “questions without notice” Sessions to ensure direct representation, and to support an open and transparent local democracy for all.

4. Establish a dedicated Small Business Planning and Compliance Unit to save costs and accelerate activity.

5. Establish a Small Business Emergency Team.

6. Establish a Community Liaison Unit for residents and the general public, who otherwise struggle to get the right information & assistance in a timely manner.

7. Establish a Mental Health and Wellbeing Unit.

8. Establish the City of Sydney Youth Council and Youth Mayor to promote and enhance engagement with our young people and future leaders.

www.thesmallbusinessparty.com Authorised by A Vithoulkas 35 Jacobson Ave Kyeemagh NSW 2216

CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

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HubNEWS

ELECTION

Familiar faces in Waverley election believes it is “imperative” to develop playgrounds and sporting facilities for children in Waverley.

Fellow Liberal councillor Will Nemesh has worked to deliver increased funding for services that will create a stronger Waverley community.

Labor councillor Steven Lewis is interested in urban planning, design and transport. In his first term on council, Lewis has supported upgrades to outdoor council facilities.

Waverley Council will be an interesting battleground at the December 4 local elections.

Photo: Unsplash/Dmitry Osipenko.

BY DANIEL LO SURDO averley Council consists of four wards, each represented by three councillors. All incumbent councillors are backed by either the Liberal Party, the Labor Party, or the Greens.

W BONDI

Dominic WY Kanak and Leon Goltsman will both be seeking reelection on December 4, while Labor will be campaigning for Michelle Gray to be elected to council, in the absence of Cr John Wakefield.

Cr Kanak has represented the Bondi Ward since 1999 and has served as Deputy

LAWSON

Mayor for two terms. Kanak is a Native Title Consultant and is passionate about reconciliation and green sustainability.

Cr Goltsman is a member of the North Bondi Surf Life Saving Club. He has advocated for a safer and more appealing Waverley and committed to developing cleaner streets, infrastructure and community assets.

HUNTER

Crs Sally Betts, Will Nemesh and Steven Lewis will all seek reelection next month.

Cr Betts has served on council for 26 years, eight coming as mayor. She

Cr Angela Burrill, Deputy Mayor Elaine Keenan and Mayor Paula Masselos will all hope to retain their seats on December 4th.

It is “imperative” to develop playgrounds ... in Waverley Cr Burrill has been on council since 2012, and advocates for a more beautiful and liveable area for its residents through improved public spaces, green space and public art.

Cr Keenan is passionate about resolving problems through collective action and promoting innovative ideas that create

public good. Keenan has been Deputy Mayor since 2019.

Cr Masselos believes it is council’s responsibility to ensure that Waverley remains “one of the very best places” to live. While on council, Masselos has helped deliver improvements to footpaths, roads and rubbish collections, and the Bondi Pavilion’s rebirth.

WAVERLEY

Only Tony Kay will recontest the Waverley Ward at the elections. Cr Kay wishes to form a “stable, responsible and open” council that actively supports the community. He was first elected in 2004 and has served as deputy mayor for five years.

Tim Murray is a Labor candidate seeking election to the Waverley Ward. Mr Murray is passionate about increasing alternate energy use and upgrading outdoor facilities for the community to enjoy.

Ludovico Fabiano is a longtime Bondi local and the Greens candidate for Waverley. Mr Fabiano volunteers at the Waverley Council Multicultural Advisory Committee and hopes to lead climate change action on council.

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CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

The Warren in south Marrickville. We still use buildings that were new when those men were here.

This is an extract from Mina Bui Jones’ Introduction to Ten Ordinary Men – The Anzacs of Addi Road, researched and written by Vanessa James, with illustrations by Robyn Chiles and a wealth of photography and archival visual material.

Inside this book are the stories of ten ordinary men. None of them especially distinguished before, during or after World War One. Men who were here at Addison Road — briefly — then gone: to other camps in Australia; to battlefields in Europe and the Middle East; or to early graves in foreign soil.

Ten ordinary men — a fitter and turner, a barman, a 'driver', a clerk at The Sun newspaper, who enlisted for service more than 100 years ago. Why should we, here and now, remember them?

Addison Road Community Centre in Marrickville, Sydney, operates on the site of a former army depot, won for community use in 1976 when the army needed it no longer. It was dedicated as a space for fostering the new, creative and multicultural society being imagined for Australia in the 1970s.

Addison Road Community Organisation, as the current caretaker of this special piece of NSW Crown Land, is mindful of both the opportunities and the obligations we have to its history. This is Gadigal land; a place where tall

Food of Love Things have changed for Brad-Lee and Ethan.

Earlier this year Brad-Lee had a brain haemorrhage. It meant that his life as a musician and working in a hair salon had to come to a sudden stop. Double vision, difficulty walking; there were a whole lot of new challenges to meet.

Brad-Lee’s partner Ethan – “Yeah, it’s spelt like a boy’s name” – explains how “I had to shut down my practice designing graphics for TV and live events.” Ethan needed to adapt to working part-time whenever she could, while fulfilling an entirely new role as a full-time carer for Brad-Lee and their infant daughter Salem, now just a year and a half old.

Ethan acknowledges that “on paper what happened to us sounds like a sad story”. But talk to Ethan and Brad-Lee and what you get is a blast of good will and shared happiness the likes of which it is rare to encounter any time.

And while no one is claiming life has been easy, especially as the pandemic and lockdowns intensified, Ethan says “it’s been so strange that in such unfortunate circumstances a lot of things have gotten weirdly better for us.”

Coming to the Addi Road Food Pantry in Marrickville over these last few months has been a big part of that transformation. “I wish

ironbark and turpentine forest came down to a freshwater creek; a good place for hunting, for gathering reeds to make cord; a tributary of the Gumbramorra Swamp on its way down to the Cooks River and out to Botany Bay. Land that was cleared for timber, for farming, for brickworks and then, just after Australian Federation, drained and repurposed as a military facility.

It was to be a local training centre for the Citizens Military Force, a homeland-defence army of Australian men who had completed compulsory military service and could spring into action when called. As this plan was starting to be realised, however, war broke out in Europe and Australia 'answered the call' of 'Mother England'. The Addison Road depot for the Citizens Military Force became a place of enlistment in the Australian Imperial Force — a division of the British Army — and here volunteers signed oaths to “serve our Sovereign Lord the King”.

The Addison Road depot opened in 1916, after the tragedy of Gallipoli and after the army's needs had outgrown a converted mansion at

Seven buildings and much of the original military landscaping remain and are accessible to the public every day of the year. You can walk around ‘Addi Road’ and see the Drill Halls that bookend the site, like dozens that once existed around the country for the Citizens Military Forces to train in, now so rare. You can enjoy a play by the Hellenic Arts Theatre in a former Gun Park (a garage for artillery carriages); recycle your glass and plastic containers on the edge of the old Parade Ground; view an art exhibition in the former Field Ambulance headquarters.

There is a kind of magic energy that connects us with those whose lives have been swallowed by time but who were once here, too. It connects us to people who had a physical and emotional presence in this place at a pivotal moment in their lives. Being able to access not only the stories but also the spaces inhabited by people who played a part in that momentous, nation-shaping and horrific war is both humbling and inspiring.

Addison Road Community Organisation is committed to documenting, conserving and sharing the site's heritage with our community.

Learning about people who have been here before us is a major activity of our Living Museum program which was launched in the Anzac Centenary year of 2014.

This year, coincidentally, the theme chosen for History Week by the History Council of NSW was 'From the Ground Up' and was proposed

by Addison Road Community Organisation. We hope that by publishing the war stories of these ten men, we might inspire others to investigate and interpret the past from the perspective of local places and 'ordinary' people, too.

Copies for $30 from addi.road.org.au.

Available from 11 November

we’d known about it sooner. We’re eating better than we have in a year,” she says, “and we’re spending more time together with one another and with our baby.”

Ethan admits “I am more of a diva in the kitchen.” As a result, Brad-Lee has become the de facto chef at home. He says shopping at the Addi Road Food Pantry has made him more creative with meals. “What’s available here often changes. It’s actually exciting to go to a grocery store and think about what to buy – and what I can come up with,” he laughs.

“The cognitive impairment caused by my stroke makes cooking more of a challenge for me,” Brad-Lee adds. “But having to be creative about what I can manage has actually made me a better cook than I was before!”

It’s not just the variety of food, or how much the low-budget shopping at the Addi Road Food Pantry helps them make it through each week.

Ethan says “the staff here are sweethearts”.

Brad-Lee agrees. “Because we usually come on a Monday, it brightens the rest of the week for us.” He laughs again about “some of the interesting characters we get to chat to while we line up. The people here really make it.”

The couple will go home fully loaded after their shop. Spending $5 can get you something like $25 worth of groceries, fruit and veg, and

Addi Road Food Pantry Marrickville is open Monday-Friday, 12-4pm.

Addi Road Food Pantry Camperdown is open Tuesday-Friday, 12-4pm.

sourdough bread. Ethan says that “although Salem is only sixteen months old, she’s a size 3 and eating like a six year old! The Addi Road Food Pantry has been an absolute godsend.”

It’s time for a photo. Brad-Lee steps around Ethan so he can stand beside her and balance himself with the walking cane in his right hand.

They embrace one another at the hip and stand tall.

Story by Mark Mordue

addiroad.org.au

CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

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HubNEWS

ELECTION

Randwick City Council election rundown Noel D’Souza told City Hub he and Da Rocha’s key word for the next term of Council is hope.

“Voting for the Independent’s at the upcoming elections is one of the most powerful things you can do to take action, to save small business, bring our communities together.”

Also vying for a seat for South Ward is Greens candidate James Mollison. He told City Hub lockdowns made people appreciate their walkable neighbourhoods, and therefore there will be a renewed interest in local government elections this year.

BY EVA BAXTER Randwick City Council is divided into five Wards:

NORTH WARD

E

ach Ward has four to six candidates contesting three seats. There is at least one Labor, Liberal, Greens and Independent standing for each ward, and the Arts Party has a candidate in the East Ward and two in the North Ward.

Kim Reddin of the Arts Party for North Ward told City Hub, “There is an enormous amount which can be done in the Randwick Council Area. We’d like to see decisions being made through a lens of creativity, culture and community,” he said.

There is renewed interest in local elections Incumbent (currently holding office) Labor councillor Kathy Neilson and Liberal councillor Christie Hamilton are standing to be re-elected.

North Ward looks after Randwick, Centennial Park and Clovelly.

EAST WARD

No incumbent councillors are contesting seats in the East Ward.

The East Ward includes Randwick, Coogee and South Coogee.

Michael Olive, the Greens candidate for East Ward,

WEST WARD

told City Hub he is most concerned about the proposed development of the Coogee Bay Hotel Site.

“If elected, I will be pushing Council to advocate for its role in setting development controls,” he said.

All three incumbent councillors are in the running to be re-elected for West Ward. West Ward includes Randwick, Kingsford and Kensington.

Independent Harry Stavrinos told City Hub the biggest challenge facing West Ward is the “over-development that the state government has forced upon Kingsford and Kensington.”

SOUTH WARD

CENTRAL WARD

Randwick Town Hall. Local government elections are being held on December 4th. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Matraville, Malabar, Chifley, Little Bay, Phillip Bay, Port Botany and La Perouse come under Randwick City Council’s South Ward. All incumbent South Ward councillors are standing to be re-elected.

Current councillors include Independent’s Noel D’Souza and Carlos Da Rocha, and former Labor Mayor Danny Said.

