The Aboriginal Housing Commission which controls housing in Redfern's "The Block" in Eveleigh St recently made a proposal to redevelop some of the land into new housing for the Aboriginal residents of the area.

The plan according to "The Wentworth Courier Central" calls for 62 three and four bedroom apartments to be constructed on one of the blocks within the street. A small rendering was published. It's a horse shoed shaped building that rises from one storey at one end to five storeys at the other end.

It is hoped this will provide adequate and good quality housing for the local Aborigines.

I wonder if it will be any more successful than any of its predecessors? How many have there been so far?

Sadly, these bunch of corrupt wankers have promised many things in the past, but they always delivery nothing ...........

Dont hold your breath until they get booted out of the area. You only have to see what has become of their own offices in Eveleigh Street to see the reality of it all ........ :mad:

Hmm ?
This area seem like a lost cause
Maybe it just be left to sink and hit rock bottom ( if not already there sadly) so a real urban redevelopment can take place
All these little projects seem like bandaid apporaches for social problem that requires much more planing and aid

The Aboriginal Housing Commission (AHC) are very serious about this one. The redevelopment is to restore a strong and healthy sense of community in the area with a strong emphasis on Aboriginal culture & spirituality. There has been massive consultation with community leaders.

A number of designs have submitted by final year architecture students at Sydney Univeristy who were provided by briefs from the AHC. A model will be available for inspection next month at 104 Lawson Street, Redfern, as part of the consultation process and will run for three months. Expect a D/A to be lodged with council by the end of the year.

I'm not holding my breath .........

What's the point of it all when it'll all be trashed within a couple of months of occupation.

Don't make those assumptions that it is going to fail and the apartments will be trashed. We haven't even seen the model yet. You might be surprised. I think this is a good thing for Redfern and for the residents of this long neglected area of town.

If you can improve the quality of life for them, it's going to lead to the reduction in problems in the area. I'm sure there will be community facilities built as part of it to help build the sense of community.

There are also other issues that need to be addressed that are not related to this development too. This is just one part of addressing the problem.

Assuming that the AHC is run by Aborigines who are in close contact/consultation with their community/constituents, this should be a great outcome. If the plans truly take into account the needs of the community there is no reason that it should fall into disarray or disrepair and instead should be well looked-after. I've got my fingers crossed that this is worth holding my breath for.

I don't know if the residents will have the character to keep these new homes in order.

as a person looking to buy in the redfern area, i too have my fingers crossed.

it is amazing that a suburb so close to the city and seperated by only 1 street from surry hills carries such a bad reputation.

there are some very pricey houses in redfern and i bet a fair bit of influence is being exerted by these residents for change.

i still see redfern as a sleeper with huge potential. influencial residents have been able to clean up the Cross in recent years. it will be interesting to see what will become of redfern.

regards,

julie

The pricey areas of Redfern are around George Street and Pitt Street bewteen the Cleveland Street and Redfern Street intersections. The houses there were relative bargains when I was going to uni in the mid-late 1990's, around $300K for a terrace, but now are around $650K - $1 Million now. One of the terraces I remember even had a ballroom! As beautiful as Paddington anyday. As you go down towards Waterloo though, things get worse.

any update on this?

see http://www.ahc.org.au/redevelop/pemulwuyconcept.pdf and http://www.ahc.org.au/

Crunch time for The Block
by REDWatch — last modified 2007-11-20 20:12
http://www.redwatch.org.au/media/071115psg/

Years after the Pemulwuy Project was first planned, the Aboriginal Housing Company (AHC) will submit its concept master plan for the redevelopment of the Redfern Block to the NSW Department of Planning. Under state law, the department will have 40 days to accept or reject the project reports Angela Dewan in Precinct South Sydney Edition Issue 4/2007 in November 2007.

The project has a number of special features which are designed to meet the needs of the Aboriginal community and that highlight the significance of The Block. The Block is made up of terrace houses, owned or rented by Aboriginals. It was bought by the AHC after receiving a grant of $530,000 in 1973 under the Whitlam government.

The project aims to provide more affordable housing for Aboriginal low to middle income earners and to provide "a clean, healthy and safe environment" for Aboriginal children, as stated in the Pemulwuy project profile.
"We want to pave the way for the next generation. We don't want this generation now to be caught in this vicious cycle.
We want them to grow up in a good environment," said Mick Mundine, chief executive officer of the AHC.

With only 20 dwellings currently on The Block, five of which are unoccupied, the AHC 's project includes 62 dwellings. "The reason we picked 62 was because there were 62 Gadigal families in Redfern who got wiped out by smallpox when the British arrived. It's sort of like a commemoration to them," said Mr Mundine.

The Redfern Waterloo Authority (RWA), a statutory body which was set up in 2004 with powers to override local councils, has a different vision for The Block. In response to the AHC's Pemulwuy project, the RWA incorporated its vision to commercialise the Block in their 2006 Built Environment Plan.

