Letter to CEO, council and councillors re Food and Drink Premises missing documentation

Subject: Amended Comments – Missing Documentation in Public Notices (Newcastle Ocean Baths Food & Drink Premises)

I wish to provide amended comments to supplement my earlier email regarding missing operational information in the public notices for the proposed licensed Food and Drink Premises at the Newcastle Ocean Baths. In my original correspondence, I referred only to the Operational Management Plan. However, after further review of the DA documentation, I have since become aware that the BCA Assessment Report and the Access Report are also essential for the community to make fully informed comments on the proposed Food and Drink Premises. These documents contain critical information relating to patron capacities, floor areas, hours of operation, circulation and safety that members of the public would reasonably require when responding to Council’s invitation for submissions.

I therefore request that Council’s public information be updated to alert the community to all relevant documents — not solely the OMP — and that the submission period be extended accordingly to allow fair and informed participation.

See my original email below

Kind regards,

Peter Wickham

President, Friends of Newcastle Ocean Baths Inc.

On ,Sat Dec 06 2025 12:02:03 GMT+1100 (Australian Eastern Daylight Time),

---------- Original Message ---------

To CEO, Lord Mayor, Deputy Lord Mayor, all councillors, Property Services and Ocean Baths Team

Subject: Missing Documentation in Public Notices – Newcastle Ocean Baths Proposed Lease (Food & Drink Premises)

I am writing regarding the invitation issued by Property Services for the community to provide submissions by 22 December on the proposed food and drinks licensed premises at the Newcastle Ocean Baths. This request sits within the broader public exhibition of DA2025/01321 (Stage 2), as the licensed premises forms an integral part of the development now before the community.

However, the public invitation does not provide — nor even reference — the key operational information contained in the DA documentation. Likewise, the Newcastle Herald public notice and the on-site signage at the Baths made no reference at all to this operational material.

None of the public notices — including the Council website invitation, the Newcastle Herald notice, the on-site signage at the Baths, or the letter to residents — make any reference to the Operational Management Plan contained within DA2025/01321. Directing the public to “contact Council for further information” is not an adequate substitute for providing or linking the actual operational material that defines how the licensed premises will function.

This omission is significant because any member of the public lodging a submission on the proposed food and drink premises is, in effect, lodging a submission on the Stage 2 DA itself. The only document that sets out the operating hours (including trading to midnight), responsible service of alcohol requirements, incident reporting rules, acoustic controls, delivery and waste protocols, and restrictions on alcohol service is the Operational Management Plan contained within the DA.

Without being provided with — or even alerted to — this material, members of the public are unable to make a meaningful or informed submission. Many will understandably rely on the public notices as published, not realising that essential operational conditions exist elsewhere in the DA documentation.

For transparency, fairness, and proper process, I respectfully request that Council:

Issue an updated public notice that includes or directly links to the Operational Management Plan; and

Extend the submission period to allow the community to consider the actual operating conditions of the licensed premises they are being asked to comment on.

Thank you for your consideration. I would welcome confirmation that the public information will be corrected so that members of the community are not disadvantaged when participating in this process.

Kind regards,

Peter Wickham

President, Friends of Newcastle Ocean Baths Inc.