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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2010-10-28 Daily Xml
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ADELAIDE CEMETERIES AUTHORITY

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO (15:05): My question is to the Minister for Urban Development and Planning. I understand that the Adelaide Cemeteries Authority has undertaken a range of initiatives, along with a number of significant projects, during the last 12 months. Will the minister advise on the recent activities undertaken by the Adelaide Cemeteries Authority?

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister Assisting the Premier in Public Sector Management) (15:05): I will not make any puns in relation to this question; it may not be tasteful. I thank the honourable member for her question and for providing me with the opportunity to outline recent activities of the Adelaide Cemeteries Authority. The Adelaide Cemeteries Authority administers four major cemeteries across Adelaide: the West Terrace Cemetery, the Cheltenham Cemetery, Enfield Memorial Park, and Smithfield Memorial Park. As part of its responsibilities the authority administers some of South Australia's most significant historic cemeteries, memorials and headstones.

On 11 May this year Mr Robert Pitt took up the position of chief executive officer of the Adelaide Cemeteries Authority, taking over from Mr Eric Heapy, who served in that capacity for the previous 6½ years. I would also like to thank Ms Kathy Bowden, the manager of marketing and client services, for taking on the task of acting chief executive officer for the six months between Mr Heapy's resignation and the appointment of Mr Pitt.

The West Terrace Cemetery, which was originally known as the Adelaide Public Cemetery, is one of our state's important sites of historical significance and, as such, is listed on the State Heritage Register. The cemetery was fixed by Colonel William Light in his 1837 survey of the City of Adelaide and is one of the last original capital city cemeteries in Australia still operating. Several initiatives have been implemented at the West Terrace Cemetery during the 2009-10 financial year, including:

upgrading of on-site security to reduce the incidence of vandalism;

installing recycled water from the Glenelg to Adelaide pipeline program to help maintain the cemetery grounds;

the opening of the Caroline Clark Memorial Garden to honour the 50,000 South Australians buried in unmarked graves at the site;

continuation of the process of identifying and mapping burial sites;

the establishment of a new burial area, named the Wakefield Section, the first new land released at the cemetery since 1944;

the presentation, during SA History Week, of six unique interactive tours in conjunction with the theatre group Various People; and

the Friends of the West Terrace Cemetery continuing to provide regular tours of the site as well as documenting at-risk headstones, completing all sections except the Catholic section.

The Friends of the West Terrace Cemetery have also documented the entire AIF section and have begun recording the location of the individual plaques in the baby memorial. I would like to thank this organisation for its ongoing support, and acknowledge its many valuable efforts in encouraging visitors to our cemeteries, which assists in deterring vandals.

I also understand that a new, self-guided interpretive trail at the West Terrace Cemetery will be launched early next year, which identifies 30 prominent sites. Amongst them are links with Mary MacKillop who, of course, recently achieved sainthood as St Mary of the Cross. The West Terrace Cemetery has many links to Mary MacKillop, including the grave of her brother, along with many of her supporters and detractors. Thirteen Sisters of St Joseph are interred at the cemetery, and the grave of Bishop Lawrence Sheil, who excommunicated Mary MacKillop in 1871, is also found here.

The Adelaide Cemeteries Authority administers Enfield Memorial Park, which provides a fully operational cemetery incorporating chapels, a crematorium and a mausoleum. In the past 12 months a number of initiatives have been implemented at Enfield Memorial Park, including:

the launch of the new western Rose Memorial Garden;

completion of the upgrade of the external facade of the lounge and chapel areas;

completion of the feasibility and design of the extension to the Enfield mausoleum, the construction of which will commence soon;

an increased interest by members of the community regarding the Wirra Wonga area, which is the state's first natural burial ground. The authority anticipated five burials at Wirra Wonga during its first year of operation, but this was easily surpassed with 21 burials, demonstrating the strong community interest in this type of service;

the annual Mother's Day service of remembrance, with more than 500 people attending; and

for the first time Father's Day was also celebrated recently, with more than 500 people attending that service.

The Cheltenham Cemetery, established in 1876, is one of Adelaide's oldest cemeteries. During the 2009-10 financial year, a number of initiatives have been implemented by the Adelaide Cemeteries Authority including:

completed construction of a new memorial garden;

completion of stage 2 of a new burial area named Tranquillity Corner which provides for 112 burial sites in a peaceful, courtyard style garden;

the establishment of a new cremation memorial area, named Garden of Memories;

installed new row numbering on roads and paths; and

commencement of a pathway replacement program.

The Smithfield Memorial Park has been operated by the Adelaide Cemeteries Authority since 2002. During the 2009-10 financial year, initiatives undertaken have included:

the continued provision of burial and cremation services of persons who have bequeathed their bodies to South Australian universities for the benefit of medical science; and

the launch of an on-site road replacement program.

As the population of the northern suburbs continues to grow during the next 20 to 30 years, the services provided by Smithfield Memorial Park will become of greater importance. So, I commend the authority for the good work undertaken for the people of South Australia in times of great personal sorrow and also its commitment to the South Australian community.

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