In August last year the RWA changed the zoning status of the Block from a 'Residential 2b' zone to a 'Business-Mixed Use 10' zone. It also reduced the residential floor space ratio from 1:1, which is still enjoyed in other areas of Redfern, to 0.75:1, forcing the AHC to redesign parts of its project and slow down its progress. Mick Mundine is outraged by such requirements. He pointed out that in other developments they can go up to 15 storeys high but in The Block they can only go to three levels.

A spokesperson for Minister Sartor, however, denied The Block has been treated differently to other parts of Redfern and Waterloo. "The Department of Planning assesses all proposals it receives rigorously and on their merits."
The project now complies with all of the RWA requirements as per the Built Environment Plan. Their floor space ratios have been adjusted and 50 per cent of the land will be used for commercial development.

Peter Valilis, manager of the Pemulwuy Project, supports the idea of commercial development on the AHC's land. "I've always been of the notion that we need some commercial development to generate income for the community but not at the expense of the residential; as long as we get our 62 houses."

The housing component of the Pemulwuy Project involves having a fourth room as a 'home clinic' where ill family members can stay in comfort. This was initiated in consideration of poor Aboriginal health standards in the area.
Other features of the plan include a three-tiered rental system to accommodate for families of different income levels, the consideration of Aboriginal culture in the area by renaming the streets with traditional Aboriginal names, use of solar light and rainwater tanks, opening up The Block as opposed to keeping it a `no-go' area to help community members integrate and lower crime rates through design and development.

Despite the fact the project had won several awards, in 2004 the RWA minister Frank Sartor, said he wanted to reduce further Aboriginal housing on The Block. His comment followed a parliamentary inquiry, leaked from Cabinet in the same year, into the value of land in Redfern. It found that the value of the land would increase by 30 per cent if The Block were a commercial zone.
After Mr Mundine's refusal of the Minister's proposal, Mr Sartor suggested merely renovating the 20 dwellings that exist on The Block and placing other residents in public housing elsewhere in Redfern and Waterloo. Mick Mundine also opposed that suggestion. "They can't make us sell our land to anybody, but they're trying to pull the wool over our eyes to really undermine us."
It has been seven years since the Pemulwuy Project plan was first drafted.

The plan sits with the AHC's lawyers who are perfecting it to ensure its approval with the NSW Planning Department. Mr Valilis is confident that the project can not be rejected for any planning reasons as it now complies with all of the RWA's requirements.

Mr Mundine is ready for action if the Pemulwuy Project is not approved. "If Sartor knocks us back after the 40 day period, we're going straight to the Land Environment Court. We're going to fight him all the way."

Publications from the UTS School of Journalism can be found online at http://www.journalism.uts.edu.au/future_students/student_publications.html and at http://www.reportage.uts.edu.au/

Disappointing that there is still no progress after four years. Before yesterday, the last proposal called for entire area to disappear with no housing for Aboirignes and that was a year ago.

I heard there are plans to move African refugees into the redeveloped area.

Rivalry helps Redfern cause
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/rivalry-helps-redfern-cause/2008/09/10/1220857637779.html

http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2008/09/10/block_wideweb__470x313,0.jpg
Impasse … Meredith Burgmann stepped in over the development on the Block.
Photo: AFP
Sunanda Creagh Urban Affairs Reporter
September 11, 2008

IN A deal fuelled by this weekend's council elections, a controversial 62-house development on the Block in Redfern is a step closer to fruition.

An impasse between the Aboriginal Housing Company and the Department of Planning arose after the indigenous developers refused to pay a $60,000 processing fee. The charge covers the cost of processing the housing company's application to build the $50 million housing project, a gym and an elders' centre on the Redfern site.

Labor's lord mayoral candidate in the City of Sydney elections, Meredith Burgmann, brokered a deal under which another department, the Redfern Waterloo Authority, paid the fee. "The situation needed a circuit breaker," Dr Burgmann said.

Peter Valilis, a director of the housing project, said the intense election competition between incumbent Lord Mayor Clover Moore and Dr Burgmann helped his cause. "I am sure we all know that politicians are always very motivated during election time but Meredith does come across as very genuine," he said.

Mr Valilis agreed it was unusual for the Government to cover the cost of a processing fee for a private developer but said: "This project is a fully affordable housing project that is sorely required in this city. The savings the Government will make in terms of reduced crime and reduced need for affordable housing will show that this fee is really nothing. It will pay for itself."

The development application will go on exhibition for 30 days but Mr Valilis said the housing project would consider Land and Environment Court action if its plans were not approved.

The Block really needs to be developed. I remember walking past there once and it's probably the worst place in the entire entire country. So antagonistic and it's not a place a tourist (like I was at the time) should see. It's just a no-go zone really. It needs to be cleaned up. I'm actually in favour of bulldozing the area and emptying it out and replacing it with something less open to remove the bad presence the people there bring to the place.

