{"id":370753,"date":"2026-01-15T05:26:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T05:26:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/370753\/"},"modified":"2026-01-15T05:26:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T05:26:13","slug":"future-of-bondi-beach-terror-attack-site-up-for-debate-as-replacement-flagged","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/370753\/","title":{"rendered":"Future of Bondi Beach terror attack site up for debate as replacement flagged"},"content":{"rendered":"

The NSW premier says the Bondi Beach footbridge at the centre of last month’s terrorist attack should be torn down to prevent it from becoming a “ghoulish reminder”, as its future remains under a cloud.<\/p>\n

Waverley Council has been inundated with feedback about the future of the century-old structure from which two gunmen opened fire on a Jewish celebration.<\/p>\n

Some have called for it to be torn down, while others have argued it should remain.<\/p>\n

The crossing is one of two heritage-listed bridges over the parking area, which was described in a 2023 conservation management plan as an “integral part of the late 1920s improvement scheme”.<\/p>\n

But a structural engineering report for the council in 2024 reveals both bridges were nearing the end of their useful life.<\/p>\n

\"people<\/p>\n

People have continued to visit the bridge since the attack on December 14. (ABC News: Che Chorley)<\/p>\n

Mayor Will Nemesh is expected to highlight the report’s conclusion that the bridges require replacement “within several years” in a mayoral minute addressing memorial plans at an extraordinary meeting on Thursday night.<\/p>\n

“Noting that the replacement of the northern pedestrian bridge may form part of a future discussion of a permanent memorial, [the council] requests officers to prepare a report to council to determine the cost, timetable and approvals process for a replacement and\/or restoration of both heritage-listed pedestrian bridges,” Cr Nemesh wrote.<\/p>\n

He stressed the motion would not decide the future of the bridges \u2014 only that further assessments would be carried out.<\/p>\n

\"Bondi<\/p>\n

A tribute to 10-year-old victim Matilda has been added to the side of the wall. (ABC News: Abubakr Sajid)<\/p>\n

‘Victims and their families’ should have final say, says premier<\/p>\n

The mayor will also move to scrap plans to build a basketball half court at Bondi Park, which the ABC understands would have covered much of the area where people died on December 14.<\/p>\n

Instead, the council will seek to put the basketball half court next to the skate park at the southern end of the beach, according to the motion.<\/p>\n

The mayor’s plans also include dedicating space on the Bondi Beach Sea Wall for murals commemorating the victims.<\/p>\n

NSW Premier Chris Minns said he would hate for the bridge to become a “ghoulish reminder” of the atrocities that occurred, or worse, “exploited by reprehensible people in the future”.<\/p>\n

“My personal view is that it would be better to knock down, but it’s the council’s responsibility and I understand they’re speaking with the victims and their families and I think they should have the final say,” he said.<\/p>\n

Jewish Board of Deputies CEO Michele Goldman concurred with Mr Minns, saying the decision should be “led by what the community needs and wants”.<\/p>\n

\"Michele<\/p>\n

On Wednesday Michele Goldman\u00a0said the footbridge’s future should be determined by the victims’ families. (ABC News)<\/p>\n

“As someone who has been a local for many years, I feel like our sense of safety has been invaded,” she said.<\/p>\n

“In the long term we need to ensure that Bondi is restored to what represents this great country.”<\/p>\n

Ms Goldman said she would be present at the Waverley Council meeting on Thursday night.<\/p>\n

Conversations about permanent memorial continue<\/p>\n

While the state government will lead discussions with the victims’ families and Jewish community about establishing a permanent memorial, the council has installed a temporary measure.<\/p>\n

Last week it moved a giant menorah commissioned by the council as part of Hanukkah celebrations from Dover Heights to Archer Park, where the targeted Jewish celebration took place on December 14.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A menorah was moved to Bondi Beach by Waverley Council. (ABC News: Abubakr Sajid)<\/p>\n

The sculpture by artist Joel Adler serves as a memorial to the 15 innocent lives taken until something permanent can be agreed upon.<\/p>\n

The timeline for consultation is yet to be worked out, but the process is expected to be slow.<\/p>\n

Almost two years on from the mass stabbing at Bondi Junction, talks about a permanent memorial are still ongoing.<\/p>\n

Both Waverley Council and the state government have been contacted for comment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The NSW premier says the Bondi Beach footbridge at the centre of last month’s terrorist attack should be…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":370754,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[141483,17496,141473,18304,3359,1397,141474,6717,141479,74595,141475,141476,6269,20977,141482,78025,30710,141480,90,141481,141472,56,54,55,17488,141477,141478],"class_list":["post-370753","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-basketball-court","tag-bondi-beach","tag-bondi-beach-bridge","tag-bridge","tag-council","tag-environment","tag-footbridge","tag-future","tag-heritage-listed","tag-jewish","tag-mayor-will-nemesh","tag-mayoral-minute","tag-meeting","tag-memorial","tag-menorah","tag-mural","tag-replacement","tag-replacing","tag-science","tag-site","tag-terrorist-attack","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom","tag-waverley-council","tag-what-will-happen-to-bondi-footbridge","tag-what-will-happen-to-the-bondi-beach-terror-attack-site"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370753","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=370753"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370753\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/370754"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=370753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=370753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=370753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}