Antonio, and his father before him, have been selling flowers on Burns Bay Road near Linley Point for over 40 years. In 2016 Lane Cove Council issued several notices to Antonio demanding that he stop selling his flowers from this location.
Antonio is a licensed grower from the Flemington Markets. He sells his own freshly grown flowers. Antonio is located on Burns Bay Road and is there in rain, hail or shine and only missed one weekend when his daughter was getting married.
The local Linley Point community rallied in support of Antonio and his ongoing service to the community, and obtained over 600 signatures of support on a paper petition to allow Antonio to continue operating from Burns Bay Road.
In 2016, the Linley Point community told ITC that Antonio is a true gentleman who is dedicated to providing a reliable and quality service. The Linley Cove community contacted In the Cove and asked that we let the wider community know about the move to “evict” Antonio. The response was overwhelming. The Antonio post was one of our most shared posts in 2016 ITC set up an online petition which received over 600 signatories in three days.
At the Lane Cove Council Meeting on 19th September 2016 the Lane Cove Council resolved the following:
- The Lane Cove Council General Manager draft a suitable policy that allows operators such as flower sellers to use the current strip of road at Burns Bay Road, Linley Point;
- The Lane Cove Council commence discussions with RMS and/or other government departments / Minister to seek a reversal of the current no standing arrangements that would allow for the use as described in 1 above; and
- The General Manager be delegated authority to prepare a policy pursuant to the objectives of 1 above, and proceed to public exhibition of the policy and approval of the policy.
It is great to see that common sense prevailed. However the Lane Cove Council contacted NSW Police and the RMS who advised they would not approve of a flower stall being located there as it is a safety issue. A spokesperson for Lane Cove Council advised ITC:
“Council approached the RMS and Police in relation to the Burns Bay Road location post Council’s resolution.
At the time there were other also issues with Street Vendors, including meat being sold from a truck.
After discussion with Councillors no further action was taken.”
Lane Cove Council did not advise Antonio that they would not be issuing a policy statement or in fact told him that he needed to stop selling flowers.
On 27 May 2022, he appeared in Hornsby Court (Matter Number 2021/00025775).
Last year he had been charged by NSW Police Highway Patrol with two offences:
- using a vehicle for selling items without approval,
- refusing to state his name or address upon demand.
He was fined $1250.
On the weekend of 28/29th May 2022, the NSW Police Highway Patrol told Antonio to move on and told him he would be jailed if he continued to conduct business.
The Linley Point Community are rallying around Antonio again. They contacted ITC and told us the following:
“Over the weekend we witnessed the heavy handedness of Hornsby Highway Patrol issuing our neighbourhood icon, Antonio – The Flower Man – Linley Point… He was issued with the fine and advised he is a nuisance and will be jailed if he continues to sell his flowers on Burns Bay Road.
We will be starting a petition to have Tony returned to our neighbourhood. He is a much-loved character who has been selling flowers in the same location for decades. He is a kind member of our community who makes an honest living out of his flower business.”
A petition has been started by Anthony Roberts – you can sign it here
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