THE RSPCA’s Keeping Cats Safe at Home program will be expanded to another 19 local council areas in NSW, including Port Stephens. The $6 million information and advice program, funded by the NSW Environmental Trust and supported by the NSW Government, aims to curb the impact cats have on our native wildlife and help domestic […]

FOUR teens have been charged after allegedly stealing a car and fleeing from police. About 6am on Sunday 26 October police received a report that a stolen Mazda SUV had been driving dangerously on the Pacific Highway, Tomago, with reports passengers were throwing items at other drivers. Officers attached to Maitland Highway Patrol attended and […]

THE state’s peak farm body says Newcastle and the Hunter Valley have a golden opportunity to build a strong future around agriculture as it transitions from coal. Last Thursday NSW Farmers Board Director Bronwyn Petrie launched “Beyond Coal: New Growth for Newcastle and the Hunter”, a discussion paper which laid out how the region could […]

THE festive spirit has ignited in the Port Stephens region, with the announcement that the Medowie Community Carols will take place again this year. The Medowie Progress Association and ELARIA Events will stage the event on Saturday 13 December at Ferodale Sports Complex. The evening promises music, singing and community camaraderie under the stars, as […]

BUTLER Building won the pinnacle award at the 2025 HIA Hunter Housing and Kitchen & Bathrooms Awards, being presented the HIA Hunter Home of the Year award for a project described as “nothing short of a masterpiece”. The Awards were announced on 18 October in front of a capacity audience of industry leaders and peers […]

LOCAL cetacean researcher Leanne Maffesoni has captured the breathtaking moment a humpback whale and its calf breached the water off Port Stephens. “We saw several mum and calf pairs heading south, however this female calf and her mum were next level,” Leanne said. Leanne has spent over 27 years photographing cetaceans along the east coast […]

TRANSPORT for NSW is leading a “once-in-a-generation” review of the Roads Act 1993 and is seeking input from councils, community members, peak bodies and industry experts about how the legislation should be reformed. “The aim is to create a more modern, flexible and easy-to-use law that can help enable NSW Government initiatives such as housing […]

DIRECT seasonal flights will launch between Newcastle and Hobart, connecting the two cities for the first time. Served by Jetstar’s Airbus A320, the new service will start on 2 December 2025 and run three times a week – every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday – until 21 April 2026. The seasonal flights will return each summer […]

FARMERS and rural landholders can now register to use Farm Firefighting Vehicles (FFVs) to respond to emergency bushfires near their property. On Wednesday, the NSW Government launched a conditional registration scheme to enable typically unregistered FFVs to be used legally and under the protection of insurance. FFVs are commonly small trucks, utes or trailers with […]

RAYMOND Terrace will commemorate 100 years of Anzac Park’s memorial cenotaph on Remembrance Day. The cenotaph was unveiled on 11 November 1925, revealing the names of locals who served in World War 1 and the Boer War of 1899-1902. It cost a total of 379 pounds and was erected using donations from townspeople, returned soldiers […]