Now that the DA
is been lodged “people are realizing it’s going to happen” said Mr Mundine. We are
now working on the next stage of making sure that the company has the
structures in place so that we can become a registered Community Housing
Provider and employ the staff that will be needed. We will be employing
security and maintenance staff as well as running the student housing.
The AHC has
decided against the earlier option of having some of the housing in the
Pemulwuy Project available for sale. Mick Mundine said it had not been possible
to find a way to sell any of the housing units or town houses without it
affecting the AHC’s freehold ownership of the land. To sell off any of The Block isn’t an option.
“It’s a modern sacred site and it has to stay. We are the first people of the
land and we aren’t going anywhere….. It’s time to work together with all the
community. We want people to get off the train and see what’s happening on The
Block and our urban community.’
One thing that
has saddened Lani Tuitavake, the AHC’s administrator is that often when media
and other visitors come to the office to discuss the Pemulwuy Project they
don’t ask about what housing is going to be built, but instead exclaim how you
can knock down the flag that is painted on the side of the gym at the bottom of
The Block. Alex, Lani’s husband, painted the flag with the help of some of the
local children around 10 years ago when he promised Mick that he would give him
“the biggest flag you can see on The Block”.
So a reproduction of the flag wall will be etched into a glass wall
fronting the plaza, where people will be able to gather to watch special
performance events.
The AHC hopes
that the gallery along the railway line will become a magnet for tourists who
come to Australia wanting to explore indigenous culture and that people will
then walk across the plaza to the Tribal Warrior offices to book an Aboriginal
harbour cruise on their new vessel Mari Nawi (meaning Big Canoe).
You can view
other images of the Pemulwuy Project and the exhibition documents on the
Department of Planning’s website at
http://majorprojects.planning.nsw.gov.au/index.pl?action=view_job&job_id=4338
Source: South
Sydney Herald February 2012 www.southsydneyherald.com.au