The Australian war Memorial is opening its Treloar Technology Centre to the public this coming weekend on Sunday from 10: till 3:00

Big things in store
Sunday 14 March 2010 10.00 am – 3.00 pm
Treloar Conservation and Storage Annex,
8 Callan Street, Mitchell ACT

Entry is by gold coin donation

Big Things in Store day is a rare opportunity to see inside the Memorial’s storage area of large technology items; the Mitchell Annex is only opened to the general public once or twice a year.

For the first time this year, visitors will be able to see the Memorial’s newest aircraft, Caribou A4-140, which flew into Canberra Airport in November 2009.

The aircraft’s fuselage will be on display. (The tailplane, fin, rudder, propellers, and wings have been removed for transport and storage.)

The Annex holds relics that represent Australia’s involvement in conflict, including: De Havilland Tiger Moth 25-pounder field guns First World War Leyland truck Second World War DAP Beaufort bomber V2 rocket on its original trailer Two Centurion tanks from Vietnam "Bushmaster" Infantry Mobility Vehicle used in East Timor

Big Things in Store offers you a chance to get a rare glimpse inside the only Mk IV “Female tank in Australia, because its sponson has been removed for the purposes of conservation and research.

You will be able to purchase a barbecue lunch and refreshments on the day.

Closed, flat footwear is recommended. Please bring your camera, but no large bags, tripods, or monopods.

The ACT is poorly served by the current Assembly of only 17 people.

The five ministers are overworked and their decisions and ability to pay due attention to visioning our future are therefore comprised.

Likewise the portfolios of the other parties are too large to cover in a way we democratically deserve.

The issue has not advanced because of dispute over whether there should be 21 or 25 MLAs. It is a debate we have to have - sooner rather than later.

Very soon our media will become subsumed with covering the Federal Election.

By the time that is over we'll be too close to the next ACT election for a meaningful and objective discussion.

We need to start the debate now.

The Australian Sports Commission and the Office for Women have joined together to help develop the next generation of female leaders in sport.

Inspiring and assisting women in the sport industry to reach their full potential in leadership through education and development opportunities.

Are you involved in sport as a manager, administrator, coach or official, or do you work in sport communications/media or governance?

Would you like to learn more, and do more, for yourself and your sport?  If so, we encourage you to apply.
Substantial organisation and individual funding is available:
- up to $5000 grants for individuals
- up to $10 000 grants for incorporated organisations
- up to $30 000 (over three years) with the Sport Leadership Pathway Scholarship.

Women from all areas and levels of the Australian sporting community are welcome to apply, including women from culturally diverse backgrounds, Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander women, women from rural and regional areas, and women with disability.

Applications are open now until Friday 30 April 2010.  Terms and conditions apply.

For more information, visit ausport.gov.au/women
or call 1800 224 412

At a recent 2020 Planning Forum in Canberra, ACT Liberal Opposition
Leader Zed Seselja said: “I believe that a bigger Canberra is a good
thing.”

He described a number of reasons why he believes this. Not mentioned
however was how the ACT Government - any ACT Government - could afford
the costs of the extra infrastructure a big population spike would
require. And recent budget troubles are making it obvious the ACT is
already economically unsustainable.

Opposing this line was Mark O’Connor, author of "This Tired Brown
Land" – a book at the vanguard of the argument that population growth
is pivotal to all social and environmental degradation we are
suffering and our children will suffer into the future.

Other speakers at the forum appeared to dance around the population
issue. It begs the question why?

In one of those curious little coincidences in life, this was
summarised quite well just days later in a piece by Melvin Bolton on
Science Alert (http://www.sciencealert.com.au/opinions/20102202-20637.html).

“A lot of people make money out of population growth so in their view
the more consumers the better and the more pressure on land the
greater the rise in its value. That’s the simple reality, but it has
an emotive component that is less obvious. Somehow, the promoters of
population growth have fostered the idea, deep in the human psyche,
that they hold the moral high ground; that nice people can only ever
want more people. Those who disagree are suspect. They must hate
motherhood, or migrants, or both, and are probably closet racists.

“Politicians loathe being asked about population policy. Green NGOs
keep it off their manifestos for fear of losing support. Public
figures in conversation quickly change the subject.”

Kevin Rudd recently announced projections that Australia’s population
would swell to 36 million by 2050 – just 40 years! To align with this,
ACTPLA is planning for a 60% population increase in Canberra in the
same timeframe.

