Gosford CBD a disgrace and deserves better

 

Bill Kerr addressing the Chamber Luncheon on Wednesday 12th November

“The CBD is a disgrace and those who conduct business or visit the area deserve better”. These are some of the words uttered by a relaxed and confident Bill Kerr during his address to the Gosford chamber luncheon yesterday, 12th November, at Iguana Joes.

With over 90 guests attending the luncheon, some travelling from Sydney to hear him, he concluded his address by fielding tricky questions with authority. This alone shows he has done a bit of homework on the city.

After so many past disappointments at getting the regions capital city into line with the ‘living city concept’ we might just have the right chap to take us there. We had John McInerney the Architect a Town Planner with special interests in transport and heritage. And as a past National President of the Planning Institute of Australia and former Manager of Planning for the City of Sydney and City of Melbourne, had high hopes for his deliverance. 

Then came Frank Sartor, but not much happened there, now we rest our hopes on Bill Kerr. He openley stated how important it is to consult with all stakeholders for their views on Gosford’s future. He has discussed issues with local education specialists, looked into the social fabric of Gosford, beaten a path to local property holders and generally talked his pants off to get to the root of the problem, before looking to implement anything at all. For this he is to be congratulated.

“Gosford is located in one of the most beautiful settings in Australia,” Mr Kerr said, referring to the nearby waterfront and the scenic hills. “But it puzzles me why the waterfront and the town centre have not been connected,” he said.

It seems every man/woman and his/her dog wishes that derelict building gracing Donnison and Mann to be redeveloped. Spurbest also has been brought into the equation. We all know we have the basic ingredients for a beautiful place, all it needs is a team with creative insight and the ‘nouse’ to get it going. Make those hard decisions which will not please everyone, Kibble is an example of that, and get moving.

Kerr dispeled some of the myths surrounding Gosford Public School, and wonders just where the local media get their stories from. He openly states he knows not what outcomes will eventuate, but the demands made of his team will ensure the highest quality by the time they are formed in 2009 and promises to give future development an edge. Glossy brochures alone do not impress this bloke!

The Gosford Challenge Launch

The Grunt agrees with the Mayor Chris Holstein and Bill Kerr when they openly tell those who consistently knock our city by the water to move somewhere else.

The Grunt asks the question. Do we start at the waterfront and move development toward the CBD? Or do we start within the CBD and work toward the waterfront? Either way the waterfront is our oyster and forms an integral part of any development plan. Check out the Gosford Challenge website. And more here.

Get involved here, ‘cause your thoughts are not only welcome, they are vital.

A most unlikely President

 

The Winner Barack Obama

Barack Obama’s candidacy forced the US to confront the worst of their 9/11 fears and their lingering racism. Barack Hussein Obama was, arguably, the country’s most unlikely candidate for highest office.

He embodied, or at least invoked, much of what America feared. His color recalled its racist past. His name was a reminder of an anxious present. His spiritual mentor displayed a streak of radical Afro-nationalism. He knew domestic terrorists and had lived in predominantly Muslim countries. There was hardly a specter lurking in the American subconscious that he did not call forth.

And that was his great strength. He robbed fear of its ability to work through quiet insinuation. He forced America to confront its own subconscious. Obama actually is black. His middle name actually is “Hussein.” He actually does know William Ayers. He actually was married by Jeremiah Wright. He actually had lived in Indonesia. These were not smears, though they were often used as such. They were facts. And this election was fundamentally about what happened when fear collided with fact.

For the first time, America had to articulate what exactly it feared. Did it truly believe that the middle name “Hussein” suggested a terrorist threat to their country? Well, no. Did it genuinely think Obama a radical Afro-nationalist who had dedicated his life to serving a country he loathed? Probably not. Did it actually seem plausible that Obama wanted to become president so he could finish the job the Weathermen started? Unlikely. The shadowy terrors that animated American politics in the dark aftermath of 9-11 receded. Time had passed. To borrow a line, it was morning in America, and their country looked different in the clean light of the dawn. And so too did its problems. As did Rudd with Howard.

In Washington, residents poured into the streets. Hundreds of people gathered on Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House, dancing and cheering. George W reportedly lounging in a chair eating cake whilst watching the election unfold on TV.

As the 44th president he is the first African American elected to this position and could well take race out of politics in much the same way as Kennedy took religion out of politics, as the first Catholic to be elected president. Perhaps now the fear mongering that has been dished out to us for so long, will evaporate.

For a run down on who won what, if your interested, click here.