Some Central Coast stories never go away

To celebrate the 500th edition of Coast Community News, we look back at the stories that continue to pop up throughout the years, hogging the headlines since late 2010 at least, which is when we first hit the news stands.

Some stories, of course, started decades, or centuries earlier, and 2010 to 2025 is a mere blimp in the story line.

Gosford Waterfront Plan Unveiled was the front page headline in the second edition in December 2010 and Regional Library to Progress was the front page headline in Issue 30 in April 2012.

The library opens on September 6 this year, a mere 13 years later, while the waterfront plans are still …um… still… um…being refined.

Back in April 2012, the regional library was going to be a building between the Broadwater Hotel and the Council Chambers in Mann St, Gosford.

It wasn’t until years later that the current site of the new regional library was mentioned. 

The current library, which closed last week, thereby ending its working life as a library, will likely know its fate at the August 26 council meeting after councillors Trent McWaide, Rachel Stanton, Kyla Daniels, Kyle MacGregor, Margot Castles and Jane Smith, all members of the library review committee, made it clear they want the building saved.

Dredging Plans for The Entrance Channel was the headline on August 20, 2012.

And again in 2020; when dredging was done differently to previous years.

Four years’ later, a community campaign was needed in 2024 to bring back Reg the Dredge which had not been used since 2020.

The campaign was successful with the new councillors, voted in last September, agreeing at their June meeting to get dredging underway again – but when that will happen was not actually stated.

Locals will be hoping that will feature sooner rather than later in a future Coast Community News edition.

New policy regarding dogs was the exciting announcement (note the sarcasm there) on the front page on February 13, 2012.

The article said the then Gosford Council was developing a dogs in open space policy.

Four years later of course, the former Gosford and Wyong councils were merged to form Central Coast Council.

The new Council also began developing a dogs in open space policy.

And forgive me if I am not politically correct on this but the council is still stuffing around with it.

Last the public heard about it was from Administrator Rik Hart and he’s been gone almost a year now.

The public is still awaiting the outcome of his final decision which was to ask Council staff to Review Environmental Factors (REFs) for a number of sites across the local government area. 

In July 2024 he said: “I removed Memorial Park, Davistown, as a possible replacement for Pippi Point, as I do not believe it to be a suitable alternative location; it is prone to flooding, is relatively small and is located close to the open road.

“On the other hand, I believe that there’s a real need for a fenced off-leash dog area at The Haven in Terrigal due to the safety concerns to dog owners, non-dog owners, the environment and open space facilities.

“As such, I have endorsed the preparation of detailed concept plans and REF for this area.

“The outcome of the REF and concept design will to be reported back to the newly elected Council to allow for consideration of options and further community consultation.”

By the time the community hears anything more, the “newly elected Council” will be more than a year old – at least.

But back to the merger: the new Mayor and his Deputy were, back in pre-merger days, mayors of Gosford and Wyong respectively and both voted for their councils to remain individual councils before the State Government decided to amalgamate them in 2016 and elections were held in 2017.

That is the simplified version: there were dozens and dozens of meetings and changes of heart with lots of discussion about the costs involved.

When change came, it left the councillors surprised and the new council under administration for more than a year.

The surprises continued.

The new council got into financial trouble in 2020; the councillors were suspended and the Council was put back into administration.

After a public inquiry, the councillors were sacked and the Coast missed out on the 2021 elections with administration lasting until September 2024.

1462 homeless persons on Central Coast was the front page headline on January 30, 2013.

The number of homeless people had risen to 1,996 in 2023.

Newer figures are not available but homelessness on the coast is estimated to have increased by up to 60 per cent and CCN has run special content highlighting the issues in 2025.

Performing Arts Centre; to be or not to be?

August 2014 saw the front page headline $10 million performing arts centre officially opened but it was all about a 750 seat auditorium at Central Coast Grammar School.

As noted earlier, the Gosford Waterfront, where a performing arts centre for the public was mooted donkeys years ago, has been the subject of dozens of front page headlines including Minister Hazzard to Progress Stage one of The Landing on April 23, 2012, and plenty of other iterations of plans, culminating in an advertisement currently on CCN web site home page (see right hand side) from the Hunter Central Coast Development Corporation asking people to do a survey on what they want to see on the waterfront.

There is no mention of a performing arts centre among the options in the survey.

Environment Issues

Freedom of Information documents provided a damning story about the Mangrove Mountain landfill saga in 2016.

Other environment stories include the Vales Point power station emissions issues which continue to this day.

Some stories have finally been laid to rest.

More than 1,000 people rallied to save Wyong Hospital from a public private partnership in October 2016.

In 2017 it was the termination of the Chinese Theme Park proposed for Warnervale.

Until 2017, it was a long running story, being front page in September 2012 CCN’s sister publication The Wyong Chronicle.

Other stories are like television serials where some stars’ fortunes ebb and flow, and it makes one wonder what will happen next.

Yes, we’re talking Warnervale Airport.

The preparation of a masterplan for the site was approved by Wyong Council; but then the prepared plan was rejected by the first Central Coast Council and a new one adopted by the latest Council recently.

More to come, I’m sure, on that score.

November 21, 2017 saw the front page of sister paper The Chronicle devoted to the success of the Long Jetty Street Festival, but by 2024 organisers had trouble with Council and police in getting approval to hold the event and it hasn’t been held since, despite the rescheduling to March 2025.

Coastal Twist had the same problem this year: it’s all about the DAs – development applications.

And talking DAs, the Coast got a Local Planning Panel in 2019 .

Also the State Government announced that Leagues Club Park in Gosford was about to be transformed into “a world class” public space.

2020 started with bushfires and flooding and moved on to Covid lockdowns, with virtually every story in the March 26, 2020, edition of CCN about an aspect of the lockdown.

A second lockdown came in 2021 and Molly Picklum won her first surfing Pro event.

Another great event happened in 2021.

Long term Central Coast journalist Terry Collins joined Coast News and introduced a year-in-review story idea.

At the beginning of every year, a journalist would write up the major stories for a year in review.

Which means it is so much easier to see the stories that continue to fill our pages, year on year.

For a recap on the years 2021-2024, see the links below.

2021: here.

2022: here.

2023: here (and hit next story to go to the step month).

2024: here (same instructions as for the above link).

Or you can check out all previous editions online here: https://issuu.com/centralcoastnewspapers

But, fair warning, there are a thousands of stories to choose from.

Merilyn Vale