Central Coast residents are being asked to avoid swimming or other recreational activities in Coast waterways for several days following this weekend’s wild weather.Heavy rain events can lead to stormwater entering the wastewater system which may cause overflows, affecting the quality of the water in our creeks, rivers, lakes, lagoons and at our beaches.Residents can be assured that the drinking water supply has not been affected by any sewage overflows.Council will work with all relevant authorities to ensure water quality, including the NSW Environment Protection Authority and Public Health Unit.

Nominations for the Australia Day 2021 Awards are now open, providing an opportunity to recognise Central Coast individuals and groups who make an outstanding contribution to the region.Central Coast Council Director Connected Communities, Julie Vaughan said the awards are more important than ever after a year of unprecedented challenges.“An Australia Day nomination is a wonderful way to honour the local leaders who go the extra mile for our community,” Ms Vaughan said.“There is no denying that 2020 has been a year of unprecedented challenges and in the midst of it all we’ve seen individuals and groups step up and make a difference in our community.“Our Australia Day nominees and winners are often unsung heroes who work quietly behind the scenes to make the Coast a better place to live, work and play.”Mayor Lisa Matthews said the Australia Day Awards celebrate the Central Coast’s diversity, values, national achievements and hopes for the future.“We’ve demonstrated tremendous resilience as a community in 2020 and there are so many individuals and groups who deserve recognition,” Mayor Matthews said.“The breadth of the Australia Day Award categories mean that a diverse range of contributions will be recognised and I encourage our community to nominate the local heroes they believe should be acknowledged.”The 2021 Award categories are:Arts, Culture and Entertainment - Awarded to an individual who has demonstrated excellence in their chosen art form and made a significant contribution to arts, culture and entertainment on the Coast.Business Connecting Communities - Awarded to a local business or enterprise with less than eight fulltime employees that has established a genuine involvement and long-term value to the life of their community.Community Service and Activity - Awarded to an individual or group responsible for creating community activities or services that benefit the Coast.Environmental - Awarded to an individual who is leading the way in sustainability and making the Central Coast a place where people and nature can thrive.Sportsperson of the Year - Awarded to an individual who has shown acts of sportsmanship and team building, been an outstanding sportsperson or made significant contributions as organisers or promoters of sports on the Coast.Volunteer of the Year - Awarded to an individual (26 years and over) who has made a significant long-term commitment to volunteer work and demonstrated outstanding service and dedication to our local community.Youth of the Year - Awarded to an individual (25 years or under) who has succeeded in his or her chosen field, acts as an inspiration to his or her peers and has made a significant contribution to the Coast community.Each winner from the above categories will go into the running to be named Central Coast Citizen of the Year.Nominations are now open and close Friday 27 November at 2pm.For further information, eligibility criteria and to make a nomination search 'Australia Day' at centralcoast.nsw.gov.au

Last night at Council’s Ordinary Meeting held, Councillors adopted Council's submission in response to the Minister for Local Government’s Notice of Intention to issue a suspension order to Central Coast Council.This submission outlines a chronological timeline of when and how Councillors were advised of the financial crisis, including the actions to date being taken by Council to resolve the issue.

Mayor Lisa Matthews said Central Coast Council last night adopted Council’s submission in response to the Minister for Local Government’s Notice of Intention to Issue a Suspension Order.

Central Coast Mayor Lisa Matthews has today taken the extraordinary step of publicly announcing her loss of confidence in Central Coast Council’s CEO Mr Gary Murphy in the wake of revelations about long term, structural problems with the Council’s finances.Councillors and the Mayor have been provided with inadequate information about the financial position of Council and discovered the full extent of the problem only last night when it was revealed that Council would struggle to pay its own staff.“In light of the long-term problems that have been allowed to grow unchecked within the operational division of Council, the only course of action now available is to insist on a new CEO to manage the day to day operations,” Mayor Lisa Matthews said.“It is unforgivable for council staff to be left in a position where they might not be paid and it is unacceptable that the elected Councillors and I were not given information about the precariousness of Council’s finances until yesterday.” 

Mayor Lisa Matthews said Central Coast Council has formally acknowledged the response from Minister for Local Government Shelley Hancock, to Council’s financial situation, at an Extraordinary Meeting held today.

Central Coast Mayor Lisa Matthews will move a Mayoral Minute at the rescheduled Council Meeting calling on the NSW Premier to visit the Central Coast to see firsthand the devastation caused by the recent extreme weather event. Services and infrastructure have been severely impacted on the Coast with numerous roads closed, powerlines down and services out and homes and businesses inundated by floodwaters. Mayor Lisa Matthews said the repair bill was unknown at this time but is growing with each day and recovery will be long. “Following the extended drought, we thought rain was the answer to all our prayers including for our waterways and our dams but we didn’t expect it to come in quite this volume,” Mayor Matthews said.

Central Coast Mayor Lisa Matthews has welcomed the natural disaster declaration for the Central Coast announced by the State Government today. The declaration means that residents who have been affected by the recent event can get assistance and support to recover.

Central Coast Council has welcomed the release of the NSW State of the Beaches report, with 100% of ocean beaches and baths receiving a good or very good quality rating for 2019-2020.The annual report uses the Beachwatch results to rate designated ocean and estuarine swimming sites across the state.Mayor Lisa Matthews said the report shows Central Coast beaches to be in good condition overall.“It’s great to see all of our ocean beaches and baths receive a Good or Very Good rating for swimming water quality this year,” Mayor Matthews said.“Terrigal Beach, which has been a particular focus for our community, retained a good rating for the second reporting year, while Toowoon Bay and Cabbage Tree Bay Rockpool have returned to good from poor last year.“While we have some work to do on the estuarine beaches, baths and lagoon sites, improvements were seen at Summerland Point baths which was also rated good and no sites declined in rating this year.“Council has a number of significant projects underway, some in partnership with the NSW Government, to address many of these concerns.“We remain committed to pinpointing potential pollution sources and continue to improve the water quality in the area.”Sites that have shown improvement in the 2019-20 year include:Cabbage Tree Bay rockpoolSoldiers BeachSummerland Point bathsToowoon BayUmina Beach.Council’s Director Environment and Planning, Scott Cox said there were a number of processes underway to help Council address some of the issues in the report.“In addition to the audits underway, Council will consider ways to improve the estuarine, lake and lagoon sites as part of the Coastal Management Program processes currently underway and we look forward to the recommendations of the Tuggerah Lakes Expert Panel to assist with this.“In the meantime, Council advises residents to check the Beachwatch website for the latest results before choosing to swim in these locations.”Across NSW, it is recommended that swimming be avoided during and for up to one day after rainfall at ocean beaches and three days at estuaries, lakes and lagoons.For daily forecasts of water quality visit:

An Extraordinary Meeting of Central Coast Council will be held on Tuesday 3 November at 2pm.It will be the first meeting presided over by interim Administrator, Dick Persson AM. The meeting will be held in the Wyong Chambers as well as livestreamed and webcast via Council's website.Members of the public will be permitted to attend Chambers, however the attendance will be limited to meet requirements of the Public Health order.