Bondi welcome sign in limbo
Waverley Council has indicated a “Welcome to Bondi Beach” sign could be incorporated into the final Bondi Plan of Management, should it garner community support.
Enthusiasm for a welcome sign at Bondi Beach has gained traction since it was championed by 83-year-old Stan Fleck, a member of the Bondi Surf Bathers’ Life Saving Club, in November.
Despite media and community attention, there has been little progress on the sign since it was first proposed.
Waverley mayor Sally Betts said those in favour of the welcome sign would have a chance to state their case when the draft Bondi Plan of Management is displayed to the public. The 10-year plan will govern open space, amenities and aesthetic of the beach, park and pavilion area.
“We are in the middle of doing the plan of management and it has gone to the state government, and they are going to hopefully give us permission to re-exhibit it and then we’ll work out what we’re going to do,” Ms Betts explained.
“And that is the way, if anybody’s got any ideas on what they want at Bondi, that it should happen.”
The state opposition has backed the sign, as has Liberal MP for Vaucluse, Gabrielle Upton, who offered conditional support.
“A welcome sign could be considered as part of the plan of management Waverley Council is preparing for Bondi Beach,” she said.
“It could be incorporated as part of Bondi Pavilion being restored as the grand entrance to the Beach. Yes, Bondi Beach is an international tourist destination but it is also a naturally beautiful environment with a rich history so any signage would need to be sympathetic to those aspects.”
Lenore Kulakauskas of the Bondi Beach Precinct has reservations about such signage. She told the Bondi View there are already too many signs at the beach.
“The beach is littered with signs; large unattractive plastic ones are strung up along the fences when events are on in the Pavilion, there are a lot of them on the fence leading down to the Iceberg’s swimming pool,” she said.
Ms Kulakauskas would support a welcome sign “only if it is tasteful and some of the other signs come down”.
The draft Plan of Management is being reviewed by the state government and is expected to be returned to council in coming weeks.