Maybe this thread could be merged with the general Redfern thread ...


'Brand new day': Green light for Block overhaul
Posted Thu Jul 2, 2009 3:30pm AEST
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/07/02/2615114.htm?section=australia

http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200907/r393349_1840494.jpg
An artist's impression of the planned redevelopment. (NSW Planning Department)

The Aboriginal community in the inner Sydney suburb of Redfern is celebrating after plans to breathe new life into The Block were finally given the go-ahead.

The State Government has approved a $60 million concept plan by the owners of the neglected site, the Aboriginal Housing Company, to transform The Block into a 16,000-square-metre residential, commercial and cultural precinct.

Announcing the decision today, Planning Minister Kristina Keneally said it was an important day for the local Redfern community, which has long been wracked by drugs, unemployment and poverty.

"It's a step forward to creating a modern and a vibrant and a sustainable community," she said.

The plan, named the Pemulwuy Project after a renowned Aboriginal warrior, includes a gym, an elders' cultural centre, 500 metres of public open space and 62 new apartments that Aboriginal people will be able to buy.

Aboriginal Housing Company chief executive Mick Mundine says the approval is a step towards reconciliation for Redfern's Aboriginal community.

"Man, she's been a hard road," he said.

"A lot of people said we couldn't do it. You've got to have faith, be humble and stick to your principles.

"Our people have struggled and suffered so long in this community. It's a brand new day."

Construction is still some way off; the Aboriginal Housing Company has to submit detailed project plans and get financial backing.

Mr Mundine says he is confident of securing funding.

"People say, 'Where's the money coming from?' Hey, I don't know yet," he said. "But just have a bit of faith in life and the money will flow in."

But Opposition planning spokesman Brad Hazzard says it is a tough time to be seeking finance and the project should receive government assistance.

"Redfern and The Block mean a lot to Aboriginal people all across Australia," he said.

"They have fought this Government for 10 years to get a development approval. It is time that this Government came to the party in terms of supporting with funding."

The state and federal governments are refusing to say whether they will chip in.

Local community leader Shane Phillips says the decision is an opportunity for residents to take ownership of the area.

"The Block is the epitome for some time of what went wrong," he said. "We're going to turn that around. We're going to show people how we can solve it."

The area has made huge steps in cutting crime in recent days but long-time Block resident Margaret Blair has her doubts the project will go ahead.

"I've been here since I was a child and look at it," she said. "There's no change and there'll never be a change."

The State Government says the project will create 200 construction jobs, as well as 100 full-time positions once the redevelopment is complete.

Mods, please merge this thread into the Redfern thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=367763). Thanks.

The end for The Block
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/the-end-for-the-block/story-e6freuy9-1225926016059

http://resources2.news.com.au/images/2010/09/19/1225926/102370-the-block.jpg
The Block has long been a flashpoint in Sydney. The precinct last erupted in 2004 over the death of a boy who was being chased by police. Picture: Craig Greenhill Source: The Daily Telegraph

http://resources2.news.com.au/images/2010/09/18/1225926/015386-mick-mundine.jpg
Time called ... Mick Mundine pictured at the famous Redfern Block whichwill soon be developed for more than 60 houses. Picture: Sam Ruttyn Source: The Sunday Telegraph

RESIDENTS have begun being evicted from the notorious Aboriginal housing slum known as The Block, which will be demolished within months.
Eviction notices were sent to the remaining 75 residents of the drug-plagued precinct on Wednesday, bringing to an end a 37-year experiment in urban land rights begun by the Whitlam government.

The tenants have been given 60 days to find alternative housing before the bulldozers move in on The Block in January.

Construction of a new-look housing development, the Pemulwuy Project, will begin in April.

Its 62 homes are slated for completion in 2013 in time for the 40th anniversary of the Aboriginal Housing Company, which owns and manages the area.

AHC chief executive Mick Mundine warned that no one with a violent or drug-related history will be allowed back in the community houses once redevelopment of the area is finished.

"It will be based on their tenant history: if they're known for selling drugs, they'll never be allowed back," Mr Mundine told The Sunday Telegraph on Friday.

The eviction notices were sent following a September 8 meeting between Mr Mundine, senior Redfern police and residents.

After the 60-day notice period expires, The Block's remaining buildings will be bricked and boarded, including the Mundine family's iconic gymnasium on Eveleigh St.

"Once they're bricked, they're bricked for good - there will be no going back," Mr Mundine said.

"We need to clean out the crime - we want the evil spirit out of this community."

Only 15 habitable properties remain on the four streets that comprise "The Block" - four are on Louis St, three on Caroline St, six on Vine St and two on Eveleigh St.

No forcible evictions have ever been made, although about 110 residents have voluntarily relocated since 1997. Some long-term tenants have vowed to contest the evictions, but Mr Mundine said the only people upset by the plans were those known to cause trouble.

