Councillor Robert Samuel - Willoughby

14/09/2026

Forestville and Brookvale are set for much higher density. These places are on direct bus and private car routes to Chatswood. Early consultation is taking place by the State Government on the transport network for northern Sydney. No detailed consultant’s report needed to recognise a need for a Busway to Chatswood ( and maybe Roseville too) and a significant increase infrastructure investment in bus interchange facilities north of Victoria. Bus frequency will need a lift too. There are already a huge number of Northern Beaches private vehicles parked each day on our streets. Longer term would be good to see a Metro! Ask your local candidates running for State Parliament.

The NSW government must decide competing proposals for a crucial Pittwater Road site as the council seeks to double the number of new homes built in the area.

13/09/2026

Chatswood NSW is the number one suburb in Australia for Japanese speakers so it was a delight today to welcome JCS(Japan Club of Sydney) for the Japan Festival a wonderful celebration of Japanese culture.

10/09/2026

Chatswood is now one of the biggest centres of dining in Greater Sydney. I continue to back the work Willoughby City Council does to create a welcoming environment for diners and the encouragement of a wide variety of dining options.

The SMH has a view on Chatswood NSW cuisine. It has been a long journey for mainstream media to regularly cover the amazing range of food on offer in and around Chatswood. Good to see the coverage.

Visit a hidden izakaya, two amazing food courts and a place where vast iron pots are built into your table.

08/09/2026

Your neighbour could be planning a major renovation, a new house or even a duplex, and you may no longer receive a letter telling you about it.

New statewide planning rules came into effect on 1 September, replacing individual council notification policies across NSW.

Under the new rules, councils are no longer routinely required to notify neighbours about many developments of up to two storeys, including new homes, alterations and additions, dual occupancies and secondary dwellings.

The development application will still appear on Council’s online DA tracker, but residents will now need to keep an eye on it themselves.

What has changed, what still requires notification and how you can monitor developments near your home:
https://inthecove.com.au/2026/09/04/new-planning-regulations-mean-you-may-not-know-that-your-neighbour-is-renovating/

06/09/2026

A reminder of a long shared retail heritage.

Blue Plaques NSW - Round 4 nominations

04/09/2026

03/09/2026

There are widespread State Government led changes to the way developments are notified to members of the public including neighbours. If you are interested in understanding what developments are being proposed near you it will be important to sign up for the planning portal.

Call me old fashioned but maybe a return to knocking on the neighbours’ doors or sending something out in the street WhatsApp group and giving them a heads up on what you are thinking of doing might lead to a quieter and more pleasant life in our suburbs! These regulations look like the grey areas of heights etc heading for judicial review.

Northern Beaches Council have a good summary of the changes.

https://www.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au/council/news/state-government-rules-development-consultation-introduced


ntial concern to the community is the exemption of certain development categories
from requiring public notification. These categories are outlined in Table 6 of the attached Statewide
Community Participation Plan.

For Willoughby City Council, the types of development that will no longer require public notification
include:

1. Additions and alterations to existing dwelling houses

2. New dwelling houses (up to two storeys)

3. Two-storey dual occupancies

4. Attached dwellings (up to five townhouses)

5. Multi dwelling housing developments (up to five apartments)

6. Tree removal on private land

If Council receives correspondence relating to these types of development applications, it will not be treated as a formal submission for the purposes of assessing the application and will not count towards referral thresholds that may otherwise require the application to be determined by the Local Planning Panel.

03/09/2026

Great initiative. Willoughby parkrun

02/09/2026

As we see the buildings go up, here are some insights from just up the road. There is plenty there for us here in local government but with a State Election looming I do want to call out the public transport need and desire here.

Better and more frequent bus services. For Willoughby this means a very significant investment in bus infrastructure ( bus interchanges and better provisioned stops) and in difficult discussions as to who gets to use our public roads when.

The Bus Taskforce commissioned by the current State Government highlighted that need but to date not much committed in our part of the world.

Thank you Councillor Indu Balachandran for sharing.

01/09/2026

Better Business Partnership and Chatswood Chamber of Commerce thank you for partnering with Willoughby City Council to welcome more than 200 local businesses gathering together tonight to compare notes. Great to see North Shore Speech Therapy being showcased tonight. Terrific to see Chatswood NSW as the gathering place for North Shore businesses.

Callout to Willoughby businesses, join us for a celebration of local business!

The Support Local Showcase Night by Willoughby City Council, is an evening celebrating the local businesses, entrepreneurs and stories that make Willoughby a vibrant place to live, work, visit and do business. This year’s Showcase Night will bring together local business owners, Chambers of Commerce representatives, Council, business support providers and community stakeholders for an evening of inspiration, insights and connection.

📅 Date: Tues 1st Sept
🕙 Time: 5-8.30pm
📍Where: The Lounge, Ferguson Lane, Chatswood
🆓 Cost: Free

For more information and registration please visit:
https://ap1.hubs.ly/H01jkK60

Willoughby City Council
The Concourse Chatswood
North Sydney Business Chamber