Page 1145 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 28 March 2017
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MS CHEYNE: Minister, can you provide more detail to the Assembly on the priority areas for the heritage grants program this year?
MR GENTLEMAN: I thank Ms Cheyne for the supplementary. Priority will be given to projects that focus on places or objects listed on or nominated to the heritage register. The priority areas for the 2017-18 grants program are conservation works and projects that enable the continued use of, and access to, places entered on the heritage register. This can include repairs to significant fabric, stabilisation of a building or improvements to public access, safety and visibility.
Funding is available for the reinstatement of original features such as exterior render, front facades or windows visible from the street. The amount applied for should be matched by the applicant. Funding is not available for new buildings, additions or routine maintenance such as painting, pest control or electrical work.
Conservation management plans can be funded for places or objects that do not have an existing plan that is approved by the ACT Heritage Council and that are not more than five years old. Conservation management plans guide conservation works and management actions.
Projects or events that enable further community participation in the identification, conservation, interpretation and promotion of heritage in the ACT are also eligible for a grant, as are projects with any Aboriginal heritage content. The latter must include evidence of appropriate consultation with representative Aboriginal organisations and, as applicable, other local Aboriginal groups with regard to the concept of the project.
Also covered are projects that provide partnership opportunities between community organisations and ACT government agencies. Community organisations can apply as project partners with ACT government agencies and they will be expected to provide a significant volunteer or in-kind contribution. The ACT government agency will be expected to match the amount of funding applied for and provide written confirmation of this.
MS CODY: Minister, can you provide some examples of previous projects supported by an ACT government heritage grant and how the projects contributed to the promotion of heritage in the territory?
MR GENTLEMAN: I thank Ms Cody for her interest in heritage, too. There are many examples of successful projects that have been supported by the government in its heritage grant rounds. Some examples from the 2016-17 programs include: the Australian National University’s project to re-establish the heritage orchard and landscape at Mount Stromlo Observatory; the Southern ACT Catchment Group’s project to highlight the significance and use of the heritage-listed Theodore Aboriginal grinding groove site; and the Molonglo Catchment Group’s project, which was a partnership with the Friends of Black Mountain, to further enhance the visitor experience of the woodland walk on Black Mountain Nature Reserve. Greening Australia, the capital region group, used a grant to identify, record, register and protect local and culturally significant trees in the Canberra region.
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