I live with my family directly behind the Mercure Hotel in Gerringong.

I am writing in response to the article 'Residents raise concerns over Gerringong hotel expansion' in The Bugle published on 20 December, regarding the DA which was approved by Kiama Council on 16 December.

The DA allows Rob and Steve Bartlett, owners of the Mercure hotel, to build a 'restaurant'/ wedding and event venue with opening times until 11:30pm every single day of the week, on our back fence line which will involve removing the mature trees along Fern Street being the gateway to the township from the north.

Surely, this is not in-line with our sleepy Gerringong town’s vibe, where even the most popular eating and drinking establishment, ‘The Hill’, is shut down by 9:30pm on a Saturday night.

I attended the Public Forum Access Council meeting on 15 December to try and rescue our peaceful cul de sac, Coolangatta Avenue and the wildlife who reside in the ill-fated trees.

It seems our fate was too easily sealed at the following council meeting on 16 December, as one of the council representatives proudly presented the Mercure Hotel expansion as a great way to expand Gerringong's 'late night entertainment' offerings, as 'some people do like to stay up later than 9pm (unlike us councillors)'.

Surely then these 'early to bed councillors' would not tolerate late-night parties until 11:30pm in their own backyards, and why is it that they deserve to sleep more than we do, as local residents?

Is it really the desire of our local township to increase our late-night party scene as implied in the deciding Council meeting?

If you look at the pushback over opening any form of a commercial establishment above the new Surf Life Saving Club or read any of the local Facebook community comments regarding the recent tourist hype on Tasman Drive I would be surprised if our locals would gladly welcome the late-night partygoers spilling out of the new proposed Mercure Hotel 'restaurant'/ event venue.

I agree the Mercure Hotel could do with a facelift but clearly this is yet another failed planning permission process in the South Coast area, allowing another big bucks owner/developer promising to invest in our ‘destination tourism’ industry taking precedence over local community and mother nature.

Do our residents really want Gerringong to turn into another Kiama or Huskisson?

Did we not choose explicitly to settle our family home in a sleepy surf town with generous privacy and green spaces, not to mention the abundant bird and wildlife on our doorsteps?

Now it seems we are going to have to sell our home at a huge financial loss or else put up with the equivalent noise and partying as the Huskisson Pub, not just on the weekends, but every single night that the Mercure Hotel is booked out for a tourist destination wedding/ event.

April Ruthen-Gough,

Gerringong