CCWE02Z01MA - V1 Mercedes College students Gabriel Henry and Emily Atkins model past uniforms with senior ranger Jen Pitman and Abbie Thomas from the Natural Resources Management Board. PICTURE: MARK BRAKE A RATE rise of 2.9 per cent for Mitcham has been given the tick of approval. Elected members voted to adopt the 2017/18 budget and set the rate increase at $47 based on the average house value of $530,000. The rate rise will help fund $9.74 million in projects, in- cluding the multi-million dol- lar Mitcham Library redevelopment, Watahuna Ave pedestrian crossing, Sturt Linear Park Trail upgrade, new footpaths and an increase in annual community grants. The Mitcham Library rede- velopment will add 686sq m to the current space, bringing the total size of the library to 1462sq m. The works would also in- clude increased event space and a facelift of the nearby Brownhill Creek reserve. The last estimate for the project was $5.45 million with $1.09 million of that funded by a State Government grant. The $120,000 Watahuna Ave pedestrian crossing was the result of community cam- paigning to improve safety on Hawthorndene Rd. A surplus of $1.71m has been forecast as part of the 2017-18 budget. Mitcham sets 2.9pc rate rise Spotlight on historic park second – was a government farm. “(It) was mainly used to get an idea of what worked, so that was the early 1800s to mid-1800s,” Ms Pitman says. “There was grazing stock, and they had horses there.” She says that in 1858 a house was built on the farm to be used as the summer residence for then governor Sir Richard MacDonnell, which became known as Old Government House. The farm became a national park in 1891, following some controversy. “The government was going to sell the land off for farming and housing in the late 1800s,” Ms Pitman says. “At the time there was already govern- ment staff managing the land and they could see the value of keeping it for the public. “So there was a lot of cam- paigning going on in Parlia- ment and the community against it. The public is still very passionate about Belair.” Remnants remain in the park of an old farm house, near an area called Gold Escort Ground. “That was the first house in the park.” Gold Escort Ground got its name because it was the camp- ing location for gold escorts – people moving gold between Melbourne and Adelaide. These days the park attracts about 250,000 visitors each year. The Belair Memories exhibi- tion will be at the Old Govern- ment House gardens on July 9, 10am-2pm. Other activities to celebrate Park of the Month include Kaurna cultural walks, starting at Old Government House, on July 9, 10.45am- noon, and Nature Play SA’s cubby building event, Cubby Town, at the adventure play- ground on July 20 and 21, 10am-3pm. The public is still very passionate about Belair. Jen Pitman BELAIR National Park is rich with history. From a mysterious hot pink uniform to Old Government House, the 835ha park, which this month is Nature Play SA’s Park of the Month, has lots of tales to tell. Throughout July the park will celebrate being in the spot- light with activities and dis- plays, including the Belair Memories exhibition, which will feature historic photos, flags, signs and uniforms, in- cluding that hot pink outfit. Senior ranger Jen Pitman said little was known about the outfit, but that it was probably worn by someone working in the visitor’s centre in the 1970s. “It wouldn’t be a ranger uni- form,” Ms Pitman says. “My guess is it was used by one of the interpretative officers or customer services officers.” She says after settlement, Belair – which is SA’s first na- tional park and the nation’s Cathryn McLauchlan [email protected] BELAIR For details visit environment.sa.gov.au/parks/ home and click on the Park of the Month link. MITCHAM 2 FOR Specials available from Wednesday 5 th July to Tuesday 11 th July or while stocks last • 5% Seniors Discount Monday-Friday. Excluding tobacco, lotteries sales and all in-store specials. Pictures for illustration purposes only. 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