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CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

Central Ward, Maroubra, is the Ward of Labor Mayor Dylan Parker who is standing for re-election. Another incumbent councillor looking for a seat is Independent councillor Anthony Andrews. Liberal councillor Ted Seng is not running.

Liberal and Labor candidates for Randwick City Council did not respond to City Hub before deadline.

HubNEWS

ELECTION

Overdevelopment key to Woollahra elections

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NSW RESTRICTIONS Woollahra will be an intriguing battleground at next month’s local government elections.

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BY DANIEL LO SURDO oollahra Municipal Council is another intriguing battleground ahead of the local elections on December 4.

TESTING CLINIC LOCATIONS

W

BELLEVUE HILL

Bellevue Hill will be contested by incumbent councillors Isabelle Shapiro and Lucinda Regan, while Liberal councillor Nick Maxwell will not be seeking reelection. Hoping to replace Maxwell will be Liberal members Sean Carmichael and James Ardouin.

Cr Regan is part of the Residents’ First group and is passionate about combatting overdevelopment.

Cr Shapiro joined council in 2004 and has served one term as mayor, and two as deputy mayor. She is most passionate about planning, community safety and public art.

COOPER

Residents’ First member Luise Elsing will seek reelection in the Cooper Ward, which generally represents the suburb of Woollahra. Cr Elsing was first elected to Woollahra Council in 2012 and is interested in confronting overdevelopment in Bellevue Hill and Double Bay. Nicola Grieve is the Greens candidate in the Cooper Ward. Ms Grieve was previously elected as a Woollahra councillor from 2008-2012 and is running to “ensure climate change remains at the forefront” of council decisions.

Sarah Swan, an advocate for recreational facilities and open spaces, is the Liberal’s number one candidate for Cooper.

DOUBLE BAY

All three incumbent Double Bay councillors - Deputy Mayor Richard Shields, Toni Zeltzer and Mark Silcocks will be seeking reelection next month.

Silcocks has worked to “protect and preserve Double Bay as Sydney’s Stylish Bayside Village” and has helped to preserve heritage and public space.

Zeltzer has been a passionate advocate for the restoration of the former Woollahra Library at Double Bay.

Scan here for a list of COVID testing locations.

PADDINGTON

Similarly to Double Bay, each incumbent councillor - Peter Cavanagh, Matthew Robertson and Harriet Price - will look to retain their seats in the Paddington Ward.

Cavanagh has served on council since 2008 and is passionate about finding inventive ways to provide ongoing revenue streams for council.

Robertson has served since 2012. He is an advocate for increased affordable housing and climate change action.

Silcocks has worked to “protect and preserve Double Bay" Price has been associated with Paddington for over 45 years. She was awarded the 2019 Sydney Electorate Woman of the Year for her contribution to Paddington and beyond, and is passionate about providing an active voice to residents.

VAUCLUSE

Incumbent Liberal councillors Mary-Lou Jarvis and Mayor Susan Wynne will be contesting the Vaucluse Ward.

Jarvis is a passionate advocate for Vaucluse’s beaches and parks, while Wynne is a strong supporter of outdoor public use infrastructure and has helped deliver upgrades for outdoor facilities in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Merrill Witt is the Residents’ First member for the Vaucluse Ward and will seek to stop overdevelopment in Woollahra and to safeguard areas of heritage and special significance.

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TANYA PLIBERSEK MP Federal Member for Sydney

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CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

9

HubNEWS

ELECTION

Angela Vithoulkas means business

BY EVA BAXTER ngela Vithoulkas, founder of the Small Business Party and a nominee for Lord Mayor of City of Sydney in the upcoming local government elections, told City Hub small business is her natural habitat. It’s the reason she got politically involved.

that the business vote has is that it’s two votes per business. It’s not. It’s one vote per person. I have a business in the City of Sydney, and I am a resident, I only get to vote once,” said Vithoulkas.

In 2012 the register was wiped after every election and businesses had to re-enroll. A business now only must enroll once.

The businesses of the CBD and 33 surrounding suburbs contribute almost 80% of the rates revenue of the financially powerful council.

A

“It’s why I formed the Small Business political party because I knew we needed to have an organised approach to getting small business a seat at the table, so that we could make sure we have a voice and prevent the financial catastrophes that have clearly befallen us.”

We deserve to have a vote

Earlier this year, she decided nine years was enough, until the Clover Moore Independent Team announced that they would have a super eight majority. She decided to run again in the name of keeping council diverse, and to represent small business in the wake of COVID.

BACKBONE IS BUSINESS Vithoulkas said council has a clear vendetta against small business, “considering more than 70% of the current council that’s elected and will be running again want to remove the business vote.”

Angela Vithoulkas is in the running for Lord Mayor of City of Sydney Council in local government elections on December 4th.

Photo: Supplied

The City of Sydney has a unique and controversial voting system for businesses. In NSW, all businesses have the right to vote through a registration process.

Vithoulkas fought to make that process easier in the City.

A City of Sydney business owner, paying rates to the City, who resides outside of the City of Sydney can vote in the election.

“The misconception about the unfair advantage

“We are the backbone in the engine room of every single level of the economy in Australia. We deserve to have a vote and participate in what happens in our local community, not just where we live, but where our work lives are,” said Vithoulkas.

Vithoulkas has an 8-point plan to ‘re-imagine local government.’

Point 3 is to establish public “questions without notice” sessions where local people can turn up and ask councillors questions that have not been preapproved.

Point 2 is capping Lord Mayoral terms to a maximum of three terms, which she said has everything to do with the Clover Moore Independent Team.

“No business has ever kept a CEO like that in perpetuity.”

West PROPOSAL TO UPGRADE EXISTING OPTUS MOBILE PHONE BASE STATIONS AT ALEXANDRIA, KINGS CROSS & RANDWICK INCLUDING 5G

2. Site Number: S0076- Kings Cross, Site Address: 204-212 Victoria St, Potts Point NSW 2011, (RFNSA number: 2011007) 3. Site Number: S0041- Randwick, Site Address: 65-71 Belmore Rd, Randwick NSW 2031, (RFNSA number: 2031005) The proposed facilities consist of the addition of new technologies including 5G equipment and the addition of three (3) new antennas.

4. Optus regards these proposed installations as Low-impact Facility under the Telecommunications (Low-impact Facilities) Determination 2018 (“The Determination”) based on the description above.

5. The proposed infrastructures will be in compliance with the ACMA EMR regulatory arrangements.

6. In accordance with Section 7 of C564:2020 Mobile Phone Base Station Deployment Code, we invite you to provide feedback about these proposals.

Further information requests and/or comments should be directed to Kordia Solutions: Phil Hull@Kordia.com.au. 0431 328 606 Kordia Solutions, 68 Waterloo Rd, Macquarie Park NSW 2113 We will accept comments on the proposed upgrade until 5pm Friday, 26th November 2021.

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CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

An artist’s impression of Hunter Street Station.

Have your say on Sydney Metro West Sydney Metro is Australia’s biggest public transport project, revolutionising the way Sydney travels.

Sydney Metro West is a new underground railway that will create approximately 10,000 direct and 70,000 indirect jobs during construction. It will double rail capacity between Greater Parramatta and the Sydney CBD, transforming Sydney for generations to come.

Formal project planning for Sydney Metro West started in 2019 and will continue through the early 2020s. Now is the time to have your say on plans for major civil construction work between The Bays and Sydney CBD.

The Environmental Impact Statement for major civil construction work between The Bays and Sydney CBD is on exhibition until 15 December 2021.

Visit the project’s virtual engagement room to learn more.

More information Visit planningportal.nsw.gov.au/major-projects/project/41851 to view the full EIS. Visit sydneymetro.info to get project updates and sign up for email alerts.

Visit sydneymetro.info/metrowest to visit the Sydney Metro West interactive portal.

Call us on 1800 612 173 to talk to one of our dedicated place managers.

Email sydneymetrowest@transport.nsw.gov.au and we’ll get back to you.

Download Sydney Metro Connect from the App store or get it on Google Play. sydneymetro.info

21148-WEST 11.21 SB2811

1. Site Number: S0023 – Alexandria, Site Address: 70-74 O’Riordan St, Alexandria NSW 2340, (RFNSA number: 2015006)

HubNEWS

Climate protesters take the fight online

Abhayawickrama attended a small protest organised by the Australian Workers’ Union on October 15th.

Photo: Facebook

BY ASTON BROWN chool students and supporters took to zoom to demand the government take greater action on climate change.

The event was held online due to COVID restrictions and was part of larger protest actions that took place across the country on October 15th.

It came as the Prime Minister announced he would be attending climate summit COP26, but before he had made any commitments to a netzero emissions target.

The event, which had nearly 900 attendees, heard from climate activists who shared their stories and offered solutions to the climate crisis. 17-yearold student activist Ella Lee opened the online event.

“We are all here today because our government has continued to prioritise the fossil fuel industry over our futures, workers, communities, Indigenous peoples and young people,” Lee said.

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Australia is avoiding its obligation “We are continuing to demand no new coal or gas or oil projects, including the Adani mine, 100% renewable generation and exports by 2030, the funding of a just transition and job creation for all fossil fuel workers and their communities.”

An organiser of the online rally and year 12 student Natasha Abhayawickrama is determined to see the government adopt ambitious climate policy.

“Australia is just avoiding its obligation and responsibility to tackle the climate

crisis and it’s really disappointing to see as a young person,” Abhayawickrama told City Hub. “At the moment the government has no climate policy, they have no net zero targets, they don’t have any plan to tackle the climate crisis at all, they are an embarrassment on the world stage.”

Abhayawickrama attended a small protest organised by the Workers’ Union in Sydney, one of many in-person protests across Australia that restrictions permitted.

WAITING OUT A PANDEMIC

Student environment officer of the University of NSW Environmental Collective Anna Ho was excited to finally be back out on the streets protesting after months in lockdown.

Ho organised a small car and bike convoy that rode through the city.

“It’s the first time that the climate movement is taking back to the streets after a really long period of inactivity.”

As Abhayawickrama begins her final year of school she looks forward to continuing her work as an activist as Australia emerges from the pandemic.

“COVID has been one of the biggest barriers for the climate movement, especially School Strike, we thrive off mobilising people and that’s how we build momentum,” she said.

“During COVID we have been able to take more time to train up and educate our own base, strengthening and growing our grassroots.

“I’m looking forward to the federal election, there’s going to be a lot going on with the movement, it’s going to be huge.”

