News from the Arboretum

Botanic Gardens Week

Botanic Gardens Week (BGW) runs from 19–25 May 2025. This is an annual week of celebration highlights the role of plants in our lives and the important work botanic gardens and arboreta undertake every day to conserve them for future generations. The Pearl Beach Arboretum is proud to be a member of Botainic Gardens Australia New Zealand (BGANZ) who are running a number of free online seminars associated with BGW and hosted by Costa Georgidis. The next online seminar is on the 12 May 2025 is titled "Born To Be Wild: from seed bank to forest floor". Discover how botanic gardens are powerful forces in saving native species and ecosystems – taking plants from seed banks to thriving wild habitats. It can be accessed via Costa's Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/CostasWorld

PBEAT2025 Post Event Visitor Survey

The 2025 Pearl Beach Arboretum Environmental Art Trail (PBEAT2025) ran from Saturday 22 March until Sunday 27 April 2025. It was a great success, enjoyed by many visitors. It would be great if you could complete this survey to inform the management committee of the Arboretum in its consideration of holding this or similar events in the future.  There are 22 questions, but many are multiple choice to make it quick. There is the ability to provide detailed comments about PBEAT at the end of the survey. The survey link for visitors is https://forms.office.com/r/7zkce8ZMMt. There is also a survey for artists & event organisers https://forms.office.com/r/7Xbr6RJpkC. Please email us if you have trouble with these links contact@pearlbeacharboretum.org.au.

Gammelan orchestra at the PBEAT2025 opening event.

Next Arboretum Working Bee

All are welcome at the Pearl Beach Arboretum working bees which are held on the 3rd Sunday of each month except December. The next working bee is on Sunday 18 May, meeting at 9am at the Arboretum Cottage. We finish at 11am with a delicious morning tea. Please wear enclosed shoes and long trousers and bring a hat and gloves. Tools are provided. We may do some infill planting in our sensory garden as well as weeding and spreading mulch.

Please make a submission on Council's Strategic doncuments 2025-2035.

Central Coast Council have placed the following suite of documents on public exhibition: the draft Community Strategic Plan, Delivery Program, Operational Plan and resourcing strategies - known collectively as Council's draft Integrated Planning and Reporting framework (IP&R). Community feedback closes on 2 June 2025.

The Arboretum supports the overall Community Vision included in the IP&R which states: "Together we will strengthen and support our community, protect our environment, and create an inclusive, prosperous and accessible place to live, work and thrive, for today and for future generations. This is OUR future, OUR Central Coast."

However while the Council says the IP&R documents have been developed following extensive community consultation, they do not reflect the Arboretum's repeated requests for Council to take up their repsonsibilities with regard to:

• the structural stability and accessibility of the Arboretum's three older bridges and one older boardwalk (near the new sensory garden); nor

• supporting the implementation of the Arboretum's 2023 Landscape Masterplan including the need to replace the Arboretum's wetland boardwalk which was washed away by floods in early 2022.

We encourage the friends of the Arboretum to provide feedback to the Council noting that the neither the draft Delivery Program 2025-2029 and draft Operational Plan 2025/26; nor the draft Asset Management Strategy 2025-2035 address these priorites for the Arboretum - which is a much loved community asset on the Central Coast.

Following consideration of all submissions, the updated plans will be referred to Council before adoption in June. So if you agree these projects are essential to the future of the Arboretum - please go to https://www.yourvoiceourcoast.com/planning-our-future-2025-2035 and complete a submission which includes the above comments.

We ask this because:

• Council has accepted that the Arboretum's existing bridges and boardwalks are its responsibility as they were constructed before the Arboretum was incorporated;

• Council officers have assessed the condition of the Arboretum's older bridges and boardwalks and have noted their continuing deterioration to the point of their being unsafe over the next five years;

• Council officers have noted the Arboretum's Landscape Masterplan - which places the need to reinstate the eastern wetland boardwalk is a major priority. The boardwalk provided an engaging loop walk through the Arboretum - essential to its recreational bushland character and its environmental educational aims and objectives;

• The Arboretum estmates it will cost at least $250,000 to develop the design for the replacement wetland boardwalk and to achieve development and environmental approvals and costings. Such actions are essential before the Arbroetum or Council can apply for grants to have the wetland baordwalk reinstated. The Arboretum is not prepared to raise the money for this preliminary planning stage without the written support of Council. The provision of Council expertise at this plannign stage would aslo be gratefully received.

Thank you for taking the time to consider this request for you to make a submission to Council either by completing the online form at  https://www.yourvoiceourcoast.com/planning-our-future-2025-2035 or by emailing ask@centralcoastcouncil.gov.au with the subject heading "submission on Council's Council's draft Integrated Planning and Reporting framework 2025 - 2035". If you are emailing a submission you must give your name, address and phone number for it to be included as community feedback.