Cleaning up Islington Park

 

 

Clean Up Australia Day is Australia’s biggest community participation event. In 2011 more than 565,510 volunteers across 7,400 sites collected an estimated 16,464 tonnes of rubbish across the country.

 

This year we’re cleaning up Islington Park again. Last year we had a committed band of 14 volunteers collect 28 bags of rubbish from the park and creek, if you’d like to help us out, meet us at the picnic shelter near the Islington Park playground on Sunday 4 March from 9.00 am.

 

Please wear covered shoes, long pants and a hat and bring gardening gloves if you have them. Bags will be provided. You can register beforehand at the Clean Up Australia Day website or just turn up on the day.

 

You can also check out photos from last year’s clean up and keep up to date with news and events on the Islington Village Facebook page.

 

Hope to see you there!

Works underway on Throsby Creek

Hunter Water have commenced rehabilitation works along Throsby Creek. The works will involve constructing rock toe protection and rock revetment on the creek banks behind the existing mangrove populations, as well as battering the bank. The construction work is planned to be completed on the Southern Bank by the end of March 2012, weather dependant. Works on the Northern Bank are expected to occur from early April to the end of May 2012.

During February and March access will be closed to the footpath/cycleway between Islington Park and Graham Bridge on the southern bank. For more details go to www.hunterwater.com.au.

It’s on again!

The Throsby Big Brunch is on again this month in Islington Park!

 The Throsby Big Brunch is an Islington Park Placemaking initiative and the brainchild of Melanie McKinnon, an enthusiastic Tighes Hill resident. After a successful launch in 2010 the event promises to be even bigger in 2011 thanks to a successful application for funding from the Newcastle City Council Community Assistance Program and the fabulous support of local Throsby residents.

On Sunday 30 October from 10 am onwards residents of Carrington, Islington, Maryville, Tighes Hill and Wickham are invited to the table to share food, harvest and conversation under the fig trees in Islington Park. To find out more and reserve your free seat, go to www.throsbybigbrunch.org.

Hunter Water’s rehabilitation plans for Throsby Creek

At the June Islington Village Community Group meeting Julia Irwin and her colleagues from Hunter Water were invited to provide a presentation on Hunter Water’s proposed works to rehabilitate eroded sections of Throsby Creek.

The proposed works, which are currently scheduled to commence by the end of 2011, will involve construction of rock structures behind existing mangroves to stabilise the creek banks on the Maryville side of the creek from the Hunter Valley Research Foundation site to the Union Street footbridge, and on the Tighes Hill side of the creek from Graham Bridge upstream to Tighes Terrace. A concrete ramp will also be contructed on the creek bank downstream of the footbridge (on the Islington Park side) to allow access for Hunter Water maintenance.

The Hunter Water team also discussed studies currently underway to inform future works on the creek, including investigating options for removal of sediment and rubbish from the creek.

Once the rehabilitation works have been officially approved and scheduled Hunter Water will begin communicating with residents in the streets surrounding Islington Park on any impacts they may experience while the construction works are underway. Further information will also be published via this website and through the Tighes Hill Community Group website.

If you have any questions or concerns relating to the proposed works please email them to Graeme Pauley, coordinator of the Tighes Hill Community Group, at: coordinator@tigheshill.org or Paul McBain, coordinator of the Islington Village Community Group, at: islingtonvillagecg@hotmail.com.

Plans underway for new playground

The Islington Park playground working group met on 21 May to discuss options for a proposed upgrade.

Over $210,000 has been committed by the former NSW Labor Government and The City of Newcastle for an upgrade of the children’s playground in Islington Park, and a process of community consultation has been underway since September 2010 to ensure the needs of playground visitors are addressed through the upgrade.

On Saturday 21 May around 15 members of the Islington Park playground working group met to discuss preferred options for the upgrade. Susan Denholm from the City of Newcastle’s Place Making program and Amber from Council’s Landscape Architecture section met with the group to discuss a range of options and costs. 

