It’s been close to 10 years since this photo was taken, when my family was told our St Peters home was to be compulsorily acquired for WestConnex.

Councillor Liz Atkins (Greens) and Councillor Pauline Lockie (Independent) will push for reforms to minimise the harm caused by poker machine gambling at the next Inner West Council meeting on Tuesday 6 December.

I've submitted the following motion to our next Inner West Council meeting on Tuesday 26 March in regards to the satellite images that were released last week by Otus Intelligence and Leichhardt Against WestConnex.

I spoke to Robbie Buck and Wendy Harmer on ABC Sydney's Breakfast program on 11 February 2019 about how NBN works have destroyed footpaths across the inner west, including heritage paths in Marrickville, and how Inner West Council has been unable to get anywhere with the NBN when it comes to getting these footpaths properly restored.

Leichhardt Against WestConnex (LAW) has been analysing the tunnelling and construction works planned for WestConnex Stage 3 (the M4-M5 Link from Haberfield to St Peters). They recently published the following report, which includes an analysis of the impacts these works could have on homes and properties along the route. I've been getting a lot of queries from residents who are concerned about this, so I'm republishing it here with LAW's permission.

I spoke to 2GB's Overnight with Michael McLaren on Monday morning about Inner West Council's upcoming play streets trial - why we're doing it, how it's worked elsewhere, and the benefits that adults, children and communities alike enjoy when quiet local streets are closed off for play a couple of hours at a time. Want to nominate your street for the trial? Email Council's recreation team now. Interview starts around 15 seconds in.

Thank you to everyone who took part in Inner West Council's survey on park safety in Camperdown Memorial Rest Park and Fleming Playground. The results are due to be tabled at our Council meeting on Tuesday 11 December, and they make for interesting reading.

The 28 August 2018 meeting of Inner West Council saw us debate whether to adopt the revised development control plan (DCP) for the recently rezoned Victoria Road Precinct in Marrickville. Council's strategic planning and legal teams had recommended not to do this, as the contributions plan that compels developers to pay for infrastructure upgrades needs to be revised to match the new zoning. They advised that approving the DCP before this is done could leave Council facing costs of up to $50 million with limited ability to claim this from developers.

The Mayor, Darcy Byrne, moved that we adopt the DCP instead, which passed after all the Labor and Liberal councillors, plus Victor Macri, supported it. Here's the transcript of the speech I made during the debate on the night, explaining why I couldn't support this, and would be voting for what our officers had recommended instead.

I'm also supporting a rescission motion to overturn this decision at the next Council meeting on Tuesday 11 September. If you'd like to speak at this meeting, you'll need to register on Council's website by 2pm Tuesday. The meeting starts at 6:30pm at Ashfield Council Chambers. It's Item 18 on the agenda.

After years of campaigning by thousands of residents, the Upper House of the Parliament of NSW has agreed to conduct an inquiry into the impact of WestConnex. My personal submission to this inquiry runs to 71 pages, and you can read the full version on the parliamentary website. Here's the much shorter cover letter, which summarises my key points.

On Thursday 16 August, I joined my fellow Inner West Council councillor Colin Hesse on Radio Skid Row to discuss the ongoing disaster that is WestCONnex - specifically, the NSW government's failure to provide proper soundproofing to residents whose homes are being impacted by noise from the tollway's construction and/or operation. Also interviewed was Kate Cotis, one of the residents who is currently fighting the government for proper noise mitigation measures.