PROPOSAL TO UPGRADE FIVE TELSTRA MOBILE PHONE BASE STATIONS WITH 5G IN CHIPPENDALE, DOUBLE BAY, PADDINGTON, MILLERS POINT AND ERSKINEVILLE 1. The proposed works consist of: 48 Chippen Street, CHIPPENDALE NSW 2008 www.rfnsa.com.au/2008003 The proposed works on the rooftop consist of: • The removal of (3) panel antennas • The installation of (3) panel antennas 2.533m long • The reconfiguration of existing mounts • The replacement and installation of ancillary Tower Mast Amplifiers • Internal upgrades in the existing shelter 33 Cross Street, DOUBLE BAY NSW 2028 www.rfnsa.com.au/2028001 The proposed works on the rooftop consist of: • The reconfiguration of existing antennas on existing mounts • The installation of (6) ancillary Tower Mast Amplifiers • Internal upgrades in the existing shelter 361-375 Oxford Street, PADDINGTON NSW 2021 www.rfnsa.com.au/2021002 The proposed works on the rooftop consist of: • The removal of (6) panel antennas • The installation of (3) panel antennas 2.533m long • The replacement of ancillary Tower Mast Amplifiers • Internal upgrades in the existing shelter 22 Hickson Road, MILLERS POINT NSW 2000 www.rfnsa.com.au/2000443 The proposed works on the rooftop consist of: • Raise the height of (4) existing panel antennas by 300mm • The replacement and installation of ancillary Tower Mast Amplifiers • Internal upgrades in the existing shelter 2-14 Eve Street, ERSKINEVILLE NSW 2043 www.rfnsa.com.au/2043001 The proposed works on the rooftop consist of: • The reconfiguration of existing antennas • The installation of (3) panel antennas less than 1m long • The replacement and installation of ancillary Tower Mast Amplifiers • Internal upgrades in the existing shelter • Additional equipment to be upgraded in shelter 2. Telstra regards the proposed installations as either Low-impact Facility under the Telecommunications (Low-impact Facilities) Determination 2018 (“The Determination”) or as Exempt Development in accordance with the State Environmental Planning Policy (Infrastructure) Amendment (Telecommunications Facilities) 2010, or a Maintenance activity under Telecommunication Act 1997 Schedule 3 Part 1 Division 4, based on the description above.

3. In accordance with Section 7 of C564: 2020 Mobile Phone Base Station Deployment Code, we invite you to provide feedback about the proposals.

Further information and/or comments should be directed to: Emily Wardlaw on behalf of Telstra, 0422 685 472, consultation@acquirecomm.com.au by Friday 26 November 2021. Further information can also be obtained from www.rfnsa.com.au CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

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HubNEWS

Local sustainability advocate calls for action

BY ASTON BROWN ocal Sydney sustainability advocate and architect, HY William Chan has joined calls for global leaders to take greater action on climate change at COP26 in Glasgow.

Chan attended the COP26 ‘Young Leaders in Climate’ meeting on November 4th, representing Sydney locals in a discussion between young leaders from across the globe.

COP26 is set to be one of the most important global meetings in recent history and the “last chance” for humanity to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

Chan hopes to focus on Australia’s role in addressing the climate emergency whilst acknowledging reducing green-house emissions can only be achieved by collaborative global action.

“For me I really want to engage with young Sydneysiders but also recognise that it’s also about global support, especially for our pacific neighbours,” Chan told City Hub. Based on current emission reduction targets humanity will face a 1.5C rise in global temperatures by 2030 and 2.7C by the end of century. In 2015 world leaders agreed to limit warming to 1.5C but without more drastic action this goal is increasingly untenable.

“My industry, the built environment, accounts for around 38% of carbon emissions in Australia…that’s quite an overwhelming figure.”

“For me it’s really about a generation looking after the next generation…and also being able to have agency to actually create that future that we want to inherent.”

Chan has been underwhelmed by the federal government’s action on climate change over the last decade and their “last minute” net-zero by 2050 target that relies on technology that doesn’t yet exist. He is worried for the future but remains hopeful that COP26 will see more ambitious climate action come about.

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CHAN FOR CHANGE

As a teenager Chan became increasingly passionate about climate action and soon found himself on the

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I think net-zero by 2050 is really too late

HY William Chan represented the voices of Sydneysiders at the COP26 ‘Young Leaders in Climate’ meeting on November 4th.

Photo: Supplied

National Council of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition. Since then, Chan launched into a career as an architect focused on reducing the industries environmental impact through sustainable development and innovation.

“It’s been disappointing that we have had a minister for carbon emissions reduction for a long time now, and yet our national leaders have really scrambled at the last minute to front the world stage.”

“To be quite frank, I think net-zero by 2050 is really too late…we really need to have plans for 2030 that actually accelerate solutions and our productivity at the same time. That’s really the best chance we have in combating this great threat.”

Chan is running in the City of Sydney council election as part of Clover Moore’s team and plans to fulfil the council’s goal to reduce its emissions by 70% by 2024 if elected.

TELSTRA IS PLANNING TO REMOVE A PAYPHONE

TELSTRA IS PLANNING TO REMOVE A PAYPHONE

It is proposed that a coin and card payphone be removed from: The corner of Ward Avenue and Baroda Street, Elizabeth Bay NSW 2011 (Payphone ID: 02938009X2)

It is proposed that a coin and card payphone be removed from: Outside 111 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010 (Payphone ID: 02936110X7)

The next nearest coin and card payphone is located: In Fitzroy Gardens outside Kings Cross Police Station, 1 Elizabeth Bay Road, Elizabeth Bay NSW 2011 and is approximately 32 metres away from the payphone that is proposed to be removed.

(Payphone ID: 02935708X2)

The next nearest coin and card payphone is located: Outside 258 Crown Street near Oxford Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010 and is approximately 30 metres away from the payphone that is proposed to be removed.

(Payphone ID: 02936121X2)

Reference Number 46120

Reference Number 46121

Telstra intends making a final decision on this proposal by:

Telstra intends making a final decision on this proposal by:

28th December 2021

28th December 2021

To assist us in making a final decision, we invite your comments on this proposal. Please send us your comments in writing to:

To assist us in making a final decision, we invite your comments on this proposal. Please send us your comments in writing to:

Telstra Payphone Siting Manager Locked Bag 4850 Melbourne Vic 3001 or by calling us on 1800 011 433 selection Option 2 or by email to Payphones@team.telstra.com

Telstra Payphone Siting Manager Locked Bag 4850 Melbourne Vic 3001 or by calling us on 1800 011 433 selection Option 2 or by email to Payphones@team.telstra.com

For more information on payphone services (including, any applicable payphone consultation document) see: www.telstra.com.au/consumer-advice/payphones

For more information on payphone services (including, any applicable payphone consultation document) see: www.telstra.com.au/consumer-advice/payphones

CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

HubNEWS

Sydney goes green for COP26

BY DANIEL LO SURDO ydney has been lit up green to mark the beginning of COP26, the United Nation’s Climate Change Conference, in Glasgow this week.

Sydney joins other global cities in lighting up its civic buildings green to signal a desire for decisive international action. This year’s conference is seen as the most important meeting since the Paris Agreement was developed in 2015, with environmental experts and spokespeople pleading for cooperation between the world’s leaders.

“COP26 is tasked with addressing dangerous global warming and is seen by many as our last, best hope at securing vital commitments to reduce emissions by 2030,” City of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore said via Facebook.

“The climate emergency requires strong leadership, transparent policies and urgent action.”

In his address to world leaders at COP26, Prime Minister Scott Morrison spoke about Australia’s 20 per cent emissions reductions since 2005, shifting an emissions focus to the developing world and the doubling of international climate finances from 2020-2025, with many environmental commentators calling the speech full of “spin” and light on commitment.

“Our PM stood up in front of the world and effectively promised to do nothing,” Tim Flannery, Chief Climate Councillor, Professor Tim Flannery said.

Morrison came under particular scrutiny ahead of COP26, with his wavering and vague climate targets, as well as continued investments in coal, defying the general rhetoric of the rest of the world’s leaders.

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LAST CHANCE

In August this year, the United Nation’s latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was released and signalled that the next decade of environmental policy and activity will be integral to avoiding climate catastrophe.

While stating that global emissions need to be halved by 2030, it also estimated that – at the current pace – emissions would rise by 16 per cent come 2030.

“We are a country on the front line of climate change – recent devastating drought, catastrophic bushfires, and severe storms [have] proven that,” Lord Mayor Moore said.

“We need the Morrison Government to recognise the global consensus and urgency, match the action of other leaders in Glasgow, and commit to legislation that will halve Australia’s emissions by 2030 and achieve net-zero sooner than 2050.”

Sydney is being lit up green as COP26 continues on in Glasgow. Photo: Facebook/Lord Mayor Clover Moore

After offering no clear target for net-zero emissions, the Morrison Government officially announced a “practical, responsible way” to deliver net-zero by 2050 last month, days ahead of COP26.

The plan is based on five principles that aim to preserve existing industries, establish Australia as a leader in low emission technologies and position regional areas for continued prosperity.

The principles are technology, not taxes; expand choices, not mandates; drive down the cost of a range of new technologies; keep energy prices down with affordable and reliable power; and be accountable for progress.

Our PM stood up ... and effectively promised to do nothing Morrison’s commitment to net-zero largely came under fire for failing to produce new policies and legislation to support the new plan, as well as for a refusal to update its 2030 emissions reduction target (26-28 per cent of 2005 levels), despite emissions over the next decade being the primary focus of the Glasgow conference. Instead, updated projections have been released that account for a 30-35 per cent emission reduction compared to 2005 levels.

The ‘technology, not taxes’ framework came under particular scrutiny, with climate advocates labelling the approach incomplete and misdirecting attention.

CLOSER TO HOME

In the City, Lord Mayoral candidate Yvonne Weldon has proposed a hybrid approach to carbon pricing. If elected, she will “review feasible mechanisms to encourage [the] use of less carbonintensive products, materials and services”.

The plan, as detailed by Unite for Sydney candidate Dr Meead Saberi, would introduce an internal carbon fee (from $50-$100 AUD per tonne) to meet the City’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction target of 70 per cent by 2030, while also representing the costs and benefits of new projects more accurately to council.

“Where federal and state governments lag behind, local authorities like [the] City of Sydney can be leading the way,” Ms Weldon said via Facebook.

“By counting the cost of carbon emissions in its decision-making process, the City of Sydney could meaningfully reduce its emissions, without having to rely on (sometimes questionable) carbon offset credits. A policy like this would be an Australian first – but it’s already been successful in cities all over the world, including Tokyo and Barcelona.”

In early October, the NSW Government announced their decision to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50 per cent from 2005 levels in 2030, rather than the 35 per cent target declared 18 months earlier. This target most notably

received the backing of then Nationals leader John Barilaro, whose party at a federal level has stalled the discussion of renewed climate targets.

The revised NSW target is the most ambitious climate plan of any state in the country and is only bettered by the ACT, which has set a goal of 65 to 75 per cent by 2030.

The City has joined 1000 other cities in bringing science-based solutions to COP26 as part of the UN-backed C40 Cities’ Race to Zero project, targeting a 50 per cent carbon emissions reduction by 2030 and net-zero carbon by 2050.

“If we are to limit global warming and halt dangerous runaway climate change, we need large-scale, rapid and sustained emission reductions and we must reach net-zero emissions as soon as possible,” Lord Mayor Moore said.

“Successive Federal Governments have shamefully presided over failed climate policies, but COP26 is an opportunity to work with the rest of the world to mitigate this.”

In the City’s Green Environmental Sustainability Progress Report for January to June 2021, it was revealed that natural gas use has quadrupled since the baseline year of 2006. The increased use of gas was accounted for in the report due to “pool heating and the installation of gas-fired co and trigeneration”.

COP26 will continue until the 12th of November.

CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

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HubNEWS

Momentum grows against Parklands Bill prior community feedback about the suppression of local voices and potential over-commercialisation was identified.

In response, the State has said the legislation will “establish community trustee boards for parks to ensure the special qualities of individual parks are clearly understood”, and have required the Greater Sydney Parklands Trust (GSPT) to “listen to advice provided by community trustee boards.”

Centennial Park is one of the parklands that may be at risk should the Greater Sydney Parklands Draft Exposure Bill be approved in State Parliament. Photo: Creative Commons.

