MY COUSIN

Drip...drip...drip...drip. He wasn't alone, There was someone in the bed next to him who said he'd heard something dripping last night, but didn't know what it was. His life slowly leaking out of him, in the black, dark solitary night - that's what it was. Did he think he was dreaming or did he know he was dying and couldn't do anything about it? Did he peacefully accept it and softly cry in lonely grief for his family he was losing and the endless days of play and swimming in the dam? Or did he fight and scream and yell and refuse to die, not knowing that on his outside he was motionless and soundless? Still screaming inside, please someone, turn the light on, I'm scared something bad is happening to me, please help me. I think I'm going away and I'm scared it's not home, it's somewhere I've never been before. I'm alone, I have to be a big boy, I have to do this by myself, there's no one here to help me. Goodbye Mummy, Daddy and my Brother. His body was already dead, nowhere for his spirit to live anymore. The Nurse had gone home, she thought he was all right. Who was he? Someone I've never met. His Aunty said the poor little bugger bled to death, she said he was a good kid. A friggin goitre operation. Who's to blame? I don't know, maybe his time was up if that's what you believe. Who was he? He was my Cousin - I never met him. © Copyright Peter Mooney 2004-2007

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September 13, 2007 - DEMOLISH FORSTER SCHOOL OF ARTS HALL?
        by Peter Mooney

Petition to save Forster's Historic School of Arts Building from Demolition now available.
CLICK HERE to print off or download the Petition to save Forster's Historic School of Arts Building from Demolition. Please distribute to concerned residents of the whole Great Lakes Council Area. All completed Petitions can be posted to (Save Our Historic Hall from Demolition, P.O. Box 4218 Forster N.S.W. 2428.)

Go to Goldmarch Surveys to VOTE on the future of Forster's School of Arts Hall

Great Lakes Council has resolved to demolish the Forster School of Arts building during 2008. Not all Councillors were in favour of doing this and it should be remembered that Councillors Weate and Tuffy requested their names be recorded against the motion. Councillors Gill and Vaughan were absent.

Locals have remembered Council saying that if they didn't get a rate rise they would demolish the hall. But, if they did get a rate rise it would allow continued funding for public utilities such as libraries, community halls, etc.

Some historical buildings from the early days of Forster that have been demolished so far include:

• Pilot Hill Station House. The Council owned Caravan Park now has luxury holiday cabins on Pilot Hill.
• The former Arts Building located at Forster Ocean Baths. Forster Ocean Baths is also known as the Bullring and was originally named Haden's Pool after Henry Haden, a Dredge Master with the NSW Department of Public Works.
• Tudor house which used to be across the road from the Bullring and Arts Building.
• The Arts Building and Tudor house were rich in local history and a fascinating historical description of life from the 1930s through to 2006 can be found at:
  • New South Wales Ocean Baths website developed by M. L. McDermott with funds from a NSW Heritage Office grant. (© Marie-Louise McDermott 2005 all rights reserved).
  • Our very own Great Lakes Historical Society Museum at 1 Capel St Tuncurry is a treasure trove full of irreplaceable Great Lakes History.

Historically, the Forster School of Arts building has been put to good use since it was first built in 1878 and extensions were added in 1930 and 1956.

Our area's first picture theatre was opened in the building and historically it has been in constant use by the community for such things as...

• Play groups
• Dances
• Book stalls
• Martial arts and Dance training
• Meetings
• Produce markets
• Election polling place
• Travel club
• Youth groups
• Religious services
• Birthday parties
• Displays from art and craft groups such as Woodwork, Quilting and others
• Education Graduation ceremonies
• Council workshops
• Remembrance Ceremonies for our war Veterans
• Fund raising activities
• Trivia nights etc

Great Lakes Council has been granted $5.4 MILLION DOLLARS from the N.S.W. Local Government Grants Commission. Member for Myall Lakes John Turner, says the $5.4 MILLION DOLLARS is a general purpose grant with no conditions on how it is spent.

