Recent from talks
The Block (Sydney)
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
The Block (Sydney)
The Block is a colloquial but universally applied name given to a residential block of social housing in the suburb of Redfern, Sydney, bound by Eveleigh, Caroline, Louis, and Vine Streets. Beginning in 1973, houses on this block were purchased over a period of 30 years by the Aboriginal Housing Company (AHC; originally Aboriginal Housing Committee) for use as a project in Aboriginal-managed housing. The Block has been progressively demolished and redeveloped since around 2010, as part of the Pemulwuy Project, completed in mid-2023. There is new housing, including student accommodation in the Col James Student Accommodation building, as well as a gymnasium, Indigenous art gallery, and underground car parking. Murals have been refreshed along the railway wall.
The Block is probably the most famous feature of the suburb of Redfern, although it is located on the western border of that suburb, on the edge of Darlington. Eveleigh Street is its eastern border, with railway lines on the other side of that street, and The Block used to be referred to as Eveleigh Street. Many Aboriginal men living in the area used to work at the Eveleigh St Railyards The Block is near Redfern station.
The area was significant as an affordable source of low-cost housing for disadvantaged Aboriginal people. The Block has historically been the subject of large protests, starting in the early 1970s, when landlords in the area conducted a campaign of evicting all Aboriginal residents. Developer Ian Kiernan, who later founded Clean Up Australia, acquired around half of the housing in The Block in the early 1970s via his company Tierra del Fuego. A number of "Goomies" (Aboriginal homeless people) were squatting in his properties, and he called the police several times to evict them. The confrontations with police led to publicity via television news, which alerted the Whitlam government to the situation.
A group of campaigners, led by future judge Bob Bellear and his wife Kay, along with the Catholic priest Ted Kennedy, lobbied the federal Whitlam government, who bought up Kiernan's and other private properties. Kiernan's construction company, IBK Construction Pty Ltd, sold the houses at a cost price and was tasked with redeveloping the site, promising to hire additional Aboriginal people to complete the work. Kiernan said that he would not be making a profit, and saw it as "our contribution, and because we think people should get behind a responsible government which is doing something for the under-privileged". The Bellears lobbied the government for a grant via H. C. Coombs, chair of the Office of Aboriginal Affairs, in December 1972. In April 1973, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs Gordon Bryant announced on Sunday a federal government grant of A$530,000. This grant allowed the Aboriginal Housing Committee (AHC), an interim committee which later became the Aboriginal Housing Company, to commence purchasing houses. The Builders Labourers Federation was very supportive, and key to convincing Whitlam to enter the arrangement. Bob and Sol Bellear attended the auctions, and properties were acquired cheaply. There was some debate whether they to form a co-operative, but eventually it was decided to register as a company, with many shareholders and a board. Richard Pacey was appointed as director of the board, and the company had access to funding by the Aboriginal Development Commission for repairs. The company was incorporated in 1973.
The narrow back yards were combined into a large communal area and landscape, and included a children's playground. The mayor of South Sydney Council, W. C. Hartup, sent a telegram to Whitlam in protest against the decision to redevelop the housing.
Other people involved in the early days were Bob's brother Sol Bellear; Lyall Munro Jnr and his wife Jenny Munro; Gary Foley; Paul Coe and his sister Isabel Coe; Billy Craigie (later Isabel's husband); Gary Williams; Naomi Mayers; retired boxer Dick Blair (1937–2013), aka Pastor Richard Phillips, then a field officer for South Sydney Community Aid; and non-Indigenous architect Col James (1936–2013).
As houses became available for occupation, priority was given to women with children. Later, a hostel was built at the end of Eveleigh Street to house the homeless people. New Dawn published an article about the Redfern Housing Project in February 1974. According to Col James, "Redfern was the first urban land rights [case]; that’s why it is a really important site in historical terms".
A year after the Fraser government was elected in 1975, it terminated capital works funding to The Block, leading to many homes falling into disrepair. Over the following few years, the AHC acquired almost half the properties on the Block, and the election of the Hawke–Keating government in 1983 led to renewed support for the Aboriginal community in Redfern. In 1994 the AHC acquired the last house on the Block.