BY DANIEL LO SURDO he NSW Government’s Greater Sydney Parklands Draft Exposure Bill has been largely opposed throughout the state, with public parkland representatives fearing that the approval of the Bill may result in overcommercialisation and development across the city’s National Parks and Nature Reserves.

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The State has been seeking community feedback on the Bill since the start of October, before being finalised and tabled in Parliament.

Alliance for Public Parklands spokesperson Suzette Meade urged Sydneysiders to voice their concerns about the Bill to the State Government.

“Parks are for the people, not privatisation and developer greed,” Ms Meade told City Hub. “The proposed legislation will allow business parks and other developments on verdant park bushland, destroying the peace and quiet and natural habitat of parklands.”

In the State Government’s Greater Sydney Parklands ‘What we heard report’,

TELSTRA IS PLANNING TO REMOVE A PAYPHONE It is proposed that a coin and card payphone be removed from: Outside 276 Crown Street near Oxford Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010 (Payphone ID: 02938013X1) The next nearest coin and card payphone is located: Outside 258 Crown Street near Oxford Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010 and is approximately 50 metres away from the payphone that is proposed to be removed.

(Payphone ID: 02936121X2) Reference Number 46122 Telstra intends making a final decision on this proposal by: 28th December 2021 To assist us in making a final decision, we invite your comments on this proposal. Please send us your comments in writing to: Telstra Payphone Siting Manager Locked Bag 4850 Melbourne Vic 3001 or by calling us on 1800 011 433 selection Option 2 or by email to Payphones@team.telstra.com For more information on payphone services (including, any applicable payphone consultation document) see: www.telstra.com.au/consumer-advice/payphones 14

CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

LASTING CONCERNS

Ms Meade believes that suitable expansion of parklands cannot go ahead without additional measures to protect the longevity of the land.

 Parks are for the people, not privatisation and developer greed “The proposed legislation gives unbridled power to the agency to convert public spaces into private enterprises at the taxpayer’s expense,” Ms Meade said.

“Safeguarding through Acts and Trusts, appropriately formulated, ensures parklands remain intact through

successive governments and unspoilt for enduring public enjoyment.”

In the Callan Park Act, leases longer than 10 years must be shown to parliament and can be rejected if the lease is seen to be against the public interest. Under the proposed legislation, commercial development leases for up to 50 years may be awarded to parklands across Sydney.

“These provisions of the Callan Park Act should be extended to all Sydney’s major parks, not eliminated from the Callan Park Act as the government now proposes,” Friends of Callan Park President and APP spokesperson Hall Greenland told City Hub. “Callan Park is a green oasis in a hectic, overdeveloped city and the community needs every square inch of it. There’s no room for the major commercial development that the government has in mind with this Bill.

“If major commercial tenants like reception centres and business parks are allowed on to the site – and this is what the Bill opens the door to – then we can kiss Callan Park goodbye as a place committed to mental health services and wellbeing.”

The Draft Exposure Bill will be open for feedback until the 29th of October.

PROPOSAL TO UPGRADE MOBILE PHONE BASE STATION LOCATED AT RUSHCUTTERS BAY Telstra plans to upgrade an existing telecommunications facility located at 46 Bayswater Road, Rushcutters Bay, NSW 2011 www.rfnsa.com.au/2011020 1. Telstra are currently upgrading existing mobile network facilities to allow for the introduction of 5G to Telstra’s network. As part of this network upgrade, Telstra proposes the installation of NR/LTE2600 (4G), NR850 (5G) and M700 technologies at Rushcutters Bay locality and surrounds.

2. The proposed works at the above site include the removal of two (2) panel antennas, the relocation of one (1) panel antenna, reconfiguration of four (4) panel antennas and the installation of two (2) panel antennas (each no more than 2.8m long). The proposed works also include the installation of associated ancillary equipment. All internal equipment will be housed within the existing equipment shelter located on the rooftop.

3. Telstra regards the proposed installation as a Low-Impact Facility under the Telecommunications (Low-impact Facilities) Determination 2018 based on the above description.

4. In accordance with Section 7 of C564:2020 Mobile Phone Base Station Deployment Code, we invite you to provide feedback about the proposal. Further information and/or written submissions should be directed to Paige Wilkinson, Aurecon Australasia via email to: paige.wilkinson@aurecongroup.com or via post to:Paige Wilkinson, Aurecon Australasia Locked Bag 331, Brisbane QLD 4001 by 5pm on 25/11/2021.

HubNEWS

Hundreds protest for LGBTI Rights

BY DANIEL LO SURDO undreds campaigned at Town Hall last month to take a stand for LGBTI rights and protest Premier Dominic Perrottet’s parliamentary agenda.

The protest was organised by Community Action for Rainbow Rights and sought to draw attention to the proposed bills and legislation that will “erode [the] rights” of the LGBTI community.

Greens’ Lord Mayoral candidate for City of Sydney Council Sylvie Ellsmore believed that parliament was not representative of the wider NSW community.

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We are going to fight [so] you don’t change the ... laws “Every time we have another older white guy elected from the religious right elected to a position of authority, it reminds us how far we’ve got to go to make our parliaments and our councils look like us and stand for our values,” Ms Ellsmore said at the protest.

“We are not bigots, and we are going to fight to make sure you don’t change the anti-discrimination laws.”

KILL BILL

In September, City Hub reported an anti-transgender education bill proposed by One Nation’s Mark Latham, which was endorsed by NSW Parliament and heavily condemned by the trans and gender diverse community.

Mr Latham’s Education Legislation Amendment (Parental Rights) Bill 2020 would ban the teaching of gender fluidity in NSW, while teachers, counsellors and other school staff would be prevented from affirming a student as transgender without seeking advice from their parents or guardian first.

Trans students would also be removed of their right to seek confidential support from within their school environment and would require all parents of other children to be notified if a student in their child’s year is transitioning.

The bill was endorsed by the NSW Parliament’s Education Committee, which is chaired by Mr Latham.

“We’re going to fight to say that someone like Mark Latham leading the charge in government, backed by a conservative element in the Liberal Party, that weirdo should not be making

PROPOSAL TO UPGRADE MOBILE PROPOSAL TO UPGRADEPHONE OPTUS AND BASE VODAFONESTATION MOBILE PHONE BASE STATION WITH 5G AT THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS LOCATED AT RUSHCUTTERS BAY Rooftop Facility, 209-211 Harris Street, Pyrmont NSW 2009

Optus Vodafone Ref: S0969, www.rfnsa.com.au/2009003 1. The proposed facility consists of the addition of new 5G equipment and associated works as follows: • Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (0.81m long) • Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (0.75m long) • Replacement of three (3) existing 4G panel antennas (2.68m long) with three new 4G panel antennas (2.1m long) • Replacement of three (3) existing 4G panel antennas (2.68m long) with three new 4G panel antennas (1.83m long) • New ancillary equipment including remote radio units, cabling and antenna mounts • Reconfiguration of existing equipment on the facility and within the equipment shelter 1. • Telstra arearecurrently mobile network The antennas at rooftop levelupgrading and there is a slightexisting increase in the overall scale of the facilityfacilities to allow for 48 Chippen Street, Chippendale 2008 network upgrade, the introductionRooftop of 5GFacility, to Telstra’s network.

As partNSW of this Optus Vodafone Ref: S2145, www.rfnsa.com.au/2008003 Telstra installation of NR/LTE2600 2. The proposed proposes facility consists of the the addition of new 5G equipment and associated works as(4G), follows: NR850 (5G) and • Installation of three (3) new 5Gat panel antennas (0.75m long) M700 technologies Rushcutters Bay locality and surrounds.

• Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (1.35m long) 2. • The proposed works atpanel theantennas above sitelong)include the4Gremoval Replacement of three (3) existing 4G (2.69m with three new panel antennasof (2.1two m long)(2) panel • Replacement ofthe three (3) existing 4G panelofantennas long) with antenna, three new 4G panel antennas (1.5m long) of four antennas, relocation one (2.68m (1) panel reconfiguration • New ancillary equipment including remote radio units, cabling and antenna mounts (4) panel antennas and the installation of two (2) panel antennas (each no • Reconfiguration of existing equipment on the facility and within the equipment shelter more thanare2.8m • The antennas at rooftoplong). level and The there is aproposed slight increase inworks the overall also scale of include the facility the installation of Rooftop Facility, 134-138 William Street, Wooloomooloo associated ancillary equipment.

All internal equipmentNSW will2011 be housed within Optus Vodafone Ref: S8901, www.rfnsa.com.au/2011002 the existing equipment shelter located on the rooftop.

3. The proposed facility consists of the addition of new 5G equipment and associated works as follows: Installationregards of three (3) new panel antennas (0.75m long) 3. • Telstra the5Gproposed installation as a Low-Impact Facility under the • Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (1.35m long) Telecommunications (Low-impact Facilities) Determination 2018 based on • Replacement of three (3) existing 4G panel antennas (2.53m long) with three new 4G panel antennas (1.83m long) theReplacement aboveofdescription.

• three (3) existing 4G panel antennas (2.53m long) with three new 4G panel antennas (2.78m long) • New ancillary equipment including remote radio units, cabling and antenna mounts 4. • InReconfiguration accordance with Section 7 of C564:2020 Mobile Phone Base of existing equipment on the facility and within the equipment shelter Station Deployment Code, weas Exempt invite you toin accordance provide the 4. Optus and Vodafone regard the proposed installations Development with feedback State Environmentalabout Planning Policy (Infrastructure) 2007 based on the description above proposal. Further information and/or written submissions should 5. Notification is being undertaken in accordance with Section 7 of Industry Code C564:2020 Mobile Phone Base Station Deployment be directed to Paige Wilkinson, Aurecon Australasia via email to: 6. Members of the public may obtain further information on the proposed work, and we invite you to provide written comments about the paige.wilkinson@aurecongroup.com viarepresentative post to:Paige Wilkinson, Aurecon proposal. Further information and/or comments should be directed toor Optus’ c/- James McIver, Catalyst ONE Pty Ltd; phone: 02 4022 9533; email: consultation@catalystone.com.au and post: PO Box 1119, Crows Nest NSW 1585 by 26 February 2021.

Australasia Locked Bag 331, Brisbane QLD 4001 by 5pm on 25/11/2021.

Telstra plans to upgrade an existing telecommunications facility located at 46 Bayswater Road, Rushcutters Bay, NSW 2011 www.rfnsa.com.au/2011020

Hundreds campaigned for better LGBTI rights in NSW Parliament. Photo: Facebook/Community Action for Rainbow Rights

decisions and writing laws for any of the rest of us,” Ms Ellsmore said.

The object of the bill, as introduced in parliament, is to amend the Education Act 1990 and to clarify that “parents and not schools are primarily responsible for the development and formation of their children in relation to … an understanding of personal identity, including in relation to gender and sexuality”.

It also calls on the teaching of core values to be “strictly non-ideological” and should not be advocating or promoting “dogmatic or polemical ideology” that may be “inconsistent” with the values of parents.

Protestors gathered at Town Hall from noon and marched to State Parliament to protest throughout the streets of the CBD.

