My mum used to listen to Petula Clark’s “Downtown,” which was also covered later by other artists, including Dolly Parton.
Downtown, or Civic, is perhaps what many of us first think about when we think of the Kurrajong electorate, as it includes the city centre of Canberra. But it is more than that: it goes up to Watson, Lyneham, Dickson, then out to Narrabundah and Oaks Estate in the east, and other inner north and south suburbs.
I spoke recently with Elizabeth Lee MLA, Member for Kurrajong, about the issues facing people in her electorate, and you can listen to her comments on the Bite-sized politics podcast.
She stressed the diversity of the electorate, including university students at the Australian National University, older suburbs with ageing infrastructure such as streetlighting and footpaths, heritage values and challenges, but in contrast to that is urban renewal and densification, which is bringing new life, and new challenges to the electorate.
Of particular note is Oaks Estate, which is Canberra’s oldest suburb.
Oaks Estate is a unique village that was originally part of Queanbeyan, but it was amalgamated into the ACT in 1911 when it was determined the ACT border should follow the railway line and not the river. It covers 40 hectares and is bound by the Molonglo River to the north, the Canberra-Sydney railway line to the south, the Queanbeyan River to the east and the Oaks Estate Road to the west.
In May this year, following lobbying from the Oaks Estate Residents Association, the ACT Legislative Assembly acknowledged the complex challenges facing the community, including socioeconomic disadvantage, poor health outcomes and geographic isolation. In response, it passed a resolution to develop a five-year strategic plan with actions to address the issues contributing to long-term disadvantage for residents. Although the motion passed unanimously, the subtext is that the Liberals, Greens and independents worked together to push the Labor government to finally commit to meaningful action for Oaks Estate.
According to the Oaks Estate Strategic Plan, which was developed as a result of the Assembly resolution, around 375 people were living in Oaks Estate at the time of the 2021 Census, with a median age of 40, and a population made up of roughly 60% men and 40% women.
There were 160 dwellings in Oaks Estate, including 18 unoccupied dwellings. A third of the dwellings were separate houses (54), and the balance were semi-detached or apartments. More than half of the occupied dwellings (52%) were either owned outright (26) or owned with a mortgage (48). The Commissioner for Social Housing owns 77 dwellings (48%) in Oaks Estate, which provides housing for an estimated 17% of the people living in the suburb.
Issues identified during consultation for the Strategic Plan included transport, health, education, safety, housing, places and spaces.
Will the Strategic Plan bring better services to Oaks Estate? We can be hopeful, but my own level of cynicism means I won’t be holding my breath.
