THE petition launched against the rezoning of beachside land at Hawks Nest has now closed.

Four Corners episode ‘Obeid Inc’, released in November 2021, brought national attention to the rezoning of land at 1 Sanderling Rd, Hawks Nest, from RE1 Public Recreation to R3 Medium Density Residential.

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As reported in News Of The Area, over 75 submissions were made against the in April 2021, with community members reaching out to the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment to ask for help.

However, it was advised the land was in MidCoast Council hands, and was a ‘done deal’.

Kathy Polmaa, administrator of ‘Hawks Nest Development’, a Facebook group created to inform the community of planning proposals in the area, advocated for community members to make their voice heard, and created the petition with the hopes of a reversal of the MidCoast Council decision.

She was advised to start an e-petition for a Parliamentary hearing, which was open for a number of months.

Many community members and residents across NSW opted to sign the petition, to fight for a reversal of the decision.

“Thank you to all who signed the e-petition regarding Sanderling Ave,” Ms Poldmaa said.

“The ePetition received 5256 signatures and has been sent to the NSW Government for a response.

“Anyone who signed will receive an email with a link to the response when it is received.”

This petition will be presented to local members of Parliament, MidCoast Council and Mayor Claire Pontin for response.

It has been a rocky path for the petition, with the loss of all signatures recorded in the time period of 31 December 2021 to 10 January 2022 lost due to a fault in the government website which was hosting the petition.

A change.org petition was created by other community members following the Four Corners exposé titled ‘Stop Development of Pristine Hawks Nest Coastline’, which attracted 27,073 signatures.

Concerned community members are yet to see action following this petition.

By Tara CAMPBELL