PROPOSAL TO UPGRADE OPTUS NOTICE OF INTENTION TO CARRY OUTBASE DEVELOPMENT MOBILE PHONE STATION WITH 5G AT THE FOLLOWING

BY THE NSW TELCO AUTHORITY LOCATIONS Existing Facility 10), Alliance, 1-19 Oxford220 Street, Rooftop Facility, LakesNSW Business Park, Building 2, The(Level Bright Avoca Street, Randwick 2031 Surry Hills NSW 2010 2-26 Lord Street, Botany NSW 2019 The Critical Communications Enhancement Program (CCEP) is expanding and enhancing the Public Optus Ref: S0209, www.rfnsa.com.au/2010024 Optus Ref: S0490, www.rfnsa.com.au/2019001 Networkfacility (PSN)consists to improve operational communications for emergency services 1.Safety The proposed of the addition of new 5G 3. The proposed facility consists of the organisations addition of new and 5G equipmentservice and associated works as follows: essential providers. equipment and associated works as follows: • Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (0.81m in length) • Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (0.59m long) The• Replacement network of provides critical,4G panel secure and(2.68m reliable radio communications to emergency services three (3) existing antennas • New ancillary equipment including remote radio units, cabling long) with three new 4G panel antennas (1.5m long) organisations and was pivotal in protecting communities and supporting the emergency response to the and antenna mounts • New ancillary equipment remote radio events units, cabling 2019-20 bushfires and including the 2021 flood in NSW. • Reconfiguration of existing equipment on the facility and within and antenna mounts equipment shelter To• expand the network, NSW Telco Authority is proposing totheestablish a new radiocommunications facility Reconfiguration of existing equipment on the facility and within • The antennas are at rooftop level and there is a slight increase in at Thethe equipment shelter; the antennas are at level 10 plant room Bright Alliance, 220 Avoca Street, Randwick NSW 2031 (Lot 1 DP870720). Key features of the the overall scale of the facility • Optus regards the proposed installation as a low-impact facility in proposal include installation of: • Optus regards the proposed installation as Exempt Development accordance with the Telecommunications (Low-impact Facilities) • Determination Two dipole array antennas (3.0m long) and one aircraft warning with lightState mounted on the Planning buildingPolicy in accordance Environmental 2018 based on the description above (Infrastructure) 2007 based on the description above rooftop Existing Monopole, 19 Harris Street, Pyrmontplatform NSW 2009 Rooftop 65-71 Belmore Road, • A steel-framed on the building rooftop, together withFacility, steel mounts for the antennas and Optus Ref: S5576, www.rfnsa.com.au/2009001 Randwick NSW 2031 the aircraft warning light Optus Ref: S0041, www.rfnsa.com.au/2031005 2. The proposed facility consists of the addition of new 5G • Equipment cabinets within the Level 10 plant room equipment and associated workslocated as follows: 4. The proposed facility consists of the addition of new 5G Ancillary equipment and works including AC power equipment supply, cabling, feeders, handrails • • Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (0.59m long) and associated works as follows:and safety signs • Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (0.81m long) The proposal would require a temporary plant setup area• on Avoca Street to lift proposed equipment to Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (0.59m long) Installation of one (1) new 4G panel antenna (2.69 m long) • Installation of three (3) new 5G panel antennas (0.81m long) the• building rooftop.

• Replacement of two (2) existing 4G panel antennas (2.53m long) • Provision for three (3) future panel antennas (up to 1.5m long) with two new 4G panel antennas (2.69m long) The proposed works will be assessed under Part 5 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act • New ancillary equipment including remote radio units, cabling • Provision for three (3) future panel antennas (up to 1.5m long) 1979. For further enquires or comment contact the NSW Telco Authority, and antenna mountsc/- James McIver, Catalyst ONE New ancillary equipment including remote radio units, cabling Pty• Ltd, PO Box 1119, Crows Nest NSW 1585 or via email at jmciver@catalystone.com.au The closing • Reconfiguration of existing equipment on the facility and within and antenna mounts date for comments is 29 November 2021. the equipment shelter • Reconfiguration of existing equipment on the facility and within • The antennas are at rooftop level and there is a slight increase in the equipment shelter For information regarding the program, please visit our website at www.telco.nsw.gov.au/ccep or the overall scale of the facility • The antennas are at rooftop level and there is a slight increase in call on 1800 794 862. the overall scale of the facility • Optus regards the proposed installation as Exempt Development • Optus regards the proposed installation as a low-impact facility in in accordance with State Environmental Planning Policy accordance with the Telecommunications (Low-impact Facilities) (Infrastructure) 2007 based on the description above Determination 2018 based on the description above 5. Notification is being undertaken in accordance with Section 7 of Industry Code C564:2020 Mobile Phone Base Station Deployment.

6. Members of the public may obtain further information on the proposed work, and we invite you to provide written comments about the proposal. Further information and/or comments should be directed to Optus’ representative c/- James McIver, Catalyst ONE Pty Ltd; phone: 02 4022 9533; email: consultation@catalystone.com.au and post: PO Box 1119, Crows Nest NSW 1585 by 26 February 2021.

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Consent Bill introduced to Parliament time coming, and is a significant step in eliminating sexual assault – so that we can all participate in society equally without fear,” State Member for Newtown Jenny Leong said.

“So many have campaigned so hard for the introduction of affirmative consent laws in this state.”

This is a big reform, it was a long time coming

The NSW affirmative consent bill is in parliament and is scheduled for debate. Photo: Flickr

BY DANIEL LO SURDO long-awaited Bill containing affirmative sexual consent reforms was introduced to NSW Parliament last week ahead of a parliamentary debate scheduled for November.

The Bill contains an affirmative consent model, which specifies that “consent to a sexual activity must not be presumed” and that “consensual sexual activity involves ongoing and mutual

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communication, decision-making and free and voluntary agreement between the persons participating in the sexual activity”.

It will also update the language of provisions of the Crimes Act 1900 relating to sexual offences and allow judges to make directions to juries about consent in trials relating to certain sexual offences under the Act. “This is a big reform, it was a long

PROPOSAL TO UPGRADE MOBILE PHONE BASE STATION LOCATED AT SURRY HILLS Telstra plans to upgrade an existing telecommunications facility located at 47-97 Marlborough Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010 (Lot 1 on Plan DP251056) www.rfnsa.com.au/2010004 1. Telstra are currently upgrading existing mobile network facilities to allow for the expansion of 4G and 5G in Telstra’s network. As part of this network upgrade, Telstra proposes the installation of NR/LTE2600 (4G & 5G) and NR850 (5G) technologies at Surry Hills. Proposed works at the above site will involve two (2) existing panel antennas made spare, the removal of four (4) existing panel antennas, the relocation of three (3) existing panel antennas, the installation of three (3) new panel antennas (each no longer than 2.8m in length), the removal of three (3) existing remote radio units (RRUs), the installation of three (3) new RRUs, and ancillary equipment.

All internal equipment will be housed within the existing equipment shelter located on the rooftop of the building.

2. Telstra regards the proposed installation as an Exempt Development under the State Environmental Planning Policy (Infrastructure) 2007 based on the above description.

3. In accordance with Section 7 of C564:2020 Mobile Phone Base Station Deployment Code, we invite you to provide feedback about the proposal.

Further information and/or written submissions should be directed to Tim Beck, Aurecon Australasia via email to: timothy.beck@aurecongroup.com or via post to: Tim Beck, Aurecon Pty Ltd, Locked Bag 331, Brisbane QLD 4001 by 5pm on 25 November 2021.

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Change to the state’s sexual consent terminology and law comes after the NSW Law Reform Commission recommended last November to ‘strengthen’ and ‘simplify’ consent law.

COMMUNITY CREDIT

City Hub reported in June that the government would adopt all 44 of the Commission’s recommendations, and also specify that “an accused person’s belief in consent will not be reasonable in the circumstances unless they did or said something to ascertain consent”.

While the Bill remains in parliament and will be subject to debate, Ms Leong credited the proposed

legislation to “some incredibly strong survivor-advocates, feminists, experts and activists who have never given up”.

“Thank you to Saxon Mullins, who led the way to this reform with strength and care – bringing other young activist-survivors, experts and women with her,” she said.

References to an “offender” will now be replaced with “accused person”, while a “victim” will be changed to a “complainant”.

In the 24 months up to June 2021, NSW recorded a 21 per cent uptick in sexual assault offences. This growth has largely been credited to the public discussion around rape and sexual assault, which has empowered many survivors to come forward and report incidents to the authorities.

Sexual assault was the state’s only major offence that saw an increase in the past 24 months and has been the consistent trend of growth throughout the past five years. The City of Sydney LGA recorded 305 cases of sexual assault from July 2020 to June 2021 and has seen a 6.5 per cent increase in cases over the past five years.

PROPOSAL TO UPGRADE OPTUS MOBILE PHONE BASE STATIONS WITH 5G AT THE FOLLOWING SITES: The Sly Fox Hotel, 199 Enmore Road, Enmore NSW 2042 (RFNSA Site No. 2042002) The proposed facility consists of the addition of new 5G equipment and associated works as follows: • Installation of three (3) new 4G antennas (2.688m long) at 18.7m in height • Installation of three (3) new 5G antennas (0.81m long) at 21.6m in height • Installation of three (3) new 5G antennas (0.59m long) at 20.6m in height • Installation of three (3) new 5G antennas (0.75m long) at 20.75m in height • Removal of three (3) existing antennas • Installation of twenty one (21) new remote radio units (RRUs) and removal of fifteen (15) existing RRUs • Ancillary equipment including but not limited to: new fibre and electrical cabling, new mounts, two (2) new GPS antennas and reconfiguration of existing equipment on the facility and in the existing equipment shelter.

Optus regards the proposed installation as compliant with the State Environmental Planning Policy Infrastructure 2007, Part 1 Exempt Development Items 2,18 and 19 based on the description above.

659-661 Princes Highway, Tempe NSW 2044 (RFNSA Site No. 2044003) The proposed facility consists of the addition of new 5G equipment and associated works as follows: • Installation of three (3) new 5G antennas (0.81m long) at 13.5m in height • Installation of six (6) new 4G antennas (2.688m long) at 12.6m & 12.8m in height • Installation of two (2) new 5G antennas (0.59m long) at 12.5m in height • Installation of three (3) new 5G antennas (0.75m long) at 11.5m & 13.5m in height • Removal of six (6) existing antennas • Installation of twenty one (21) new remote radio units (RRUs) and removal of 12 existing RRUs • Ancillary equipment including but not limited to: new fibre and electrical cabling, new mounts, two (2) new GPS antennas and reconfiguration of existing equipment on the facility and in the existing equipment shelter.

1. Optus regards the proposed installation as compliant with the State Environmental Planning Policy Infrastructure 2007, Part 1 Exempt Development Items 2,18 and 19 based on the description above.

2. In accordance with Section 7 of the C564:2020 Mobile Phone Base Station Deployment Code, we invite you to provide feedback about the proposals. Further information and/or comments should be directed to Russell Carman of Ventia at russell.carman@ventia.com or Locked Bag 4001, Moorabbin VIC 3189 by Monday 29 November 2021.

HubNEWS

Creative hub possible trend for cities

BY EVA BAXTER heatre and Brand X director James Winter said the City of Sydney’s new Creative Studios are a significant statement for the direction of cities following lockdowns.

The surge in working from home and retreat of people to regional areas during lockdown has left cities empty.

The City signed a 99 year lease on a $25 million creative hub via a Voluntary Planning Agreement (VPA) with developer Greenland.

The hub will span 2,000 sqm over five storeys located on Bathurst Street at the old Sydney Water site.

It will feature rehearsal spaces, customised studios, offices and production rooms, and a live/work apartment for a creative fellowship program.