Great Lakes Council has also recently received a rates increase of 9.5% which is 6.1% above the standard rate pegging limit of 3.4%.

For some time now, Great Lakes Council has been wanting to build a new Council Building at a cost in excess of $3 MILLION DOLLARS.

From the Council Business Papers of September 26th 2006 it is public knowledge that a reply letter was sent to the Tuncurry Memorial Hall Trust Member's request for financial support from Council for the ongoing maintenance and management of the Tuncurry Memorial Hall.

Council's Budget Committee at the time was supporting an idea that consideration be given to demolishing the Forster School of Arts building and also making an annual contribution to the Tuncurry Memorial Hall Trust to assist with the management as the "ONLY REMAINING PUBLIC FACILITY IN THE AREA".

The letter also speaks of an opinion that the Forster Tuncurry community would be better off having one good public facility rather than two poorly maintained buildings. It goes on to say how the attitude of the Trust Members would be central to Council investigating the proposal.

And then says if the Trust were to give its consideration to the above proposal it may assist in an early solution to both the Council and Tuncurry Memorial Hall Trust's problems and it would be helpful for Council to know of the Trust's attitude when it considers the final Budget Report.

The Tuncurry Memorial Hall Trust replied to the Council's letter giving their full support to the proposal of the Budget Committee and Council. The Trust thought it was sad to consider the demise of the Forster School of Arts, but agreed with Council that it would be more in community interest to have one good public facility rather than two poorly maintained buildings.

Considering that the Great Lakes area is one of the fastest growing areas in N.S.W. I would be surprised if one public hall could accommodate the number of people who will be needing such a facility now and in the future. How could it be in the interest of the community to have one public facility that can't cope with the number of people that wish to use it?

The maintenance costs will increase as the use of the Hall increases, people's frustration will increase as they are unable to use the Hall due to long waiting lists, double bookings and so on. The wear and tear on the Hall would be enormous, which prompts the question of how long before "the continuous deterioration in the condition of the Hall" is seen by Council as a reason to demolish another piece of Great Lakes History? The Hall is situated in a beautiful location.

To see Tuncurry's Memorial Hall used as leverage in what could arguably be called a political manoeuvre is disappointing and reflects badly on the respect and appreciation shown by those concerned for not only History in general, but specifically the History of the Great Lakes Area and the identities of the people that were involved in that History and their decedents who still live in the area today.

I was shocked by the response of the Tuncurry Memorial Hall Trust in fully supporting Council's proposed demolition of the Forster School of Arts Hall. There was an admission of sadness at the possible demise of the Forster School of Arts Hall but a realisation that the Tuncurry Memorial Hall's future would be secured by being the single remaining public Hall in Forster Tuncurry and receiving extra income because of that monopoly, plus receiving continued financial assistance from Great Lakes Council.

Wouldn't it have been good if the Tuncurry Memorial Hall Trust cared enough about the History of the Great Lakes Area as a whole and asked the community how we could all work together to save both Halls and not just the Tuncurry Memorial Hall?

I think it's irresponsible of Council to leave personal addresses of non-Council employees on papers that are public knowledge either as a hard copy or online. Out of respect for people's privacy I won't be putting a link to the papers, even though it would make this article more complete - sorry.

In the same Business Papers from September 26th 2006 the then Manager of Community Services authored a report about the proposed decommissioning of the Forster School of Arts Hall. In the summary of recommendations:

• Item 2 recommends that the Forster School of Arts Hall cease operation as of 31st December 2006 or earlier if possible.
• Item 4 is starting to ring very loud alarm bells for me when it suggests that further reports also take into consideration the strategic possibilities for future use of the Forster School of Arts, Forster Visitor Information Centre, and Forster CWA/Neighbourhood Centre sites for one uniform purpose.
• The report on the Background states that the Forster School of Arts Hall "is recognised as having heritage significance, but is not heritage listed for preservation."
• The section of the report about the Redevelopment of the Forster School of Arts Hall rings even louder alarm bells when it states "Any redevelopment of the site should be considered in conjunction with the possibilities associated with the possible redevelopment of the adjacent Visitor Information Centre site and the CWA Rooms/ Forster Neighbourhood Centre building. It is recommended that this be the subject of future reports."

