Prankster Sets Up Hyrdo "Charging Station"

"Hyrdro" EV Charging Station in Alfreda Street, Coogee

It is doubtful if it could give a single watt of power, but did give a lot of mirthful energy.

When checked a few days later, the "facility" had been removed.

Real Chargers
Randwick City Council residents will have access to 100 new electric vehicle (EV) charging spaces by the end of 2025 as part of a joint ‘Charging the East’ initiative undertaken by a eastern suburb municipal council in an effort to support residents to make the switch to EVs.

Coogee’s beautiful, yet noisily active Rainbow Lorikeet parrots have lately been falling victim to a sometimes deadly disease. Locals have been finding the lorikeets on the ground, seemingly paralyzed.

One suspected disease is Lorikeet Paralysis Syndrome (LPS), although Coogee is not in the area or climate where the disease usually occurs. LPS is a seasonal paralytic disease that mainly affects wild rainbow lorikeets in northern NSW and southern Queensland from December to February. The cause of the disease is unknown; however, an environmental toxin is considered most likely.

The seasonality of the disease suggests a blooming/fruiting period of a toxic plant that occurs from October to June. The distribution of the locations where lorikeets are found is not random, suggesting that if a toxic plant is the cause of LPS, the plant occurs in some areas but not others. Perhaps an exotic plant species has found its way into Coogee’s gardens.

Others suspect that it may be a virus. Lorikeets are very sociable animals, and the spread of any virus is aided when they crowd together in one place.

What Can You Do?
There are a lot of environmental benefits to choosing plants that are indigenous to the local area, including ensuring local wildlife has the best choice of naturally occurring food. Randwick City Council’s nursery at 2R Barker St, Kingsford, is a great source of reasonably priced garden plants suited to the local area, as well as an excellent source of horticultural advice.

Consider discarding water and food bowls left out for birds. These tend to encourage birds to congregate in larger numbers than normal and promote the spread of viruses. There are plenty of natural sources of food and water in and around the Coogee area for birds, and open feeding and watering tend to aid the health of birds.

Many bird experts say you should avoid feeding birds bread, since the yeast content is another encouragement of virus and disease.

Lorikeets Return?
Over the last month, lorikeets have started to reappear in local trees, making a noisy cacophony near dawn and sunset. So perhaps they have overcome the disease

Coogee Kiosk Building

Randwick City Council plans to upgrade the public amenities, bus shelter and kiosk at Goldstein Reserve on Arden Street, Coogee Beach. They propose two options:

Option 1: Refurbishment and renovating the building to maintain the existing appearance:

• Upgraded building retaining the same exterior appearance to match other buildings in the reserve dating from the 1980s and early 1990s
• Similar footprint
• Enhanced interior facilities
• More female toilets
• Retention of separate wash basin areas
• Doubling the size of the bus stop waiting area.
• Construction cost estimate $4M

• New design which is said to be inspired by the Coogee coastline with a curved concrete roof connecting three sections
• More female and male toilets
• Communal wash basin
• Lower long term maintenance costs due to more robust materials
• Extended paving for cafe seating
• Storage area for Council operations and Coogee Surf Life Saving Club Nippers operations and buggies
• Construction cost estimate $6.75M

Artist impression of proposal to rebuild Coogee Kiosk building

Both options will remove existing showers to make room for more toilets, because it is felt there are sufficient showers along the beachfront and in the facilities in the lower concourse.

Many people believe that the existing building has heritage value and dates from the tram-era of the 20th century. They were, in fact, only built around 1987 - but perhaps an indication of how well they have fitted in with the existing architectural values.

Randwick Council is asking for public comment. View the plans and share your thoughts at Your Say Randwick on the Council's website, or by joining a drop-in session at Goldstein Reserve near the amenities on

1. The loss of an important local commercial and community asset.
2. The future of important heritage and artistic values represented by the building in which the branch is housed

On 1st February 2024, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia announced that it would be closing three more bank branches - i.e. Coolangatta in Queensland, Rundle Street Mall in Adelaide and its Coogee Branch, further focusing it acitivities towards online internet banking.

No Bank Branches in Coogee
This will mean that Coogee Bay Road, which was once a thriving local commercial centre, will now host no bank branches at all. A few years back, Westpac decamped from their purpose built premises on the corner of Coogee Bay Road and Vicar to a shop-front further along at 235 Coogee Bay Road. Then after a couple of years, that was in turn closed, and its operations and customers transferred to its Randwick Branch. Then there was just one left.

Architecture & Art
It is really a striking and attractive piece of architecture. Coogee Media has long suspected that the decorative sandstone panels and aquatic themed sculptured panels were created by the important Australian modernist artist, Gerald Lewers. You can read more about Gerald Lewers and Coogee here.