“I think it’s very significant that the City of Sydney have invested in a VPA which gives 2,000 square meters of space to the creative community,” Winter told City Hub. “I think this is going to be the trend that we’re going to watch, is that cities will return back to bespoke human scale driven environments and the arts community has got to play a huge role in that.

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REPURPOSE RENAISSANCE

Brand X, a not-for-profit organisation providing workspace for the local independent arts community will operate the facility for a three-year term.

Since its inception in 2005, Brand X has repurposed approximately 17 properties usually in pre-development phase awaiting Development Applications.

Brand X created Fraser Studios on Kensington Street which operated rehearsal studios, visual arts workspaces, a gallery, and event space in warehouses on the strip which became Spice Alley.

This is going to be the trend to watch In addition to the creative hub, Greenland is developing a $440 million, 67-storey 490 residential apartment block and ground-floor retail space, while a 173-room hotel will also be built on a neighbouring site fronting Pitt Street.

According to Winter, VPA’s negotiate opportunities for developers to get increased height or increased floor space in exchange for giving community

The City has signed a 99 year lease on a new creative hub spanning 2,000 sqm over five storeys.

Photo: Paul Patterson

assets either before or entrenched into the new building.

Successful negotiation by Brand X means 60% of the Creative Studios resources will be available to people who are less likely to be able to afford them, and 40% to major organisations.

“The exciting thing is the energy of significant volumes of artists in a space or in a building concentrating on new ideas.

“The informal exciting part of that is the relationships and collaborations that

happen in the common areas of the space.

“Everyone recognizes that it’s containing all these really exciting people and exciting ideas and they start talking to each other which hopefully form the next ensembles, next companies, next projects, next collaborations,” said Winter.

The final building works and fit out of the Creative Studios is underway and set to be open early 2022.

Community acts for public housing

Hands Off Glebe, protecting the low income community of Glebe, hosted a forum on taking action for public housing. Photo: Hands Off Glebe

BY EVA BAXTER ands off Glebe and Action for Public Housing hosted a remote forum/rally on Saturday October 27th to discuss taking action against the increasing destruction of public housing in the inner city.

Dr Alistair Sisson, academic activist, said there are more than 50,000 households on the waiting list for public housing in NSW and more than 5,000 of them need housing desperately on the priority waiting lists.

“The waiting list of public housing isn’t a very good estimate of how much public housing we actually need to build.

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“It’s actually more of an estimate of how much we need to have right now, how much we should have built years ago.”

Emily Valentine, artist and public housing tenant whose Glebe home is under threat said the government is splitting communities and letting people’s well-being decline.

“We need to retain public housing in the city where there are services, there are schools, there are hospitals, there is public transport.

“It is where the poor have always lived […] the wealthy have cars, let them drive,” she said.

ELECTION REFLECTION

Yvonne Weldon, contesting Clover Moore for Lord Mayor of City of Sydney in December elections, said local government has an important role to play.

“The City of Sydney Council talks big but delivers pitifully small with respect to affordable housing.

“I want to know why Council can’t immediately investigate and identify which Council owned or controlled properties can be repurposed to be used for housing or emergency accommodation.”

Karen Freyer, a candidate for City of Sydney Council on Yvonne Weldon’s

independent team, questioned Councillor Professor and architect Philip Thalis, member of Team Clover Moore over the City of Sydney giving $243.9 million to City West Housing for affordable housing that has not been spent.

Freyer said, “there’s all that money sitting in a bank account that isn’t being spent that could be used today. City of Sydney is collecting these developer contributions and they’re not being put into any use.”

Greens member for Newtown and spokesperson for housing Jenny Leong said “the thing we have to remember is the complete failures of state and federal governments to act […].

The wealthy have cars, let them drive “The horrific situation is people now are crying out for community housing providers to step in because the state government is the worst landlord in the state. Now that is a disastrous situation to be in,” she said.

Hands Off Glebe will host rallies on the first Friday of every month at the corner of Broadway and Bay Street in Glebe and second Saturday of the month at Glebe markets.

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Opinion

The climate emergency on our doorstep

Wollemi National Park borders four new areas of coal exploration set out by the NSW Government. Photo: NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service/Rosie Nicolai

BY DANIELA OSIANDER o you like dinosaurs? Many kids go through a period of dinosaur obsession. Interestingly, studies show that these kids tend to be smarter than those who don’t. Don’t jump to conclusions, but it turns out the NSW Government doesn’t seem to care much about dinosaurs! At least not when it comes to their actual favourite obsession: coal.

Amazingly, we still have living dinosaurs in NSW: our world-famous dinosaur tree, the Wollemi Pine. A species existing millions of years before the first humans appeared on this planet, it was celebrated as one of the greatest botanical discoveries of our time when live trees were stumbled upon by chance in 1994 – right in Sydney’s backyard, the Blue Mountains. Our very own Jurassic Park.

There was a joint sigh of relief when most of the only known wild remnants of these amazingly rare trees, some of them over 1000 years old, were saved from the recent Gospers Mountain mega-fire through the heroic efforts of remote area firefighters. Shortly after, Wollemi became the first site to be declared an ‘asset of intergenerational significance’ by the government.

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TIMES HAVE CHANGED!

Recently that same government proposed eight new areas for coal 18

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exploration, four of them bordering Wollemi National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage area. If released, mining companies can apply for licenses to start looking for coal in diverse forests that are home to endangered species like the Regent Honeyeater, Glossy BlackCockatoo and Spotted-tailed Quoll. For years, conservationists have wanted those areas with their unique sandstone pagodas added to the World Heritage protection area. Now they are at risk of becoming coal mines instead.

But this is not the only problem. In 2017, researchers from Western Sydney University raised an urgent alarm that runoff from another coal mine near Lithgow, operated by Centennial Coal, had disastrous effects on the area. Centennial Coal had – legally – discharged mine waste into the Wollangambe River for years. 22 kilometres downstream within Wollemi National Park, the researchers found salt levels ten times higher than normal and high levels of metals like nickel and zinc, up 9,300 per cent in some cases. Insects in the area had declined by 90 per cent. The scientists described parts of the Wollangambe River as an “ecological desert”.

Just one of the new proposed coal exploration areas, Ganguddy-Kelgoola, is a catchment for Wollemi Creek, the Cudgegong River, Widden Brook, Coricudgy and Blackwater Creeks,

which all flow into the Wollemi National Park.

The same Centennial Coal, owned by Thailand-based Banpu group, recently downgraded its nearby Angus Place Mine Extension Project – after intense protests from environmentalists – from extracting about 135 million tonnes of fossil fuel until 2053 to just 2 million tonnes of coal per year for up to eight years, and changed extraction to the bord and pillar method. This will save hundreds of hectares of endangered and nationally significant wetlands that would have been undermined, drained and killed by the originally proposed longwall mining.

EYES ON GLASGOW But why do we need to rely on researchers’ chance findings and pressure from environmentalists?

Should it not be the NSW Government’s job to act environmentally responsible in the first place? Why release new coal exploration licenses at all, let alone next to one of the most precious, pristine and protected areas of our nation? One of worldwide significance and with natural assets so fragile and precious that their exact location is kept secret?

The world’s political leaders will meet in Glasgow at the UN’s COP 26, our own Prime Minister included, to try

and muster the necessary leadership and joint actions required to solve the biggest crisis humanity has faced.

Climate experts agree that global emissions must sharply plummet this very decade to avoid catastrophic climate impacts. After years of procrastinating, net-zero by 2050 is not enough anymore, a commitment and clear plan to at least halving our current emissions by 2030 are now required to keep below the point when impacts of climate change will tip from very bad to terrifying. The latest UN Report released days ago urgently demands that global coal, oil and gas production must start declining immediately and steeply. It specifically singles out Australia for its continued funding of fossil fuels and says it is “imperative that fossil fuel-producing nations recognise their role and responsibility in closing the production gap and steering us towards a safe climate future.”

Releasing new coal exploration licenses now is wrong. It is also wrong that federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley approved four new mega coal projects in NSW last month alone, despite a Federal Court ruling that she has a duty of care to protect young people from the climate crisis.

 Net-zero by 2050 is not enough anymore Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest, a famous mining magnate himself, brought it to the point in his recent Boyer Lecture ‘Confessions of a Carbon Emitter’: “There’s enough pollutionfree, renewable energy out there to power humanity for the entire Anthropocene. The Anthropocene is the age of humans. But unlike other geological eras, the markers of our age won’t be Tyrannosaurus teeth or asteroid craters, they’ll be giant landfills of single-swig, plastic water bottles – fossils the moment they were made. We have no idea how long the Anthropocene will last. But if we don’t stop warming our planet – it will be geological history’s shortest era.”

Let’s stop these coal mines in our own weekend playground before they even begin. Several environmental groups, such as The Wilderness Society or the Rylstone Region Coal Free Community, have petitions you can sign. Even better, call or write to your state MP and the responsible ministers, Rob Stokes, Paul Toole and Matt Kean.

Maybe one day, in a rocking chair, we can tell our grandchildren how we once helped save the world, watching them play with their dinosaur toys.

CLOVER MOORE SPEAKS AHEAD OF SYDNEY ELECTIONS Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore will enter December’s elections after a tumultuous term on council. harnesses excess heat, steam or other gases that would otherwise be lost to increase the overall efficiency of power generation. Moore said that renewable energy will replace trigeneration once it “comes to the end of its natural life”, but could not identify a timeline specifying when that would occur.

BY DANIEL LO SURDO irst elected to the now-defunct South Sydney Council in 1980, Clover Moore - then a mother lobbying for improved playgrounds and reduced through-traffic in her Redfern community - is now the longest-standing Sydney Lord Mayor, and the first woman popularly elected in the City’s 179year history.

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COVID-19 RECOVERY

And ahead of the December elections, Clover is still hungry (excuse the pun) for Moore.

“I want our transforming, progressive agenda to continue,” she tells City Hub. “I am excited about the possibilities and opportunities, I don’t want the City to go back to the major parties or the inexperienced, and it’s really being very motivated about the work.”

Moore first won the Mayoralty and control of council in 2004, after she was encouraged to run a team in the City after the State Government’s forced amalgamation of South Sydney, the City of Sydney and parts of Leichhardt Council. Backed by a team of Independents and her local community, Moore was elected to the posting which she will hold up to next month’s elections, when the city casts their vote for Lord Mayor.

“Elections are always exciting and challenging I have to say, being out there, meeting people and getting feedback,” Moore says.

“But as Lord Mayor, my work doesn’t stop either, and COVID-19 has added a whole other layer of work - it’s a very demanding time.”

Standing against Moore for the mayoralty will be an all-female cast eyeing a new chapter of governance in the City. Among the candidates will be longtime Labor councillor Linda Scott, Independent Yvonne Weldon, the first Aboriginal candidate vying for Lord Mayor, and Sydney lawyer Shauna Jarrett, who will head the Liberal Party’s ticket in the City.

“Moore has been mayor for 17 years,” Jarrett told City Hub in July. “[This election] is an opportunity for change, and Liberals at both the state and federal levels have brought proper fiscal

Clover Moore will be seeking another term as Sydney Lord Mayor. Photo: Mark Dickson

management and real change. It’s the City of Sydney’s turn.”

GOING GREEN

After multiple close calls with bankruptcy during the late 20th century, Moore prioritised responsible financial management within council, with planning, property investments and infrastructure funding flagged atop the agenda. Three years later, a new focus within the inner-city grabbed Moore’s attention.

“We had a conversation in 2007, when a majority of people across the city said that they wanted to address climate change,” she says.

