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2008 Penrith Council Election

Vote 1 Geoff Brown and Team - Independent for North Ward
Group A above the line

Why you should put Geoff in Council

  • A fresh approach
  • A proven advocate for the community
  • The ability to get results for locals
  • A true Independent

 

Geoff Brown (centre) at the ASA Cranebrook site

Why you should put Geoff in Council

  • A proven record as a hardworking volunteer and dedicated community leader
  • Proven advocacy skills
  • Not afraid to speak out against dodgy political decisions
  • Not afraid to take on the major political parties
  • Not afraid of taking on dodgy developers
  • Keenly follows local issues
  • Understands planning processes
  • Understands the local political landscape
  • Wants value for money for ratepayers
  • Wants council bureaucrats to remember they work for ratepayers
  • Wants to severely restrict the influence developers have within Council
  • Has lived in North Ward since 1974

 

About Geoff and his volunteer efforts

  • Led the community fight against the ADI Site development. 900 ha Regional Park created
  • Led the fight to stop housing on the Air Services land at Cranebrook. Now pursuing a new Regional Park on this land
  • Successfully lobbied the new Federal Government to protect 1900 ha of Commonwealth owned bushland as conservation reserves
  • Successfully lobbied the new Federal Government to provide a $15 million conservation fund for the purposes of buying back the Air Services land at Cranebrook
  • Established the Werrington Community Festival and ran it on his own for first three years
  • President of the Western Sydney Conservation Alliance
  • Community rep on the Penrith Lakes Community Advisory Committee
  • Works at UWS as Student Welfare Officer
  • Lives with Family in Cranebrook
Some other members of Geoff's Team.
Bernie Laughlan (below) and David Bowen (right)

   

 

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Issues Geoff will continue to tackle

Council Rates

  • Ensure ratepayers get value for money with specific attention paid to ensure rural area ratepayers, who pay well over $2000 annually, get more than just their garbage collected
  • Ensure rates are not squandered on council pet projects or white elephants

Roads and Parking

  • Committed to fixing up traffic black spots
  • Getting a solution to gridlock around the CBD such as that that occurs regularly at Jane St. Geoff has long argued that a tunnel could be an option.
  • Parking has to be increased proportionate to development and population increase
  • Ensuring developers and not taxpayers pay the cost of road infrastructure needed as a result of population increase from their developments
  • Continue to argue that ADI Site developer, Delfin Lend Lease, should pay the majority of the cost needed to install traffic lights at Sherringham Rd Cranebrook
  • Making sure our road sides are clean, free of unsightly, noxious and environmentally damaging weeds and that Council only plants local native trees along its roads
  • A new car park is needed ASAP north of Penrith Railway Station. The Federal Govt should allow a temporary car park on its Army land whilst a decision is made about the sites future. I'll will push Council to lobby for this as a priority

Development and Developers

  • Ensure Penrith doesn't become over developed and too over crowded
  • Ensure the protection of our quality of life
  • Ensure Council is free of corruption
  • Limit the influence developers have over Council decisions and Planners
  • Speak out against poor planning decisions and legislation made by the NSW Government - take on Frank Sartor
  • Ensure Council Planners inform Councillors of all Development Applications and likely affects on residents and the environment
  • Ensure that there is better community consultation and that residents are fully informed of what is happening with developments in their local area
  • Oppose any proposed Metropolitan Development Program listings by Frank Sartor that don't fit with Councils vision
  • Call for the repeal of Part 3A of the Planning Act which gives Frank Sartor the power to over ride local Councils

Safety

  • I have previously argued that a new Police Station is needed in North Penrith
  • Penrith Council intends to sell the Cranebrook shopping centre and I will argue that a new Police Station could co-exist on this land where the old hardware store is. A stronger Police presence is needed in this area
  • Ensure all council infrastructure, including parks and footpaths, are safe for public use
  • Ensure Council owned public areas are safe at night and well lit

Environment and Open Space

  • Ensure Council backs up its rhetoric on sustainability, reducing green house gas emissions and protecting the environment. Council can't claim it is reducing its Carbon footprint at the same time as allowing bushland to be cleared
  • Ensure Penrith will never lose its rural character
  • Ensure development proposals provide plenty of parks and open space areas
  • Limit damaging recreational activities in bushland areas
  • Provide better education to the public about protecting our local bushland and its flora and fauna
  • Provide every household with information about identifying and removing weeds and what native Penrith plants to plant in their gardens
  • Ensure that endangered bushland on private properties is properly protected and managed by the landowners. Lobby the NSW Govt to enact new legislation to give Councils the powers to make large land owners protect and clean up their land. Lobby the NSW Government to financially reward landowners who protect bushland on their properties
  • Encourage greater participation by the public in joining a local bush care group. Council needs to provide more resources to allow this to happen
  • Oppose Biodiversity Certification of lands within Penrith and Biobanking

ADI Site

  • Seek to have more of the site saved as Regional Park
  • Seek to have all of the bushland surrounding Xavier College protected as Regional Park. No land in this area zoned for housing. Lobby Frank Sartor to amend SREP 30 to change the current zoning near Xavier College
  • Oppose Delfins current DA for fire hazard reduction works which proposes the clearing of 200 plus hectares of Cumberland Plain Woodland
  • Oppose Delfins Precinct Plans for the Western and Central Precincts that propose nearly 3500 lots with buildings up to 6- 8 stories high.
  • Ensure Delfin pay their fare share towards local infrastructure including all roadwork along the Northern Rd opposite the site
  • Seek compensation from Sydney Water for locals living adjacent to the ADI Site fence line that will be affected by the construction works for Sydney Waters Replacement Flows Project

Air Services Australia Land Cranebrook

  • Seek to have the NSW Government acquire the land off IFC Capital Ltd so that a new Regional Park can be created
  • Ensure the Regional Park has an effective Plan of Management that will resolve management issues and concerns by locals. A proper PoM should include fencing to stop unrestricted public, vehicle and motorbike access, a proper bushfire regime and ongoing bush regeneration.
  • Encourage the site be used by local schools to educate pupils about the environment and its protection

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Nathan Rees letter rules out compensation for ADI locals 55kb

Media Release
14 August 2008
 
Geoff Brown
Group A Head Candidate
North Ward
Penrith Council Election
 
Sydney Water rules out compensation to ADI Site locals
 
Nathan Rees the NSW Minister for Water has ruled out financially compensating residents living next to the ADI Site fence line in Werrington County, Werrington Downs and Cambridge Gardens whose lives, privacy and visual amenity will be impacted by construction works associated with the laying of pipes for Sydney Waters Replacement Flows Project.
 
North Ward candidate Geoff Brown wrote to Nathan Rees on the 8th July urging the Minister consider as an act of goodwill a one off reduction on the residents Sydney Water account or a direct payment to the occupier of the house if it was rented.
 
"I have known about these proposed works for a long time and I felt something needed to be said about the impact these works will have on the quality of life of the affected residents. Most of the people whose homes back onto the ADI site fence line enjoy peace and quiet as a result of the bushland and open space behind them. This will be shattered by earth moving equipment, trucks, cranes and construction workers who will work on this project for several months from 7am until 6pm in the evening. As these residents had no say in this matter I thought a one off payment to these affected residents by Sydney Water would not be an unreasonable request and would demonstrate some goodwill by the NSW Government. It is disappointing that Minister Rees has ruled this compensation out. The amount of compensation would of been miniscule in comparison to the hundreds of millions of dollars the NSW Government is spending on the Replacement Flows Project." said Geoff Brown.
 
"Mr Brown said he will continue to pursue this and other matters on behalf of North Ward residents".

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