It’s incredible to see how far waste technology has come and we’re thrilled to announce a new high-tech waste collection service will be rolled out across the Northern Beaches from mid next year.

This will mean a highly improved level of service for all residents, some great environmental outcomes and cost savings we can pass on to our ratepayers.

You’ll see a fleet of brand new trucks fitted with the latest technology and safety features. The trucks will also have an enclosed loading hopper to prevent plastic or paper escaping and they are even fuelled by recycled plastic bricks.

Best of all, along with our new waste processing contract, we’ll be able to divert 70 percent of waste from landfill, a huge 40 percent increase on current rates. Stay tuned, we’ll have more information for residents when we get closer to rolling out the new service.

The future of District Park at North Manly was secured this week, with Council’s decision meaning it will remain in public ownership with an 18-hole golf course and an enhanced multi-sports facility for the whole community to enjoy, along with additional community benefits.

We resolved to negotiate with the top-ranked tenderer, thus freeing up some of the existing clubs to be able to now be at the table in discussions to ensure the best possible outcome. These discussions were not previously possible as the clubs were parties to the tender process.

All along, we’ve all wanted the same thing - an upgraded multi-sports facility that is expertly run and enjoyed by a range of sports users, meeting our community’s growing demands for better sports facilities.

Finally, the Manly Arts Festival marks an incredible 25 year milestone this year and the program is packed with great art, music and events. It launched yesterday and runs until 23 September, so be sure to pick up or download a program so you don’t miss out.

Have a great weekend.

Michael Regan

Traffic congestion is crippling the Northern Beaches, with the Pittwater/Spit/Military roads corridor the most congested in Sydney and Warringah Road already exceeding capacity.

Our ‘Chatswood Challenge’, where four of us raced a car, bus, train and bike to Chatswood from Newport this week, showed how poor public transport can be a massive drain on our time and our economy. (Yep, the bike won!)

In our area we have a massive reliance on cars - more than half of our households have two or more of them - and our traffic won’t improve if we don’t have viable public transport alternatives.

In April, we put out a transport discussion paper to stimulate public discussion about both transport opportunities and challenges on the Northern Beaches. We received over 2,000 submissions in response to the paper and have listened to all you have told us.

I am excited that the draft Move - Northern Beaches Transport Strategy will be going to Council for endorsement next week and then back out to the community for further input.

The Strategy aims to change how we move around the Northern Beaches and travel to other areas of Sydney, make us less reliant on cars and use a more accessible, frequent and better public transport service.

By 2038 we want a quarter of all trips to be by public transport, to double the number of active travel trips and reduce journeys in cars by 30 per cent.

They are just a few of the ambitious targets in the Strategy, targets we think we can reach with the right investment and support from the state government and you, our community.

Imagine a future where cars don’t dominate our roads and congestion is a thing of the past. Let’s aim high and see what we can achieve through improved infrastructure, more public transport and better regional connections.

Also, as many of you know the state government has released their first detailed plan for the tunnel to the city. Make sure you give any feedback directly to the RMS as well as us at Council. It is the biggest piece of infrastructure ever proposed for the Northern Beaches and we need to ensure every voice is heard.

Have a great weekend.

Michael Regan

Local 10-year-old Jack Berne is bringing Australians together one flanno at a time. His push to raise funds to help the drought-stricken farmers is gaining momentum across the country and donations are pouring in. Young Jack has inspired me to do something too, and throughout next week we’ll be encouraging all Council staff to dig deep and contribute to his campaign. You can get behind it too at afiverforafarmer.com.au.

I’ve been fielding some questions this week about what Council is doing to support residents who want to compost their food waste following the latest episode of ABC’s War on Waste. You’ll be pleased to know we’ve got something in the pipeline which will be rolled out mid-next year. New technology means that food going into the general waste bin will be able to be processed, the organics separated and used to produce compost for use in broad-acre agriculture and mine site revegetation.

It will make sure the maximum amount of organic waste is recovered without any need for you to separate it at the source, and will also ensure that the products made from our excellent garden vegetation recycling is not compromised. We’re expecting it will take our waste diversion rate from around 50% currently to over 70%. We’ll have more information in the coming months. Stay tuned!

Next Friday marks Vietnam Veterans Day. This day honours the 108 Australian and New Zealand diggers who fought in a fierce battle against over 2,000 North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops in a rubber plantation not far from the small village of Long Tan in 1966. Fortunately the Australians prevailed, but like most wars at a cost to human life – 18 Australians lost their lives and 24 were wounded. Lest we forget. I will be attending a commemorative service at the War Memorial in Manly to mark my respects.

Have a good weekend.

Michael Regan

It’s not often I get an excuse as good as Local Government Week to boast about all the incredible things your local council does in our community every day.

While once we may have been known for roads, rates and rubbish, the modern council is so much more.

Yes, we pick up household rubbish and manage over 850km of local roads, but many people are surprised when I tell them that it’s Council who runs the Manly Art Gallery and Museum, our two aquatic centres and even Glen Street Theatre.

We manage over 120 sportsfields, 220 playgrounds and a growing number of skate parks, and we are developing more to support the Northern Beaches’ active lifestyle.

Our six libraries and community libraries attract over a million visits a year and are now operating a seamless, one-catalogue system with almost 180,000 members.

We provide childcare for over 4,000 kids and operate 41 community centres which host everything from cooking classes for seniors to life drawing and playgroups for children with disability.

We have a great team who look after our unique bushland and waterways, including environmental scientists, bushcare specialists, and engineers who manage floods and stormwater, and we patrol and clean our 21 beaches and 15 ocean rockpools.

Our incredible events attract people from all over the world to enjoy the best places, music, food and entertainment while supporting our local businesses.

Our education teams have a reach far and wide - just today they have joined forces with grass roots community groups for a Mega Beach Clean at Avalon.

And of course, our new size and capacity means we are able to influence decisions made by state and federal governments that impact on our community - such as planning laws and transport.

This year’s theme for Local Government Week is ‘the power of community’, and this is really where local government comes into its own. It’s our community who drives everything we do, every decision we make, and what makes local government so worthwhile to be a part of.

Have a good weekend.

Michael Regan