By ANNA USHER

Mosman residents can expect refreshed public spaces, important environmental updates, and a host of community activities this August.

From essential repairs along the foreshore to Book Week celebrations and a growing seahorse population at Cobblers Beach, this week’s round-up covers the latest Council updates in Mosman LGA.

Foreshore Facelift

Work is underway at local beaches to give public facilities a facelift in time for Spring.

At Clifton Gardens, the amenities block is being repainted, with new tiles and partitions installed, and exterior finishes restored.

Temporary public toilet facilities are available while the building is closed.

At Balmoral, swimming and other areas of the baths and jetty may be closed at times over the next month while deteriorated timber piles and decking are replaced.

Information at the NSW website.

Watercraft Permits

To help everyone in the community enjoy our beaches, each year the Council reviews permits for craft stored at waterside locations.

The renewal period for existing permits is open until 31 August, with new applications accepted from 1 September.

Watercraft storage permits allow storage of a dinghy, kayak or a small watercraft in dedicated locations throughout Mosman.

A map is available on the Council’s website. Applications can also be made online.

Information on other marine activities can also be found at mosman.nsw.gov.au. Locations including Chowder Bay are home to remarkable marine life, with both plants and animals living on the jetty, pylons, nets and the sea floor, making it ideal for snorkelling. Rocky Point and Chinamans Beach are other top spots.

Harbour Trust Community Advisor Needed

The Sydney Harbour Federation Trust is seeking applicants to join its Community Advisory Committee for a three-year term commencing in 2026.

The Trust is responsible for nine significant and highly valued places around the harbour, including Headland Park in Mosman.

Committee members will represent a range of community interests and perspectives, and aid in providing input into the various ways the Trust engages with key stakeholders in the management of its sites.

Expressions of interest are open until 31 August. To find out more or apply, visit Harbourt Trust Website.

Book Week 2025

Children’s Book Week celebrates its 80th anniversary in 2025, and there’ll be fun activities to celebrate the milestone on 18 August, 3 pm to 5 pm, at Barry O’Keefe Library.

Eager young readers can use their favourite book as design inspiration for making a badge or bookmark to take home, or spend some time re-reading beloved titles or discovering new finds.

Book Week is the Children’s Book Council of Australia’s key national event. This year’s celebration will run from 16 to 23 August. The 2025 theme is ‘Book an Adventure’.

Regular interactive Storytime and Babytime sessions, consisting of stories, songs, rhymes, and activities for children and their parents and carers, run weekly at Mosman’s library on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and once a month on Saturdays.

Find out more about Book Week and other library activities and programs at the website.

Seahorse Population Boost

A conservation project piloted in Mosman is rebuilding underwater habitats across Sydney Harbour and helping recover endangered seahorse populations.

At Cobblers Beach, one of the key project sites, 15 seahorse hotels are home to a population of White’s seahorses.

Work to rehabilitate the seahorses’ fast-disappearing native seagrass (Posidonia australis) habitat is also now well established.

The project team, led by the University of NSW and Sydney Institute of Marine Science (SIMS) scientists, started ‘Operation Posidonia’ after receiving grant funding from the NSW Environmental Trust and support from Mosman Council.

The team reports that, since placing seahorse hotels in seagrass meadows in 2023 and transplanting extra shoots there late last year, the number of seahorses has grown by 50 per cent between 2024 and 2025.