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Council News CITY OF WAGGA WAGGA
Issue No: 355
Weekly information from us to you
FIRST PRINTED SATURDAY 24 JULY 2021
Bomen Revegetation Project
HELPING HANDS NEEDED: Environmental Education Officer Alice Kent is encouraging everyone to come along to National Tree Day at Bomen on Sunday 1 August 2021 at 10am. Get in touch with nature, plant some seedlings and help replenish our region’s biodiversity – our native wildlife will thank you. National Tree Day will be a COVID-safe event.
Wagga Wagga City Council is pleased to announce an ambitious revegetation project for Bomen, which will see 58 hectares of previously cleared land planted with more than 50,000 seedlings. The five-year project will receive $250,000 funding from Bomen Solar Farm, as part of a partnership with Spark Renewables (owner of the farm) and Westpac (which purchases green power from the farm). It will see four separate sites planted out with a mixture of native trees, shrubs and ground covers by Council staff, contractors and volunteers. The sites have been prepared in consultation with the local Wiradjuri community, with Manager Environment & Regulatory Services Mark Gardiner saying it was rare for Council’s Environment team to gain access to an area of land this size. “We’re very happy to have this opportunity to work with Spark Renewables and Westpac to revegetate these sites,” Mr Gardiner said. “It’s encouraging to see private industry take affirmative action in the communities in which they operate, and work with Council to help improve our region’s biodiversity and provide the habitat needed to restore our native fauna populations. Continued inside
Main art gallery and shop reopen to visitors Wagga Wagga Art Gallery officially reopened its main and upstairs galleries and shop inside the Civic Centre today (24 July), following the completion of a refresh and refurbishment project. Although the National Art Glass Gallery has remained open, the main gallery spaces have been closed to the public since 11 April to allow for the installation of a climate control air-conditioning system in the Margaret Carnegie Gallery, along with the completion of other scheduled refurbishment works to the exhibition and shop spaces. The new heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) will enable the
gallery to accept a greater range of touring shows and individual works from the country’s major art institutions. Art Gallery Director Dr Lee-Anne Hall said the team is pleased to be welcoming visitors back to the gallery and is keen to show everyone the new exhibitions in the refurbished spaces. “You will see the changes straightaway when you come in through the main entrance, with new floor to ceiling windows creating a mezzanine overlooking the main gallery and its exhibitions downstairs,” Dr Hall said. “The shop is back with a focus on local, regional, and Australian artists and crafts people. “We are back in business, we are COVID- safe, and we have a wide variety of shows that are really worth coming to see.”
The Art Gallery received $192,000 in funding through the NSW Government Infrastructure Grants Program (Clubgrants Category 3) to undertake this program of works. While no formal launch has been held due to COVID restrictions, four new exhibitions are now open to the public. Victorian artist Mark Dober’s Murrumbidgee features 10 large paintings (3m x 1.8m) on paper created en plein air on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River at Wagga Wagga and other riverscapes along the MurrayDarling. First Nations artist Kelly Koumalatsos, who is also from Victoria, explores the impact of Colonial encounters on the lives of her parents, grandparents and great-grandparents in her show Gung | Create, Make, Do, Love. Continued inside
OPEN FOR BUSINESS: (from left) Retail and Operations
Officer Karin Zuge Bruton and Gallery Assistant Helen Robb ensure everything is ready for customers and visitors at the newly refurbished gallery shop. Image: Tayla Martin
Wagga Wagga City Council’s Reusable Products Rebate
Going green just makes good financial sense.
Council is offering residents from the Wagga Wagga Local Government Area the opportunity to apply for a rebate after purchasing reusable nappies and/or menstrual products.
Get money back on reusable nappies and menstrual products.
Rebate trial: 1 July 2021 – 1 January 2022 Apply now: wagga.nsw.gov.au/reusableproductsrebate