IT’S THE BEST ECHO OF 2022, BY FAR The Byron Shire Echo • Volume 37 #29 • December 28, 2022 • www.echo.net.au
All we want for Christmas is…
EPA investigates Council over creek soil dumping/stockpiling Hans Lovejoy
A rally organised by Mandy Nolan and Cr Cate Coorey on Christmas Eve in Byron Bay saw hundreds gather in misty rain at Apex Park to oppose the NSW government’s backflip on Council’s push to cap short-term holiday accommodation to 90 days in some residential zones. Speaking on behalf of Victims of Holiday Letting (VOHL), Doug Luke says he applauded Council’s unanimous vote, and was appalled that the decision-making for the process was taken away by the state government. Jan Barham, who was in this same fight 20 years ago as Byron Shire Mayor, says the government should respect the wishes of the locals. ‘They need to allow us to be a community, we deserve that.’ Read more on page 2, 3. Photo Eve Jeffery
NYE Soul Street celebrations in Byron Paul Bibby Byron Bay’s CBD will be transformed into a car and alcohol-free mini festival on December 31, as the town once again rings in the new year with its Soul Street celebration. Soul Street will take place in the centre of town from 4pm, with entertainment on Jonson Street from 4pm till 8pm, and on the main stage at Dening Park from 6pm on. There will also be a swag of food and beverage stalls, and roving street performers.
Catering to all ages, the event will be completely drug and alcohol free, with Byron Council promising a ‘strong police presence’ and a zero-tolerance policy for antisocial behaviour.
Road closures ‘We welcome families to Byron Bay to bring in the new year at a celebration that is safe, inclusive, and respectful,’ Byron Mayor Michael Lyon said. ‘The streets of Byron Bay will not be a place to come for a big party
Vale Tony Barry, actor and activist ▶ p3
and there will be a strong police presence to ensure that everyone has a good time,’ he said. Jonson Street will be closed to traffic from 6am on December 31, as well as some surrounding streets and the Main Beach and Lawson Street car parks. Detours will be in place and the town bypass will be open. All roads will reopen by 8am January 1, 2023. For more information, visit www. byron.nsw.gov.au/Community/ Whats-on-in-Byron-Shire/ByronBay-Soul-Street-New-Years-Eve.
Executive Council staff have refused to answer key questions around a large amount of soil that was dumped on Marshalls Creek floodplain in The Pocket recently, which is believed to be stockpiled for Council infrastructure projects. Last week’s story, Soil dumping on Marshalls Creek, found to be Council’s stockpile, reported that staff only became involved after Cr Duncan Dey raised the issue; previous attempts by concerned residents to contact staff fell on deaf ears. The EPA has told The Echo it was not notified of the issue, ‘and will enquire with Byron Shire Council about the site and material’. The matter was already under ‘delegated authority’ by staff, which so far, has seen the landowner at 295 Pocket Road, The Pocket, escape a fine and be given over four months to remove the fill. Such unauthorised works usually attract large fines and immediate restoration orders. On December 19, Council published a press release, There is no tolerance for illegal dumping. It was in response to ‘reports of a pile of asbestos fibro sheeting that had been dumped in and around kerbside bins in the Byron Arts and Industry Estate’. It was cleaned up immediately, ‘because of the potential threat to public health and safety’. An urgency motion at the last Council meeting by Cr Dey to immediately act on the soil dumping in The Pocket was unsupported by a councillor majority; Mayor Michael Lyon, Crs Mark Swivel, Peter Westheimer and Alan Hunter voted against.
Craig Watson skippers Mullum Auto refutes his first Sydney to Council staff’s claims over lost parking ▶ p5 Hobart ▶ p4
When questioned online by a concerned resident around Mayor Michael Lyon’s ‘inaction and risk avoidance’ on the matter, he downplayed any urgency and supported staff over the residents who initially raised the issue.
Mayor Lyon downplays ĶŔżëĈƐƆǽ ƆƖżżşſƐƆ ƆƐëǔ He replied, ‘I just don’t need to put through an “urgency” motion of Council in order to get the necessary action from staff in relation to the matter. I am very confident the matter will be dealt with appropriately by staff’. Cr Dey says there is urgency owing to the potential for environmental damage, given the wet season and the extended timeframe given for remediation. Council’s Legal Counsel, Ralph James, told The Echo, ‘Following the December 15, 2022, Ordinary Meeting, where Cr Dey’s Urgency Motion was not supported by Council, the Director Infrastructure Services, Phil Holloway, has directed the Manager Works and other relevant staff to undertake certain assessments of the fill on the property and to report findings to the General Manager [Mark Arnold]’. The Echo asked, ‘Will these findings be made public, and if not, why?’ Echo questions put to Council staff last week that remain unanswered are: ‘Why are staff allowing the landowner over four months to remove this soil? Aren’t staff concerned that this poses an immediate pollution risk to the creek?’ and, ‘Are there any reports that underpin the decision to allow such a delayed removal?’
The year that was – in pictures ▶ p14
Hello Summer! ▶ p18
BISTRO
open 7 days for
LUNCH & DINNER
Jonson Street, Byron Bay • 02 6685 6878 • www.byronbayservicesclub.com.au