Blog Review:
Wireless House, on the blog High Riser
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Harold Park community brainstorm
by Marie Sansom, Sydney Central
"About 250 people gathered at St Scholastica’s College, Glebe, last Tuesday to discuss the future of the Harold Park site, one of the largest in the Inner West.
Their responses will flow back to Sydney Council and the Central Sydney Planning Committee, which will decide the site’s future.
Harness Racing NSW plans to move to Menangle and the club has put Harold Park up for sale, expecting it to raise at least $150 million.
When locals were asked to come up with a grand plan for the site, certain themes were raised repeatedly including: maximising public open space; making the site accessible; keeping building heights and densities to an acceptable level; and rejuvenating the tram sheds. There was little enthusiasm for any retail, above what would serve those living there.
While there was broad support for housing, many people highlighted the need to consider traffic, parking and public transport links. The site is near a light rail station but there is a steep hill leading up to Glebe Point Rd.
There was also enthusiasm for any homes to be sustainable, and for the site to become a hub for creative industries and artists. Other suggestions included community gardens, a city farm and bird habitat.
There will be more consultation later this year."
Read the full article from Sydney Central here.
"About 250 people gathered at St Scholastica’s College, Glebe, last Tuesday to discuss the future of the Harold Park site, one of the largest in the Inner West.
Their responses will flow back to Sydney Council and the Central Sydney Planning Committee, which will decide the site’s future.
Harness Racing NSW plans to move to Menangle and the club has put Harold Park up for sale, expecting it to raise at least $150 million.
When locals were asked to come up with a grand plan for the site, certain themes were raised repeatedly including: maximising public open space; making the site accessible; keeping building heights and densities to an acceptable level; and rejuvenating the tram sheds. There was little enthusiasm for any retail, above what would serve those living there.
While there was broad support for housing, many people highlighted the need to consider traffic, parking and public transport links. The site is near a light rail station but there is a steep hill leading up to Glebe Point Rd.
There was also enthusiasm for any homes to be sustainable, and for the site to become a hub for creative industries and artists. Other suggestions included community gardens, a city farm and bird habitat.
There will be more consultation later this year."
Read the full article from Sydney Central here.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Dirty eateries escaping shame
by Rhys Haynes, The Daily Telegraph:
"THEY are some of Sydney's filthiest kitchens and they remain a secret to the city's diners.
Thanks to a loophole in the State Government's name and shame list, the "worst of the worst" restaurants that are shut down immediately rarely make it to the Food Authority's official list.
Instead, they are either re-opened after passing further examinations by inspectors or added to a separate "prosecutions" list, if they are convicted and fined in court.
The Daily Telegraph today lists those restaurants that have eventually made the prosecutions list - most of which never made it to the name and shame list since it came into law in July 2008.
There have been more than $500,000 worth of fines handed down since January 2008, with most recording a shocking list of infringements including filthy equipment, live rodents or pests in kitchens and one even serving a bread roll with a cockroach embedded in it. ...
Lavera Pizza and Pasta in Glebe was fined $50,000 and prosecuted for a string of nine food safety offences including serving a salad containing a cockroach. ...
Sources have told The Daily Telegraph the current system allowed inspectors to issue a prohibition order, for example, when a restaurant was not deemed fit to remain open. They could then allow the restaurant to be re-opened after a further inspection, with the name of the establishment never made public.
Councils said they had no authority to publish the information and would hand it to the Food Authority if asked.
The Government's Food Authority said it was considering "enhanced publication of inspection information" but further legislation might be required.
"The majority of prohibition orders lead to further enforcement action such as penalty notices or court prosecution," a spokesman said. "As in all legal proceedings there is a presumption of innocence until proven guilty.
"Businesses alleged to have broken the law can challenge fines." "
Read the full article from Sydney Central here.
"THEY are some of Sydney's filthiest kitchens and they remain a secret to the city's diners.
Thanks to a loophole in the State Government's name and shame list, the "worst of the worst" restaurants that are shut down immediately rarely make it to the Food Authority's official list.
Instead, they are either re-opened after passing further examinations by inspectors or added to a separate "prosecutions" list, if they are convicted and fined in court.
The Daily Telegraph today lists those restaurants that have eventually made the prosecutions list - most of which never made it to the name and shame list since it came into law in July 2008.
There have been more than $500,000 worth of fines handed down since January 2008, with most recording a shocking list of infringements including filthy equipment, live rodents or pests in kitchens and one even serving a bread roll with a cockroach embedded in it. ...
Lavera Pizza and Pasta in Glebe was fined $50,000 and prosecuted for a string of nine food safety offences including serving a salad containing a cockroach. ...