This building at 199 Coogee Bay Road was sold by the Bank in May 2021 for $11.2 million at auction to a local Coogee businessman and gym owner. Press reports said that it had 585 square metres of floor space on a 402 square metre block. The Bank took a three-year lease of the building - and just as that the lease was about the expire, it announced that it would close the bank. The building is being refitted at the moment to become and spa and gym.

Bendigo Bank
The only bank now still open in Coogee is the Bendigo Bank at 222-226 Clovelly Road, Coogee. Being just on the border with Clovelly, it is still officially in Coogee but located in the small Clovelly shopping centre and is branded as Bendigo Bank - Community Bank Clovelly. One thing, it is managed by a local board of directors, so is probably not going to go away any time soon.

Normally we don’t make overt political statements, although our readers should easily discern where our catholic sympathies lie: pretty much in the centre and left-of-centre: Labor, Teal, Greens, wet Liberals, and could guess what our position would be.

This constitutional recognition issue, however, is a little different. It goes to the heart of what it means to be an Australian and our group is therefore supportive of the Voice. The only misgivings was that by making a clear statement in favour, we might offend some people. Maybe we might get a proverbial brick through the window. But what is there to be offended about? The view that the indigenous people of Australia were here first is just a statement of fact – how could anyone be offended by that? And that they should have a mechanism for putting their views before Parliament on issues that affect them seems logical.

Some of us used to be supporters of creating a new Australian flag, sans the Union Jack in the corner. Then the Morrison government made the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags, national flags. Now, when one sees the Australian and Aboriginal flags flying alongside each other over local Coogee landmarks: the Surf Club, the Crowne Plaza Hotel, the Coogee Bay Hotel, etc., my view at least is “OK, I can live with that”. The flags together are a new symbol, one of unity, rather than just individual pieces of material that describe different communities. Who says we should have just one flag?

If the YES votes succeeds, we reckon all the other things people worry about will fall away as well.

”Treaty : OK we can work on that”

Many of what seem like thorny, divisive issues will either dissipate, or just fall into place. One thing for sure, if the vote fails, the likelihood that future governments will attempt to address the elephant in the room, i.e the status of our First Nations people, is remote - why would a government try again with something else if this modest and reasonable approach is rejected?

We are traveling on a path together whose final destination we don’t yet know. We will get there safely walking hand-in-hand rather than pushing and shoving each other along the way.

Trove gives free access to full-text, searchable, online copies of Australian newspapers, magazines, newsletters and government gazettes dating back to 1803 and up to 1954 (and in many cases beyond that to most recent editions), as well as millions of photographs, maps and other documents. It is an invaluable source of material for researchers, historians, and content providers. It has been described as being "Australia's digital memory".

We received correspondence from the Minister with the very welcome news that long-term funding of Trove has been put in place by the government. It read:

I am pleased to announce that the Albanese Government will secure the long-term funding of Trove, providing certainty for the program and its many users for the first time. The Australian Government will provide the National Library of Australia with $33 million over four years and crucially, $9.2 million per year in indexed ongoing funding.

As you know, Trove is the single point of entry to the collections of hundreds of Australian libraries, universities, museums, galleries and archives. It is, in many ways, Australia’s digital memory.

The previous Liberal and National Governments left the future of Trove hanging in the balance, only funding the program to June 2023. Without this funding Trove would simply cease to exist in a few short months – and with that access to much of Australia’s history would be denied to millions of Australians. The Government’s funding will help restore and maintain our strong cultural infrastructure – a key pillar of Revive, the Government’s new National Cultural Policy.

I have had a strong connection with Trove since it was first established in 2009 under the Rudd Government, and I supported it when I first came into the arts portfolio in 2013. Whether you’re using Trove to look up family history, or for academic research – it is an incredibly important part of our cultural infrastructure. Thank you again for the part you’ve played in helping to secure the future of Trove.

You can reach Trove database at https://www.trove.nla.gov.au

If you have not used it before, it can open up a whole new world of data and material for your research. It is particularly good for Australian history, local studies, family history, or the history of buildings and sites; why not try searching for your own home and see what has happened there in the past?

The petition goes on to say that currently these tennis courts are free of charge to the public, with people self-regulating their time on the courts, and allowing the next waiting locals to take their turn. It also says that the courts are kept in good condition despite constant use, because those using it have a sense of community ownership.

Ultimately, Randwick City Council rejected the proposal, and the courts remain open the public for free use on a self-regulating basis.

In Good Order & Neat and Tidy
When Coogee Media visited the courts, this seems the case with everything looking neat and tidy and in good order. There was a good turnover of players, playing singles and doubles, on the two synthetic grass courts. Groups played a few games each, and moved on to let the next group play.

Patrons seem to be following the rules.

