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The City of Burnside's 2020 Annual Community Survey was released today with the Burnside community giving the highest satisfaction rating since 2013.

The survey is conducted on a yearly basis to understand the community's perceptions of the Council's service delivery performance.

It is the only fully representative survey conducted in the City and the results are a genuine reflection of our community's opinion. The results are used to inform decision making at Council.

Our community's overall satisfaction with Council is the highest it has been since 2013 when this survey commenced. The increase is driven by significant improvement in the proportion of very satisfied responses - increasing from 40 per cent in 2018 to 60 per cent in 2020.

Council also asked the community for an opinion on three strategic questions:

• Council advocacy for activating cycling (advisory panel, advocate with cycling bodies, ERA approach);
• Support for electronic consultation or an option to ‘opt out’ of hard copy consultation; gauge whether residents would be interested in reducing footprint and costs around consultation and other available tools; and
• Support for more shrubs and understory plantings in parks and Council Infrastructure to support habitat and birdlife.

To find out all the results, or to read the report, visit the Annual Community Survey webpage.

The first of Council’s heritage plaques has been installed at 470 Glynburn Road, Burnside. Former Councillor, the late Graham Bills, and his wife Tesslyn bought the property 20 years ago. A keen historian and a fan of heritage, Graham conducted extensive research to uncover the house’s history. What he found resulted in a successful application to have the home Local Heritage Listed in 2005.

“Graham was always interested in heritage,” says Tesslyn. “It is only because Graham did all the ground work that this has come about.”

In April 2020 Council resolved to instigate a Pilot Project to install plaques to mark key heritage places within the City of Burnside. This is the first of 25 to be installed.

History:

Ebenezer Claude Gore built the Californian Bungalow in 1925 for his wife, Violet Esther Gore (nee Lucas) to the design of Adelaide architect Len Golding. Claude was a schoolmaster, horticulturalist and soil expert.

The home is built of freestone and red brick, complemented by a Kentish gable end and verandah. At that time, the property address was 160 Burnside Road.

The Gore family operated Burnside Florists, a successful florist business that sold flowers grown on the property. Many properties in the neighbourhood were dedicated to flower production. To the east of the home (near where 1A Young Street now stands), there was a commercial flower garden. The family supplied flowers to numerous Adelaide outlets from 1945 to 1980.

When Claude passed away in 1971 property maintenance became too onerous for the family and in 1972 they sold a portion of the estate. Even though most of the garden was gone, Violet and Mary Gore sourced flowers from other growers and continued to make wreaths and arrangements.

In 1950 Claude collaborated with retired engineer Mr Bateman to design and construct concrete building blocks. ‘Gorebats’, named after both inventors, are large concrete blocks, reinforced with steel rods and slotted on the side, indented in varying sizes. Once in place concrete fills the gaps and large reinforcing rods are placed through the support blocks.

The Gorebats were created at the rear of the property and then trucked to the site. The joint enterprise ended around 1960 and that section of land was sold.

Existing examples of Gorebat construction:

• Knightsbridge Baptist Church Hall (1952)
• Aldgate Memorial Hall (1958)
• Cherry Gardens Memorial Hall (1956)
• Echunga Memorial Institute (1956)
• 1A Young Street, Burnside (1957/8)
• Reynella Memorial Hall (1953)
• Verdun Memorial Hall (1960)

Heritage SA Database

Len Golding – Architect

Monreith Private Hospital in Toorak Gardens was founded in 1932.

The Fergusson family of Monreith, Scotland migrated to Australia in 1839. Andrew and Alexander Fergusson purchased land in Section 274 (Toorak Gardens) and named the farm Monreith after their hometown. They grew wheat and barley and built a flour mill in present-day Sprod Avenue.

In the early 20th Century, the property was subdivided and HWF Miller purchased two blocks fronting Portrush Road. In 1923, Miller built a house at what is now 401 Portrush Road.

Sister R H Paice managed a rest home on Greenhill Road and aspired to convert 401 Portrush Road into a hospital. In 1932, Paice and her husband bought the property. Renovations in the late 1930s doubled the size of the building. The hospital included surgical and maternity wings.

Monreith Private Hospital closed its doors in 1997. It is now an Aged Care Facility.

Photographs: Monreith Private Hospital, 1940.

The Rotary Club Of Burnside has donated two defibrillators to Council to be used in the two community buses.

Delivered personally by John Caddy on 16 February they were installed quickly by our team the next day.