Some of the priorities identified were new equipment for a range of ages and abilities, incorporation of climb-able sculptures and structures for kids young and old to enjoy, landscaping and/or fencing to provide a barrier between the playground and the footpath/cycleway, and shade and seating for parents.

The environmental values of Throsby Creek and the surrounding area will provide an overall theme for the playground, incorporating natural and recycled materials where possible; and the skills, expertise, and imagination of local residents will be drawn on throughout the process to ensure this addition to Islington Park reflects the character, diversity and creativity within the community.

If you’d like to be kept informed on progress of the playground upgrade please send an email to islingtonvillagecg@hotmail.com or subscribe to this blog.

Bush poetry with Ron Brown

Founding member of the Hunter Bush Poets and Islington resident, Ron Brown, will be our special guest at the next meeting of the Islington Village Community Group on Wednesday 6 April 2011 at Islington Public School.

Bush poetry draws from the traditions of the late 1800s, when the Australian Colony was beginning to develop a sense of awareness and acknowledgment of an Australian identity. Stories and poems were memorised and shared in the pub, around the camp fire and in the drawing room.

Ron will share some of his poems with the group between 6-8 pm, a light supper will be served following the performance, and there’ll still be time for Islington Village news updates. We hope to see you there.

Cleaning up Throsby Creek

On Sunday 6 March, local residents, business owners and vistors are being invited to help clean up litter in Islington Park as part of Clean Up Australia Day.

At least 80% of rubbish threatening marine life in our oceans is the result of land-based littering entering our storm water drains and finding its way out into our waterways. 

In 2010, 588,000 volunteers across Australia removed 15,560 tonnes of rubbish from 7,073 sites, making Clean Up Australia Day the largest community participation event in Australia. 

If you’d like to do your bit, you can join in at one of the many clean up sites registered in the Throsby catchment. You can join John Sutton at the mangroves boardwalk on Elizabeth St, Carrington from 9 am-midday or help clean up Islington Park from 1-5 pm, meeting at the picnic shelter near the playground.

If you can’t be there on the day, you can make a donation to a local clean up site to help raise funds towards cleaning up Australia. Go to www.cleanupaustraliaday.org.au for more information.

State Candidates Forum

You’re invited to attend a public forum on Sunday 27 February 2011 to meet the candidates for the seat of Newcastle in the upcoming NSW election.

The forum will take place at the Hamilton Station Hotel from 4.00-6.00 pm. Each candidate will have the opportunity to outline their agenda and field questions from the floor.

This is a great opportunity to ask the candidates about their vision for Newcastle and the Throsby Basin. Bring your family, friends and neighbours and help ensure we get the best possible representation for communities in the Throsby Basin.

Plans for Islington Park

Newcastle residents and visitors are being invited to provide their input on what they’d like to see in the future of Islington Park.

Throughout January, Newcastle City Council is working in conjunction with local residents and community groups in Islington, Tighes Hill and Maryville to gather ideas and volunteers within the local community to help inform a masterplan for rejuvenating the park.

To have your say and find out how you can be involved in shaping the future of Islington Park, go to the Newcastle City Council website and complete a short questionnaire before 11 February 2011 .

What would you like to see in Islington Park?

Newcastle City Council are currently undertaking community consultation to inform a plan for Council investment into Islington Park.

Up to 70 local residents attended two facilitated workshops in September and October 2010, and gave their thoughts on what they’d like to see happen in the park. Four key themes emerged from the workshops: the children’s playground, environmental issues, public art, and community events.

Representatives from the Islington Village Community Group and Tighes Hill Community Group volunteered to collect further information from the local community to help determine the top priorities within these key themes for Council investment. A brief online survey has been set up to help achieve this aim and will soon be available from this website.

If you’d like to receive notification when the survey is available, subscribe to receive posts via this website or email islingtonvillagecg@hotmail.com. If you’d like to provide your ideas in person, drop by the Islington Markets at Wickham Park this Sunday (28 November) and speak to a member of the Islington Village Community Group, or come along to the IVCG meeting at 6.30 pm Wednesday 1 December at Islington Public School.