“We did the research, we did the master plan, we’ve made the commitments and we’ve honoured them.”

This year, the City reached their 70 per cent emissions reduction target nine years earlier than anticipated. Among the measures to improve sustainable practices are the installation of LED lights in Sydney streets, an increased array of solar panels in homes and

businesses, and the use of 100 per cent renewable electricity in council operations.

Despite the environmental strategy put in place, Moore’s administration has come under fire for its increased energy consumption in the last 15 years. Since its baseline recordings in 2006, natural gas usage had quadrupled up to June 2021, prompting rivalling candidates to question the measures implemented in council.

 COVID-19 has added a whole other layer of work Yvonne Weldon has promised to “aggressively electrify” the City and “power a genuinely green recovery” from COVID-19, while Greens candidate Sylvie Ellsmore has prioritised “urgent action to address the climate crisis” should she be elected.

The City’s gas usage has largely stemmed from pool heating and gasfired co and trigeneration, which

With fully vaccinated Sydneysiders having enjoyed returning freedoms from October 11, the successful reopening of the city and 24-hour economy remains pressing business for Moore.

To facilitate greater social distancing and ventilation, council and the NSW Government have worked to create a “city for the people” through the increased pedestrianised section on George Street, introducing new al fresco and outdoor dining options for hospitality venues, and forming pop-up cycleways - the latter two initiatives are now set to become permanent following a meeting this week between Moore and NSW Treasurer Matt Kean.

“It’s been very strong policy for us for a very long time, and COVID-19 has really got the state government to join us in doing those things,” Moore says.

“It was very hard in the past to get the state government to separate cycleways on state roads really, they wouldn’t even have considered … taking away car spaces and putting in outdoor dining, and now they’re partnering with us.”

The last phase of the NSW Government’s reopening roadmap will occur at 95 per cent vaccination, or by 15 December (whichever happens first), whereby unvaccinated people will be able to enjoy the same freedoms as those who have had the jab.

When Sydney reaches the final leg of the roadmap, Moore’s mayoralty may have reached its end. But if that is the case, it won’t be from a want of trying.

“I can’t see into the future,” Moore says. “[But] I think while I have the energy, while I’m so excited by the possibilities, I have a great councillor team and we have great staffing … I’m very motivated to do that.

“When the time comes, I’ll make sure there are plans in place.”

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Opinion

There are none so blind…

BY PETER HEHIR hat does a burning Koala clinging to a eucalypt ablaze in the Blue Mountains, have to do with a brand new diesel-powered SUV with just the driver on board, travelling in air-conditioned comfort at 80 kilometres an hour in a WestConnex tunnel under Ashfield some 100 kilometres away?

Diesel-powered vehicles produce exhaust gases that are not only carcinogenic and seriously impact the health of inner-city residents when released through the unfiltered exhaust stacks, but they also contribute significantly to the greenhouse effect that is steadily and relentlessly warming and blanketing our planet and playing havoc with our climate.

Each and every day the excavation and transportation of hundreds of B-doubles lumbering along the City West Link, loaded with a staggering tonnage of WestConnex sandstone spoil also make a significant contribution to local air pollution and add a little bit more to global warming.

Even people who chase cows, ride around in massive diesel-powered machinery, spray pesticides and grow

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stuff – the backbone of the National Party, are becoming ever more pissed off with the inaction on climate change.

MAKING CHANGE

The Union movement has been on about the transition from fossil fuel to sustainable energy for some years now, exhibiting a forward-thinking mindset, steeped in the recognition that climate change is an undeniable fact.

He or she who holds the most money is the winner This is something that the super-rich ultra-conservative naysayers in their CBD ivory towers still refuse to accept, even though on days where the temperature inversion level is so low, they can barely see the adjacent penthouse just a hundred metres or so away because of the concentration of smog.

Not only is there no incentive in the transport industries to move away from diesel-powered vehicles, exactly the opposite has happened. Even in Laborcontrolled Victoria, there is a tax on electric vehicles!

Climate change across the world - and in Australia - has well and truly begun. Photo: Creative Commons

If either of the major parties cared at all about the health of the present population and of those who will inherit the whirlwind, if they spared a thought about the rapid extinction of thousands of species, not just here but right across the world, then this begs the following questions: How can this be? Why is it so? Is it because politicians are inherently stupid? That myopia is a fundamental criterion of entry into political life?

Hardly.

In the game of politics, he or she who holds the most money is the winner.

There is a connection between the charred trees and the blackened carcasses of our wildlife, the disappearing insects and frogs, the mania of population growth and indeed of growth itself.

Most of us can see that. I think we all know why our leaders can’t, or rather, won’t.

COFFIN ED’S NAKED CITY

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BEWARE THE ‘ABBATAR’

hen Swedish pop group ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1974 with their song Waterloo, few could have predicted the global fame they would achieve. Even after their break up in 1982, their legacy has continued for decades with tribute bands, movies, stage shows and endless airplay on radio. Now in 2021 it seems they are back, with a brand new album and a stage show that introduces the ‘ABBAtar’.

Many of their long lasting fans around the world will welcome this rebirth, however others will throw up their hands in disdain. ABBA have always been one of those bands that people either love or never want to hear again, consigned to the trash heap of pop along with Buck’s Fizz and the Bay City Rollers. Whilst Australia lapped them up in the 70s, in America they faced a barrage of criticism.

Reviewing their album Arrival in 1976, Ken Tucker from Rolling Stone wrote: “Even more than their three previous American releases, Arrival is Muzak mesmerising in its modality. By reducing their already vapid lyrics to utter irrelevance, lead singers Anni-Frid 20

CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

Lyngstad and Agnetha Fältskog are liberated to matter on in their shrill voices without regard to emotion or expression, and the language barrier is broken...”

Likewise his compatriot Stephen Holden commented: “Ultimately, though, Abba are as expendable as they are exportable. In treating pop music as a computer game, they’re Sweden’s answer to Space Invaders...”

Over the past four decades there have been numerous rumours of ABBA reforming, always denied by the group despite the mention of huge financial incentives. Now with a new album, they

will soon be back on the concert stage, albeit as digital avatars of their old selves, not the crusty senior citizens that they are today.

Whereas many pop bands and performers, who continue on into their 70s and even 80s, are happy to hit the stage, wrinkles and rusty joints alike, ABBA have chosen to cheat the clock.

Admittedly they would look somewhat ridiculous if they chose to actually appear in person, clad in the shiny, silky outfits and tight fitting jump suits they donned during the 70s.

Nevertheless, many of those in the antiABBA camp, will view the ‘ABBAtar’ as

cringeworthy and perhaps an unfortunate precursor of things to come. We have already seen concert tours that feature holograms of artists such as Elvis and it’s only a matter of time, and rapid improvements in technology, before on stage avatars become common place.

That’s one of the scenario’s that awaits us in Mark Zuckerberg’s ‘Metaverse’, where pop stars will never grow old, let alone completely fall off the twig. The dead will be resurrected and the living will never die. Elvis, for example, is bound to be back, with both a young hip shaking avatar and a more portly Viva Las Vegas version. More importantly his avatars will be duplicated multiple times, meaning on any one day he could be performing at 50 or 60 venues worldwide. And no need for those peanut butter, bacon and banana sandwiches in the backstage rider.

Eventually the public will no longer tolerate the glitches and imperfections of live human beings on stage and demand only a perfectly choreographed avatar. Groupies will still congregate at the stage door, waiting for their favourite performers to appear, but any hanky panky back in the hotel room, could prove rather disappointing.

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SYDNEY INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S JAZZ FESTIVAL:

Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival prepares for a welcome the return to the stage (See p. 22)

THE RETURN OF THEATRE ROYAL

BY RENEE DALLOW here is nothing quite like live theatre and what better time to revive the theatre scene than right now? Sydney’s Theatre Royal is still in the process of being carefully and tastefully restored and refurbished with the original detail and design still present.

“The Theatre Royal is really suited for many different shows. We have done so much work on the refurbishment including heightening the ceiling for a new air conditioning system, adding new women’s lavatories and we have added new bars in the foyer,” said Tim McFarlane, executive chairman of Trafalgar Entertainment.

“There is also accessible seating for the disabled alongside a new lift to connect the levels.”

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Harry Seidler designed the entrance to the theatre. A modernist circular design, which has been upgraded, and now features clear glass all round so that passers by can see right into the grand foyer. “We wanted that connection to the street.” added McFarlane. The theatre will also retain its modernist ceiling designed by Italian architect Pier Nervi, who also designed the MLC centre.

“We have put back Nervi’s beautiful sculpture, Mercator, which again hangs from the ceiling and is very visible through the clear glass of the entrance.”

The Theatre, is preparing to open it’s doors very soon with it’s first big production being, Jagged Little Pill, with Natalie Bassingthwaighte and music

by Alanis Morissette in December. That

COME FROM AWAY

BY MARK MORELLINI ome From Away is a startling achievement with unfathomable heart and soul. A high energy musical with occasional heightened emotional intensity that should, surprisingly, have audiences laughing joyfully throughout.

The book, music and lyrics are by Irene Sankoff and David Hein and it’s incredible to believe that this feelgood show is based on the events that followed on that tragic day in New York when terrorists attacked the World Trade Centre.

The musical takes audiences to a small Canadian town on the Island of Newfoundland called Gander, where 38 passenger jets that were flying over the Atlantic on September 11 were diverted owing to the closure of the US airspace.

The musical has 12 actors performing

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on stage for a solid 100 minutes without an intermission, swiftly traversing from one scene to the next, on a jet plane one moment then creating a scene on a bus or on land with the townsfolk. Movements and interactions on stage with other performers are meticulously timed and faultless never missing a beat, highlighting the professionalism necessary to stage such intricate scenes.

Come From Away is triumphant. The storytelling process doesn’t dwell on the evil that occurred on that fateful day, but more importantly details the uplifting and inspiring true story of how a community came to the aid of strangers, the newfound friendships and the inspiring acts of kindness that were reciprocated.

This is a musical that not only entertains but strives to spread awareness concerning the importance of kindness and community aid. The perfect show for the entire family to watch especially during these unchartered and darkened times living with COVID-19.

Until Jan 9. Capital Theatre, 13 Campbell St, Haymarket. $59-$185+b.f. Tickets & Info: www.comefromaway.com.au

Tim McFarlane.

Photo: Pierre Toussaint

will then be followed by Girl From The North Country starring Lisa McCune and includes music by Bob Dylan.

These musicals both deal with family divides. The former is one of the most Tony Award nominated shows of all time.

Following will be a return to the grand old musicals of the 50s with American In Paris, originally a film, with Gene Kelly and Leslie Carron.

Trafalgar Entertainment is a company that produces as well and is co- producing Jagged Little Pill. So we can expect many more new and exciting shows from this gem of the Theatre establishment.

Theatre Royal is located at 108 King Street, Sydney.

Jagged Little Pill opens December 2, keep an eye out for further coverage from City Hub.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG

BY MARK MORELLINI ho would have thought that a musical surrounding the inseparable friendship between three young people working in the world of showbiz could be the best night out in theatre, therapeutic even after three gruelling months at home in lockdown?

Mary, Charley and Frank meet and quickly become friends. A wannabe novelist, lyricist and composer respectively, they have high aspirations of ‘hitting the big time’. From humble beginnings they slowly build their careers but have different goals as how to reach the top.

But can the friendships survive?

Friendships change, fade even and as one of the characters stated, “Friendships are like gardens you have to water and care for them.” Do we take our closest friendships for granted and only realise their importance once estranged? Are careers more significant than friendships?

