2021-12-07 Planning & Environment Committee Meeting Agenda - Updated

PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                               7 DECEMBER 2021


7    LAKE DOONELLA FORESHORE MANAGEMENT PLAN

Author           Environment Services Manager (Acting), Shaun Walsh
                 Environment and Sustainable Development Department

Index            ECM/Subject/Environmental Management 21.06

Attachments      Nil


EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The report seeks Council’s endorsement to initiate the preparation of a Lake Doonella Foreshore
Management Plan. The purpose of the plan is to guide the management of public managed
foreshore land with a clear and consistent set of principles and management actions.
Preliminary investigations have revealed that several departments of Council have identified
current and potential interest in resolving tenure and land management issues, as well as the
subsequent improved management of the contentious section of Lake Doonella Foreshore. The
creation of the Foreshore Management Plan will include transparent consultation with the
community and external and internal stakeholders, to enable a clear plan understood and
supported by all.
RECOMMENDATION
That Council note the report by the Environment Services Manager (Acting) to the Planning &
Environment Committee Meeting dated 7 December 2021 and initiate a Foreshore Management
Planning Process for the Lake Doonella foreshore noting:
A.   The process will replicate the process recently initiated for the Eastern Beaches Foreshore
     Management Plans; and
B.   Dependent upon timing and resourcing, it may lead to a delay in completion of the Eastern
     Beaches Foreshore Management Plans and request for ongoing budget and resources for
     FY 2022/23
REPORT
1.   Background
Council has recently received a series of queries, complaints and requests from several residents
and community stakeholders about the Lake Doonella foreshore, particularly in the area west of
Shields Street and east of the corner of Doonella St and Memorial Avenue, hereafter called the
Shields St – Memorial Ave area (see Figure 1: Lake Doonella – Shields St to Memorial Ave).
These representations have been diverse and have ranged from seeking clarity about tenure and
ownership, condition of native and exotic vegetation, damage to native and exotic plants, misuse
of the foreshore, and existing and proposed access infrastructure in the foreshore. Many of the
requests directly conflict with each other, for instance one resident is seeking to entirely prevent
access to the foreshore behind their residence, while another group seeks a public path through
the same area. Further to this, some residents are seeking to improve views by reducing
vegetation, whereas others would like to regenerate and revegetate.




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