Bilpin District Community News Page

Bilpin Hall is an essential community infrastructure as it:

1. a) is a district hall servicing the needs of not only Bilpin but surrounding communities of Mt Lagoon, Mt Tootie, Mt Tomah, Berambing and Kurrajong Heights
2. b) the hall is in use daily by a wide variety of community groups, play groups preschool, exercise classes for the elderly and many others
3. c) the hall has a busy Saturday market where the existing car park overflows in to degraded and eroded land. 
4. d) the hall is a disaster management staging area, which currently means that volunteer disaster management workers do so in the dirt and dust or wet and mud. During the Black Summer fires the Hall was the staging area for over 100 fire trucks twice a day for weeks.
5. e) the only way to get to the Hall is by private vehicle so a car park is essential 

This was the motion put to Hawkesbury Council’s May General Meeting by Bells Line Road Business to have the car park extended.  

Hawkesbury Council received funding under the Black Summer Bushfires Recovery grants program to extend the Hall car park which is used as a Disaster Staging Area in bushfires. The Council now want to give back the money as they say it is insufficient to build the car park.

The day before Council was to vote on returning the money BLOR Business became aware of Councils’ intention to do this during a meeting with the Mayor, Deputy Mayor and General Manager to discuss other issues.

“I couldn’t believe it and wouldn’t have if the General Manager hadn’t told us” Says Lionel Buckett a member of BLOR Business and Chairman of the Kurrajong Heights Bowling Club which is also used as a disaster staging area.

“The Club has just finished building a car park three times bigger than the one proposed for the Hall, using money from the same Black Summer Bushfire grant – it’s ridiculous to say there isn’t enough money to do it.”

“I was president of the Bilpin Hall Committee when we built the current carpark about 25 years ago. It was a different time then; the General Manager and all Council Senior executive officers lived in the Hawkesbury and knew and trusted the residents. We used material from Councils Wilberforce Depot and local contractors donated their time and machinery and the car park was built.”

Things haven’t changed that much according to Fiona Germaine Council still cuts through red tape and acts in the community’s best interest when its demanded.

“Look at the flood response, Council dumped sand in Windsor Park, and everyone pitched in, filled bags to help stop floodwaters entering private homes. And with bushfires Council sent up a Bulk Water Carrier to Bilpin and residents overloaded their utes carrying plastic cubes of water home to use for drinking washing and firefighting. Council can be useful to the community when the Councillors take charge. 

BLOR Business decided to put a motion to the Hawkesbury Council General meeting to forestall the handing back of the grant money. Two representatives Germaine and Buckett, the new and old, well dressed and under dressed businesspeople and residents of Bilpin district spoke eloquently and passionately about not returning the money and upgrading essential disaster infrastructure.

Council decided to direct its Administration to hold a meeting with stakeholders and report back to their June meeting.

Concern about car park design

Council design for an extension of the proposed car park caused concern as they included removing existing gardens, and large trees. The proposed plan did not address the issue of soil degradation caused by the current parking arrangements which occur on National Park land.

These are matters of design and involve a lot of talking with people to get it right including with bureaucrats from government departments. We had the same thing when we did the existing car park at Bilpin Hall. It’s a lot of effort but it’s worth it.

We went over the same things with the new Club carpark and finally got consensus. The car park doubles as a basketball court when not used for parking and everyone is now happy with it. Says Buckett.

Council consultation with stakeholders

Fiona Germaine on behalf of BLOR Business requested Hawkesbury Council uphold it’s commitment to convene a review meeting with relevant stakeholder groups including and not limited to: 

• Bell’s Line of Road Business Council 
• Bilpin Regional Action Group
• Bilpin Hall Committee 
• The Kurrajong Heights Bowling Club 

“Our request was heard and actioned by the Mayor Councillor Sarah McMahon, and I can report the Mayor has confirmed directly to me a meeting will be convened with these listed and other relevant groups. I look forward to hearing from Cr McMahon on the next steps.” 

The funding grant is due for completion in December 2023 and if not returned.

In the first edition of the Hawkesbury Highlands Bilpin RFS President claimed that along with Bilpin Regional Action Group (BRAG) and the Bilpin Hall Committee, organizations which work closely together, their views represent ten percent of the population.

So, what about the other ninety percent of the population of Bilpin, who represents’ their views or the positions of other communities in the Hawkesbury Highlands on varying issues? Who should our politicians, Council and local bureaucrats consult with on matters concerning our communities?

Determining who speaks for a community is a complex and sensitive issue, and there are always multiple groups claiming to represent the same community, each with different perspectives and priorities. Here are some factors to consider when deciding who speaks for the most people:

How many people are members of the group? Are they representative of the community they claim to represent, or do they only represent a particular subset of that community?

Does the group have a legitimate claim to speak for the community? Have they been elected or appointed by the community, or do they have a history of working on behalf of the community?

Does the group represent a broad cross-section of the community, or does it only represent a particular subset? Do they consider the views and concerns of different groups within the community?

What has the group done in the past to benefit the community? Have they delivered tangible benefits, or have they been ineffective or even harmful?

Is there a broad consensus within the community that this group speaks for them? Are there other groups that also claim to speak for the community, and if so, why do they feel that the other group does not represent their views.

Ultimately the decision of who speaks for the most people is a complex and ongoing process, and it may change over time as the needs and priorities of the community evolve.