"Whether they like it or not, this (development) is going to happen," he said. "A lot of people will complain. They've been here a long time but it's time for a change.

"Some are drug sellers and they cause problems, but our first priority is to relocate them."

The area has traditionally been a no-go zone for the broader community. At one point, it was so violent that police voiced their own concerns about patrolling the area.

During the '90s, heroin sales flourished in The Block, giving it a vicious reputation for drugs and violence that it struggled to shed.

Just a fortnight ago, undercover police swooped on an all-female gang of alleged heroin dealers, though many of those arrested were not actually from the area.

In 2004, racial tensions flared when 17-year-old Thomas "TJ" Hickey was accidentally impaled on a fence after trying to flee police. Riots left 40 police officers injured.

Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said a similar scheme in Dubbo, involving relocation and redevelopment, had been successful

"They relocated the tenants there and I think they redeveloped that area. It was a great success from what I understand," Mr Scipione told The Sunday Telegraph.

Concept plans for the Pemulwuy Project have been approved and backed by the State Government.

+1 for the merge into the Redfern Thread.

I heard the news yesterday on 2GB the news of residents moving out. It's time that work began.

Good initative by the AHC to bar criminals from occupying the homes.

Funny how this thread was launched over 6 years ago and just as I predicted this redevelopment would amount to nothing. :lol:

And it also seems each year since there have been the same announcements over and over again. :|

I still aint gonna hold my breath until I see the whole area adjacent to Redfern Station flattened ...... :D

Yep! I was wondering how old I would be when this one comes up again - again.
It seems to have been around almost as long as I have - hint: I'm well beyond the age of consent.

i liked the idea of bulldozing the block, and selling it off to private developers, and moving all the aboriginal tenants to a new AHC housing estate in the mount druitt area specially built for them. they can make their new "block" out there.

redfern would be such a more attractive place for business, retail and residential, if all the government housing in the area was moved out west to the mount druitt or campbelltown areas .

the block is a no-go zone for non-aboriginal people. what makes the redevelopment of the block by the ahc change this fact? how is this going to change the problems of crime there. drug use, theft, violence, vandalism, drunkeness.

redfern's "the block" will always remain a hole, for as long as "the block" exists in redfern. There is no ideal or quick-fix solution to the problems that the block faces.

The least that can be done is move the block to a new location on sydney's western fringes, so redfern can become an exclusive suburb, with the city cbd eventually extending to redfern

i liked the idea of bulldozing the block, and selling it off to private developers, and moving all the aboriginal tenants to a new AHC housing estate in the mount druitt area specially built for them. they can make their new "block" out there.

redfern would be such a more attractive place for business, retail and residential, if all the government housing in the area was moved out west to the mount druitt or campbelltown areas .

the block is a no-go zone for non-aboriginal people. what makes the redevelopment of the block by the ahc change this fact? how is this going to change the problems of crime there. drug use, theft, violence, vandalism, drunkeness.

redfern's "the block" will always remain a hole, for as long as "the block" exists in redfern. There is no ideal or quick-fix solution to the problems that the block faces.

The least that can be done is move the block to a new location on sydney's western fringes, so redfern can become an exclusive suburb, with the city cbd eventually extending to redfern

Clearly you don't live or spend much time out in Western Sydney. Mt Druitt area in particular already has too much government housing. Putting all government housing in one suburb creates serious socio-economic problems for an area. There needs to be proportional government housing in all suburbs. All the new suburbs being built around Mt Druitt area are private housing estates and Mt Druitt is demolishing old housing and putting in townhouses and apartment blocks, costs over $350,000+ for new 2 bedroom apartments. The aboriginal community will just have to move elsewhere. Western Sydney doesn't want or need any more government housing in fact they've been reducing it and moving them to regional cities like Newcastle and Wollongong.

Move them to Dubbo.

Oh, good one but too late. Move 'em to Dubbo? They've already done that: remember Gordon Estate? - riots, 8 yr olds rampaging at 3 a.m., burning houses, all the usual. Had to partly demolish it and partly sell parts of it off to private buyers and scatter the former residents to other areas and towns.
No idea how to solve this one unless the people decide to take constructive action for themselves and stop fighting each other. Among other things.

What a racist thread.

Some yes, but beware of patronising reverse racism.

Take newborn children away from their dysfunctional families to give them a better chance at life.. oh wait.

I can't even believe some of these posts! Surely there is piss taking going on here. Obviously the above is tongue in cheek but some of the others... Anyway, hasn't experience shown us that lumping a bunch of disadvantaged people together in on place accomplishes very little? The house next to mine is owned by the aha and the family who live there took the opportunity to leave a housing estate in campbelltown and their "community" and live in the inner west. A few years on and they are absolutely thriving. A diverse racial and socioeconomic area is better for everyone imho.

no offence, but having so manyaboriginals lumped together makes them all fall into a heap together. move them allon, bulldoze the fucking place soits nolonger a one race enclave.

