Please be advised that the Berrima Residents Association does NOT have a page on Facebook.
Any page on Facebook that purports to be a BRA page is fake and has been reported as such.
Our Spring Newsletter has just been published and distributed to members and through Explore Berrima. Printed copies are available at the Post Office.
The Newsletter may be read at the following link.
Enjoy reading.
HAVE YOUR SAY
ON WHAT AND WHERE
YOU WANT
NEW TREES PLANTED IN BERRIMA
COME ALONG TO THE VILLAGE MEETING
Saturday 26 November at 3pm, Holy Trinity Church Hall.
To celebrate Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee, by way of a national program of tree planting, the Federal Government has awarded the Berrima Residents Association a $20,000 grant, supplemented by additional Council resources and contract labour.
Although Council has extremely challenging tree planting guidelines to follow, we want to present to Council what we want to see in our village.
A working group, headed up by Andy Forrest (Apple St) has organised a community meeting to gain ideas from all residents.
Our aim is to make the plantings a strong visual Georgian look in keeping with the history of the village that will enhance the unique character that a visitor would also expect to see.
Some ideas so far are to plant trees on the eastern side of the Old Hume Highway in the main commercial part of the village, and or on the western side around Eschalot to the Pound and the gravel areas outside Schmokin’. One interesting idea is to establish a new park, Jubilee Park at the river end of Jellore Street and new plantings in Bridge Park just upstream from the Bridge below Schmokin’.
We look forward to more feedback – from everyone, residents and businesses alike, at the meeting at the Holy Trinity Church Hall Berrima, on Saturday the 26th of November 2022 at 3pm
FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: ANDY FORREST ON 0427 932 228
Wingecarribee Shire Council has announced arrangements for celebrating Australia Day in Berrima on Thursday 26 January 2023.
The Berrima Residents Association is excited to support this event, which is is being managed in 2023 by Amanda Fry of the Experience Nature Group.
Plans for the Day include showcasing local businesses, lots of food from our great local eateries and wineries, displays of heritage crafts and vehicles, and much much more. The Australian Citizenship Ceremony will also be part of the festivities.
If you want to get involved, or would like further information, please email Amanda Fry at:
Further details are set out in the Council’s Press Release.
Nearly 100 villagers got in early this year to kick start the Holiday Season with a fun night of food and musical entertainment at the Surveyor-General in Berrima on Wednesday 16 November from 5.30 pm.
The event would not have been possible without the generous support of a Wingecarribee Shire Council grant, supplemented by internal BRA funds.
This great event that brings all villagers and retailers together, allowing both established residents to renew old friendships and for new residents to meet their new neighbours.
Thanks to Vice-President Phil Martin for his welcoming comments and to Commitee member Fran Meagher for sorting out arrangements for delivering a very successful night, and to Browyn and Judith at the Post Office for taking RSVPs.
Special thanks to Bob Rodgers and his Band rocked on to the delight of attendees who danced the night away !
Remembrance Day 2022 was commemorated at the Cenotaph in the Berrima Marketplace at 11.00 am on the 11 November.
The children from the Berrima Public School conducted a moving ceremony of remembrance, reminding us of the sacrifice that past generations have made to ensure the freedom we enjoy today.
Wingecarribee Shire Administrator, Mr Viv May PSM, laid a wreath on behalf of the Council and Eric Savage, President of the Residents Association, laid a wreath on behalf of Berrima’s residents.
Thanks to the Principal, staff and pupils from the School, and to Ros Jones of the Association, for arranging such a moving ceremony.
While Berrima residents have been suffering from excessive noise for years from traffic on the concrete surface on the Motorway as it passes round Berrima, recently increasing volume of trucks, particularly B-Doubles, has made life intolerable.
Local resident Duncan McDonald is leading a BRA team to get the NSW Government to take the health and safety concerns of residents seriously.
Following arranging noise readings with professional acoustic engineers, presenting a petition with over 220 signatures and meeting with government officials, and most recently with the Minister, Duncan organised a community meeting on 11 November 2022 in the Marketplace where 61 residents expressed their frustration with the noise issue to two Departmental officials.
There are technical fixes to the road surface that promise a significant reduction in noise. But the decision depends on the outcome of the Department’s own noise readings and ultimately on the Minister making the solving of this serious health problem a priority road project.
The Berrima Residents Association has been successful in securing a $20,00 grant from the Federal Government to commemorate the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee by planting trees in Berrima.
While Council has strict guidelines to follow, which make putting new trees along the Old Hume Highway a challenge, Council will support the project by providing trees and contractors to do the installation and protection.
Community meeting planned for Saturday 26 November
Andy Forrest (Apple Street resident) and his team is managing this project and is planning a community meeting to gain ideas from all residents on Saturday the 26th of November at 3pm at the Anglican Church Hall. Residents and business owners are welcome to come and share their ideas.
The “turning of the sod” ceremony to launch the project will take place across the road from the Surveyor-General Inn on 10th of December.
The aim is to make the plantings a strong visual Georgian look in keeping with the history of the village that will enhance the unique style that a tourist expects.
All ideas about tree species and locations are welcome. Ideas include planting trees on the eastern side of the Old Hume Highway in the main village or on the western side around Eschalot to the Pound and the gravel areas outside Schmokin. This would follow other towns like Yackandandah and Beechworth with plantings that make the villages.
We look forward to more feed back from the whole village community.
For the past several years, the BRA has supported a bi-annual survey of the Wingecarribee River as it flows around Berrima looking for platypus. The latest survey was held October 2022.
If anyone would like to join the volunteers on the survey day (late in the afternoon) for an hour at individual locations along the river bank upstream from the Berrima Weir, please call Clive (0427 808 967).
Berrima is a platypus “hotspot”, and several universities have conduct studies here. With the severe flooding over the last few months we didn’t expect to see platypus this October, but the river has already lost a lot of its power and we had the best number of sightings in 5 years. There were 4 sightings in 3 different locations.
Calculations from past surveys indicate that the platypus population around Berrima is about one or two every kilometre. One of the objectives of the Southern Highlands Landcare Network is to re-wild the banks of the river upstream from the Berrima Weir, all the way to Burradoo and beyond. This will not only protect the river bank from livestock (it has to be fenced off, and landowners can receive grants to do this), but it will extend the habitat of the platypus. They need over-grown banks in which to dig their burrows.