I regularly hear people describe Gungahlin as a planning disaster.
Anyone in Canberra who thinks Gungahlin is a once-off, and everything
from here on will be peachy, is kidding themselves. And the older
established areas won’t be immune to the effects either. Neither will
the next generation, who won’t be able to afford any home that
includes the ‘luxury’ of an actual back yard - thanks to the pressure
of population growth.

Giving Mr Bolton the last word: “All this plays back into the hands of
the population profiteers. Misinformation is easy to maintain when
those who know better prefer to keep quiet."

We've been asking the ACT Sports and Recreation Services for months for details on the Throsby Playing Fields, to be located opposite the intersection of Anthony Rolfe Avenue and Horse Park Drive.

Finally we've got hold of a sketch plan, courtesy not of the ACT Government but of the Bush on Boundary environment group...

The Land Development Agency (LDA) received an application from Hu Guo Bao En Temple of Australia Inc for the direct sale of Block 19 Section 73 (formerly Block 11 Section 73) Nicholls.

Hu Guo Bao is a Buddhist organisation, which proposes to construct a temple development that will include a temple, landscaped gardens and ancillary residential quarters for the monks who will stay on site.

As it is now ACT Government policy to consult the community on all direct land sales, a community information session will be held for the residents of Nicholls and surrounding area to inform them about the proposal as well as the practices of the Buddhist faith.

The drop-in information session will be held at the Gold Creek School, Kelleway Street, Nicholls, on Wednesday 10 March 2010, between 4.30pm - 7.00pm.

GCC met with the LDA on 23 March to canvas potential sites within the Gungahlin town centre for the Canberra Muslim Community to build a northside mosque and community centre. This follows on from the CMC’s withdrawal of interest in land for their mosque in Nicholls, which had resulted in significant concerns from Nicholls residents.

President Alan Kerlin expressed concern with the block proposed by the LDA, being to the south of Valley Avenue opposite Hinder Street, which is opposite the proposed club site. These concerns are:

• According to the draft town centre master plan, this site is to be part of the highest density area of the town centre, framing the commercial and business core areas. According to modelling done as part of the master planning, this site could developed to its highest and best use could be several stories of quality residential and commercial development. Therefore the mosque would be a substantial under-utilisation of the land. GCC has been solid in opposing such under-use of town centre land so must maintain this stance irrespective of our ongoing support for the mosque proposal.
• The low-rise mosque development would present context problems for future high density development proposals for surrounding lands, thus spreading the under-use impacts beyond the mosque site itself.

We at the Gungahlin Community Council are quite simply amazed at the contempt being shown by Planning Minister Andrew Barr towards local residents seeking to have a planned road extension moved away from their homes.

The extension of Well Station Drive to Horse Park Drive will put a four-lane road carrying some 20,000 cars a day just 20 metres from their quiet residential back street. 

Andrew Barr also intends defying a direction by the ACT Legislative Assembly to realign the road, with his office saying "we have no sense of any political will to pursue this issue".

The residents are understandably upset at the implication that only 'squeaky wheels' warrant Andrew Barr's attention. GCC has asked repeatedly for substantiation of costs quoted to us by the Minister's office that this minor deviation would almost double the cost of the entire project.

With the return to school, a brand new school already bulging at the seams is clear evidence of a lack of planning by the ACT Education Department. Although only two years old, the Harrison School already has demountables installed to cope with an influx of new students. Plus Years 5 and 6 will be using the library as their classroom for months.

Surely when the Chief Minister's Department ramped up release of new blocks of land for sale two years ago, the Education Department was also revising their population projections and school needs? It seems that the departments don't talk to each other, and the Education Department planners don't read newspapers either…

The solution is simple-use the existing community zoned land in Franklin to build a Preschool to Year 4 school plus co-located Early Learning Centre-and do it quickly.

GCC is getting complaints about the regular piles of dumped rubbish around the charity bins in the Gungahlin town centre. Much of what is being left is unsaleable rubbish and it is costing the charities a bomb to keep cleaning it up. Some people are saying the bins should be removed, and we are inclined to agree. What do you think?

The new Catholic Primary School in Harrison is swarming with builders and tradies for last three weeks of January in a frantic dash to have it ready for the start of school.

It is looking tight!

Country living in the City, is this a myth? Ask the Harrison residents.