Can't we just shoot them for sport?

What a racist thread.

The posts of the past 24 hours have largely turned racist.

Some of you need to be more sensitive on this matter. The problem at "The Block" is a tough one to fix.

The issue is more than housing, but also providing the support services that they may require.

moving them apart from eachother will solve a great deal of problems. however, they also need to help themselves end of discussion! and its not racist to comment on how certain people conduct themselves if it is true.

The definition of racism is to ascribe traits or characteristics to all members of that race.

oh here we go, yawn

just bulldoze the joint and build something cool.

Clearly many posts in this thread have been racist.

I used to live a couple of blocks away from the Block (and almost got a place around the corner), and things there and elsewhere along Lawson St just got progressively worse over the years. Realistically, a bulldozer and redevlopment (given that the land is owned by an Aboriginal housing corporation) is the only option. Redfern is changing, and a lot of good stuff is happing both from within the community and with Government, that we just don't hear about so fixing the blight that the Block had become is fantastic.

BTW, the nation's largest aboriginal population by far is spread across the Blacktown LGA, although Redfern possibly has the highest density.

^ I thought Glebe now has a bigger population than Redfern. Blacktown? lol.

So in all seriousness, can someone please point out why Aboriginal Australians require social housing? Surely weaning communities off welfare dependency and into education and the workforce can only benefit the local community and society as a whole?

I don't think any group in this country should be given social housing for an extended period of time. Be they Aboriginal, European, African or Asian.

@CP just cuz you're cute you get a free pass

People that have no intention to work (regardless of race) and decide to exploit welfare along with public housing have no place living in large cities (inner city or outer suburbs). Those that wish to live like that and enjoy these freebies generation upon generation should be given no option but to live out their pathetic existences in far away country towns ....

Neville Wran gave large parts of Redfern to this useless housing co-op which has squandered a great opportunity for Sydney. Its time to forcibly swap this land so that it can be better utilised.

This thread needs to be locked as its been going nowhere for the past several years. :lock:

^ I thought Glebe now has a bigger population than Redfern. Blacktown? lol. You know, I hadn't noticed the Blacktown thing :)

But it is the case - including almost 70% unemployment amongst Aboriginal men in some parts....

yeah but dont air your thoughts outloud or your suddenly a racist pig!

@CP just cuz you're cute you get a free pass


:lol:

would be great to see large towers go up in redfern, oh wait, the museli bitch might object

"Might"!? It's a dead cert! Refern is riddled with middle-class nimbys these days as well so it'd be a fight to the death. Look at the fuss when quite moderate projects have been proposed in recent years.

If not wanting a ghetto in the heart of the city, and having people from that ghetto loitering around outside the vicinity of "the block" and other government housing estates around the city like glebe, waterloo etc. being anti-social, and going in a group to the park next to central station on eddy avenue lying down on the grass getting drunk, shouting and swearing and asking bypassers for spare change, then i guess I'm racist then.

Having these ghettos around the city are scaring tourists away from the suburbs which these ghettos reside at. They are also hindering potentional investment from businesses and companies in these areas.

these ghettos need to be removed from these areas and put somewhere in the western outskirts of the sydney region

I agree with Overseer. Critics of your view will say that it is "social cleansing" to move them away. They don't own the property so they have no right to demand they stay in Waterloo, Redfern etc

Just poison their water, that'll get rid of 'em!

Just poison their water, that'll get rid of 'em! No, the flour works better....:ohno:

Move them to Dubbo.

What about Nauru?

The new series of 'The Block' should be set in Redfern. Gauranteed ratings winner, and away from the comfort zones that the likes of Bondi would provide.

I live right next to housing commission or public housing which is in Woolloomooloo and for one am glad it is there. One it helps diversifies the area and stops it completely becoming a collection gentrified cashed-up family suburbs. If I wanted that I would move to Pyrmont, Balmain or Paddington and would make sure I was in bed by 10pm each night.

Public housing also has the bonus of giving the mainly white neighbourhood busy-bodies something serious to focus their attention on even though there is nothing personally they can do. If it were not for the local mainly white homeless, mainly white junkies and other white undesirables then the white busy-bodies would be focusing on other issues like trying to shut-down local businesses and stifle local night life.

I'll give a recent example that comes to mind. Llanklley Lane in PottsPoint/KingsCross which is just off the main strip opposite the notorious Empire Hotel. 5 years ago it used to contain a half abandoned shopping centre with a TAB and an IGA that faced an illegal brothel and some sex shops. The lane was a hangout for local white junkies, white drug dealers and white homeless etc. A few years ago the shopping centre was knocked down and replaced by an apartment building with shops, a large grocer, etc. Since then a number of cafes have moved into the area and the mainly white undesirables have mainly moved on to loiter elsewhere.

