Update from the Murrindindi Woodbourne Community Recovery Committee
16 Oct 09
Status of Community Meeting Room
Preamble
- The Murrindindi Hall was decommissioned in a serious state of disrepair in approximately 1990. Since that time the community has had no public meeting facility within the valley, although the CFA shed has often acted as a surrogate.
- Following the bushfires of February 7th 2009, the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority (VBRRA) was established to oversee and coordinate the recovery of bushfire affected communities. The plans were expected to include a range of ideas, needs, and proposed projects. The proposed projects were to span all aspects of recovery, including:
- o Built environment (homes, urban design, community infrastructures and facilities)
- o Natural environment (parks, reserves and wildlife)
- o People (health and wellbeing of individuals, families and communities, support for people)
- o Community (a strong sense of community, community wellbeing)
- o Economic and business (rebuilding and supporting business and industry)
- VBRRA created a hierarchy including, via the Shire of Murrindindi, community recovery committees. The residents of Murrindindi-Woodbourne were invited to apply as part of the Melba Community Recovery Committee (which includes Glenburn and Limestone). After an approach by the local councillor the three undersigned submitted their curriculum vitae and agreed to represent the Murrindindi-Woodbourne community. (There were no other applicants from our area)
- The disruption caused by the building of the ‘North-South' pipeline allowed for applications from pipeline affected communities for Regional Benefit Program grants. A committee of 10 locals made up of CFA & community members and chaired by Mr Roger Kirkham, prepared and submitted an application for a meeting room to be attached to the proposed new CFA building (type 1A1). This application has subsequently been rejected by the Sugarloaf Pipeline Authority.
- The community was canvassed and the major (almost unanimous) priorities were -
- § Communications (ie, multifunctional tower on Mt Despair)
- § Community meeting room
- § Rehabilitation of the Murrindindi Scenic Reserve
- § Creation of a community notice board
A number of other issues (eg, road works, verge clearance and other bushfire suppression initiatives) were raised including comments concerning the necessity of a ‘slip-on' fire fighting vehicle rather than a meeting room. These issues were directed to more appropriate authorities as they were not within the mandate of VBRRA.
Melba Community Recovery Committee Activities
The Community Recovery Committee (CRC) has met almost weekly trying to develop a priority list of community plans which were acceptable to all member communities (Glenburn, Murrindindi-Woodbourne and Limestone).
The number one priority for all communities was communications. As stated previously, this did not fall under the VBRRA mandate, so there has been considerable debate about the next priority.
On the day the Murrindindi-Woodbourne community was advised that its application to the Regional Benefit Program was rejected, VBRRA demanded in-depth applications for meeting rooms in the Melba area within two days. Knowing that the funding from the regional grant was rejected and within the timeframe given, your representatives submitted detailed, costed plans for a Murrindindi-Woodbourne Community Meeting Room.
The representatives were aware of the potential for a type 1A1 CFA shed to be constructed on the ‘Murrindindi Public Hall Reserve'.
Given the function of the original site, it was proposed that the meeting room be adjacent to the proposed CFA building with the following benefits -
- Constructed of similar materials as the CFA building (ie, colorbond steel on the concrete slab)
- CFA members would now have appropriate training room facilities (not available in a type 1A1 building)
- The community has a standalone multifunctional facility
- Design of the meeting room allows for food preparation, toilets (including disabled) and shower facilities
- Incorporation of the above facilities allows for the meeting room to be used as a forward strike centre for emergency services, which would have great safety benefits to the local, and wider, community
The representatives believe that the adjacent development of the two buildings on the proposed site gives greater aggregate benefit, including flexibility, given that the site measurements are 100m x 88m x 99m. The ambience of the site is well known to all residents and would be the ideal site for community gatherings.
Postscript
A meeting on the 5th of October 2009 was held between members of the CFA, both local and regional, Recovery Committee members and interested locals at the Reserve (see photo). There seemed to be an intention by the regional CFA members to progress the CFA building rapidly due to the injection of funds in the wake of the Black Saturday fires.
Further suggestions were made by the regional CFA about the structural relationships between the CFA building and the proposed community meeting room.
The CFA believed that the two buildings would need to be joined as there was likelihood that the DSE would reject a proposal to construct two separate buildings on the Reserve. The most acceptable arrangement would be for the meeting room to ‘extend' further behind the CFA building. This would allow the buildings to be joined whilst, at the same time, retaining the ‘autonomy' of the community meeting room.
It was also suggested by the CFA regional representatives that most of the ongoing costs for site rental, insurance, upkeep, power, etc would be borne by the CFA if the local Brigade was given reasonable representation on the committee of management of the community meeting room.
The funding to be made available through VBRRA will be in a number of phases. The first funding allocations are expected to be made in the near future. Consequently, it is important that the CRC members continue to enthusiastically pursue the priorities listed above.
It is the intent of the CRC representatives to keep the community advised of the activities of VBRRA as they affect the Murrindindi-Woodbourne community.
Further input is requested from community members to ensure that the direction of development is appropriate to the community's wishes.
Kind Regards,
Mike Guerin ph: 5797 8516
j_m.guerin@bigpond.com
Stan Banbury ph: 5797 8423
passingwater@activ8.net.au
Sue Devereaux ph: 5797 8282
uphill@activ8.net.au