Communities

Contents
“Sure, it may be
a harsh concrete
surface, caged in by
a rusty fence on the
top of a crumbling
building, but
it is a space to
play - even in the
favelas. There
is somewhere to
meet a pretty basic
human need for a
place to be active
for fitness and
well-being”
26
4 Noticeboard
5 Editorial
6 Seize the opportunity of crisis
to rebuild community
The Chinese word for crisis is comprised of two characters,
one meaning danger and the other opportunity. Jim Diers
explains how in every crisis there is opportunity.
8 Bringing tenants together:
Inner West Tenant Group
A case study of a tenant group formed as a result of
grass-roots community development initiated by Rozelle
Neighbourhood Centre. It explains how it came about and
what tenants working together are achieving.
10 What can be achieved by a community
garden and art project? Community
Development in Hunters Hill
A case study of a public housing garden and art project
that shines a light on this housing complex, the positive
contribution the tenants achieved and identifies the issues
were not going to be fixed by the project.
13 Strata skills help create communities
Nelson Tilbrook discusses Sydney Council’s Strata Skills 101
seminars and how strata skills can help in creating shared
responsibility, shared enjoyment, shared spaces and shared
community.
14 Building community in new social housing
René McKenzie-Low from City West explains how they try to
create a harmonious and supportive community in their new
inner city social housing developments such as The Platform
at Eveleigh.
16 Standing with dissent
Neil Stuart reflects on his experience of community
development in the Inner City and the Blue Mountains over
the last 50-60 years and discusses how he sees community
development.
18 Time to change
Julie Spies reflects on changes in the community sector
since the 1970s including the role of bureaucrats and the
inability of vulnerable communities to get projects that work
for them funded.
20 Marg Barry and noisy minorities
Stefanie Pillora reflects on her time working with Marg
Barry and wonders how Marg would respond in this age of
sophisticated community consultation methods which seek
to avoid the noisy minorities Marg championed.
21 The challenge of community engagement
In the spirit of engagement, Michael Darcy responds to
UrbanGrowth NSW’s article on community engagement and
tests some of those ideas against experience.
2 Inner Sydney Voice • Summer 2015/16 • www.innersydneyvoice.org.au