Hello and welcome to this week's Council Connect. Councillor Alexandria Carruthers here with you to give you a quick update on all things Council, particularly as we had our last Council meeting for the year on Wednesday.
I'll kick things off with the Clarence Town Flood Study. That came before Council as a draft, and we've endorsed it to go out on public exhibition. That will be on public exhibition from the 12th January 2026. There are a lot of documents on exhibition at the moment, so we thought it would be beneficial to have that extra time for the community to review the Housing and Infrastructure plans, have a break and enjoy Christmas, and then we can dive straight into the Clarence Town Flood Study in the new year. That will be on exhibition from January 12th to March 1st, 2026.
It's the first comprehensive, unified flood assessment for the Clarence Town catchment. So anyone in Clarence Town, I would suggest that you have a look at those documents. There's some really interesting mapping of Clarence Town and the flood behaviors. So, mark the 12th of January in your calendar. It'll be online, and we'll obviously promote that through our channels as well to let you know and remind you that that's about for review.
We also got an update on the Clarence Town Bridge. Progress is happening there, which is fantastic. We've had some major structural works completed, including the bridge abutments, piers and all the major piling works. So there's been some great progress and that's a fantastic stage to be at. There's also been a few design improvements, including an upgrade to the storm water capacity, kerb and guttering, AC wearing surface for durability, upgraded lighting and power infrastructure. So that's exciting!
And then, in other news, the Dungog Housing and Infrastructure Master Plan final drop-in community information sessions are on this weekend. We have a session in Paterson this Saturday from 10am to 12pm at the Paterson School of Arts Hall, and then we have the Gresford session in the afternoon, from 2pm to 4pm at the Gresford School of Arts Hall. So they will both be on Saturday with a session in the morning at Paterson and one in the afternoon at Gresford. Please make sure you get along to those. It doesn't matter if you don't live in Paterson or Gresford, and even if you live in Clarence Town, Dungog, Martins Creek, or Vacy, those sessions are available for anyone to attend. If you have feedback to provide as part of the draft plans on exhibition, or you have questions, or you're unsure where to start reading them, and you have some questions you'd like answered, please come along. The team will be there to engage with you and provide answers. If they can't give you answers at that point in time, they'll certainly source the answers for you and come back to you. However, it is really important to remain engaged for this final stage of the plans. So get along to those.
And also just another reminder that the Duke and Durham Street intersection concept designs are on public exhibition as well over at Clarence Town. So that's part of the new Clarence Town Bridge project that I just spoke about earlier. They'll be on public exhibition until the 23rd of January. We're seeking feedback on the four design options we've presented for that intersection, aiming to make it a bit safer for the community. You can access the information online, and I'll include a link to it in the comments below. And then it's really easy to submit your response. You don't have to put a lot of words into it. Any feedback is great feedback. We know a lot is going on at this time of year, and there is a lot to get through, but any engagement that you can give is much appreciated. Better to have something there than nothing at all.
We are also inviting community members to join the Pilchers Reserve Plan of Management Committee at the moment, so expressions of interest are now open for that. I'll include a link below, but we're seeking up to six community representatives, including up to two neighboring property owners to Pilcher's Reserve, and then four representatives from user groups of the Pilchers Reserve. So that's just for the Pilchers Reserve itself, and that's the Plan of Management that the committee will be looking at. Again, I'll include the details below in the comments for you.
We'll also be going out for expressions of interest for a 355 Committee next week as well. The James Theater is seeking an additional committee member to serve on the 355 committee. It's a really rewarding role. It's a great way to be a part of the community and join a fantastic group of people who are interested in film and having such a historic building that exists in Dungog, the James theater was one of the first purpose-built theatres in Australia that's still in operation. So that's something pretty special for our town, and it is really great to have a great group of people that are working on that 355, committee. So they're just looking for an extra pair of hands. It's a four-year term commitment, but we'll provide more information about this opportunity next week. There'll be an ad for that committee spot in the NOTA newspaper, and we'll also use Facebook and other platforms to provide more information about how to apply and the skills required for the role.
And finally, Christmas is upon us. We know that in a few weeks it'll be here. So not this weekend, but next weekend, we have the Christmas Carols in Gresford and Paterson. GAPS will be putting on the carols, as they do every year, and they do a fantastic job! So come along to that. I'll put some more information in the comments below. At the Gresford one on Saturday, there will also be the opening of the Gresford Art Gallery. So there will be all things arts, singing, carols, Christmas, kids, families, community. So come along for that. I believe the markets will be on too. So again, I'll include more information down below.
Then on Sunday, there'll be the carols at Paterson. Once again, I'll add more information in the comments below. But you know, lots of singing, lots of fun times connecting with people you may not have seen all year, and just to close out 2025 before we go into that wonderful festive season, and then we'll be at 2026.
This is my last update for the year. Thank you very much for tuning in on a Friday and listening to me. I'll see you in 2026, if not at the carols. Bye.