On purchasing a block of land at Harrison, the residents were happy that at last they found a suburb with a difference, “Country living in the City” truly majestic and a dream come true, but the residents can no longer take comfort of living in a much sought after suburb as the ACT Government is determined to take away the peace and tranquility of the suburb by building 4 lane road “Well Station Drive” in a land locked area between small hill and Carpentaria Street.  The residents can no longer appreciate the beautiful landscape, the quiet surroundings and pure air. Residents can no longer enjoy the morning and evening walks around the suburb, nor can they let loose their pet in the only available area of suburb. Children can no longer fly their kite, learn to ride bike, and play in the evenings.  Instead they will be forced to confine in their house, watching television. This is the future that awaits the Harrison residents, courtesy our ACT Government and ACT Planning Minister.

The residents have brought to the attention of the authorities beginning with ACTPLA during August 2008 that the proposed Well Station drive extension connecting Horse Park drive is not in the best interest of the community. Since then, letters have been written to the ACT Chief Minister, ACT Planning Minister as well as a petition to the ACT Speaker with 40 signatures. Also, in response to the first ever community newsletter on Well Station drive extension about 50 residents, in spite of incorrect email address, have managed to express their concerns in writing to ACTPLA on the proposed Well Station drive extension.  Member for Molonglo Caroline Le Couteur and Member for Ginninderra and Shadow Minister for Transport, Alistair Coe have also visited the site and understood the concerns of the community. A motion was  moved in the assembly on 11th November by the Honourable Members of the Legislative Assembly calling on the ACT Government to re-align the Well Station drive extension further to the east away from the existing housing. Within few hours of passing the motion, the ACT Planning Minister Mr. Andrew Barr, without undertaking any study of the area went public in the Canberra Times dated 13th November, saying that realigning the road is not feasible and showed no sanctity to the Democratic process.

Over the last year and a half residents have put in a tremendous effort to bring to the attention of the ACT Government that there is a Planning disaster in waiting, the efforts by the residents need to be multiplied to keep alive their dream of “Country living in the City” otherwise very soon the ACT Government will commence building the Well Station drive extension which will take shape into 4 lane road with traffic speed of 80Kms/hr and with conservative estimate projecting the road will have traffic volume of 20,000 vehicles per day. Imagine the noise, pollution and dangerous intersection with Horse Park drive on to the lives of the Harrison resident’s? How can a Government turn a blind eye to their own people? Government is by the people and for the people.

by Uday Kaza, Harrison resident

The rot seems to be setting in already for Canberra’s newest school.

Seemingly poor planning has left Harrison School chronically short of space for the number of new enrolments it is receiving.

Just two weeks before the 2010 school year started, several ‘demountable’ classrooms were delivered. And as we all know, demountables very seldom ever get ‘demounted’! Any of us who as kids were unfortunate enough to be taught in demountables froze through winters and wilted through summers, and we know those same buildings are still there decades later.

Harrison's problems continue, with Years 5 and 6 classes being told just before school ended in December that they will be without their own classrooms when school starts—they’ll be stuck in the library for all of the first term. But GunSmoke understands this may drag on for considerably longer.

The ACT Government would say that the rapid increase in land releases is to blame, but this has been planned and building for two years. Surely these two departments of the same government could have done some simple maths and then talked to each other?

The solution to this problem is to use the ‘Community Facility’ zoned land in Franklin to build a junior school. This would take the pressure off Harrison for those critical early few years, and provide Franklin families with a school within easy walking distance for the younger kids. There is ample land available there to provide for co-located pre-school and childcare centre too.

The ALP is telling the ACT Assembly - and Harrison residents - to 'go jump' over the potential realignment of Well Station Drive where it is to join Horse Park Drive.

The holiday period brought with it another surge in either unthinking or just plain disgraceful behaviour from many residents dumping unwanted goods around overflowing charity bins and around charity premises.

The mess around the collection of bins near the Gungahlin Woolworths triggered particular criticism from some GCC Facebook fans. Pete Jordan has called for the bins to be removed. “It must cost the charities involved more than it is worth,” he said. He also pointed out that Salvos and Lifeline both have storefronts in Mitchell, and Vinnies is just up the road in Hibberson Street. Lina Blair accused people of just dumping, and echoed the call for the bins to go.

ACTION's REDEX rapid bus service connecting the Gungahlin town centre to Civic and south Canberra looks to be building momentum.

The every 15-minute service is giving potential passengers the certainty they need to get serious about using public transport, with passenger numbers on the increase - 1377 on one day alone - and an overall increase of 4.2% in patronage.

The ACT Government, following pressure from the ACT Greens MLAs as part of their post-election agreement with the ALP, funded the $1 million trial, which will run through to July this year. Extending the service type to other town centres will depend on the success of the Gungahlin service, so GCC urges all Gungahlin residents to consider giving REDEX a go.