The timing is perfect as all the Commonwealth Home Support Programme volunteers are completing their First Aid Course which covers CPR and the use of defibrillators.

The Honourable Patricia Lynne WHITE AM

Trish White is probably best known to South Australians as a former Labor Minister under the Rann government. But it is also for her significant service to engineering that she has been acknowledged in the Australia Day Honours.

As a 24-year-old she was a senior engineer and project manager at the Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO).

“It toughened me up,” Trish, 56, says. “In those days electrical engineering was ‘geeky’ and there weren’t many female engineers. There was no internet then. I was at the leading edge.”

In the early 1990s Trish was working in Canberra and was often asked to appear in Senate Estimates to explain technical issues to non-technical audiences.

“I have always wanted to solve problems for people and was attracted to the political and technical. I had a taste of the power of policy making to change people’s lives.”

She moved to Adelaide and joined the Rann Opposition team as Member for Taylor, a position vacated by former Premier Lynn Arnold. When Labor won the election in 2002 she became a Minister.

“It was enormously difficult to transition from engineering to politics,” Trish says. “Engineers deal with concise, factual matters.”

After 16 years in politics Trish, of Leabrook, stood down for family reasons. “I had two little boys and a sick husband,” she says.

She established her own company Slingsby Taylor and has a portfolio of Board positions. She was Board Chairman and National President of Engineers Australia, 2018-2019.

“As an engineer I get a lot of inspiration from nature. Burnside has a lovely combination of built and natural environment.

“I am grateful for all the people who have mentored me over the years and for the recognition of engineering and the impact of it to the country. Innovation drives the country.”

Did you know that there are approximately 350 km of footpaths across the City of Burnside?

These footpaths help to connect people and places, encouraging active travel and exercise, and linking our neighbourhoods. Ensuring we effectively manage and maintain these footpaths is very important – lucky for us we have an amazing team of people in place to help us do so! Below is a little bit of information on what they do to help keep our footpaths safe.

All footpaths are annually inspected to identify any defects (trip hazards). This involves one of our team members going out to visit and inspect every footpath across the city, and record any defects found. These defects are prioritised to be repaired based on their risk (which includes assessing the size as well as the location) with the highest priority defects being scheduled for repair first.

Each year Council staff repair around 2,800 defects in footpaths and roads. We also have a footpath renewal program which replaces whole segments of footpaths in a similar manner, with those in worst condition being replaced first. This program proactively replaces several kilometres of aged and cracked footpaths every year. The City of Burnside puts a very high level of emphasis on providing a robust program to monitor and respond to footpath defects, committing nearly $1 million per year on replacing and maintaining footpaths.

If you become aware of any defects you are concerned about, you can log them directly with Council at action.burnside.sa.gov.au, which will ensure they are included in the maintenance program.

Dr Patrick Phillips AM

For his significant service to medicine and to diabetes organisations, Pat has been awarded the Member of the Order of Australia (AM). As an active member of Diabetes Australia (both nationally and in SA) Pat has contributed to the preparation and implementation of strategies to improve health care and education throughout Australia. He is a general endocrinologist with a special interest in diabetes, thyroid and bone disorders such as osteoporosis. (An endocrinologist is a medical specialist who treats people with a range of conditions that are caused by problems with hormones.)

Dr Phillips was Director of Endocrinology at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, for more than 20 years. He was also former editor of the Diabetes Australia national magazine Conquest and coordinator of the RACGP Guidelines in diabetes.

“I helped organise camps for kids and teenagers with diabetes,” Pat says. “It is difficult for children with diabetes and their parents, especially Type 1, as their blood sugar levels can vary wildly.” An important part of education was to provide support networks for parents and nutrition advice.

He has also consulted at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, the Lyell McEwin Health Service and the Modbury Hospital.

“I was lucky to be involved in the ASEAN Diabetes Prevention and Control Project,” Pat says. “That was a cooperative project between Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Australia.”

When asked his greatest professional achievement he cites his Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford University. Married to Beverly for 50 years he says his greatest achievement and source of pleasure is his family. Father to one son and six daughters, he is the proud grandfather of 11. “The whole family lived within walking distance of each other (until recently) and we get together regularly,” Pat says. “I am proud that three of my daughters became doctors and one is a midwife.”

Pat, of Toorak Gardens, was surprised at his Award but says it gives him more credibility. “I have been invited to get involved with an association of other Award winners to assess further nominations.”

He is semi-retired, still consulting one day a week at the Queen Elizabeth Specialist Centre.