Sources have told The Daily Telegraph the current system allowed inspectors to issue a prohibition order, for example, when a restaurant was not deemed fit to remain open. They could then allow the restaurant to be re-opened after a further inspection, with the name of the establishment never made public.
Councils said they had no authority to publish the information and would hand it to the Food Authority if asked.
The Government's Food Authority said it was considering "enhanced publication of inspection information" but further legislation might be required.
"The majority of prohibition orders lead to further enforcement action such as penalty notices or court prosecution," a spokesman said. "As in all legal proceedings there is a presumption of innocence until proven guilty.
"Businesses alleged to have broken the law can challenge fines." "
Read the full article from Sydney Central here.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Friday, October 2, 2009
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
No "mindless grass" for Harold Park
by Gemma Battenbough, Architecture & Design
The highly sensitive Harold Park raceway site in Sydney’s suburb of Glebe is being sold and yesterday marked the start of public consultation for the development of planning controls.
There will be “enormous pressure” on the developers to include some public space, councillor Meridith Burgmann said, and that space needs to be “more thoughtful”.
“The public space can’t be more mindless grass with big trees,” Burgmann told Architecture & Design. “There is a lot of that down on the point and residents really need something a bit more interesting.”
One suggestion gaining momentum is to create a city farm similar to those in Perth and Yarra that could act as a tourist attraction for school children and utilize the existing light rail infrastructure.
The old tram sheds could be turned into pig pens and cow sheds and also house composting facilities, Burgmann said.
The site will be earmarked for high-density residential development, she said.
“It seems to me that the Harold Park site is so big that you could get quite a lot of urban consolidation without it being too offensive.”
Allowing dense development would give the City of Sydney licence to be “quite forceful” in its demands for public space. “I’m trying to make sure it is more thoughtful public space, rather than just yet another park,” Burgmann said.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP said the first consultation meeting will give interested residents the opportunity to find out more about the site, the City's role and the planning process.
"The Harold Park site is of significant value to the community and includes important heritage items and links to surrounding parks," Moore said.
"The challenge ahead of us is to develop planning controls that balance opportunities for public benefit with the site owner's expectations of financial returns."
Planning principles including housing diversity, open space, sustainable transport, and heritage will be considered in preparing the controls."
Read the full article from Architecture & Design here.
The highly sensitive Harold Park raceway site in Sydney’s suburb of Glebe is being sold and yesterday marked the start of public consultation for the development of planning controls.
There will be “enormous pressure” on the developers to include some public space, councillor Meridith Burgmann said, and that space needs to be “more thoughtful”.
“The public space can’t be more mindless grass with big trees,” Burgmann told Architecture & Design. “There is a lot of that down on the point and residents really need something a bit more interesting.”
One suggestion gaining momentum is to create a city farm similar to those in Perth and Yarra that could act as a tourist attraction for school children and utilize the existing light rail infrastructure.
The old tram sheds could be turned into pig pens and cow sheds and also house composting facilities, Burgmann said.
The site will be earmarked for high-density residential development, she said.
“It seems to me that the Harold Park site is so big that you could get quite a lot of urban consolidation without it being too offensive.”
Allowing dense development would give the City of Sydney licence to be “quite forceful” in its demands for public space. “I’m trying to make sure it is more thoughtful public space, rather than just yet another park,” Burgmann said.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP said the first consultation meeting will give interested residents the opportunity to find out more about the site, the City's role and the planning process.
"The Harold Park site is of significant value to the community and includes important heritage items and links to surrounding parks," Moore said.
"The challenge ahead of us is to develop planning controls that balance opportunities for public benefit with the site owner's expectations of financial returns."
Planning principles including housing diversity, open space, sustainable transport, and heritage will be considered in preparing the controls."
Read the full article from Architecture & Design here.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Friday, August 28, 2009
Friday, August 14, 2009
Friday, August 7, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Glebe time capsule to help celebrate150 years
by Sydney Central
"Jan Wilson of the Glebe Sesquicentenary Committee praised the work of City of Sydney Council in improving Glebe since the handover from Leichhardt Council in 2003.
...
"Jan Wilson of the Glebe Sesquicentenary Committee praised the work of City of Sydney Council in improving Glebe since the handover from Leichhardt Council in 2003.
...
Ms Wilson hoped that the heritage values of Glebe would be preserved into the future and that the suburb would continue on the path of being pedestrian friendly.
Ms Wilson was instrumental in coordinating the time capsule that was buried last Sunday at Jubilee Fountain at the end of Glebe Pt Rd on the corner of Parramatta Rd.
