Bateau Bay residents are rejoicing following a State Government decision to fund the rebuilding of stairs to a popular reserve that were removed last year by Central Coast Council.
Member for The Entrance David Mehan has announced the Government will provide $245,000 towards rebuilding new stairs and restoring access to the Blue Lagoon reserve.
“This funding will be used to rebuild the timber stairs which were removed due to safety concerns,” Mehan said.
Council removed the stairs to the reserve, which sits on Crown land between Blue Lagoon Resort and Shelly Beach, stating they were unsafe.
The decision left residents with limited access to the reserve, either through the resort with its steep driveway and no pedestrian access, or via Shelly Beach.
A month later this avenue was also cut off when Council decided the beach stairs were also unsafe and cordoned those off as well.
Community group Save our Stairs (SOS) was formed to convince Council the reserve was much used by the community and that stairs needed to be reinstated.
“The outcry from the Bateau Bay community was unrelenting and unwavering,” SOS committee member Judy Townsend said.
“Dozens of emails were sent from residents asking why the stairs were not repaired while a solution for access to the reserve was sought.”
While Council later agreed to rebuild the set of stairs from the beach to the reserve, Council said rebuilding the stairs from the Bateau Bay Rd access down to the reserve would be too expensive.
A petition with well over 1,800 signatures, a drone photo of a “human heart” of dozens concerned residents standing on the reserve and historical photographic proof of how much the reserve had been used by local families over the years were part of a final submission to Council asking for the stairs to be reinstated.
Townsend said community support had been overwhelming as seen by how many people turned up for the “human heart” photo.
“The committee expected a few friends to turn up but were completely dumbfounded by the deluge of people who came to form the heart to show their support for the return of the access stairs,” she said.
Mehan met with committee members on site and supported the push for the stairs to be rebuilt, urging Council to apply for a Crown Lands grant to fund the project.
“I want to thank the Bateau Bay community and Save our Stairs committee and their dedication in presenting a petition that attracted over 1,800 signatures,” Mehan said.
Townsend attributed the outcome to the collaboration between the local community, Central Coast Council, local businesses, Mehan and the Crown Lands Department.
“It’s a win win for everyone, and we hope to hold a huge celebration on our reserve once the stairs are replaced,” she said.
Denice Barnes