C-suite hunt for Illawarra businesses | Explaining Wollongong's Urbanism plan
Also, all the pictures from Housing Trust Michele Adair's farewell.
Housing Trust Managing Director Michele Adair has stepped down after eight years of championing affordable housing and giving a stronger voice to vulnerable communities in the Illawarra.
Her departure follows a year-long succession plan that saw her move from CEO into a part-time Managing Director role to support the transition to new CEO Amanda Winks.
At her farewell, Adair – named Outstanding Business Leader of the Year at the 2021 Business Illawarra Awards – said the Trust’s work was never just about numbers. “It is never about stock or problems… or even necessarily about KPIs and performance. It was about our customers and their stories, their safety, their sense of respect.”
She praised the organisation’s culture as its greatest strength: “We do respect each other. We do allow each other the space to sometimes get it wrong and to keep coming back. And that laughter and that joy are so real.”
Adair steered the Housing Trust through a period of significant growth and change. Drawing on her own lived experience of facing homelessness with two young children, she challenged governments at all levels while expanding the Trust’s housing portfolio and elevating the voice of community housing in the Illawarra and beyond.
“I could not have had the credibility, the respect, the voice in the media, with our politicians, with our development partners … unless those of you on the front line didn’t do the most amazing work,” Adair said.
Movers and shakers
Senior leadership jobs can be hard to come by in the Illawarra, but three high-profile organisations are on the hunt this week.
Following the termination of Mike Archer in August, Shellharbour City Council has engaged Captstone Recruitment to find a replacement.
The Illawarra Women’s Health Centre is looking for a CEO for its project, the Illawarra Women’s Trauma Recovery Centre in Shellharbour. Be Recruitment is leading the search.
The University of Wollongong is looking for an Executive Director of Student Services at UOW. If you’re interested, you’d best get in quick, as applications close on Thursday, September 25.
You might have missed - Tactical Urbanism
Wollongong City Council’s new Transport Strategy 2025-2035 outlines plans to reshape local streets to 15-minute journeys. There was a lot of talk about 30kmh streets in the local media, but did you know the strategy also includes concepts like Park Streets and Tactical Urbanism?
You can probably take a guess at what Park Streets are, but Tactical Urbanism?
Apparently, it's the transport version of Mark Zuckerberg’s ‘move fast and break things’ motto.
The council’s strategy document explains: “Trial improved street outcomes through temporary infrastructure (also known as tactical urbanism) to deliver projects to inform a permanent and more costly change.”
Kully Bay reimagined
Just a week after The Pulse Illawarra reported on growing community interest in the future of Warrawong, the draft Master Plan for the suburb’s parklands has been unveiled.
It lays out almost 10 kilometres of new walking and cycling paths, a water sports hub with safer access to the lake, and a striking 320-metre wetland boardwalk.
The 32-hectare site will also include an Olympic-standard skatepark, upgraded sports fields, inclusive playgrounds, and nature play areas.
The draft Master Plan is open for public feedback until 15 October, with drop-in sessions planned at Warrawong Plaza, Shellharbour Shopping Centre, and on-site.
More planning reforms
It’s been a busy week for Minister for Planning and Public Spaces and Member for Wollongong, Paul Scully.
He unveiled the NSW Planning System Reforms Bill 2025, which he hopes will clear up bureaucracy and speed up housing delivery.
The bill includes:
Smarter DA rules: Planning assessments will be scaled so smaller projects don’t face the same red tape as large developments.
Clearer approval conditions: More consistent requirements to give builders certainty and speed up construction after approval.
New priorities in law: Housing delivery, climate resilience and proportionality will be written into the planning laws for the first time.
Community consultation: A consistent, state-wide framework will guide how councils and government consult communities on planning matters.
Industry has welcomed the changes. Property Council NSW’s Katie Stevenson called it “a major step forward” that will clear backlogs and free resources for bigger projects. UDIA CEO Stuart Ayres said the reforms would “help industry build the homes people need … faster.”
Hot Ticket
Of course, it has to be tonight’s sold-out 2025 IMB Bank Illawarra Business Awards being held at WIN Entertainment Centre.
As a reminder, here are the finalists. Good luck to everyone on the shortlist!
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