She said it was possible that a five-year-old child who witnessed the burial of the capsule would be alive in 100 years time to see its unearthing.
“We went to everyone in Glebe - businesses, schools, government agencies and community groups to find material for the time capsule,’’ Ms Wilson said.
“We included letters, stories, stamps, a passport, doggie racing vest, charge sheet from the police station, photos, class lists and menus. It would be interesting to know if in 100 years time people are still eating out in Glebe.’’
Read the full article from Sydney Central here.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Glebe turns 150, still keeping out pigs and goats
by Dugald Jellie, The Sydney Morning Herald
"IN A city of whims and social butterflies, Iris Brennan could well be its most steadfast local.
"I was born in Forsyth Street in Glebe in 1923," she says, tucking a crocheted blanket over her knees.
And 86 years on she has never left, now living a few blocks away in an old terrace on a street that dips to the dog track.
"After school we’d get a penny’s worth of chips up on Glebe Road," she says. "It’s changed over the years. But I still love Glebe. Only way I’ll ever leave is in a box."
It is an old story from one of Sydney’s oldest suburbs. The Glebe, as it is known formally, is a peninsula that was bequeathed in 1789 to the Church of England and is thick with suburban loyalties and rising damp. It has a blue-collar reputation as "one of those places where if you can’t see a pub by looking both ways down the street then you must be standing outside one" – as hard-bitten private eye Cliff Hardy says in Peter Corris’s The Dying Trade.
And it is a place that today turns 150 – proclaimed a municipality on August 1, 1859, the third in Sydney, after Randwick and Waverley. The civic milestone is to be marked by Sydney’s Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, burying a time capsule on Glebe Point Road, and the launch on Wednesday of an oral history project called Glebe Bytes.
‘‘All the boys worked at the wool stores in Ultimo," said Mrs Brennan, a public-housing tenant interviewed for the history project. "Back in them days we had about six butcher shops. Now we’ve got one."
The stories of Glebe, said Julia Burns, a co-ordinator of Glebe Bytes, were rich in local colour.
"We’ve been told tales of illegal bookmakers, the six o’clock swill, housing squats, timber yards on Blackwattle Bay, and the Saturday matinee at the Astor,’’ she said. ‘‘It’s a community patchwork that knits together the suburb’s history."
Not that Glebe has a shared narrative. When 64 locals first signed a petition requesting municipal status, a counter-petition was signed by 265 householders.
"Glebe’s character has always been marked by a diverse social mix with divergent views," says a City of Sydney historian, Lisa Murray.
Nine Glebe councillors were duly elected in late August 1859, on a ticket of installing kerbs and signs, and keeping pigs, goats and other animals off its streets – to mixed results.
"What’s unique about Glebe is that it’s still a stratified society," said Max Solling, a local historian and author of Grandeur and Grit – A History of Glebe.
"It has a well-defined mosaic of the middle-classes living on the elevated Glebe Point, and the working classes settled on the lowlands near Grace Brothers in the Glebe Estate."
It is in these stooped streets that Mrs Brennan calls home. When asked if she has ever moved from Glebe, there is a pause and a confession.
"We did go to Newtown once," she said. ‘‘It was shocking. We were there two months.’’ "
Read the full article from the SMH here.
"IN A city of whims and social butterflies, Iris Brennan could well be its most steadfast local.
"I was born in Forsyth Street in Glebe in 1923," she says, tucking a crocheted blanket over her knees.
And 86 years on she has never left, now living a few blocks away in an old terrace on a street that dips to the dog track.
"After school we’d get a penny’s worth of chips up on Glebe Road," she says. "It’s changed over the years. But I still love Glebe. Only way I’ll ever leave is in a box."
It is an old story from one of Sydney’s oldest suburbs. The Glebe, as it is known formally, is a peninsula that was bequeathed in 1789 to the Church of England and is thick with suburban loyalties and rising damp. It has a blue-collar reputation as "one of those places where if you can’t see a pub by looking both ways down the street then you must be standing outside one" – as hard-bitten private eye Cliff Hardy says in Peter Corris’s The Dying Trade.
And it is a place that today turns 150 – proclaimed a municipality on August 1, 1859, the third in Sydney, after Randwick and Waverley. The civic milestone is to be marked by Sydney’s Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, burying a time capsule on Glebe Point Road, and the launch on Wednesday of an oral history project called Glebe Bytes.
‘‘All the boys worked at the wool stores in Ultimo," said Mrs Brennan, a public-housing tenant interviewed for the history project. "Back in them days we had about six butcher shops. Now we’ve got one."
The stories of Glebe, said Julia Burns, a co-ordinator of Glebe Bytes, were rich in local colour.