Themes explored in what can best be described as a study of friendships include betrayal, humiliation, rejection, achieving and reshaping dreams and marital infidelity. Is this ultimately a portrayal of what really goes on behind the scenes in the ‘not so glamorous’

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Ainsley Melham, Andrew Coshan, Elise McCann. Photo: Phil Erbacher

yet sought-after world of theatre in order to reach the top?

A large and very talented cast on stage are headed by Ainsley Melham, Andrew Coshan and Elise McCann, three A-List actors who evidently have put so much energy and passion into their performances. Exquisite musical numbers, stylish staging, humorous scripting, a memorable musical score and an innovative and unique style of storytelling through video projection all compound to deliver an entertaining and mesmerising night out at the theatre.

Not to be missed!

Until Dec 4. Hayes Theatre Co. 19 Greenknowe Ave, Potts Point. $79-$89+b.f. Tickets & Info: www.hayestheatre.com.au CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

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SYDNEY MALE CHOIR

SYDNEY’S INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S JAZZ FESTIVAL

BY ASTON BROWN he Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival prepares for a welcome the return to the stage across 10 days of music to highlight the contribution that women are making to jazz.

In conversation with City Hub the internationally acclaimed Dr Sandy Evans – named Australia’s most influential saxophonist - said she is thrilled to be part of the festival.

“There are no words to describe just how important it is, it’s incredible that they are going ahead,” Evans said. “Everybody is just dying to play music together, and as far as I can tell audiences are really hungry to actually have the experience of live music.”

The festival which started 2012, has grown to showcase the best female talent in jazz that is often underrepresented in a male dominated scene.

“It’s still not an equal representation… most of the bands I play in I’m the only woman,” said Evans. “I think the festival is partly responsible for that change, because

it’s giving a platform for women to develop creative work and have their work presented to the public.”

In conversation, Evans reflects on the struggles of the past two years amidst endless cancelations and rescheduling.

“It’s just been shocking… I sort of begun to wonder, am I a musician?

If you can’t get together and play with other people, it’s challenging to keep your sense of who you are as a musician.”

With this in mind, Evans has never been more excited in her more than 40 years as a saxophonist to play live with other musicians.

“I think having this is such a huge celebration and opportunity to create a positive vibe for the future... we definitely need to heal the music industry, it’s one of the hardest hit.

We really need to nurture it back to its health, strength and creativity.

I’m just so over the moon it’s happening… I think it’s just going to be incredible.”

Nov 12-21. Various Venues & Prices. Tickets & Info: www.siwjf.org.au

the ocean – and the impact that has had on his own mental health. Harries credits his father for instilling within him healthy coping mechanisms when dealing with these kinds of themes.

Swiss 8 has recognised the need for healthy support tools for people to turn to for 24/7access to accredited mental health support devices and is launching the BBQ To Remember to raise funds to build proactive mental health tools for all Australians.

The BBQ involves an impressive raffle, at $5 per ticket, with a prizepool valued at a staggering 180K. For ticket purchases and more information click on this link and support this very worthwhile cause. swiss8.org/ bbqtoremember/raffle

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BY JARROD WOLFHUNTER he Sydney Male Choir surely has to be Sydney’s hidden gem of performers.

The choir has around 50 members, all from very diverse backgrounds, who come together once a week to practice their singing routine.

The groups inception was almost 108 years ago in 1913. The man responsible for this robust institution was a violinist named Charlie Miller. Charlie lost three fingers in an industrial accident forcing him to look past his violin and into another musical avenue. In the year before the first World War, Charlie had garnered enough interest around town to start the longstanding Sydney Male Choir.

Jim Neville is the current President of the Choir and talks passionately about being at the helm of the choir as it persists through the doldrums of the pandemic and all its uncertainty. Sadly, the choir had to cancel their annual concert at Sydney Town Hall, and many other performances, during the recent shutdown.

Neville talks about the challenges involved in organising these events but concedes that with many willing and capable members, the formidable workload is much easier to manage.

There is no dust on the Sydney Male Choir going into 2022 because their online efforts in the shutdown period allowed

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members to hone their craft under the direction of new firebrand Musical Director, Warwick Tyrrell. The online platform allowed Tyrrell the advantage of giving individual directives to choir members through the digital group space. This gave members the opportunity to practice in a solo space but with direct input from the Musical Director to benefit the overall group.

The Sydney Male Choir has supported talent like Marina Prior, Kamal, David Hobson and Yvonne Kenny in the past.

They’re due to support Tenor, Mark Vincent next August after a few unavoidable postponements of late.

It seems that the sky’s the limit for the Sydney Male Choir. However, this volunteer organisation is currently running with the COVID handicap. Neville outlines that going into the future, the choir’s priorities are recruiting new members, developing new repertoire, and performing in new shows to attract new audiences.

Neville urges newcomers to visit their website for information on how to get involved.

Sydney has surged back to life in the past few weeks and the Sydney Male Choir is leading proceedings with their calendar already booking out with concerts well into 2022. Get along to a show to give your support, or, roll up to the York Club on Tuesday nights at 6pm to get involved!

A BBQ TO REMEMBER

BY JARROD WOLFHUNTER nthony ‘Harries’ Carroll is Australia’s favourite Bondi Rescue Lifesaver. Harries has teamed up with Swiss 8 – a Veteranled mental health charity – as an ambassador to their latest mental health campaign – A BBQ To Remember.

Swiss 8 is a health promotion charity, founded by combat veterans to build proactive mental health tools. A BBQ To Remember is an initiative

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encouraging Aussies to connect with their mates over a BBQ on or around Remembrance Day, to pause and reflect on the sacrifices of our courageous men and women in uniform.

Harries talks candidly about his own issues around mental health in the context of his life-saving experiences.

As a life-saver for over 20 years, he has been involved with many retrievals of people who have taken their own lives by jumping from nearby cliffs into

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THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK an undercurrent of tension for a story which is centred around inner turmoil as a man rises through the ranks of the mob.

For die hard fans of The Sopranos this film will be a wonderful nostalgic hit with a plethora of Easter eggs, call backs & further background to the story. For those who are unfamiliar

BY JAMIE APPS with the lore of The Sopranos this film fter 14 years Tony Soprano is back will likely fall flat. on our screens, this time you’ll Michael Gandolfini is fantastic in need to head into the cinema rather his role of young Tony Soprano, a than simply flicking on the TV to see character his father made famous. this story though. The Many Saints Of In fact it would have been nice to see Newark acts as a prequel to the highly more of him. regarded HBO series, The Sopranos, Stylistically The Many Saints Of Newark and is being touted with the line ‘who is very well produced, particularly as created of Tony Soprano?’ it closely imitates elements from The Whilst the film is billed as the origin Sopranos tv series. story of Tony Soprano he actually plays As a stand alone gangster flick The a rather minor role in the story. Instead Many Saints Of Newark is too slow, with the film revolves around Duckie no real payoff to speak of. Perhaps this Moltisanti (Alessandro Nivola), who is project would have been better suited Tony’s uncle & man he idolises during as a mini series to allow for more time the late 1960s to mid-1970s. to unravel the many layers it hurriedly The Many Saints Of Newark is a deeply presents over the course of the film. layered & multifaceted film which Fans of The Sopranos will love this explores the mafia underworld, rival flick but new viewers will be left gangs & racial tensions throughout underwhelmed.

New York. However, these all act as WW1/2

68TH SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL

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THE ‘ETERNALS’ HAVE ARRIVED, BUT HAVE WE SEEN IT ALL BEFORE

BY MARK MORELLINI he latest Marvel blockbuster has just hit our screens and in all its grandeur it really feels like we’ve seen it all before.

It’s a feast for the senses with high-tech CGI, deafening sound effects, humorous dialogue and an incredible battle finale which won’t disappoint the avid fan base.

But is it actually a rehashed ‘same old, same old’ to milk the brand for millions of dollars at the all-important world box office?

There’s a new breed of superheroes called Eternals, an immortal alien race who came to Earth 7000 years ago to protect humanity from the murderous Deviants, but their golden rule is they must not become involved in any other human conflicts so that humans can

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develop on their own.

But why are the Deviants now killing the Eternals and draining them of their powers? With strange happenings escalating is the end approaching for planet Earth? Can the Eternals save humanity?

Action packed with incredible fight sequences and a touch of romance, the writers have attempted to add originality to the brand by having the protectors jump backwards and forwards in time to different countries and naturally Australia receives a visit.

There’s much to absorb in the story which at times is slow paced and incoherent.

References to The Avengers may also lead audiences to question whether there may be a cross-over film in the future.

Pakistani American comedian Kumail Nanjiani is the standout providing many laughs. While Angelina Jolie, who is the most prominent cast member, plays an elite warrior.

This is the 26th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) which has already spawned a sequel before its release.

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BY MARK MORELLINI fter the postponement owing to COVID-19 restrictions in August, the 68th Sydney Film Festival has been scheduled for its long-awaited return in early November.

With a program consisting of over 200 films from around the globe, film festival enthusiasts may return to darkened cinemas after a long hiatus or they may also choose to watch a film on demand in the comfort of their own homes, from a program that includes 56 feature films and 13 shorts.

With the reopening of cinemas after three gruelling months of staying at home watching movies on Netflix and other digital platforms it’s a sure bet that most people would prefer to attend and enjoy the cinema experience.

“There’s a fundamental difference between watching a film at the cinema and watching it at home. At home you’re far more distracted, you’re not as immersed in the film as you’d be in a darkened cinema. At the Sydney Film Festival, you’re usually surrounded by many people and react to the film in a collective way. There’s a wonderful joint reaction to the film, usually positive and you can talk to absolute strangers about the experience,” explained Festival Director Nashen Moodley.

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Audiences may enjoy special presentations at the magnificent State Theatre including award-winning Titane and The Power Of Dog. Controversial documentaries are also in abundance with titles including award-winning Four Seasons In A Day and The Rescue, which tells of the heroic rescue of a Thai soccer team who were trapped in a flooded cave.

It’s very important that film festivals attract younger audiences so this year there’s a family program that consists of four quality films for general audiences. The Ape Star is a delightful, animated film from Sweden which should be quite popular with families.

Festival attendees need not feel ill at ease as all health advice and regulations will be monitored to ensure that all patrons have an enjoyable and safe cinema experience at each screening.

Why should moviegoers who have never attended a screening at the Sydney Film Festival come along and catch a film or two? “Because audiences will learn what filmmaking talents there are around the globe and what issues are most prominent and compelling in different corners of the world. I also think it’s exciting to sit down in front of something that you know absolutely nothing about and see where it takes you.”

HOT PICKS A BLACK JESUS – From Germany comes this controversial documentary that details the anxiety caused in a small Sicilian town when a dilemma arises.

Should an African refugee be permitted to carry a prized statue in a religious ceremony?

COMPARTMENT NO.6 – This Cannes Grand Prix winner from Finland tells the story of a romance that builds when two strangers meet and journey through the Arctic Circle on a Russian train.

ERNA AT WAR – Set in 1918, when a 17-year-old is drafted into the final year of the great war his mother disguises herself as a young soldier so she can enlist and protect her son. An incredible story of maternal love from Denmark.

Nov 3-14. State Theatre, Event George & others. (Check website). $21-$165+b.f. Nov 12-21 On Demand Program.

Tickets & Info: www.sff.org.au CITY HUB NOVEMBER 2021

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