Randwick City Council Report
A report by Randwick City's Director of City Services (No. CS40/22) outlines a number of proposals involving local tennis facilities including : "that the Eastern Suburbs Tennis Club formally approached [Randwick City] Council seeking to collaboratively investigation [sic] the utilisation of the existing Council tennis courts at Bak- Park, Coogee." It goes on to say that only "in-principle" support is sought to "commence investigations into the ... unique proposals".

Many feared that a change of status or management will endanger the friendly atmosphere of community centred tennis in an idyllic setting. Some approached the Council, Councillors and the State Member of Parliament to lobby against the proposal and to have the current arrangements stay in place. Ultimately, Randwick Council agreed with residents, and voted to let the current arrangements remain in place.

Current Policy
Randwick Council's policy says that the Baker Park Tennis Courts are available for use free of charge. Council staff open and close the gates each morning and evening. Although court bookings are not required, the following conditions of use apply:

1. The courts are available for use by the general public, no commercial coaching is to occur at these courts.
2. The courts are to be used for a maximum period of one hour. Please show respect to other users and make the court available after 1 hour of use.
3. The tennis courts are to be left clean after use. Please take your rubbish with you and dispose of it properly.
4. No smoking or alcohol permitted on the tennis courts.
5. No wheeled vehicles allowed (for example skateboards, bicycles, in-line skates, scooters) on the tennis courts.

Mixed media art work "PIVOT" by Paul Convy

The exhibition is open to the public from Tuesday 4th October 2022 until Thursday November 10 2022 from 9am to 5pm each day.

Coogee Pier in its heyday

Maybe they should have completely removed all the foundations back in 1934, but perhaps that was too hard. Modern machinery, however, made it a relatively straightforward operation and Coogee Media arrived at Coogee Beach on the first bright sunny winter day in long time on Friday 8th July, 2022, to see the stumps of the what were said to be the pier's foundations neatly stacked at the northern end of the beach and ready to be loaded onto the back of trucks for disposal. Randwick City Council says the sand supporting the pylons had been washed away and they collapsed and needed to be removed.

Mixed Views
Many swimmers and surfers have found the remains to the foundations on the beach to be a nuisance, and a danger, when sand levels are low after storms. Many have said that it is about time they were removed.

They were relatively large structures and a favoured pastime after a storm was to stand on one of the stumps for a selfie.

Others, however, have grown fond of their reappearance from time to time and see them a important pieces of Coogee's heritage and a historical reminder of "old" Coogee. Some people have said they would have preferred them to remain.

Decision to be made about future of pylons
According to Randwick City Council, the pylons have been stored, and a decision about what to do with them and whether they have any heritage value, had yet to be made. One suggestion was to use them for an art installation, The last we saw of the "pylons" were of them being stacked at the back of Randwick City Council's depot at Storey Street, Maroubra.

You can watch a short video we made one the activity on Coogee Beach on Friday, 8th July 2022 as Randwick City Council employees and contractors worked to removed the remains of the pylons and other debris frm the beach.

On Wednesday 16th February 2022 a scuba diver was attacked and killed by a shark while swimming at nearby Little Bay Beach (actually Buchan Point) which is about 6km south of Coogee.

Victim
The victim was Simon Nellist, 35, from the Sydney suburb of Wolli Creek in Sydney's south. News reports say he was a British expat, expert diver, and a regular swimmer at Little Bay. Mr Nellist was a certified diving instructor and his social media is filled with underwater pictures, showing him as an avid ocean swimmer and nature lover.

Tragic News
News of the attack caused a great deal of consternation in the local surfing and swimming communities. Beaches in Randwick, including Coogee were closed, and the Mayor and local parliamentarians visited the site at Little Bay.

Perspective
Coogee Media has a couple of stories on this site about historic shark attacks from the 1920s. (You can read them here at Shark Attack at Coogee and at Another Shark Attack at Coogee). We received a number of enquiries from the media about these 1920s attacks as background for the recent tragedy, and statistics indicate that the stories have been read many thousands of times over the last couple of days by visitors to our site. Interesting that shark attacks engender such interest.

That the attacks were the last at Coogee in over a hundred years, and that the last recorded fatal attack in the Sydney area, before the Little Bay attack, was 60 years ago, gives a perspective of just how rare shark attacks are. At the same beach, Little Bay, just about a week ago, a father and his young son drowned at the beach in a swimming accident. The local coastline is littered with signs erected by Randwick Council to warn of falling dangers, and others that show the numbers of rock fishermen who have drowned while fishing on the rock shelf. And it was only this year on the 8th January that a young man accidentally fell to his death from the cliffs at the north end of Coogee.

In 2017, a 77 year old local man drowned at Coogee. In 2015 a young Swedish tourist was killed when the shopping trolley he was joy-riding down Coogee Bay Road crashed into a car. In 2009 an Irish tourist was killed outside of a Coogee Bay Road kebab shop aftera "one punch attack". These are just a few tragic incidents we can recall, everyday life can have its dangers - dangers increased sometimes when people engaged in risky behaviour.

