I acknowledge the Gadigal people of
the Eora nation, the traditional custodians of this
land.
Eveleigh is an extraordinary
heritage site which is threatened with more of the same mindless development
that has diminished the history and character of so many significant parts of
our City.
Behind the loss of the “Working Harbour”, or greed on “the Hungry Mile”,
or exploitation at Eveleigh, is the common theme of the State cashing in on
valuable and harbour foreshore public land.
It’s against our interests and that
of our city.
This open day is to show Sydney what remains here.
And it enables us to protest about
the continuing erasing of the heritage values of this and the nearby Carriage
Works sites by the State.
This diminishing of history and
heritage is being done by insensitive redevelopment, the removal of rolling
stock and associated rail artefacts, and now by the eviction notice to working
blacksmith Guido Gouverneur.
It’s not a matter of rent as claimed
by Mr Domm, it’s the continuous erosion of heritage which stands in the way of
big bucks.
Guido Gouverneur understands the
value of what is here.
For 17 years, he has worked to
conserve and maintain the valuable equipment. He has also acted as a concerned
watchdog in a climate where the government is not interested in the complex
beyond its land value.
Using the abandoned equipment here,
he is passing on his traditional blacksmithing skills to a new generation.
We keep hearing about the skills
shortage in this country. Well, here are a group of young people learning under
a master craftsman all the skills needed to maintain and preserve Sydney’s heritage
metalwork.
Eveleigh is designated by the
Smithsonian Institute as one of the world’s finest remaining industrial
precincts. At its peak, it was one of the largest industrial complexes in the
world.
The work done here helped open up an
entire continent, and played an important role in building the wealth of the
Nation.
Here, Australian workers built and
maintained the locomotives and rolling stock, the tracks and equipment for the
vast NSW railway network. It employed the leading technologies of its time and
it gave work to many thousands of people.
How ironic it is that one of those
people was the father of former NSW Premier, Bob
Carr!
I wrote to Premier Carr in 2002
after an earlier open day, and again in 2004 urging Eveleigh’s importance and
asking him to include heritage preservation and opportunities as part of the
future of the site. But he failed us – now we must urgently request Premier
Iemma to step in.
Because bit by bit the remaining
heritage has been squeezed. On this, the main Eveleigh site, the sheds are being
emptied out.
On the North Eveleigh site, the
Redfern-Waterloo Authority proposes cramming the site with apartment blocks up
to sixteen stories, including over the fan of tracks, and up through the middle
of the historic paint shop. The collection of historic carriages housed and
probably built there, are rumoured to be buzzed off to Thirlmere where the land
is not so valuable. Their connection with the site is to be severed,
diminishing the value of what remains.
Apart from heritage considerations,
there is no significant open space proposed in any of the RWA plans to serve
increasing population densities, and counter low ratios of open space. The
so-called “public spaces” on the plan are small, narrow and fragmented, and read
as forecourts to individual buildings rather than genuine, usable public space.
The site flanks rail lines and is close to a major station, yet over 2000 car
parking spaces are proposed.
And despite our urgent need to deal
with global warming, the redevelopment sets no sustainability targets such as
local energy generation, heat re-use and water self sufficiency.
So much for a site which neighbours
Australian
Technology Park.
The meeting I organised on the 26
July was to alert the local community and interested people about the Redfern
Waterloo Authority plans for North Eveleigh. It
was also in support of Guido Gouverneur and his team for the continuation of the
blacksmithing operation on the main Eveleigh site.
At that meeting the State’s brave
new world of dictatorial development was revealed. Plans were prepared without
community knowledge or consultation by the Redfern Waterloo Authority. The
consent authority is none other than the RWA’s own Minister, Frank Sartor, and
the so-called “advisory group” set up by the RWA, hasn’t met the Minister once
in three years. They were notified to “advise” on the plans only after they were
ready for public exhibition.
Also at the meeting were
representatives from Sydney University who are also interested in the North
Eveleigh Site, and I have arranged a meeting between the University and the
Premier on 26 August to talk about better alternatives, which I hope would
include adaptive reuse of industrial buildings and expanded education
opportunities; Guido’s continued blacksmithing; significant open space and
integration with surrounding neighbourhoods.
My fear is that the Redfern-Waterloo
Authority will get away with exploiting this important complex, because only
former workers and local residents are aware of this mighty legacy in the heart
of our City.
I hope you will all spread the word
and continue to lobby State and Federal Ministers for a balanced approach to
Eveleigh’s future including the preservation of what’s best from the
past.
The people who built this place, and
those who worked here, thought for the long-term.
They were building a nation, not
looking for a fast profit.
We need to bring back that kind of
thinking so that the legacy we leave future generations will be something more
substantial and meaningful than row upon row of tacky apartment
blocks.
Thank you.
Also see:
Clover Moore – Railway Heritage Handout 17th August 2008