A frustrated Lithgow resident has reached out to the Lithgow Mercury after having to take gardening matters into his own hands.
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Lithgow City Council has responded saying they weren't aware of the of the overgrown vegetation as no specific action request had been raised to fix the pathway and stormwater drain.
Why the resident took matters into his own hands
"I have concerns of where my hard earned rates of over $2000 are actually going," the resident said.
On his walk with his two daughters, aged four and six, the walk was spoiled when both of the children ended up in tears from being spiked by the bottlebrush bushes near his local estate in Strathlone.
This was the first injury the children had suffered by the bush but the resident wanted it to be the last.
"I took matters into my own hands firstly with the bush as it spiked my girls, then my path as I have pride in where I live and I want it to look good and match our higher end rate bracket as being a great estate to live in," he said.
The resident said he was frustrated with Council for their lack of response on the issue.
"I went to edge of the footpath which I'll add has never been done in the 13 years I have lived here."
The resident also had concerns for the 'desperately overgrown' storm water drain which services the entire estates storm water.
"I just did the work with my very basic tools and had dozens of people pulling up to say I was doing a great job and voicing their frustration to me," he said.
"Bottlebrushes grow very slowly so they [Council] would have noticed them over growing the path over a long period."
The resident said it wasn't uncommon for residents to walk onto the road to get around the bushes especially in wet weather.
"I have been to the council along with another neighbour to resolve this issue but nothing ever came of it," he said.
The resident spent roughly two hours gardening and trimming the bushes back to cover a 100 metre distance.
"It took a while due to it being so long and having to cut through two inches of grass and dirt at the path edge," he said.
The resident said that Lithgow Council need to look to Bathurst and see how they handle these situations.
"Bathurst council do exactly what should be done and edge the paths, whipper snip around parks, trees, buildings so I don't see why our council don't follow their initiative and do it properly," he said.
The resident said that he wanted to voice his concerns so that the matters could be addressed by the council's workers which have the resources to complete.
Council accepts responsibility
Council's director of infrastructure services Jonathon Edgecombe said the area was council responsibility.
"It is a stormwater detention basin installed as part of the adjacent subdivision and the land is owned by Council," he said.
"While we understand that the community is very proud of our open spaces and often seeks to undertake work of their own volition, any work completed on public land carries an inherent risk."
For that reason, Council has developed a volunteer induction program to address and mitigate this risk.
"Many volunteers have been run through this program and continue to work productively to assist Council. Volunteer work is essential in building community spirit and increasing the very limited resources at Council's disposal."
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According to Mr Edgecombe staff were not aware of the overgrown vegetation as no specific action request had been raised.
"Should the community become aware of overgrown vegetation or any other matter considered to be a hazard, I encourage them to contact Council in the first instance.
"Responding promptly to such issues is our priority, regardless of whether we can or cannot action the request as quickly as is expected, the resident will be notified of the outcome.
"Notwithstanding the benefits of community feedback in identifying local maintenance issues though, the matter has been raised with staff."
Mr Edgecombe said council aims to become more proactive in identifying natural hazards.
"So while addressing future mowing requirements and passing through the area, staff will increase their vigilance in scrutinising local maintenance needs," he said.