Recently the cafes in the lane have had council (all but one who are white) restrictions imposed on them where they are not allowed to open before 8am because of some complaints by the mainly white laneway residents. The same white residents who just a few years ago used to have white homeless and white dealers hanging outside below their apartment windows. This restriction is imposed by the same white (+ 1 asian) council who kills all 'illegal' street art that pops up in the lane yet claims it is trying promotes lane culture as long as it is by their nanny rules.

What would you expect from a council spearheaded by ms oven-baked crunchola.

lol @ living in Pyrmont if you don't want public housing.

Isn't Pyrmont home to the oldest public housing building in Sydney?

:lol:

would be great to see large towers go up in redfern, oh wait, the museli bitch might object

You mean like this ... http://www.picpaste.com/urba_FS-PDXIIvu3.JPG

7-9 Gibbons St: planned completion late 2013.

Isn't Pyrmont home to the oldest public housing building in Sydney?

Yes.

Snaps for me

^ Easy Tiger. Strickland House was built first in Chippendale in 1914. Ways Terrace was built in Pyrmont in 1923.

http://profile.id.com.au/Default.aspx?id=148&pg=101&gid=130&type=enum
http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/AboutSydney/HistoryAndArchives/SydneyHistory/ParksHistory/JamesWatkinsonReserve.asp

Aww Bitch steal my snaps will ya

My Proposition:

First and foremost, The Block will be relocated to the mount druitt region, Just above the existing settlement of Willmot, and the AHC will be given the ownership to the site. The new block will have brand new apartments, terraces and townhouses. It will include a large community centre with an indoor sports hall, large lounge area with large screen tv's, pool tables, cafe/refreshments bar, arcade machines. There will be outdoor basketball courts , and skateboarding ramps. The mundine boxing gym will also be relocated there, aswell as an aboriginal radio station building, and a recording studio with all the latest equipment.

Right next to the new block settlement, will be another AHC owned and run housing estate consisting of similar types of housing dwellings to the new block. The block in Willmot will house all the current aboriginal tenants of the current block in redfern, plus other aboriginal tenants from all other AHC run homes in the inner city suburbs, and these AHC dwellings will be sold off to private developers. The proposed AHC estate next to the new block will house alot of aboriginal people living in normal NSW government housing dwellings from the inner city.

New NSW housing estates will be made directly above shalvey, bidwill and hassal grove, which will consist a mixture of apartments and townhouses.

A small stretch of area between Willmot and shalvey will be a general services district consisting of a large police station complex, large centrelink, large 24 hour medical centre, library, special primary and high school, bus interchange will services directly going to the mount druitt town centre, Homeless shelter, Methadone clinic, supermarket, specialty shops, salvation army hq, anglicare hq, PCYC centre, DOCS hq, Jobfind hq.

A large concrete wall will be erected along the northern boundaries of this estate, aswell as along the eastern boundaries near richmond road, which will only allow access to these estates through the suburbs of willmot, shalvey, bidwill and hassal grove.

http://i51.tinypic.com/nwahit.jpg

Also, to clean up the Blacktown area, and make it a desirable place for a working class population, all the government housing dwellings in the LGA inside the M7 corridor , will be sold off to private developers, and the tenants relocated to the mount druitt area, west of the m7, in existing and newly built government housing dwellings.
The Blacktown CBD has the potential to became another business hub with high density apartments living in the future for western sydney, to alleviate pressure on Parramatta .

http://i53.tinypic.com/dd0vol.jpg

Also new NSW housing estates will be built to the east of minto and minto heights, which will be mixed with private housing at a ratio of about 50/50. Beyond these estates to the east will be new private housing estates extending to the georges river.

http://i55.tinypic.com/25gcpie.jpg

These new NSW housing estates will house all the current tenants of government housing from LGA's of Leichardt, Sydney, Randwick, Botany Bay, Marrickville & canterbury. The government housing dwellings from these inner city LGA's will then be sold off to private developers.

An interesting idea but I suggest that you also read up on 'sink estates' a similar strategy used in the UK which brought about some less than desirable results for those new areas of social housing.

Lets just move those unsightly aboriginals away from the inner city, where we can more easily ignore them.... :ohno:

You go to redfern and you see the poor people living there and then you look up at the large expensive skyscrapers just a walking distance away and it really says something about the plight of the aboriginals.
Redfern is going to be much more bland and uninteresting if it's entirely gentrified.

My Proposition:

First and foremost, The Block will be relocated to the mount druitt region, Just above the existing settlement of Willmot, and the AHC will be given the ownership to the site. The new block will have brand new apartments, terraces and townhouses. It will include a large community centre with an indoor sports hall, large lounge area with large screen tv's, pool tables, cafe/refreshments bar, arcade machines. There will be outdoor basketball courts , and skateboarding ramps. The mundine boxing gym will also be relocated there, aswell as an aboriginal radio station building, and a recording studio with all the latest equipment.

