A Newport resident says she is being stymied by Northern Beaches Council in her effort to beautify the suburb.
Patsy Fry (image below) is a Newport resident who says she has a vision to turn Newport from a ‘drive-thru’ suburb into a destination.
“Newport is the gateway to paradise, from Newport to Palm Beach. But take away the ocean and it’s grey. The traffic just drives through. How do you stop people?
“I had this idea to use tree stumps as flowerpots, giving Newport some colour and difference, to provide it with an identity. My big vision is the tree stumps go right through the length of Newport. All the way down the middle strip of Newport, tree stumps would give it an identity.
“We had weeds growing there. It took us four months to get those weeds taken out. We could have tree stumps full of geraniums, full of colours. They don’t need a lot of attention,” said Ms Fry.
The 81-year-old Newport resident said she is concerned that Newport has become ‘drab’, small businesses are closing and people are bypassing what could be a destination suburb.
“Newport has put the pits in Pittwater. We’re lacking life, take away the ocean and it’s grey.
“We need somebody with a vision who can attract quirky businesses, arty businesses like Carmel in California. They attract people from around the world to spend their money there. We should be attracting people from around the world to come here.
“We’ve had shops close for years and years, and there’s land banking going on in the town centre. It has brought Newport to its knees,” said Ms Fry.
She said the idea for using tree stumps as planters for flowers occurred to her one day when she saw a tree cut down.
“I phoned the Council and said, please keep that tree for me, never thinking they would, but they did. And I followed it up, and I had a gorgeous man who offered to chop it into pieces for me, different heights.
“I have spent months chiselling the middle out. I was determined to get that done. It has taken me months for six stumps, to hollow them out, seal them, have drainage, put soil in. It has all been done properly.
“I said to Council, I will maintain the flowers, but that’s not a problem for me. I will still do that to my dying day,” said Ms Fry.
Patsy Fry
Northern Beaches Council helped Ms Fry to install the first three of her tree stumps at Bert Payne Park, Barrenjoey Road, Newport, but stopped short of installing the other three.
“I oversaw the installation, I came here and made sure they did it to my specifications.
“I wanted another three on the other side of the sign, and now Council have said no. The stumps are ready to go. Johnson Bros Mitre 10 gave me the plants,” said Ms Fry.
A spokesperson for Northern Beaches Council confirmed they had been working with Ms Fry on installing three tree stump planters at Bert Payne Park, Newport, but there are no plans for more.
“Council agreed to provide three tree stumps to be used as plant pots. Contractors were engaged to attach the stumps with rods and concrete them into place at the site. This cost Council $1500 and was to be on a trial basis. It was agreed the plants are to be supplied by the community.
“It was also agreed the maintenance of the installation would not be at Council’s cost. No further work at this site was arranged or agreed to by Council.
“Council appreciates the enthusiasm to enhance the local area; however, Council does not support the installation of additional stumps,” said the Council spokesperson.
Ms Fry said she was undaunted by Council’s response and would continue to work on beautification of the Newport town centre.
Images: Northern Beaches Advocate, Patsy Fry
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