There is probably less to fear from the sharks than our every day activities. Still, Coogee Meda, illogical as it may seem, will think twice before venturing into the surf for a while.

Sign at rockshelf near Ivo Rowe Pool, Coogee

Polling about Sharks
A number of readers reported that they have been polled by telephone by a Public Opion Polling company. They were asked if they were willing to express an opion about "a number of local issues" but in reality the questions were all about sharks at local beaches, shark nets, drum-lines and "smart" drum-lines.

CCTV Cameras in Coogee Bay Road

Numerous CCTV Cameras in Coogee?
Which made us wonder about the numerous CCTV cameras newly installed in Coogee Bay Road. There is at least a dozen new cameras that join the ones already installed nearby on Arden ad Dolphin Street and on the beach front, plus the private cameras being operated by entertainment and other businesses. You would expect they have been installed with the aim of discouraging anti-social and drunken behaviour. But we wonder about how they are being monitored and by whom?

Is there a hi-tech room in a location wherre people sit in front of screens monitoring and reporting on activity in the area in real time? Who has access to the data? Or are they just used to statically record data, stored until police need to retrieve footage for investigations? It seems the later is the case.

We spoke to someone recently who had been the victim of a roberry at night in a Coogee carpark. The attack did not cause any immediate response blazing police sirens, or a rush of emergency services. However, when he reported the incident to police, they were quickly able to retrieve the CCTV footage which confirmed his version of events.

RCC Code of Practice
Randwick City Council's website has material about the CCTV program on their website:

Closed Circuit TV (CCTV) is part of Council's crime prevention initiative for a safe environment in Randwick City for residents and visitors. The aim of CCTV in Randwick City is to: reduce crime levels and the fear of crime by deterring potential offenders assist in detecting and prosecuting offenders help secure a safer environment for residents and visitors Randwick City Council has installed a number of CCTV cameras at Goldstein Reserve, Coogee ... In order to achieve a balance between crime prevention interests and rights and privacy of individuals, Council has developed a draft Code of Practice [Downloadable] for the use of CCTV at Coogee and other future sites in the City.

Some websites that discuss the technical aspects of the system talk of the Police and Council Staff having access. During Coogee Media's daily exercise perambulations throughout the local area, we have come across other CCTV cameras, including one on a light pole in St Mark's Road dedicated to monitoring illegal rubbish dumping.

Front Row Seats to the Open Air Entertainment?
One thing for sure, whoever has access to the CCTV data from Coogee Bay Road would have front row views of any of the action from the live entertainment and other activities on the beachfront.

Yep! Three months of lockdown.

Zooming
During 2021 being denied live music performances, theatre, movie complexes, restaurants I got excited about the prospect of a "big night out" on a Zoom meeting. I willing to take any excuse to Zoom: historical society talks, Randwick Council's seminars, online craft lessons, art talks, and even quelle horreur   A.L.P. (Labor) branch meetings - anywhere where you can pretend to meet other like minded people while drinking a half-bottle of cheap red. Just like people have been trying to keep their local businesses afloat by shopping with them during lockdowns, I think it is important to support local community groups - they are the heart of the community and two years of disruption has decimated their membership.

Zoom Funerals
I attended a couple of online funerals during the lockdown. Out of respect for the deceased, I put on a business shirt and jacket and was surprised when friends contacted later by others online, noted that I had "got all dressed up" for the occasion! I couldn't help notice that one friend of the deceased was wearing a fetching pajama ensemble in blue polka-dots.

While the Minister extolled the virtues of our recently departed friend, I could see other online attendees liberally sipping on big mugs of tea and coffee. Now that is something to consider for future face-to-face events! Mind you, this being Coogee, the deceased would have likely also willingly partaken in a single-source, fee-range, fair-trade, organic, soy moca latte lite, if offered.

Better Zoom Presentations
Lockdowns may have gone, but Zoom meetings still abound. People may scoff at those who "curate" their Zoom meetings, but it is hard not to notice that some people look and sound much better than others while on Zoom. There is nothing worse than having to look up someones's left nostril as they bend over the camera and send the audio meter to red as they speak directly into the microphone. Some ideas about preparing for a Zoom meeting includes:

Put the cat out.

The crush of people and the noise of activity, all dressed-up, at roof top bar on Sydney summer evening seems so much more inviting.

Lockdown over! - I needed a barber, but at least I enjoyed a small beer

For a first lunch after lockdown, we chose the "fine dining" option of a Vietnamese pork and salad roll from the "Xcel Roll Shop" - a little hole in the wall operation at 268 Coogee Bay Road, which has become something of an institution in Coogee and renowned for its excellent budget based lunch which you can enjoy sitting on the steps of the beach prominade. So popular have the rolls become, the queue to buy them will stretch down to Arden Street during lunch hours!