Night work has been ruled out as a way of reducing the continuing disruption to shops during the upgrading of the Sylvania shopping strip near Tom Uglys Bridge.
Sutherland Shire Council said night work would impact on local residents and the evening trade of restaurants and cafes.
This was revealed in email exchanges between the council and Alan Price, of Sylvania / Tom Ugly's Bridge News, who is acting also on behalf of other business owners.
Mr Price said “no great headway” had been made since the plight of the business owners was reported by the Leader on June 7.
On June 22, Mr Price replied to points made to him by a senior council officer, writing on behalf of mayor Carmelo Pesce.
The exchanges included:
COUNCIL: Council has looked at the potential of night works however this will impact on local residents and also evening trade of the restaurants/cafes and not considered appropriate.
MR PRICE’S REPLY: Night parking is more abundant for restaurant goers than day parking is for the business operators of a day; Council has no concept of the environment.
COUNCIL: The parking spaces will continue to be opened up progressively once concrete is cured and can withstand vehicle traffic.
REPLY: The progressive opening is not what it appears...Today for example, we probably have four [spaces] at best, maybe a squeeze to five, subject to the driving ability of people.
COUNCIL: Council does not have jurisdiction of the Princes Highway clearway signs which were installed some 12 months ago...Council will continue to liaise with RMS to get the ambiguity of the sign rectified.
REPLY: The classic, “it’s not my problem” – the signage adjustment was requested about two weeks ago, and has only been addressed this week in a makeshift manner.
COUNCIL: The interim ‘parking available’ signs to enhance motorists’ awareness have been ordered and will be installed shortly.
REPLY: The signs are about 2 feet square, requiring superb eyesight to read whilst whizzing by.
COUNCIL: Public Safety and Lifeguards (formerly known as Environmental Protection Unit) have been requested to increase patrols re illegal parking in this strip…It should be noted a balance needs to be found between competing interests with cafe / restaurants not wanting to be disadvantaging their respective patrons and businesses with high turnover of parking spaces.
REPLY: Several points here – a) there has been no escalation, and attendance has only been prompted by my phone calls; b) all business of a day are relatively short stays unlike the sit-down restaurants of an evening; c) Council has erected limited parking in Belgrave Esplanade (previously no limit) which is meaningless and also impacts residents parking
COUNCIL: Council understands that you are concerned that there is seamless progression on the staging of the works and will do its best to keep the contractor to his program, however concrete curing and weather will need to be a consideration.
REPLY: An attempt to abrogate the responsibility to the contractor when in fact council is causing and exacerbating the issues. As late as this morning, the council surveyors have returned – why? I have no idea. As I wrote to the Mayor earlier this week, if it had not been for the business operators a design would have been implemented which could not, and would not, have worked.
