8 MAY 2026

Another week on the Northern Beaches, and it's been a big one. A landmark moment for local healthcare (and an L for private equity), a property ranking that will surprise absolutely no one, and Mother's Day this Sunday (don’t forget)!

Here's what you need to know.

Mother's Day is this Sunday,  and if you haven't locked something in yet, don't panic. From waterfront fine dining to rooftop cocktails (with a view!), there's still time to make it a day she'll actually remember.

Here's where to take her.

📍 Hugo's Manly is pulling out all the stops with a three-course set menu at $140 per head, right on the waterfront at Manly Wharf. If you want to make her feel spoiled with harbour views & the works, this is the one.

Book early, it'll fill fast - book here.

📍 Miami Rice at the Steyne is doing things a little differently, think rooftop, Asian-inspired dishes, and signature cocktails in the sunshine. Every booking also goes into the draw to win a Hungerford Hill hamper, which frankly makes it the most fun option on the list. Best view in Manly, full stop. Mother's Day at the Steyne. 

📍 Q Station is for the mum who appreciates a bit of drama. Lunch is held in the Governor Bourke Ballroom, with a buffet feast, live music, and a complimentary glass of sparkling on arrival. Adults from $109, kids 5–11 $60, under-fives free.

Sessions at 12pm and 1pm - book here. 

Northern Beaches Hospital officially became a public facility this week, marking a landmark shift for one of the region's most important health services. 

The $190 million State Government takeover ends a controversial public-private partnership with Healthscope 12 years ahead of schedule,  a change that many in the community have long advocated for. Central to that push were local parents Elouise and Danny Massa, whose heartbreaking experience with the hospital following the loss of their young son Joe inspired a public campaign, a government audit, and ultimately Joe's Law,  legislation designed to ensure NSW hospitals remain in public, not-for-profit hands, and that profit-driven operators can no longer hold the keys to essential community health infrastructure. 

The transition reflects a growing national conversation about whether private equity has any place running public hospitals, and the answer on the Northern Beaches, at least, is now a firm no.

IN CASE YOU ALSO MISSED THIS: HOUSING AFFORDABILITY DATA SUPRISES ABSOLUTELY NO-ONE

For those keeping score: the Northern Beaches has  once again been ranked the most unaffordable region in NSW relative to local income, ahead of the Eastern Suburbs, and ahead of everywhere else. The data, which defines "impossibly unaffordable" as a median price exceeding nine times the median household income, did not have a category for what's happening here.

Locals are taking it in stride, largely because they bought in 1985.

Before the Spit Bridge, You Had to Row

Before it became the Northern Beaches' most cursed bottleneck, getting across Middle Harbour meant hopping on a rowing boat.

That's how it worked from as early as 1829. By 1850 a hand-operated punt took over, and in 1889 they upgraded to steam, but it was painfully slow and doubled as a freight service for butchers and grocers. Locals begged for a bridge from the 1870s, but the government kept saying no.

Eventually, Manly Council just built one themselves, funding it with a £60,000 loan (Mosman Council, on the other side, didn't chip in a cent). The timber bridge opened on 23 December 1924 and was so popular that 16,451 vehicles crossed in the first five days alone. It paid for itself by 1930. The current bridge opened in 1958, four years late, almost double the budget, and people were so fed up that nobody even held an opening ceremony. Some things never change.