It’s important to listen to different perspectives and engage in dialogue with a range of stakeholders to ensure that all voices are heard and that decisions are made in the best interests of the whole community.

This content was generated by Chat GPT

Hawkesbury Council Community Recovery Co-ordinator Liz Murphy organised a community dinner for bushfire survivors at Chapel Hill Berambing and flew in Victorian disaster expert Dr Rob Gordon to speak at the event. 38 people attended the event of which about 30 were residents impacted by the fires.

Dr Gordon spoke after dinner and repeated the information contained in videos made by the Victorian Government after the 2009 Black Saturday fires featuring him discussing the road to recovery which covers the following topics:

• Coping with stress after an emergency
• Building trust and confidence in your community post emergency
• Tackling uncertainty and anxiety ahead of the next fire season
• Summer strategies to manage feelings and reduce stress.
• Accepting the risk of bushfire and creating a new future
• Learning to trust your own thinking and action.

 You can view these videos at  https://services.dffh.vic.gov.au/travelling-road-recovery-video-series

Some comments from people who attended the dinner.

 He is a boring speaker, but his videos are good.

The food was great, and it was the first-time government bushfire money has been spent in Berambing, and on a deserving business that was burnout by the fires.

It must have cost a bomb. It was nice to have a free meal and chat with neighbours, but I don’t think it was a good use of bushfire money.

People need to feel safe and to do this we have to talk about what happened. The RFS need to give a proper apology for their backburn and failure to warn us of the unfolding emergency. Then we need to talk about what can be done to make sure the same mistakes aren’t repeated. After this we will feel safe and be able to renew our trust and confidence in the RFS and NSW Government. 

The meeting ran over time so not all attendee questions got answered. Council Recovery Co-ordinator Liz Murphy video Dr Gordon addressing the remaining questions after he returned to Victoria. You can view this at https://hawkesbury.sharefile.com/d-se244b6b3f184436aa4f583ef6c0c6adc

People driving on BLOR past Bilpin Cider will catch a view of the Aboriginal flag flying next to the Australian flag at the entrance to the Cellar Door.

This is the first business to fly the First Nation people’s flag in the Highlands and it has sparked discussion about the upcoming Voice to Parliament referendum everyone will be lining up to vote on in a few months’ time.

 What’s the Voice about?

In 2017 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Nations gathered at Uluru and made a statement from the heart of Australia. Part of this statement was seeking constitutional reform:

“We seek constitutional reforms to empower our people and take a rightful place in our own country. When we have power over our destiny our children will flourish. They will walk in two worlds and their culture will be a gift to their country. We call for the establishment of a First Nations Voice enshrined in the Constitution.” (Uluru Statement for the Heart 2017)

Embedding a Voice in the Constitution would recognise the special place of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia’s history, but importantly would also mean that it can’t be shut down by successive Governments. This is important because Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and bodies have called for a voice for close to 100 years. (Reconciliation Australia.org.au)

Is a Voice needed?

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders are the only racial group in Australia who have policies and laws made specifically for them, and government ministers and departments that specialise in implementing these laws and policy which often have an adverse impact on their lives.

A Voice to Parliament will give Indigenous communities a route to help inform policy and legal decisions that impact their lives. It will provide a mechanism where First Nation people can directly voice their concerns and ideas to Parliament regardless of who is Prime Minister and what ideas are fashionable at any time, and they believe this will give them greater control of their lives.

Opposing the Voice is the Liberal/National Party who proposed to pass laws establishing local and regional bodies to act as the Voice. Some First Nation leaders also oppose the Voice believing it will create another layer of bureaucracy and not solve any of the dire health and social problems racking their communities.

What is the referendum question?

“A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

Do you approve this proposed alteration?”

If the majority of people in the majority of the States of Australia vote yes, then Parliament will make laws creating the Voice. When governments change these laws can be changed but the Voice cannot be extinguished without a referendum to remove it from the Constitution.

https://voice.gov.au/referendum-2023/referendum-question-and-constitutional-amendment?

Article Source The Australian Institute of Architects June 2021

Residents whose homes were burnt when a backburn lit by the Rural Fire Service at Mt Wilson got out of control have failed in a bid for more details on an internal report into the incident.

The Mt Wilson RFS Backburn Survivors Group sought information on the report before the resumption of the coronial inquiry into the NSW 2019-20 bushfires on May 16.

The group is being represented pro bono by barrister, former NSW Upper House MP and former Blue Mountains mayor, Adam Searle, Mt Wilson.

A survivors group spokesman, Jochen Spencer, said in preparation for the upcoming hearing, they wrote to the RFS Commissioner seeking 314 references that are missing from an investigation report.

He said the group could not test the report’s findings without the reference material relied on to formulate them. “It is normal practice for a government department to reference sources relied on to make statements of fact, but this has not been done,” Mr Spencer said. “We requested the 314 references missing from the RFS on February 1… Finally they said, through a directions hearing at the coroners court, they are not going to provide the information and the report.

He said the references would help the group “get a better picture of what the plan was and how it was carried out”.”It is really disappointing to have a government department be have like this.”

An RFS spokesman said the organisation had produced “a vast amount of documents required of it by the state coroner and is willing to produce further specific documents if required by the coroner”.

Article Source Blue Mountains Gazette April 29 2023