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In July 1940 Council agreed to fill in and level an area east of Burnside Town Hall, on the corner of Hyde Street and Greenhill Road, to be used as a Parade Ground by members of the Returned Soldier’s League Volunteer Defence Corps. The Burnside Parade Ground was used for marches, weapons training, trench digging exercises and musketry drills.

The Volunteer Defence Corps (VDC) was a part-time volunteer military force of World War II. Established in 1940, it initially comprised of ex-servicemen who had served in World War I. From 1941 the Corp was controlled by the government, who gave the organisation the role of training for guerrilla warfare and collecting local intelligence.

Photographs of the VDC training at the Burnside Parade Ground in 1942/43 courtesy of the State Library of South Australia.

The name Bell Yett was chosen by the 1877 owner of the property, Ellen Barham Black. Ellen migrated to South Australia with her three children from Wigtown, Scotland. In Wigtown there was a field named Bell Yett, which was named after the field’s gate (yett) which had a bell on top of it. The Wattle Park property was named after this, therefore the name literally means Bell Gate.

Helen Foster Barham Black shared about her childhood at Bell Yett (1981):

“Bell Yett was a wonderful place for children, with a creek running from one end to the other through the paddocks and garden; there were two ponds where we used to play a good deal. We usually had at least two horses and two cows; calves of course were an annual event. There were fruit trees of great many sorts and plenty of grape vines. We practically lived outside except when it was raining.”

Excerpt from Elizabeth Warburton, The Paddocks Beneath: A History of Burnside From the Beginning

In 1948, the property was sold to the Sisters of the Convent of Mercy, it was used for teaching, studying and social work.

In 1971, the property of Bell Yett was subdivided and the City of Burnside purchased the ‘old cow paddock’ for a public reserve.

A large Bunya Pine at the western end of the Reserve is believed to be one of the last remnants of the original Bell Yett garden.

The future of the reserve

Today Bell Yett Reserve consists of a car park, two netball / tennis courts, a basketball hoop, a storage shed, a playing field, biodiversity zones in the south and west sections, a playground, amenities block, bench seating, drinking fountain and rubble pathways. Stonyfell Creek runs through the Reserve.

To ensure that the future maintenance and improvement of the Reserve are sensitive, planned, purposeful and complementary, a new master plan for Bell Yett Reserve is being developed and Council wants your input. This is a community-led master plan and we encourage you to join the working group to be involved.

A master plan will also provide a basis for scheduling works in a financially sustainable way.

Have you say by completing the online survey below by 5 pm Monday 18 October 2021.

Community Information Session

There will be an Information Session in Bell Yett Reserve from 9.30 am - 11 am on Saturday 16 October 2021.

This will be an opportunity to have your say in person, as well as gather more information on the Bell Yett Reserve Master Plan.

Click to complete the Survey

Built in 1841, the old toll house at the base of the South Eastern Freeway raised funds for the construction of the road from Adelaide to Mount Barker. As the only toll in the colony, the scheme met public hostility, and the funds raised were insufficient. Consequently, in 1847, the toll was removed.

This image is of the 1842 watercolour painting by Alexander Murray (1803 - 1880) entitled 'The first toll bar in South Australia, entrance to Glen Osmond'. This painting is in the Art Gallery of South Australia collection.

The toll house is the first stop on the Glen Osmond Historic Walk, which you can download.

Mayor's Christmas Card Design Competition

Mayor Anne Monceaux invites children in Years 3 -4 to help us capture the spirit of Christmas by designing our annual Christmas card for 2021.

Theme: What makes an Australian Christmas?

Who: Burnside school children in Years 3-4

Medium: Draw, paint or do any form of design

Enter online or through your school.

Mayor of Burnside Anne Monceaux shares this week's Burnside Highlights from our 28 September Council meeting.

Summary:
✅ Dulwich Community Centre to be redeveloped in 2022/23
✅ Nature Festival Inspired by Trees exhibition at the Burnside Civic Centre
✅ Active Ageing Week activities
✅ Bell Yett Reserve Master Plan out for consultation
✅ Award nomination for The Shed.

This is just a summary of some of the things happening within the City of Burnside. You can read the full minute's from the meeting at bit.ly/BurnsideAgendasMinutes

Alf Walker’s 14-acre violet farm near Magill was a favourite Sunday excursion during the 1920s. In its heyday, the farm attracted 2,000 people each weekend. Visitors paid six pennies to enter, picking as many violets as they could carry and enjoyed afternoon tea at the farmhouse or had a picnic in the paddock.

Pictured: Walker's Violet Farm, circa 1924. Burnside Local History Collection.

Move Your Way

Active ageing includes staying physically active, staying mentally active, and staying socially connected and active within your community. Connecting with others, learning new skills, making an ongoing contribution to society, and doing the things that give us a sense of purpose are all important to ageing well.

