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| There was no sense we were lucky or privileged to live there." Photo: Steven Siewert |
Most of my childhood was spent on Millers Point (The Point as locals refer to it) and it was a wonderful, close-knit community.
My great grandmother lived in Kent Street for much of her life. My grandparents married and settled there and my father was born and raised in the family home in Trinity Avenue. My other grandfather was the publican at The Captain Cook Hotel for many years. Later my own parents ran the milk bar on the corner. My siblings and I went to St Brigid's, the tiny Catholic school.
People there didn't have large backyards and many no car, so much of life was conducted on the front steps or front rooms of people's homes. You weren't invited over, you just went over. As kids we were always in other peoples' homes playing. You didn't really tell anyone where you were going because there was just a sense you were safe - everyone knew who you were and who you belonged to.
The strength of the community links and feeling of connection to place fostered in this small area cannot be overestimated. There was a strong social fabric holding us together even though people really were doing it tough - The Point community rallied if someone needed something. We shared 21st birthdays, fancy dress balls and fund raising for The Point football team, usually at the Abraham Mott Hall. There's even a song that only true locals know - The Millers Point Mob
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When I used to tell people I lived at Millers Point no one really knew where it was and there was no sense we were lucky or privileged to live there. It wasn't a flash place by any standard.
The community has changed as people have moved on and left. But there remains a special, close-knit community. I can still walk into the pub my grandfather ran and be known as ''Russy's daughter''.
The news of the intended sale is incredibly sad. Sure property prices have grown over the years and they reflect an important financial asset to the government, but those residents and their families lived at The Point when no one else wanted to. There is a human side to the financial equation. Simply rehousing residents tramples all over the very strong connections that have thrived there and sustained families for many generations. Rehousing will give people a house, not a community built on a strong history of connection.
The move will see the community fractured and the face of The Point changed irrevocably.
There is a value in keeping our communities diverse, even the ones with expensive views. Much of the history and character of Millers Point will be lost from the area with these residents. There must be a compromise - one that can recognise the value of the assets and at the same time recognise the history and sense of community that is what has made Millers Point special for generations.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/comment/millers-point-and-its-sense-of-community-worth-more-than-expensive-views-20140321-358m1.html#ixzz34W8Rbuhv
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