"We’ve been told tales of illegal bookmakers, the six o’clock swill, housing squats, timber yards on Blackwattle Bay, and the Saturday matinee at the Astor,’’ she said. ‘‘It’s a community patchwork that knits together the suburb’s history."
Not that Glebe has a shared narrative. When 64 locals first signed a petition requesting municipal status, a counter-petition was signed by 265 householders.
"Glebe’s character has always been marked by a diverse social mix with divergent views," says a City of Sydney historian, Lisa Murray.
Nine Glebe councillors were duly elected in late August 1859, on a ticket of installing kerbs and signs, and keeping pigs, goats and other animals off its streets – to mixed results.
"What’s unique about Glebe is that it’s still a stratified society," said Max Solling, a local historian and author of Grandeur and Grit – A History of Glebe.
"It has a well-defined mosaic of the middle-classes living on the elevated Glebe Point, and the working classes settled on the lowlands near Grace Brothers in the Glebe Estate."
It is in these stooped streets that Mrs Brennan calls home. When asked if she has ever moved from Glebe, there is a pause and a confession.
"We did go to Newtown once," she said. ‘‘It was shocking. We were there two months.’’ "
Read the full article from the SMH here.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Glebe oral history builds community
by Robert Burton-Bradley, Sydney Central
"AN oral history project is breathing fresh life into the stories of one of Sydney’s oldest suburbs.
Glebe Bytes invites inner-city residents to come and hear the stories of Glebe at the launch its oral history project on Wednesday, August 5.
Glebe Bytes is a community group who have recorded and edited the oral histories of ordinary residents telling extraordinary stories, in a project funded by the City of Sydney to help celebrate the sesquicentenary of the inner-city suburb.
“They’re remarkable stories of a remarkable neighbourhood,” project co-ordinator and resident, Dugald Jellie said.
The oral histories collected by Glebe Bytes will be uploaded to the soon-to-be launched City of Sydney’s Wireless House website to be freely accessible for all to hear. Content is also available at http://www.pool.org.au/users/glebebytes. Glebe Bytes launch is at Glebe Youth Service, 84 Glebe Point Road, at 12.30pm. All are welcome.
Read the full article from Sydney Central here.
"AN oral history project is breathing fresh life into the stories of one of Sydney’s oldest suburbs.
Glebe Bytes invites inner-city residents to come and hear the stories of Glebe at the launch its oral history project on Wednesday, August 5.
Glebe Bytes is a community group who have recorded and edited the oral histories of ordinary residents telling extraordinary stories, in a project funded by the City of Sydney to help celebrate the sesquicentenary of the inner-city suburb.
“They’re remarkable stories of a remarkable neighbourhood,” project co-ordinator and resident, Dugald Jellie said.
The oral histories collected by Glebe Bytes will be uploaded to the soon-to-be launched City of Sydney’s Wireless House website to be freely accessible for all to hear. Content is also available at http://www.pool.org.au/users/glebebytes. Glebe Bytes launch is at Glebe Youth Service, 84 Glebe Point Road, at 12.30pm. All are welcome.
Read the full article from Sydney Central here.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Friday, July 24, 2009
Art Show beats the gloom
by Shant Fabricatorian, City News
"Despite the economic downturn, the 2009 Glebe Art Show defied expectations by posting the highest number of sales in its 12-year history. Attendance, too, increased over previous years during the Show’s nine-day run at Benledi and Glebe Library. Founder Robin Lawrence said the support of sponsors, including the City of Sydney and the Toxteth Hotel, as well as other local businesses, had meant the Show could continue to exhibit artists from all over the inner west, at no increased cost to competitors.
This year, all categories, judged by artist and teacher Deborah Beck, were hotly contested, with two divisions, the Open Prize and the Photography Prize, enjoying joint winners. As part of the celebrations for the suburb’s 150th anniversary this year, the Glebe Society also sponsored the Glebe Sesquicentennial Painting Prize.
Mrs Lawrence, who also works as an artist, said she was extremely grateful for the support of volunteers, particularly treasurer Gloria Smith and secretary Fiona Verge.
“A very big thank you to them,” she said.
The Open Prize was won jointly by Leonora Howlett and Raquel Mazzina, while the Photography Prize was likewise awarded to two competitors, Richard Glover and Julia Hush. Ross Skinner, meanwhile, took home the Glebe Sesquicentennial Prize."
Read the full article from City News here.
"Despite the economic downturn, the 2009 Glebe Art Show defied expectations by posting the highest number of sales in its 12-year history. Attendance, too, increased over previous years during the Show’s nine-day run at Benledi and Glebe Library. Founder Robin Lawrence said the support of sponsors, including the City of Sydney and the Toxteth Hotel, as well as other local businesses, had meant the Show could continue to exhibit artists from all over the inner west, at no increased cost to competitors.
