This month we’re jumping in deep and covering the new proposal to redevelop the Kogarah Golf Course into a logistics hub and possible data centre. This proposal and the community reaction to it feels like an important moment in the history of our river. It’s a moment when priorities and the way we do things are being contested.

In this episode you’ll meet a number of people who can help explain the proposal, what it means, and what the reaction to it has been. We’ll follow some rabbitholes and even receive an anonymous tip off. You’ll also hear from most of the big bureaucratic players here including Bayside Council, Sydney Water, the developer Stockland, the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure, the planning minister Paul Scully, and local politicians.

You’ll hear about the history of the site, what it looks like now, what the proposed development will do to it and what it will deliver, what it means to have a data centre nearby, what the community is saying about the proposal, and what input the community have actually been able to have.

This is a moment when we decide who will decide what happens on our river. After thoroughly investigating this issue in the last few weeks, it’s clear that development here will be going ahead in some form. But the question becomes, how will it be done? Who will benefit from it? What values will guide it?

And of course, in addition to our investigation, we have all your River News for July 2026.

Guests: Dr Bronwyn Cumbo, Dr Michael Vardon, Dr Jenny Kent, Jason L’Ecuyer, and Conroy Blood

Host/producer: Niall Edwards-FitzSimons 

Music by: riverkid  

Thanks to all of our guests, and also to the various media staffers and comms officials who provided us with statements, to members of the River Canoe Club who facilitated the interview with Jenny, to Zoe Ferguson, Clare Britten, and to Sally, a local resident.

All of the statements we received are here in full: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1hpJ-XuX4Nqm-jLBDFVhZhI58PHJYKD-O?usp=sharing

This episode was produced on the lands of the Gadigal and the Bidjigal and we pay respect to elders past and present.

This month we&rsquo;re jumping in deep and covering the new proposal to redevelop the Kogarah Golf Course into a logistics hub and possible data centre. This proposal and the community reaction to it feels like an important moment in the history of our river. It&rsquo;s a moment when priorities and the way we do things are being contested.
In this episode you&rsquo;ll meet a number of people who can help explain the proposal, what it means, and what the reaction to it has been. We&rsquo;ll follow some rabbitholes and even receive an anonymous tip off. You&rsquo;ll also hear from most of the big bureaucratic players here including Bayside Council, Sydney Water, the developer Stockland, the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure, the planning minister Paul Scully, and local politicians.
You&rsquo;ll hear about the history of the site, what it looks like now, what the proposed development will do to it and what it will deliver, what it means to have a data centre nearby, what the community is saying about the proposal, and what input the community have actually been able to have.
This is a moment when we decide who will decide what happens on our river. After thoroughly investigating this issue in the last few weeks, it&rsquo;s clear that development here will be going ahead in some form. But the question becomes, how will it be done? Who will benefit from it? What values will guide it?
And of course, in addition to our investigation, we have all your River News for July 2026.
Guests: Dr Bronwyn Cumbo, Dr Michael Vardon, Dr Jenny Kent, Jason L&rsquo;Ecuyer, and Conroy Blood
Host/producer: Niall Edwards-FitzSimons&nbsp;
Music by: riverkid&nbsp;&nbsp;
Thanks to all of our guests, and also to the various media staffers and comms officials who provided us with statements, to members of the River Canoe Club who facilitated the interview with Jenny, to Zoe Ferguson, Clare Britten, and to Sally, a local resident.
All of the statements we received are here in full: <a href="https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1hpJ-XuX4Nqm-jLBDFVhZhI58PHJYKD-O?usp=sharing" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1hpJ-XuX4Nqm-jLBDFVhZhI58PHJYKD-O?usp%3Dsharing&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1785566566370000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3Meox-88dVafRyP0zRCN8u">https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1hpJ-XuX4Nqm-jLBDFVhZhI58PHJYKD-O?usp=sharing</a>
This episode was produced on the lands of the Gadigal and the Bidjigal and we pay respect to elders past and present.

Goolay’yari/Cooks River is a special place. One of the largest and longest urban rivers in Sydney, among the most polluted, and neglected, but the most cherished too. In this new monthly program from Radio Skid Row and Pelican River Studio we bring you interviews with those who care for the river and the stories, histories, events, news and people that make up this beautiful urban waterway.

Goolay&rsquo;yari/Cooks River&nbsp;is a special place. One of the largest and longest urban rivers in Sydney, among the most polluted, and neglected, but the most cherished too. In this new monthly program from Radio Skid Row and Pelican River Studio we bring you interviews with those who care for the river and the stories, histories, events, news and people that make up this beautiful urban waterway.