Grand new community centre

The $14 million state-of-the-art Community Centre and Library on Crown Street was officially opened on Saturday June 13. On the site of the old library opposite Shannon Reserve now sits a modern, glass-fronted, four-level structure that houses a library, childcare facility and neighbourhood centre.

In 2005, Sydney City Council’s brief to architectural firm, FJMT, was to design an environmentally sustainable public building that would be a benchmark for future developments across the city.

Despite opposition at that time from some City councillors concerned about cost blowouts and criticism by at least one prominent sustainability expert, Lord Mayor Clover Moore has had her way.

Surry Hills has a showcase community centre ready to service the needs of its residents. Not only will this multi-purpose facility reduce energy consumption, but over 620,000 litres of water will be conserved by the use of tanks and watersaving devices. An innovative system that uses the natural filtering properties of plants will mean a 50 per cent reduction in air-conditioning. Sustainable building products have been used throughout.

Sara Lubowitz became the new Chair of the Management Committee of the Neighbourhood Centre (SHNC) at the last AGM in November 2008. “Our constitution calls on us to work with the disadvantaged of Surry Hills and now we will be able to respond with a range of programs, mostly under the one roof,” Ms Lubowitz said. “During the relocation we were working out of Bourke Street Public School and Chippendale Community Centre as well as other locations. We had to suspend some of our activities altogether. We have been very much looking forward to the move back.”

The SHNC offers, at minimal cost, a range of classes and groups from conversational English, cooking and sewing to Tai Chi, community gardening and a playgroup. Counselling is available and Blokes’ Business for the over 55s is popular. The clientele ranges from babies to seniors and reflects the multicultural mix of Surry Hills and its surrounds.

Importantly, the Centre provides information about government services, makes referrals and acts on behalf of clients if necessary.

The City Library uses the lower ground and ground floors and the Neighbourhood Centre is on the middle floor. The top level is purpose built for childcare with an impressive outdoor play area on the rooftop. The SHNC now provides long day care for 26 children from 0-5 years, where previously only occasional care was offered. After school care and vacation care are also provided.

Meeting rooms, a function hall and a commercial kitchen will be available to other community groups. The Neighbourhood Centre, since its humble beginnings in 1956, has always worked with other community organisations such as the Salvation Army and more recently the Community Drug Action Team, the Police Accountability Team and the public housing Neighbourhood Advisory Board.

Sydney City Council and DOCS help support the Centre financially but in-house fundraising activities include venue hire, the monthly Surry Hills Market and the annual Surry Hills Festival. Ms Lubowitz said Prince Alfred Park where the Festival is always held would not be available next year due to renovations. “This is a major concern for us,” she said, “as the Festival is our main fund-raiser and attracted over 90,000 people last Easter holidays”.

“The new Neighbourhood Centre is a great asset to Surry Hills but we will have to work hard to encourage our people back in. The building is lovely but very large and rather ‘squeaky-clean’ at present,” she added.

Centre Manager, Kate Melhopt, said over 2,000 people came through on Opening Day and the response was very favourable. The Management Committee handed out questionnaires asking the community to nominate the courses and services they would like the SHNC to provide. “We now have a fantastic opportunity to brand ourselves, that we didn’t have when we were spread throughout the area in different locations.

Once we have been running for six months or so we should see many more attendees at the Centre,” Ms Melhopt said.

Since the late 1960s when Surry Hills was set to become a victim of the City’s Slum Clearance Policy, its residents have known that “people power” had to be part of the answer to their problems.

Post -war immigrants and labour sympathisers joined forces with churches and feminists to fight for the practical solutions that could make inner-city living workable. A playgroup venue, a meeting place to discuss parks and traffic and unemployment, and a shopfront to share information with the locals were to be part of the fabric of a strong unified community.

The 2009 version of the Surry Hills Library and Community Centre has a lot to live up to but its completion is a fitting tribute to the dynamic area it serves.

Source: South Sydney Herald July 2009 www.southsydneyherald.com.au