Right next to the new block settlement, will be another AHC owned and run housing estate consisting of similar types of housing dwellings to the new block. The block in Willmot will house all the current aboriginal tenants of the current block in redfern, plus other aboriginal tenants from all other AHC run homes in the inner city suburbs, and these AHC dwellings will be sold off to private developers. The proposed AHC estate next to the new block will house alot of aboriginal people living in normal NSW government housing dwellings from the inner city.

New NSW housing estates will be made directly above shalvey, bidwill and hassal grove, which will consist a mixture of apartments and townhouses.

A small stretch of area between Willmot and shalvey will be a general services district consisting of a large police station complex, large centrelink, large 24 hour medical centre, library, special primary and high school, bus interchange will services directly going to the mount druitt town centre, Homeless shelter, Methadone clinic, supermarket, specialty shops, salvation army hq, anglicare hq, PCYC centre, DOCS hq, Jobfind hq.

A large concrete wall will be erected along the northern boundaries of this estate, aswell as along the eastern boundaries near richmond road, which will only allow access to these estates through the suburbs of willmot, shalvey, bidwill and hassal grove.

http://i51.tinypic.com/nwahit.jpg

Also, to clean up the Blacktown area, and make it a desirable place for a working class population, all the government housing dwellings in the LGA inside the M7 corridor , will be sold off to private developers, and the tenants relocated to the mount druitt area, west of the m7, in existing and newly built government housing dwellings.
The Blacktown CBD has the potential to became another business hub with high density apartments living in the future for western sydney, to alleviate pressure on Parramatta .

http://i53.tinypic.com/dd0vol.jpg

Also new NSW housing estates will be built to the east of minto and minto heights, which will be mixed with private housing at a ratio of about 50/50. Beyond these estates to the east will be new private housing estates extending to the georges river.

http://i55.tinypic.com/25gcpie.jpg

These new NSW housing estates will house all the current tenants of government housing from LGA's of Leichardt, Sydney, Randwick, Botany Bay, Marrickville & canterbury. The government housing dwellings from these inner city LGA's will then be sold off to private developers.

Like I said before in regards to you mentioning this: You clearly have never been to Mt Druitt or spent anytime there and just think you can dump people wherever sounds convenient so its not near you. Mount Druitt is finally starting to become a nicer place to live near and putting more social housing including drug addicts would only send it back 10-20 years.

They're building apartments in the Mt Druitt CBD and new townhouses, old housing is being demolished and new housing being built. It has the potential to become an investment goldmine in Sydney with the cheapest housing left in the Sydney Metro Area and you want to turn it into a social nightmare when its finally heading in a good direction.

Also right next to where you want to place The Block is where Ropes Crossing is being developed, it also plans to continue right through the area you want the The Block to be and I believe they're going the keep expanding north.

And also referring Blacktown as becoming more attractive to the working class? Who do you think live there? They are the working class! lol

Good idea Overseer, but they need to build the wall around the whole estate and have guards checking ID's at the entrance points so that the criminals amongst them can be arrested for dodging their arrest warrants - because we all know they have no respect for the LAW.

Now, nice troll effort, I'll pay you for that. But in all seriousness, and I am deadset serious, this is my proposal when it comes to public housing -

Sell off 2/3 of existing public housing estates to developers (I know you like the idea of selling public housing to developers). By "estate" I mean any location that has a cluster of public housing buildings, anywhere (that very much includes Redfern/Waterloo). The governent then needs to forcibly aquire private housing in areas that don't have much public housing, like Mosman, Castlecrag, Dural, Rose Bay, Dover Heights etc. They then need to evenly disperse the public housing in these areas so that, in the end, all locations everywhere have an equal amount of public housing and it's not all lumped together.

Now there's the solution. If the poor bastards actually get to live somewhere where not everyone is scum they may actually strive to lift themselves from the bottom too. But why bother when everyone else around you is up the shit?

Or, let's just create your ghetto and build a big fuck off security fence around it!

Good idea Overseer, but they need to build the wall around the whole estate and have guards checking ID's at the entrance points so that the criminals amongst them can be arrested for dodging their arrest warrants - because we all know they have no respect for the LAW.

Now, nice troll effort, I'll pay you for that. But in all seriousness, and I am deadset serious, this is my proposal when it comes to public housing -

Sell off 2/3 of existing public housing estates to developers (I know you like the idea of selling public housing to developers). By "estate" I mean any location that has a cluster of public housing buildings, anywhere (that very much includes Redfern/Waterloo). The governent then needs to forcibly aquire private housing in areas that don't have much public housing, like Mosman, Castlecrag, Dural, Rose Bay, Dover Heights etc. They then need to evenly disperse the public housing in these areas so that, in the end, all locations everywhere have an equal amount of public housing and it's not all lumped together.

Now there's the solution. If the poor bastards actually get to live somewhere where not everyone is scum they may actually strive to lift themselves from the bottom too. But why bother when everyone else around you is up the shit?

Or, let's just create your ghetto and build a big fuck off security fence around it!

