Soccer great honoured: Considered one of Australia's greatest soccer talents, Craig Johnston has been honoured for his contribution to the sport and the Hunter region. Northern NSW Football has named facilities at the Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility the Craig Johnston Building. Johnston's parents sold their Lake Macquarie home in the 1970s to pay for him to travel to the UK at 15 years old to trial for an English club and he went on to play for one of the greatest sports teams in history, Liverpool.
COVID case numbers rising: The number of recorded COVID cases in the Hunter New England has more than doubled in the past month. The latest New South Wales Health Respiratory Report shows there were 410 known cases in the fortnight ending November 18, compared with more than 200 in mid-October. New South Wales Health says across the state COVID activity is at moderate to high levels and continues to increase. It says the proportion of emergency department presentations for COVID requiring admission is stable, suggesting no increase in disease severity.
Bypass a step closer: Plans for the Singleton bypass are progressing, with a contract awarded for the project. The 8 kilometre bypass is expected to remove about 15,000 vehicles a day from the town centre. Major works for the $700 million project are expected to begin mid next year, with the opening set for late 2026.
Baths should open in December: The Newcastle City Council says the city's ocean baths are inching closer towards re-opening, with testing of the new pump system about to begin. The Newcastle Ocean Baths have been closed since early 2022 for upgrades and are due to open later in December. Cr Declan Clausen says water will be pumped back into the pool over two weeks before it's emptied for final construction works. He's confident people will be swimming in the baths in December.
More hay on the way: Rural charity Aussie Hay Runners has announced it will return to the Upper Hunter early next year. In the past six weeks there have been two hay runs to the drought-hit Upper Hunter and about 250 farmers have been gifted hay valued at more than $200,000. The Hunter is now all drought-declared, with one quarter deemed to be in intense drought. Local coordinator Steve Carter from the Denman Lions Club says the third run is shaping up to be the biggest yet.
Funding boost for skin checks: A $43,000 state government grant has been given to the Hunter Melanoma Foundation to help it continue its spot-check skin cancer program. The funding was promised during the March state election campaign to help the foundation provide more free skin check clinics in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie. The group has provided outdoor skin check clinics at surf clubs on the Hunter coast.
More time for wind farm comment: The NSW Independent Planning Commission has extended the deadline for submissions on the Bowmans Creek Wind Farm in the Hunter Valley. Ark Energy wants to build a 347 megawatt wind farm with up to 56 turbines near Muswellbrook in the Hunter-Central Coast Renewable Energy Zone. It was recently referred to the Independent Planning Commission to make a decision on the project after the Department of Planning received 50 submissions objecting to the project. The deadline for written submissions was originally set at December 15, but it's now been extended to December 21. A public meeting will be held on December 7. Some locals have been vehemently opposed to the wind farm.
Mixed results for Jets: The Newcastle Jets women secured their second win of the season, beating Canberra United 4-3. New striker Sarina Bolden scored twice in her club debut, while Emily van Egmond also scored. Meanwhile, men's coach Rob Stanton says the F3 Derby loss to the Central Coast Mariners was a fair result because his team didn't do enough to win the game. After a bye week the Jets lost 3-1 to the Mariners at Gosford. The Mariners are the defending A-League champions but had been winless until the weekend's round.
