ajpresre

Firstly I would like to thank Committee members, Zone leaders
and members
who have so willingly given their time and expertise in running BCS and
supporting me as President. There have been so many that I cannot name
them all individually, and some have been serving the ideals of BCS
since
its inception in 1953. 

I have now completed 2 years as President and am resigning at this AGM. It has been most
rewarding for me to have met
and worked
with our office bearers and other members towards the goals of our
shared
interest. 

One outcome of recent Committee discussions has been a revised
schedule
of duties and responsibilities, which, if accepted by our new
Committee,
could assist smooth operation and be less onerous on office
holders. 

In general the main aims of BCS have always been conservation
and restoration
of the indigenous flora and fauna and the protection of natural
landscape,
foreshore and seascape in our area. 

In pursuit of those aims some important initiatives have been
undertaken
during the year, in publishing details of undesirable pest plants and
weeds.
Also, opportunities have been investigated for funding for posters and
booklets showing such plants – this may produce results in the next 12
months. 

We also co-operate with local ‘Friends’ groups and the Council
contractors,
in planting, weeding, and watering, particularly on the foreshore. We
have
also made a request for funding under the Federal Volunteers Grants
Scheme.
Our submission for this one-off grant is for computer equipment, which
could assist BCS Committee work. 

Because of the rise in building activity and the clearing of
blocks
over the last four years, the focus of BCS has expanded to include
planning
schemes in Bayside and building developments in Beaumaris. 

During the past year, a great deal of time and effort has been
expended
by committee members in following the progress of State and Bayside
Council
building planning schemes, attending meetings, and making submissions
to
panels set up by those bodies. 

The long delays in presenting the revised Rescode report has
been frustrating,
but following the release on 24th of May and the implementation on the
24th of August, there are hopes that the new Rescode can overcome
further
examples of excessive overdevelopment that our suburb has
suffered. 

Rescode, however, does not reflect all the needs of Bayside,
and the
panel re-port that followed the Rescode release is disappointing, and
unfortunately
did not endorse several of the main local variations as put forward by
community groups such as BCS. 

In particular, site density provisions and height control
inland from
the foreshore were not accepted. However the C2 Amendment panel report
is still under review by our Council, and members of BCS committee
together
with other interested parties have been invited to a meeting on
October.
16th for further discussion. 

The outcome of any progress will be reported to BCS members by
the BCS
Committee, and Council can also be expected to publish their
findings. 

Future directions for the BCS should mean a reduction in
involvement
in planning schemes, although I’m sure some attention to local activity
will always be required. 

It is in our interest that Bayside councillors, present and
future,
should always be kept closely informed and sympathetic to our aims in
order
to represent our views. 

Hopefully BCS’s main efforts in the future can be directed to
the maintenance
and improvement of our neighbourhood natural environment that so many
have
worked for since 1953. 

I wish the next office bearers well and will support them in
their tasks. 

Regards to all,