SANDRINGHAM FORESHORE ASSOCIATION E-NEWSLETTER MAY 2010

Sandringham Foreshore Association (SFA)

A NOT-FOR-PROFIT charity organisation
ABN: 42947116512
Website: http://sandyforeshore.net.au/

Dear members, friends and supporters of the SFA

Just to update you on issues relating to the Sandringham foreshore:

• Meeting with the Bayside City Council Mayor, CEO and the various Council
officers
SFA members Vicki Karalis, Paul Hede and John Amiet met Bayside City Council
Mayor, Clifford Hayes, the CEO and Council officers on 3x separate occasions to
discuss the various needs of our local foreshore. The SFA value our meetings and
positive communication with our Mayor and Council, and for their on-going support
and community consultation.
*A summary following one of our meetings is available at the bottom of this e-mail.
This summary was prepared by Council for the benefit of our members. Feel free to
provide any feedback or thoughts you may have in relation to points raised by
contacting us via e-mail.

• Reconstruction of Southey St track to beach

At one of our Council meetings, we expressed the importance of restoring the track
to the Southey St beach. This track has been blocked for up to 10 years denying
access by local residents to this area of the Sandringham foreshore. This has led to
the creation of a number of unmarked non-official trails through the cliffs and
bushes. We are pleased that Council have listened to our local residents and have
applied for a permit to restore this path. The advantage of this path is that it is a half
way point of access for the Sandringham beach located ½ way between the Cathy
Freeman steps at Edward St beach and the Tennyson St ramp. It also has access to
toilets and is near a cleared area at the top of the cliffs allowing access for ambulance
and police in cases of emergencies.

SFA are pleased that our local Council are continuously consulting and
communicating with us, listening and responding where appropriate to the needs of
the local community.

• Sandringham Lions Club (SLC) Art competition

Last month, the SLC ran a superb art competition that included many high quality,
excellent art entries. The SFA are proud and honored to have sponsored this annual
event by providing two cash prizes valued at $200 for 1st prize and $100 for 2nd prize
(donated by Vicki Karalis). The many art works included oil and water-based
paintings, sketches, drawings and photographs highlighting the beauty of our local
foreshore. The SFA will continue to support this important annual event. Theana
Thompson (wife of Murray Thompson MP) is the patron of this event.
 • Monash University A/Professor James Peterson Coastal Geomorphologist -
research of Sandringham beach and cliffs
We are privileged that Monash University A/Professor James Peterson has recruited
a student to study our local foreshore. SFA members have already met with this
student and provided him with much information to assist his project of our
foreshore. We will let you know more of the finer details of this project at a later date
– it is a study based on coastal geomorphology, namely our cliffs from a historical
perspective. If you have an interest in this area and would like to contribute to the
project, please let us know.

• Seat in honour of our local beach icon Dibbie

Recently Bayside Council, with the support of a number of local residents,
constructed a seat at Tennyson St beach in honour of Dibbie, a 90 year old regular
user of the Sandringham foreshore. She is often seen swimming the beach every
morning near Tennyson St beach. Most walkers are familiar with Dibbie. She is an
inspiration to us all and a great example of how we can all continue to be strong and
healthy even at 90 years of age. Good genes help of course, but Dibbie’s many secrets
to good health also include her daily walks and swims and her active continued
interest, involvement and passion for her local community. Dibbie has been involved
with a number of local community events such as Clean Up Australia Day and
revegetation of the cliffs. Her love and care for the Sandringham foreshore is quite
evident when you speak with Dibbie, and the SFA are proud to have organized a
plaque on the seat in honour of Dibbie, titled “Dibbie’s seat”.

• SFA meetings
Our Thursday meetings have been cancelled due to difficulty meeting on a weekday
as most of our members work.
Feel free to e-mail myself if you would like to meet with the committee at any stage
to discuss any concerns or ideas you may have for our foreshore.

Please see report below from Bayside Council summarizing other points raised at our
Council meetings.

Thank you for your on-going support.

Our Sandringham coastline is such a valuable local asset and should be cared for with
the utmost respect. We have in Sandringham one of the best natural beachscape
environments in the world located close to a major city.

Your sincerely
Vicki Karalis
President, SFA
on behalf of the SFA committee: Paul Hede, John Amiet, Helen Gibson, Craig Francis,
Adrienne Smith.

Ps please let us know if you would like to be taken off the e-mail mailing list.
SUMMARY REPORT FROM BAYSIDE COUNCIL FOLLOWING ONE OF OUR MEETINGS
LAST WEEK

Vicki
Thank you to you and John for taking the time to meet with Damian and myself on Tuesday and walk
along the beach and foreshore. We discussed many issues, including some that you raised in your
email of 8 April 2010.
The purpose of this email is to formally respond in a way that you can easily distribute to your
members to update them.

1. New walking tracks created by people taking short cuts to the beach Most of these seem to
have occurred near the paths that have been closed from the Royal Avenue car park to the
beach. A new path is proposed near the end of Southey Street (along the base of the open
grassed area) and this should provide more direct access to the beach and people will stop
making new tracks. Existing tracks (and the closed paths) will be assessed for revegetation.
Signs will be installed directing people to the paths.
2. Cliff erosion, loss of sand from the beach, groyne construction.
The general concern you have expressed regarding 'interventions' into coastal processes
through the construction of groynes will be discussed with the Department of Sustainability
and Environment (DSE). A letter sent to DSE by our CEO last year regarding monitoring of
the beach renourishment is being followed up. The intention is to ensure that the works
that have been completed are appropriately monitored to ensure that they achieve their
objective and that no other long-term problems have been created.
3. Long-term study of the cliffs and beach
This is supported and the main issue will be determining the best way to do it. Our CEO has
suggested photographs from designated points and this will be considered along with other
ways to measure change to ensure that we use a valid and repeatable method. This will be
discussed with DSE to determine whether it can be incorporated into their monitoring and
we will be assessing other options. I am sure we will be in further discussion about this
matter.

Items noted on our walk

• Temporary fences preventing access along the closed paths will be repaired and removed
once the new access path has been built if it is evident that people have stopped making
informal tracks.

• Fences installed at the base of the cliff will be repaired/removed and evaluated to determine
whether they are all necessary.

• Fencing generally will be reviewed to try and reduce the impact it has on the experience of
nature when walking through bushland. Your suggestion that fencing be set back, possibly
lower down on slopes, and incorporated with revegetation will all be considered within the
context of costs, the occupational health and safety of those involved in installing the
fence, and any impact on existing vegetation.

• Path width is an ongoing issue and the branches placed to try and prevent paths becoming
wider through use will continue to be put in place. This will include revegetation of path
edges where appropriate. The increasing amount of traffic on paths is having an effect and
consideration will be given to whether a boardwalk-type path surface is required in eroded
areas.
 • Dead trees throughout the bushland area are being left to avoid disturbance during their
removal and because they are part of the natural process of regeneration. They also offer
some protection from trampling to any regenerating plants underneath. The long period of
drought has obviously had an effect and replanting will be on our program as opportunities
arise.

• The fence near the access path towards Sims St will have a section added to close the gap.

If I have missed anything please let me know.

Thanks again for meeting with us.

Stephen