Completely agree with you! They should keep a small amount of public housing in Redfern in another location. And continue dividing it up in suburbs that either don't have any or don't have large amounts. Lumping it all together only creates ghettos, poverty, crime, etc. Western Sydney has great potential but would only be held back if you keep turning it into a social welfare state. Like I said, either put them in different areas in Sydney, OR create more social housing in upcoming rural areas that need workers.

Large concrete wall along northern perimeter would be used as public mural space. I get it now.

Large concrete wall along northern perimeter would be used as public mural space. I get it now.
Do you mean a bit like that one they used to have in Berlin for some reason? :)

A recent Housing strategy has been specificalyl to buy up small older blocks in established suburbs and renovate for public tenants - there's been a few around our area recently.

^
I think he means like the ones they have got at the block in redfern

http://www.greenleft.org.au/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-image/redfern_nsw_-_the_block_mural_pimlottc_wikimedia.jpg
http://i51.tinypic.com/30m2vrl.jpg
http://a4.l3-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/53/129ac5a3a35d24a2b258022eede6e29b/l.jpg
http://ih1.redbubble.net/work.2379723.5.flat,800x800,070,f.jpg
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_dK07ZqS2S94/S6M62B9dfxI/AAAAAAAABd4/an8yK1mISeQ/s400/the%2Bblock.jpg
http://www.patriciab.com/blockpix/Block0001sml.jpg

Large concrete wall along northern perimeter would be used as public mural space. I get it now.
Yep, that's part of the plan . I'm glad you pointed that out.

Also, to others who dont agree with my proposal, i respect your opinions, and it's just an idea i thought up of, while having spare time doing nothing. I actually was meant to make that post earlier, but just couldnt be bothered. Eventually i did it tho, lol.

So ofcourse there are all sorts of different suitabe ideas, but i think the most important thing is that the block in redfern has to go. It's in a prime location, which i think can be used to build some tall office and apartment towers. I will go into more details in my next post about that idea.

...so overseer, did you really just put in all that effort to try and legitimise some seriously poorly disguised racist attitude you have?

otherwise, if that's a joke - nice effort.

^
sorry but i wasnt joking. I'm not being racist, but if you think i am, then that's your perogative, i really dont care. I simply would like to see the inner city area cleaned up from government housing. You say I'm racist, is it because i want the block removed? It's a ghetto dump in the middle of the city. Also there is no hiding the fact that majority of aborigines in sydney are of the same socio-economic class as those on the block.
Working class aborigines are not an issue, but most are not. They need help and assistance, but the block is in a prime area for groth of the city towards the south. Another bigger and better block can be built somewhere else

How about a lovely reserve on Christmas Island for all of them?

I'm not being racist

Im sorry but that idea does sound racist. Removing Aboriginals out of the inner city to a walled slum so that the nice white rich folk can have a good life in their city is a pretty horrible idea. I think we need to stop thinking about shifting them around and maybe attempting to fix the problem that is causing such a large social divide to begin with.

There shouldn't be a 'them and us' mentality.

Thats my two sense anyway...

^
sorry but i wasnt joking. I'm not being racist, but if you think i am, then that's your perogative, i really dont care. I simply would like to see the inner city area cleaned up from government housing. You say I'm racist, is it because i want the block removed? It's a ghetto dump in the middle of the city. Also there is no hiding the fact that majority of aborigines in sydney are of the same socio-economic class as those on the block.
Working class aborigines are not an issue, but most are not. They need help and assistance, but the block is in a prime area for groth of the city towards the south. Another bigger and better block can be built somewhere else

mate i think you'll find that your proposal has been done before. i'm not suggesting you have some similar grandiose plan, but it does have similar elements. have a look here (http://www.google.com/search?q=polish%20ghettos) to see what i'm talking about. even if you like to avoid labelling yourself racist, which i don't know how you reconcile with what you actually have just said...it's tried and tested and been very much proved that ghettoisation simply does not work at all. additionally it creates a total paradox of government policies based in egalitarian ideals.

I think we have digressed

^ This thread wasn't going anywhere anyway. It should have been merged into the Redfern thread ages ago.

Nine News had a report on Redfern including renders of the redeveloped block last night (21/6/2011). Not only will the area have Aboriginal Housing, but also housing for students and if I can recall affordable housing as well. I think you might be surprised at how good it is.

Driving past last weekend I noticed a plethora of scaffolding around what remains of the housing, I am unsure whether it is stabling, or if they are demolishing? I think everyone has moved out now, yeah?

recent aerial of block area
http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/109/blockb.jpg

What's the structure at the back the gym on Eveleigh St with the trucks etc? Not there on google. But interesting to see that those units on the corner of Louis and Eveleigh have gone - they weren't that old.

Almost all the families that were living in "The Block" have moved out.

Ten News showed footage of an interesting light display to promote the redevelopment in their 5pm bulletin last night (22/6/2011).