Peter Roberts-Thomson AM is a retired clinical immunologist and immuno-pathologist and Emeritus Professor of Flinders University. He was awarded the Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to medical education and to immunology. In 1976 Peter was the first physician in South Australia to commence formal training in clinical immunology. “Today there are over 25 accredited clinical immunologists in our State,” says Peter. “They are serving the needs of 15 per cent of the population who have immune and allergic disorders.”

Peter, of Erindale, has particular expertise is in the diagnosis and management of systemic autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). He has also established the South Australian Scleroderma Register. “Scleroderma, a disease that causes hardening of the skin and scarring of internal organs, affects 350 South Australians and, in some instances this disorder follows an aggressive course with severe complications,” Peter says.

Peter, 74, is thrilled but humbled to receive his award and is especially grateful to his wife of 47 years, Lesley, his family and friends and colleagues who have given him great support and encouragement during his 50-year long medical career. “I have enjoyed immensely my interactions with my immunology and rheumatology trainees who continue to astound me with their curiosity, intelligence and application to their chosen specialty.”

Now retired, Peter enjoys bush walking and has used COVID restrictions to explore walking trails in the Adelaide Hills. He has a special interest in the Tasmanian wilderness and has published a book on the early explorers. He has already travelled to Tasmania to share his passion with his some of his six grandchildren.

Mrs Christine Joan HALBERT, OAM (Medal of the Order of Australia)

Rose Park resident Chris Halbert has been awarded an OAM (Medal of the Order of Australia) in the Australia Day Honours for service to the history of Australian Rules football, and to music. Chris was instrumental in the ‘140 years of SANFL’ exhibition which debuted at the State Library in 2017.

Chris, 74, has spent most of her adult life around football. Her husband John played for Sturt Football Club from 1955 – 68. “He had lots of memorabilia that he had collected over the years, including a Magarey Medal.” She thought others of his generation would also have lots of ‘stuff’ stored in sheds and spare rooms.

“I approached the SANFL Commission and said ‘What should we do with all these items’. They thought it was a good idea to pull it together and asked me to do it.”

Through word of mouth and her football connections, with the profile of the AFL and the wonderful SANFL history which should not be lost, she gathered a diverse collection of memorabilia. She recruited a team of fellow volunteers and they were given a space at AAMI Stadium.

“We received more and more and started to run out of room. “ With AAMI Stadium to be demolished the group moved to Bowden, above the Lutheran Church Archives. Chris says it is not a museum and they do not accept visitors, however they are always looking for opportunities to promote the collection including May History Week.

The inaugural display ‘In a League of Its Own’ launched at the State Library in June 2017 and ran for 10 weeks. The memorabilia included trophies, scrapbooks of players, and photographs of the teams, spectators, Football Park and Adelaide Oval. The exhibition attracted some 70,000 visitors, making it one of the most highly attended exhibitions in the history of the State Library.

”It was special because it resonated for so many,” Chris said of the exhibition. “The reaction of people who came in and hadn’t seen photos of their grandfather or other memories was overwhelming. The exhibition was important as was the search for all of the Magarey Medals. The fact we have now got all of them except six is just fantastic and people are amazed when they have a look at the display.”

Chris has also contributed to music as a skilled pianist, singer and teacher. She organised the Lutheran 175^th Anniversary celebration and taught at the Elder Conservatorium of Music.

Chris was surprised and honoured to receive her Australia Day Honour. “I received an email late last year with the Governor General’s insignia and I thought it was a joke at first.”

”I’m delighted because it is an acknowledgement of all the people who have worked with me along the way,” Chris says. ”It’s not as if you do things by yourself, you are always part of a team.”

Chris credits her team of volunteers for her achievement. “Without them I wouldn’t be here receiving this Award,” she says. “Volunteers bring experience, wisdom and common sense and there is a real camaraderie within the group.”

Married to John for 54 years they have three daughters and six granddaughters. Chris is eagerly planning a 145-year exhibition at the State Library in mid-2022.

She will receive her Medal at a ceremony at Government House in April.

The group of buildings at 325-331 The Parade, Beulah Park is known as ‘Ransom’s Corner’. This site was originally the Ransom family’s farm.

In 1922, Robert Ransom subdivided the farm and built the row of shops. One of the first tenants was butcher F.W Clements who remained there for 42 years.

High above the corner shop, set in the stonework of the façade by Robert 97 years ago the words ‘Ransom’s Corner’ remain.

Photograph: Ransom’s Corner, 1932 and today.