How would you like to see all three buildings demolished along with their history and cultural heritage? The persistent output from Council stating that the heritage value is not in the building itself, but in the use of the location as a meeting place is at odds with everyone who cares about the history of the Great Lakes area.

If Council's opinion about this issue is looked at overall a bigger picture could start to form. Tuncurry Memorial Hall Trust supports Council in this matter as indicated earlier in this article. With it being the only public hall, the income generated from the monopoly would increase the survival chances of Tuncurry's Memorial Hall and reduce the need for financial assistance from Council. Tuncurry Memorial Hall is a most beautiful old Hall and I don't think anyone would like to lose it. Like the Forster School of Arts Hall it is historically irreplaceable.

The increasing references from Council to develop a new facility which meets their heritage values could be in the form of a new hall, a library with community meeting rooms or other facility of this nature. A library is supposed to be a quiet place and if all of the current users of the School of Arts Hall could fit into meeting rooms of a new library it would be very noisy. e.g. Martial arts training, Dancing, Public Meetings, Play Groups, Youth Groups and many other naturally loud activities. Council's suggestion of a new library is loud and clear and is in opposition to the historically vibrant use of the Hall and the site it is built on (Cultural Meeting Place).

Then there's the suggestion that any redevelopment of the School of Arts site should be considered in conjunction with the possibilities associated with the possible redevelopment of the adjacent Visitor Information Centre site and the CWA Rooms/ Forster Neighbourhood Centre building. You could be forgiven for asking if Council staff including some Councillors actually care about the history of the Great Lakes and the feelings and thoughts of the people who live here. Imagine the huge loss to our cultural heritage and identity if all three buildings were demolished?

Another example of the persistent output from Council indicating their heritage values for us is detailed below. In the Business papers for the Ordinary Council Meeting dated 28 August 2007 under number 6, Director Engineering Services Item: D5 Subject: Forster School of Arts is commented on as follows...

"The NSW State Heritage Inventory form provides the following details:-

1. Statement of Significance...
   • Originally built in 1828 (sic) where villagers could meet for social events and was used as the first school and church. Historical social reasons significance.
2. Level of Significance...
   • Local
3. National Historical Theme...
   • Developing Cultural Institutions
4. State Historical Theme...
   • Social Institution
5. Historical Significance...
   • The School of Arts is important to local community as a cultural meeting place and has maintained its use since being erected in 1878.

This would appear to indicate that the heritage lies in the cultural meeting place rather than the actual building.

Future use of the site:
As indicated earlier, the heritage value of this location is in the use of the site as a meeting place. Accordingly, if it is resolved to demolish the building it will be necessary to develop a new facility which meets this heritage value. This could be in the form of a new hall, a library with community meeting rooms or other facility of this nature."


Remember Great Lakes Council has been granted $5.4 MILLION DOLLARS from the N.S.W. Local Government Grants Commission with no conditions on how it is spent and also recently received a rates increase of 9.5% which is 6.1% above the standard rate pegging limit of 3.4%. Councillors have also has been given the opportunity by Mid North Coast Area Consultant Committee member Steve Attkins to apply for partial Federal Government Funding to renovate Forster School of Arts Hall through the Regional Partnerships program.

Mr Attkins who has offered to help Councillors with the application said the Mid North Coast Area Consultant Committee has funded eight or nine community halls up to the $400,000 mark. After doing the sums you would like to think there is enough money to preserve the Forster School of Arts Hall.