This year, all categories, judged by artist and teacher Deborah Beck, were hotly contested, with two divisions, the Open Prize and the Photography Prize, enjoying joint winners. As part of the celebrations for the suburb’s 150th anniversary this year, the Glebe Society also sponsored the Glebe Sesquicentennial Painting Prize.
Mrs Lawrence, who also works as an artist, said she was extremely grateful for the support of volunteers, particularly treasurer Gloria Smith and secretary Fiona Verge.
“A very big thank you to them,” she said.
The Open Prize was won jointly by Leonora Howlett and Raquel Mazzina, while the Photography Prize was likewise awarded to two competitors, Richard Glover and Julia Hush. Ross Skinner, meanwhile, took home the Glebe Sesquicentennial Prize."
Read the full article from City News here.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Harold Park Paceway goes back to council
by Paul Bibby, Urban Affairs Reporter, The Sydney Morning Herald
"IS IT a resident-friendly planning decision, or a cynical ploy to shore up votes in the inner west? That is what is being asked in the cafes of Glebe and Annandale after a decision by the Planning Minister, Kristina Keneally to hand significant planning powers over the Harold Park Paceway to the community.
Harold Park is in the seat held shakily by the Education Minister, Verity Firth, and had been at the centre of a row ever since its owners attempted to push through a rezoning proposal in pursuit of fast cash earlier this year.
Residents saw red when the NSW Harness Club tried to bypass the City of Sydney council by asking Ms Keneally, to use her Part 3A powers to make decisions over its 10.5-hectare site. They say a decision to call in the development would have had serious electoral consequences.
But their anger turned to joy this week when Ms Keneally rejected the Harness Club's application and handed responsibility to the council and the Central Sydney Planning Committee. Ms Keneally said her decision was based solely on the council's promise it could complete the planning process in a timely manner.
The Mayor of Leichhardt, Jamie Parker, said: "The only reason the Government has turned around and decided to engage with the community on this is the political risk to their local member of parliament in the next election."
The Government's decision last October to transfer Callan Park to Leichhardt Council was widely interpreted as an attempt to save Ms Firth from defeat. Meanwhile, Glebe residents and the City of Sydney are enjoying the spoils of victory.
The council has begun the rezoning process, and while the government-dominated Central Sydney Planning Committee and Ms Keneally will have the final say, the council is talking about providing employment opportunities, public space, and housing to meet targets for its Sustainable Sydney 2030 vision.
"Harold Park is an important site to the community," the Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore, said yesterday."
Read the full article from the SMH here.
"IS IT a resident-friendly planning decision, or a cynical ploy to shore up votes in the inner west? That is what is being asked in the cafes of Glebe and Annandale after a decision by the Planning Minister, Kristina Keneally to hand significant planning powers over the Harold Park Paceway to the community.
Harold Park is in the seat held shakily by the Education Minister, Verity Firth, and had been at the centre of a row ever since its owners attempted to push through a rezoning proposal in pursuit of fast cash earlier this year.
Residents saw red when the NSW Harness Club tried to bypass the City of Sydney council by asking Ms Keneally, to use her Part 3A powers to make decisions over its 10.5-hectare site. They say a decision to call in the development would have had serious electoral consequences.
But their anger turned to joy this week when Ms Keneally rejected the Harness Club's application and handed responsibility to the council and the Central Sydney Planning Committee. Ms Keneally said her decision was based solely on the council's promise it could complete the planning process in a timely manner.
The Mayor of Leichhardt, Jamie Parker, said: "The only reason the Government has turned around and decided to engage with the community on this is the political risk to their local member of parliament in the next election."
The Government's decision last October to transfer Callan Park to Leichhardt Council was widely interpreted as an attempt to save Ms Firth from defeat. Meanwhile, Glebe residents and the City of Sydney are enjoying the spoils of victory.
The council has begun the rezoning process, and while the government-dominated Central Sydney Planning Committee and Ms Keneally will have the final say, the council is talking about providing employment opportunities, public space, and housing to meet targets for its Sustainable Sydney 2030 vision.
"Harold Park is an important site to the community," the Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore, said yesterday."
Read the full article from the SMH here.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Monday, June 1, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Blog Review:
Stella & Sophie's Gourmet Cafe & Deli, on the blog Cheap Eats Food Trek
Note: This restaurant has closed.
Stella & Sophie's Gourmet Cafe & Deli, on the blog Cheap Eats Food Trek
Note: This restaurant has closed.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
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