Hub AI
The Block (Sydney) AI simulator
(@The Block (Sydney)_simulator)
The Block (Sydney)
The Block is a colloquial but universally applied name given to a residential block of social housing in the suburb of Redfern, Sydney, bound by Eveleigh, Caroline, Louis, and Vine Streets. Beginning in 1973, houses on this block were purchased over a period of 30 years by the Aboriginal Housing Company (AHC; originally Aboriginal Housing Committee) for use as a project in Aboriginal-managed housing. The Block has been progressively demolished and redeveloped since around 2010, as part of the Pemulwuy Project, completed in mid-2023. There is new housing, including student accommodation in the Col James Student Accommodation building, as well as a gymnasium, Indigenous art gallery, and underground car parking. Murals have been refreshed along the railway wall.
The Block is probably the most famous feature of the suburb of Redfern, although it is located on the western border of that suburb, on the edge of Darlington. Eveleigh Street is its eastern border, with railway lines on the other side of that street, and The Block used to be referred to as Eveleigh Street. Many Aboriginal men living in the area used to work at the Eveleigh St Railyards The Block is near Redfern station.
The area was significant as an affordable source of low-cost housing for disadvantaged Aboriginal people. The Block has historically been the subject of large protests, starting in the early 1970s, when landlords in the area conducted a campaign of evicting all Aboriginal residents. Developer Ian Kiernan, who later founded Clean Up Australia, acquired around half of the housing in The Block in the early 1970s via his company Tierra del Fuego. A number of "Goomies" (Aboriginal homeless people) were squatting in his properties, and he called the police several times to evict them. The confrontations with police led to publicity via television news, which alerted the Whitlam government to the situation.
A group of campaigners, led by future judge Bob Bellear and his wife Kay, along with the Catholic priest Ted Kennedy, lobbied the federal Whitlam government, who bought up Kiernan's and other private properties. Kiernan's construction company, IBK Construction Pty Ltd, sold the houses at a cost price and was tasked with redeveloping the site, promising to hire additional Aboriginal people to complete the work. Kiernan said that he would not be making a profit, and saw it as "our contribution, and because we think people should get behind a responsible government which is doing something for the under-privileged". The Bellears lobbied the government for a grant via H. C. Coombs, chair of the Office of Aboriginal Affairs, in December 1972. In April 1973, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs Gordon Bryant announced on Sunday a federal government grant of A$530,000. This grant allowed the Aboriginal Housing Committee (AHC), an interim committee which later became the Aboriginal Housing Company, to commence purchasing houses. The Builders Labourers Federation was very supportive, and key to convincing Whitlam to enter the arrangement. Bob and Sol Bellear attended the auctions, and properties were acquired cheaply. There was some debate whether they to form a co-operative, but eventually it was decided to register as a company, with many shareholders and a board. Richard Pacey was appointed as director of the board, and the company had access to funding by the Aboriginal Development Commission for repairs. The company was incorporated in 1973.
The narrow back yards were combined into a large communal area and landscape, and included a children's playground. The mayor of South Sydney Council, W. C. Hartup, sent a telegram to Whitlam in protest against the decision to redevelop the housing.
Other people involved in the early days were Bob's brother Sol Bellear; Lyall Munro Jnr and his wife Jenny Munro; Gary Foley; Paul Coe and his sister Isabel Coe; Billy Craigie (later Isabel's husband); Gary Williams; Naomi Mayers; retired boxer Dick Blair (1937–2013), aka Pastor Richard Phillips, then a field officer for South Sydney Community Aid; and non-Indigenous architect Col James (1936–2013).
As houses became available for occupation, priority was given to women with children. Later, a hostel was built at the end of Eveleigh Street to house the homeless people. New Dawn published an article about the Redfern Housing Project in February 1974. According to Col James, "Redfern was the first urban land rights [case]; that’s why it is a really important site in historical terms".
A year after the Fraser government was elected in 1975, it terminated capital works funding to The Block, leading to many homes falling into disrepair. Over the following few years, the AHC acquired almost half the properties on the Block, and the election of the Hawke–Keating government in 1983 led to renewed support for the Aboriginal community in Redfern. In 1994 the AHC acquired the last house on the Block.
Recent media