Warnervale airport: Aero Club members refuse to leave council public gallery
The mayor ordered rowdy Central Coast Aero Club supporters to clear the public gallery but many wouldn’t budge. Here’s how the Warnervale airport dispute went down.
The future of Warnervale Airport was at the centre of a tense standoff at Central Coast Council on Monday night when onlookers were ordered from the public gallery, but refused to leave.
Scores of Central Coast Aero Club supporters had packed the public gallery to hear council debate a series of motions relating to the airport and several had raised serious concerns during the public forum before the meeting.
The three motions relating to the airport were:
■ A motion about how council would manage trees at the ends of the airport runway which the Aero Club says present a safety risk.
■ A recession motion which sought to overturn a previous decision to stop mowing, slashing and trimming of vegetation adjoining the airport until a formal environmental assessment was done.
■ A motion seeking to guarantee the future of the aviation hub at Warnervale by fast tracking renewal of the current Aero Club lease agreement. It also calls for a meeting between the NSW planning minister, aviation groups and council staff to discuss rules and regulations thought to be limiting the future of the airport.
Aero Club supporters in the public gallery had been repeatedly warned to remain seated, stop applauding and calling out during the public forum and the following meeting, but matters came to a head when the recession motion was rejected.
Dozens of people rose to their feet to silently stare down the council in an act designed to intimidate. Mayor Jane Smith adjourned the meeting for 15 minutes and asked for the gallery to be cleared.
Security guards attempted to shepherd people out the doors but more than a dozen refused to go, leaving the meeting in limbo until the mayor resumed proceedings.
In the end, the Aero Club got little satisfaction and they will now have to wait for at least six months while a $100,000 report into how to manage tree heights and the northern and southern ends of the runway is completed.
The motion to fast track the licence agreement and set up a meeting was passed, but will do nothing to address immediate safety concerns around the trees and the runway.
Central Coast Aero Club manager Andrew Smith said unchecked trees at the ends of the runway would “erode the Aero Club’s ability to operate safely”.
“This is a safety risk to airport users that can’t be ignored,” he said.
Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association spokesman Benjamin Morgan addressed the public forum and said stopping mowing, slashing and trimming at the site was “dangerous”.
“This council has an immediate and unambiguous duty of care to maintain the airport safety,” Mr Morgan said.
“There has been little to no consultation and that is deeply troubling,” he said.
Mr Morgan said accused the council of failing to support the future growth of the airport and employment opportunities.
“Politics is deciding the future of the airport,” he said.
“Hundreds of millions of dollars in investment have been thrown to the winds,” he said.
“The airport has no future — I’ve had to take my aviation dreams to Sydney.”
“I am incredibly disappointed that what could be a valuable community asset has been mired in stupidity,” he said.
He was backed by Central Coast Aero Club director Peter Uther who said the club needed to know it’s long term future and was considering legal action over restrictions on the airport’s operations.
He said the attitude of some councillors was “anti-business”.
“A vote against the motion will show council does not support aviation training for young people or the Aerio Club,” he said.
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