Many historic buildings in Australia have been preserved as many of you know from experience and it wouldn't be the first time the presence of asbestos and lead based paints has had to be dealt with during the preservation process.

I would like to think the preservation of our historic School of Arts Hall and CWA Rooms/Forster Neighbourhood Centre buildings would be less expensive than the redevelopment of the three sites for one uniform purpose? Considering the natural beauty and location prestige do you think the proposed new Council Headquarters building would find its way onto the historic sites?

Council has told us via local media that the decision not to preserve Great Lakes History stays. There's only one major problem I see that could stop the preservation of Great Lakes Historical School of Arts Hall and that is if the people of the Great Lakes Area don't join together in an extremely large group with the single focused intention of preserving our historical hall.

Imagine for a few minutes if all the people of the Great Lakes Area decided that the School of Arts Hall was important enough to preserve. Our School Teachers and Students, our Elderly, Farmers, Families, Local Clubs, Pubs and Volunteer organisations, Great Lakes Historical Society, Police, Ambulance and Fire Brigades and you could probably think of some more.

There has already been a petition to save the School of Arts Hall presented to Council in December 2006. Sadly it wasn't successful. If another petition is circulated around the Great Lakes Shire and everybody signs it someone will take notice even if it's not the Council. If everyone in the Great Lakes Shire stands up and refuses to take no for an answer then I believe we can preserve the Forster School of Arts building.

Do you think 30,000 or more Great Lakes residents could change Council's mind? I believe they could, but I'd be extremely pleasantly surprised if enough people could actually stand as one on this matter.

Where would we start if we could all work together in preserving the Forster School of Arts Hall? Remember that Councillors Weate and Tuffy requested their names be recorded against the motion which could mean they are interested. I'll let you know via this website if the push to preserve the Forster School of Arts Hall does or doesn't happen. We may be wasting our time, but at least we'll know what the community thinks about the History of the Great Lakes.

The idea is to make people aware of what Council has planned for our Historic Forster School of Arts Hall. Once the whole community knows then the future of the Hall will be determined by our actions of being either for or against its preservation.

Some suggestions for actions that can be taken are...

• Write letters demanding the preservation of our Historic Forster School of Arts Hall (hopefully 30,000 people or more) to...
  • Great Lakes Council
  • Historical Societies such as the Great Lakes Historical Society Museum at 1 Capel St Tuncurry
  • N.S.W. Heritage Office
  • As many members of parliament as possible, including our local members.
  • People from other towns and cities who have been successful in saving their local heritage
  • The Prime Minister of Australia
  • Successful National and International Heritage groups
  • I hope you can think of some more...
• Using all available medium such as radio, television, newspapers, magazines, Internet and word of mouth (the grapevine, gossip, etc)
• I'll let you know via this website if a petition starts up and where to sign it.
• Your own creativity - what can you think of?

Remember Council's statement..."Any redevelopment of the site should be considered in conjunction with the possibilities associated with the possible redevelopment of the adjacent Visitor Information Centre site and the CWA Rooms/ Forster Neighbourhood Centre building." Imagine if Council gets its way what may happen??

The outcome of this situation will show how important History is to the People (including Councillors) of the Great Lakes Area and indicate what type of area it is likely to become, not only to our Local audience but to our National and International audiences as well.

Go to Goldmarch Surveys to VOTE on the future of Forster's School of Arts Hall






ADDENDUM
September 17, 2007 11:00 am - There is an Online Survey at Great Lakes Council's website about Forster School of Arts. The Survey has no protection against multiple voting from the one computer. At the moment a person or persons could abuse the Survey by voting an unlimited amount of times.

Compare Council's Online Survey for Forster School of Arts to this website's Goldmarch Surveys and see what I mean. You can't vote twice from the same unique static computer I.P. address that a broadband connection has. There is also protection from an honest person's dial up Internet connection that can have a different I.P. address each time it's connected to the Internet.