BY CRISTINA SACCO
WOLLONGONG — Residents of Sandon Point, near Thirroul, the controversial site of a proposed upmarket housing development by Stocklands Constructions, were woken by the roar of bulldozers at 5am on February 12. Immediately "phone trees" were put into action and by 6.30am around 60 activists were ready to blockade the site. Angry residents rang Wollongong Lord Mayor George Harrison to complain.
JK Williams, subcontractors from Penrith, had arrived with 45 workers to operate excavators, bulldozers and trucks. There were armed security guards with dogs as well. They were unable to break the blockade.
Many Wollongong council members and NSW Greens MP Lee Rhiannon came to offer support. Arthur Rorris, South Coast Labor Council secretary, acted as a mediator between the picketers and the subcontractors.
Two days later, police were called at 12.30pm to break the 200-strong blockade. After an hour of towing away parked cars, the police then began to drag 40 protesters away, packing them into paddy wagons. They were released just down the street.
By about 3pm, nearly all the machinery was on the site. However, at 3:15pm an injunction was issued against Stocklands under the Land and Environment Act by Aboriginal groups seeking to stop the development and force Stocklands back to the negotiating table.
A prior agreement had been entered into by Stocklands and the Wollongong City Council not to proceed with the construction of stages 1-6 of the development while the negotiations process was still in progress. There are still two-t2-3 months left of these negotiations.
Stocklands has received full legal rights to begin construction, even though the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) have approved work on only 33% of the potential site. The other two-thirds of the site has not yet been tested for possible Aboriginal and European heritage sites. There are also concerns about chemical contamination of the soil.
The site backs into marshland where migratory birds mate. The endangered green and gold bell frog inhabits the area. The NPWS has recommended a 40-metre buffer zone from the creek running through the area but Stocklands' plans propose a meagre 5 metres.
The local community was also outraged to discover the water board has sold land to Stocklands.
NSW ALP parliamentarian David Campbell and Mayor George Harrison have attempted to defuse the picket with a "compromise" which involved allowing Stocklands to commence "some" work on the first six stages whilst the council held a Aboriginal heritage study of the area. This was rejected immediately by the picketers.
Even with the temporary victory of the injunction, the picket will continue indefinitely. Any support, around the clock at the picket line, is welcome. The picket is on Point Street, opposite Beacon Street, Sandon Point. There will be a Surf festival on March 2, followed by a rally and bands.
From Green Left Weekly, February 20, 2002.
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