Kana Nathan

At almost 83 years old, Kana Nathan is more active than most 50 year-olds! He runs a weekly Fit and Fab class at Burnside Council to help seniors improve their health and fitness. “As we mature our body undergoes physical and physiological changes,” he says. “We have to accept that as a reality if we want to actively age.” Losing muscle mass means losing muscle strength. With age we are less flexible and our joints less forgiving. Mobility is challenged, reflexes slow, coordination is poor and our balance is affected. “We can’t stop the ageing process but we can slow it,” Kana says. “We concentrate on resistance training to increase and maintain muscle mass and power and that is also good for bone health.” In Kana’s group the youngest member is mid 70s and the oldest is 94! Kana says there is a focus on balance exercises as better balance means less falls and injuries. “We teach them what to do if they have a fall at home, how to safely roll from their back to their side, to use furniture to help get themselves up, and always call a family member to let them know.” The class always contains some general health and wellbeing tips such as how to walk safely on uneven surfaces by lifting the toes and placing the heel down first. “I also show them how to breathe properly,” Kana says. “Increasing the volume of lung capacity helps the body absorb oxygen and expel carbon dioxide.” In addition there are brain exercises, meditation and mindfulness. “The class is not just about exercise, it is health education as well,” Kana says. “Did you know that 50 per cent of the body’s bones, muscles, nervous system and blood supply is in the lower limbs?”

Annie Reid was terrified of the prospect of retirement as she had no hobbies. “I put a spurt on and joined a Bonsai Club,” she says. After two years with a regular hobby she retired in 2014 at the age of 64. Having been a teacher for more than 40 years she soon missed it and after only a year she returned to short term contracts and relief teaching.

“I am not good at being bored,” she says. “I had been selling some of my art at Pepper Street and I liked the feel of the place.” So she signed up as a volunteer and spends 3 days each fortnight working in the coffee shop and gift shop. “After a career of teaching adolescents it was nice to have adult conversation,” she jokes.

She ‘officially’ retired at the end of 2020 at the age of 71 but keeps very active both physically and mentally. “I have done more reading in retirement than in my life,” she says. “I read more than 40 books in a year, fiction and non-fiction.” She also walks a lot to keep fit.

But it was her love of Japan that brought about her art passion. “We had visited Japan several times and I had seen the Temari, exquisitely embroidered material balls. Temari balls are a folk art form and Japanese craft, originating in China and introduced to Japan around the 7th century A.D. ‘Temari’ means ‘hand ball’ in Japanese. “The balls were used for play by young girls and then the mothers started embroidering them and they became an art form,” Annie says. Annie learnt how to make them and now displays and sells them at Pepper Street.

Concept design for the intersection

To improve community road safety, the Greenhill Road/Hallett Road intersection will be upgraded following a successful grant allocation from the Federal Black Spot Safety Program.

Greenhill Road is under the care and control of the Department of Infrastructure and Transport (DIT). A staged, formal design process has been undertaken that includes consideration and approval by DIT as it progresses. Complexities and considerations have delayed the works due to the unavoidable bus and heavy vehicle movements having to be accommodated.

Detailed design has been undertaken to upgrade the intersection based on a DIT approved concept plan included on the reverse of this letter. This design has now reached 100 per cent completion.

The upgrade involves restricting the right-hand turn from Hallett Road into Greenhill Road to one lane. A dedicated right turn lane into Hallett Road from Greenhill Road will be created and there will be a dedicated lane for traffic turning right out of Hallett Road onto Greenhill Road.

Efficiency of right turn movements from Hallett Road will be improved due to the dedicated receiving lane on Greenhill Road. Traffic modelling indicates this will offset the loss of the second right turn lane.

It is anticipated that these arrangements will reduce the vehicle conflict at the intersection and make it simpler and quicker to move through. In particular, the focus is to address the high number of right angle crashes.

The upgrade works will include resurfacing the intersection, installing a small traffic island, landscaping of the central island, minor kerbing realignment and new line marking. Minor extensions to on-street parking restrictions are also required.

It is anticipated that the works will take approximately four to six weeks to complete.

Council apologises for any inconvenience this may cause, however these works are essential to ensure improved safety of the area.

***

In October 2020 Council submitted a funding application for the program after concerns had been raised by residents about the intersection. As part of the application process, Council arranged for an independent assessment of the intersection to be undertaken that confirmed the need for crash mitigation and intersection improvement works.

A Black Spot intersection is defined as one where three ‘injury’ crashes have occurred within a five-year period. At the intersection of Greenhill Road and Hallett Road, 28 crashes occurred at the intersection with ten (10) of those resulting in injury within the relevant five-year reporting period 2014 to 2019. Of the ten (10) crashes, eight (8) were a result of ‘right angle’ or ‘right turn’ crashes. Note: the human body is particularly vulnerable to injury from ‘side on’ impact.

Greenhill Road is an arterial road under the care and control of the Department of Infrastructure and Transport while Hallett Road is a primary collector road under the care and control of the Council. It is estimated that approximately 10,000 vehicles travel through this intersection every day.

The proposed treatment will involve the modification of lane line markings, kerb alignments and the installation of a seagull traffic island. This will reduce right turn movements from Hallett Road into Greenhill Road from two lanes down to one in addition to creating an exclusive receiving lane for west bound traffic. An exclusive right turn lane will also be created for vehicles turning into Hallett Road from Greenhill Road.

The changes will also include:

• Modified slip lane kerb returns that will better accommodate bus turning movements within this intersection.
• A much simplified and clearer intersection that removes uncertainty created mostly by the two uncontrolled, offset right turn lanes on the Hallett Road approach.
• A review of public street lighting and upgrades as part of this project to provide greater visibility of the intersection at night time.

Given the overwhelming community road safety benefits this project will achieve at no financial cost to Council, the project work will commence as soon as practicable.

Adelaide has experienced a few cold days this week, but not this cold! This photograph from the Local History Collection is of the Burnside Council Centre car park in the 1980s before the Civic Centre redevelopment. Have you ever seen snow in the Burnside area?