Unfolding Cabramatta's story

Artist Kevin Vo will create Unfold (inset illustration), a public artwork which celebrates Cabramatta's past and present.

Redevelopment artwork

As Cabramatta looks to the future with the redevelopment of Dutton Lane, its past will be celebrated in the form of a public artwork taking centre stage in the new publicspace.

The artwork Unfold, by Cabramatta-based artist Kevin Vo, will take the form of a 'history wall' depicting events, people and scenes of Cabramatta from the past to the present day.

Using printed tiles, the wall will be resemble a mosaic patchwork quilt, with various photo and text tiles covering the wall's surfaces.

Vo is working with Council's Local Studies Librarian to source images from the historic images collection, which represent the multicultural identity of Cabramatta through time.

While people are familiar with the South-East Asian profile Cabramatta holds today, there have been many diverse cultural groups that have shaped the area's identity.

Beginning with the region's Aboriginal inhabitants, the Cabrogal of the Darug Nation, and then the British settlers in the 1790s, Cabramatta holds the mark of many cultures, including British and European migration post World Wars I and II, waves of migration from the 70s onwards from South-East Asia, South America and the Middle East and migration of African cultures throughout the 90s.

Unfold will also feature present day photographs, sourced through the use of the #Cabranow hashtag on Instagram, which people are encouraged to use.

Allowing residents and visitors the opportunity to participate in the creation of Unfold will provide a sense of ownership of the artwork, generating a shared appreciation of the unique character of Cabramatta as a place.

Construction of the Dutton Lane, Cabramatta project is expected to start in early 2015 and will be completed by mid-2016. 

Bibby’s Place in Bonnyrigg wins State award

From left: Richard McManus (President of Stormwater NSW/ Consultant engineer for Alluvium), Erin Sellers, Manager, Catchment Management Fairfield City Council, and Rod Weise,vice-president of Stormwater Victoria/Practice Leader of Storm Consulting, Victoria Office.

‘The Bibbys Place project addresses issues such as lack of cultural identity, poor lighting, a degraded public domain and poor stormwater management’.

Fairfield City Council’s work to improve the stormwater management of Bibbys Place in Bonnyrigg has earned state recognition.

The Excellence in Integrated Stormwater Design award was announced at the 2014 Stormwater NSW annual conference in Canberra earlier this month.  

The award recognises Council’s excellence in place management, adoption of a multi-disciplinary approach to design and construction, engagement with the community and the projects local sustainability and liveability within the City. 

Bibbys Place is a unique street, known for its cultural activity. It has a church, temple, mosque and community centre all side-by-side, which makes it one-of-a-kind in Bonnyrigg.

The stormwater project also addressed issues such as lack of cultural identity, poor lighting, a degraded public domain and poor stormwater management.

The community will soon enjoy multiple benefits including; innovative gully pit diversions, native plants enhancing local biodiversity, solar lighting, coloured permeable paving, seating, pathways and the rain garden itself, making the street a much more attractive place to congregate or walk along. 

The Stormwater NSW awards aim to provide recognition and celebrate excellence in innovation, development and management of stormwater projects and the stormwater professionals involved.

This project came to life because of the hard working and dedicated Council staff, consultants, Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils, the Environmental Trust, the Bonnyrigg Town Centre Committee and all the local community members involved throughout the project. 

Bibbys Place will now be entered into the National Stormwater Awards, which will be announced at the third national conference on Urban Water Management in Adelaide in October.

A hidden gem at Lansvale

Mayor Frank Carbone with young cyclists (from front) Mikaela, Lachlan, Hannah and Jasmine try out the new road safety circuit at Lansvale Reserve.

Lansvale Reserve has been described as one of Fairfield City's hidden gems and, after a $250,000 Council makeover, it's time to share the appeal of this charming spot.

Just off Knight Street, Lansvale, and sitting on the banks of Prospect Creek, the reserve offers shady trees and grassed areas, picnic tables and shelter, and a brand new road safety circuit.

Young bicycle riders from Fairfield City and elsewhere will now be able to learn about road safety or just enjoy the new facility while picnicking with mum and dad.

The track is the first of its kind for the area and provides a safe location for children aged three to 12 years to ride bikes and scooters. The safety circuit provides a range of experiences for
riders of differing levels of ability and age.

Other work in the upgrade includes new play equipment, linking and upgrading existing facilities with new development, and linking an existing cycle route to the site.

The upgrade fits Council's theme of Enhancing Community Wellbeing through Goal 2 (Being Healthy and Active) and Goal 3 (Enjoying a Good Standard of Living and Enhanced Quality of Life).

The reserve connects with the Chipping Norton Lakes Recreational Park and is a large site with significant frontage to Prospect creek. The redevelopment places greater emphasis on it being used as a recreational picnic area.

It expected the site will provide facilities not only for the residents of Lansvale, but also visitors who travel from other parts of Fairfield City and potentially the Bankstown local government area.

Supporting our local businesses

Jacob Majarian from Majart and John Paul Taberdo from Woodville Community Services networking at a local business forum.

The Fairfield City Council place management philosophy is to support, engage and encourage the businesses of Fairfield City.

Promoting the growth and development of our businesses is a key priority to the future of Fairfield City.

Council continues to support business through public domain improvements, including road infrastructure, lighting, footpath and street furniture upgrades.

In addition to the physical appearance of our town centres, Council also offers a broad range of business services and advice to new, existing and potential businesses within the City.

Some of these services include consultation forums, business breakfasts and training.

Fairfield City Council has introduced the 'Make Council Your Business' program to raise awareness of Council's procurement procedures and to encourage local businesses to get involved. Last year, Council spent about $7.2 million with businesses in Fairfield City.

Council invests a great deal of time and resources to ensure our town centres are clean and attractive and continue to attract new visitors.

In addition, Council encourages people to shop locally and contribute to the growing economy of our City. The new City Connect bus has achieved these goals by giving residents greater accessibility to our town centres.

Council continues to organise and coordinate a number of major festivals throughout the year. There are more than five major festivals run by Council annually, which attract thousands of new visitors to our town centres. These events illustrate new growth for the City and
new opportunities for businesses.

For more information on events, check Council's Events Calendar at www.fairfieldcity.nsw.gov.au or contact 9725 0222.