Presentation on Heritage of Lane Cove
Posted by Bill McLaughlin, Immediate Past President of LC Historical Society
on Feb 17, 2016
First, I wish to speak for a few minutes about Heritage, History and the Future of Lane Cove.
Lane Cove: 50% of our boundaries are to the water’s edge, yet we usually do not think of Lane Cove as a waterfront, I will come back to that.
What is history? And heritage? History is not heritage, nor is heritage history. History is what has been recorded, it is a memory of times past, passive, a book to be read. Heritage is what we are and can be. It is our culture, our traditions, our lifestyle, the natural assets preserved from one generation to another. It is active, it is now. It is what we inherit and what we bequeath to future generations.
To understand heritage you must read the history, so we can define the good and keep it; define the bad and avoid it. We are the custodians of the treasures of Lane Cove. Will our successors hate us or thank us? The answer sits with us, the people of Lane Cove, all of us. I know we do not generally see ourselves as the owners of Lane Cove. But we are. We, this generation, the community are the ones responsible, we should not allow that responsibility to be assumed by others.
We are fortunate that our Councillors and our Council Managers do care, and work well with the community. But who should be setting the direction? Us. We see ourselves as owners and occupiers of individual properties, but we tend to cede the idea of ownership of public spaces to the Council or the State.
Really, the Council owns nothing, the community owns everything. All the community groups share the guardianship of our heritage. Together we enhance the cultural life of Lane Cove, our history, our music, theatre, art, our games and sports, bush care groups, our leisure activities, philanthropic groups, these are all a vital part of what we are, all such activities help to shape our heritage.
The question is, what sort of Lane Cove do we wish to hand on to future generations? Will we leave it in better shape than it was when we came in? We must. How will we measure that?
Too often we perceive our history through our buildings. But all buildings are essentially ephemeral. Plans change, to quote Hegel, “We learn from history that men never learn from history”. Even the best laid plans come unstuck. Carefully assessed and cherished buildings may be added to a list, but is a list protection in perpetuity? It cannot be. And of course many wonderful buildings are simply not listed at all.
Look at the list, in Lane Cove a total of 301 different locations, over 100 are in Greenwich and almost 100 in Longueville, Northwood and Riverview. On the State Register there are just 6 and I am sorry to say, none on the Commonwealth Register. There is 1 conservation area and 9 archaeological sites. Listing does recognise historic value. But is it really forever?
Aboriginal heritage sites are not publicly listed, because of their age and the risk of damage. And that thought takes us back to the first people of Lane Cove. Think back, our first peoples roamed freely, with little change to the environment. Tradition dominated. Then new settlers came. They became farmers, they chopped down trees and constructed roads, they built houses, then large industries and added commerce. We divided land, we knocked down houses and built units, we closed factories and built units. Nothing was sacrosanct, nothing ever is. Everything can be changed, by someone who thinks they have a better idea.
I was reading a book a few nights ago and one of the characters said, “Ah well, Naples. It has always been like that. It’s cut down; it’s broken up and then it’s rebuilt and the money flows, and creates work. It had a ring of truth about it. What should and should not be saved? Is there some secret code that says something must be old before it should be preserved? What is the youngest building being considered for listing?
Is nothing new worth saving? Are there really no new heritage items? Perhaps the lack of new listings says it all. We do not really care about heritage until we lose something we treasure. That is just too late!
We must continue to protect our historical artefacts and list buildings that reflect the passing of time, recognising best examples of history’s progression. At what date will a wonderful example of a suitable building in say, 2000, be considered for listing? I suspect it may be a very long time in to the future.
But the process must continue and the regulations and relevant legislation must have the teeth to really preserve such properties. Change must be managed, by the people and for the people.
The point I wish to emphasise tonight is that heritage it is not only about buildings. The real Lane Cove is hiding under two hundred years of built history.
The first people walked softly on the land, they saw themselves as children of the land, they did not own the land; the land owned them. Then after thousands of years, we, the newcomers began to walk on this land, in boots. In just a few hundred years we changed the face of those lands. But the bedrock is still there. Our treasure is still there even though it is somewhat trampled upon.
But Lane Cove is not only land, over 50 percent of our boundaries are frontages to water, rivers and creeks. We live on a vital river system, a once pristine waterway, one with no mangroves, deep navigable waters way up river. Good fishing, edible oysters and mussels, truly a source of life.
Industrial pollution almost killed the Lane Cove River system. Finally sensible management saved the river from that sort of damage.
Now, it is simply neglect. At present we are, once again, degrading our waterways, ceding control to others, mainly in the hands of the State, so much so our rivers and creeks and bays are silting up, the mangroves are spreading and we are doing nothing.
Think about it. The Hunter River was navigable by ships right up past Maitland, now you can wade across it – in less than 2 hundred years. In Turkey, Ephesus was a port city, now its ruins are 50 km inland. If we do nothing the Lane Cove River will become a swamp, then mud flats, then just low lying useless land, our secret river will be no more. Our waterways should be treasured as much as our land. We do celebrate our river system, but are we going to save it?
Yet we leave care of our river in other hands. It is always a case of who pays? Will we again find it a case of too late? I am going to show you some photographs of the built and natural heritage of Lane Cove today as it is today. However let us look past our historic houses and see how we can manage change.
We must not follow the trend in some parts of the country wherein authorities have released public land and community owned facilities to allow gratuitous development. Right now public lands are being handed over for development, or being considered as development opportunities: in Frenchs Forest, in Wentworth Park, in Parramatta, these are projects which would sacrifice public land to private development.
Can it ever be a good move to sacrifice public playing grounds for Council built units, or released for private development? The answer is no.
How do we value open space against more dwellings?
Let us not condone the sacrifice of even the smallest portion of public lands whether owned by the Council, the State or the Commonwealth. For every unit block to be built we should consider its approval against the background of protecting the public environment for the future. There should be no compromises. I know we will continue to build more high-rise buildings, then our plans must compensate with more public space.
There is always going to be pressure on for more development, there is grave danger that population pressure, and the opportunity to make money could easily erode that valued collection of natural assets. Just like Naples. Developers want to build, Real Estate Agents want to sell. People want to buy. Investors want profits. Lane Cove is a nice place to live. Change is inevitable but it must be managed for the long run advantage. Without careful management, Lane Cove could easily be a bit like a tourist destination that becomes so popular, that overdevelopment destroys its very essence.
For me the real heritage lies, not in our buildings but in our wonderful collection of natural assets and in the culture of Lane Cove. We are blessed with rivers, creeks, bushland, parks, trees, rocks, beaches, sandy shores, grass lands, playing fields, birdlife, animals. The built heritage will change, but let us continue to treasure and protect our public lands and waters. We should be building structures we can be proud to pass along.
I encourage everyone of you to realise, you are needed to be party to guiding our way down future paths. We are the caretakers - for generations to come. Please, take an active role, join another community group, do not just take progress for granted. Steer it. It is your Lane Cove, help make it an even better place.
Do not forget we elect the Councillors they are our voices. Tell them what you think. Do not forget - It is OUR Lane Cove.
(ED: A link to Bill's photographs can be accessed on our Club's website at www.lanecoverotary.org)