The Weekly
21 April 2023
Speak now or forever hold your peace…
Last year we were keeping tabs on the pedestrianisation of the Avalon Village. The roadwork commotion, the traffic banked up at the lights onto Pittwater road, the landscaping. It’s been a few months since the proverbial and actual dust has settled, the final plants were potted, drains put in (much to Swells delight, we’re sure) and we’ve all acclimatised to the new pedestrian crossing locations. So now is the perfect time to communicate your feelings to the council via their Streets As Shared Spaces Survey. Ask anyone, and they have an opinion. Love it! Hate it! And everything in between. Just check out the Avalon What’s On Facebook page comments. So if you’re keen to speak up, let the council know how you feel.
Market wrap
Good(ish) news for anyone planning to renovate or buy a doer-upperer to stay at the lower levels of the market. Building costs, while still on the rise, have slowed significantly in comparison to the fast and high spikes of 2022 which saw material costs blow up (timber reportedly by 25-30%), supply chains struggle to meet demand and some major skilled labor shortages. The latter is still a problem, due in some part to the collapse of major building companies which has meant out-of-pocket contractors have now increased up-front costs to stay safe, among other things. But despite this, experts are saying the rate of increase is slowing, and it will become more sustainable to renovate or build when interest rates settle and inflation comes under control in the next couple of years.
What’s on
Dawn service, very early coffee, back to bed, watch the march, long lunch and a cheeky game of two-up to two to finish the day. You probably don’t need reminding that next Tuesday is ANZAC Day and as per usual post Covid, it’s an all day affair of remembrance, catch ups and head ‘em ups. Avalon and Club Palm Beach RSL will be putting on their long-running Dawn Services at 5.30am and 6am respectively (Classic Coffee is open for an early cuppa afterwards), along with the Avalon March at 11am followed by the Commemorative Service. Two-up kicks off at 1pm for those who celebrate. We don’t have any betting tips, but if you’re going to Palmy and it’s been raining, we recommend sturdy shoes for the green.
Mark it in your calendar! Tomorrow is Earth Day (April 22nd) and as a sustainability-minded community on the Northern Beaches, there’s plenty of ways you can get involved and do your bit for the planet. Got a worn-out pair of thongs? You can help! Havaianas, in partnership with Terracycle Australia (those brilliant people who use innovative tech to recycle not-so-easy-to-recycle gear) are doing #SomeThongForGood tomorrow at The Corso in Manly outside Surf Dive and Ski. Bring your old thongs and they’ll recycle them! For every pair dropped in, Haviana’s will donate a new pair to Thread Together, another ingenious non-for-profit who saves end-of-line new clothes from brands and distributes it to people in need. Not only that, the first 50 people to donate their flip flops will get a free new pair to take home. Oh and on the subject… still collecting your soft plastics post the RedCycle shut down? Kimbriki Tip are running a Soft Plastics Collection on Sunday April 23rd between 8.30am – 4.30pm. Finally you can clear those bags of bags of bags out of the cupboard.
File this under: Those natural phenomenons you wished you’d known about to either see it or, you know, make the informed decision to stay in bed. The annual Lyrid meteor shower is currently gracing the world with its spectacular presence and will be best visible in Sydney over April 22 – 23… to celebrate Earth Day, naturally. For those who aren’t up to speed on their astronomy, every year a shower of meteors shoot across the sky and burn in the atmosphere, creating these incredible flashes of light. It’s something to behold and while us here in the Southern Hemisphere don’t get as much of a show as our Northern counterparts, it’s still pretty impressive. You just have to stay awake until a bit after midnight or a few hours before sunrise to catch it. Just look North a little above the horizon. No equipment needed, besides a good coffee.