Colonel Light Gardens

Mrs POWER (Elder) (15:50): I rise to share a momentous occasion for a suburb in my electorate, Colonel Light Gardens. This year marks the centenary for Colonel Light Gardens as a model garden suburb. Last Sunday, 22 August 2021 marked 100 years since the declaration of land sales for the suburb in 1921. To celebrate this historic day, I organised a community celebration, timing it with the unveiling of the new entrance statement archway at Oxford Circus.

It was an incredible afternoon, celebrating the heritage of Colonel Light Gardens, which is one of Australia's best examples of an early 1920s garden suburb. To go above and beyond—because that is what I like to do as the local member—and to make this centenary extra special for my community, my team and I organised the Mitcham brass band, who were just incredible, and a special cake, along with 100 cupcakes to add to the festivities.

The Premier opened the occasion and Keith Conlon, the Chairperson of the SA Heritage Council, reflected on the heritage standards, which ensures the suburb's heritage is protected, as well as sharing some of his own personal stories of his time growing up in Colonel Light Gardens. A question and answer session with Christine Garnaut, Associate Professor and author of the book titled Colonel Light Gardens: Model Garden Suburb also provided an account of key dates for the suburb over the past 100 years.

On Sunday, the atmosphere was buzzing and reflected the pride local residents have in their suburb. Almost 150 people came along to celebrate, including the City of Mitcham mayor, Dr Heather Holmes-Ross, and most of the City of Mitcham councillors, including ward councillors Coralie Cheney and Rod Moss. We also had representatives from the Colonel Light Gardens Residents' Association and the Mitcham Historical Society; our local primary schools in the area, including St Therese Primary School, which is on the corner of Oxford Circus; Colonel Light Gardens Primary School; and Clapham Primary School.

There were representatives from the Springbank Secondary College governing council, the Colonel Light Gardens Football Club—Tom Clarke, Charles and a few others—Scott from the Goodwood Baseball Club and, of course, we had local residents and our furry friends, the dogs of Colonel Light Gardens.

The archway at Oxford Circus is a significant new feature at the Springbank intersection. It was a part of the upgrade and it marks the entrance to the state heritage area. It was a really important addition that I was a strong advocate for. I am sure it will become a key landmark in the area for generations to come.

To further mark the centenary, I will be putting together a time capsule. I am inviting residents, local businesses, local sporting groups, community groups and all those who have some sort of memory or association with Colonel Light Gardens to contribute an item to the time capsule, which is to capture the people and places in Colonel Light Gardens as it is today, and we are certainly living in interesting times.

I had a group photo taken at the event on Sunday. That photo will be included in the time capsule, which will be quite interesting for people given we were all wearing our masks at the time. I am sure it is going to be very exciting and interesting for those who are going to be opening it in 50 years' time.

Preserving the heritage of a building or a place, let alone a complete suburb, even with the right regulatory framework like we have in place, takes people who are not only committed and passionate about heritage values but also have the knowledge about why it has heritage significance. I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge Philip Knight and Christine Garnaut for their care of and commitment to Colonel Light Gardens.

It was, in fact, Philip Knight who reminded us when we went out to consultation during the Springbank intersection upgrade about Charles Reade's original vision for the suburb and the idea to build the archway. He gave his time and provided great input, working with Heritage SA and the infrastructure department to ensure this great outcome for our community. To everyone who contributes to Colonel Light Gardens, I want to take this opportunity in this place to say a heartfelt thank you. Communities are made great by the people in them.