Raymond Terrace Street Flowers

Nice to see Raymond Terrace shopping district brightened up with some flowers - one might almost think they were in country France! (they do it so well there).

This near the site of our first #raymondterracecoffee tweetup for 2014. If you would like to come to the next one just let me know. And no, you don't need to be on Twitter to come along, but if you are interested in finding out more about social media then we can answer your questions.

@lindyasimus

Oldest Photographs Of Newcastle NSW

Are these photographs of Newcastle taken some time between 1873 and 1875  the earliest in existence? Very possibly.

Thanks to Ann Hardy for finding these, and to Carol Duncan for broadcasting this story on ABC radio @1233Newcastle 

"In September 2013 I visited the library to look at some of these "Newcastle" photographs, with no further description of what was available I was interested in which parts of Newcastle were shown. What I found were images taken from the usual aspects, from Nobbys Road towards Nobbys, from Christ Church overlooking the harbour, Gaol Hill across Newcastle Beach, and a view looking east towards the city.

What I didn't expect and took me by surprise were how early the photographs were taken, most likely some time between 1870 and 1874. I decided to digitally photograph images as they appeared in the album because I knew they were historically significant and contained important information for future research. I also knew there would be of interest to some in the local Newcastle community."  

See the full story and more photographs at ABC Open

New Road Opens To Bypass Sandgate

A shot of the new bypass from Maitland Road to Shortland Twitter by @nicholasgerber of the ABC

Regal Ready With A Digital Revamp And A Little Help From Friends

Okay I was late to the party when it came to discovering how much fun it was to go to the flicks at The Regal at Birmingham Gardens. I went for the first time and liked it so much took a friend visiting from the US back the next day for another session.

The orange cordial dregs in the machine were a bit of a worry but what a fun place to go and step into the olden days with the old chair and sad old interior. Take a blanket and have a picnic seemed like an idea.  Then a short time later it was 'curtains' for the Old Dear.

The story was told on ABC 1233 this morning and what a fairy tale it was. Maybe this is a story with a happy ending that will be a movie itself one day.

From the ABC website:

"Despite the best efforts of a loyal band of supporters, the Regal has been unable to find a way to re-open.

But thanks to an Academy Award winning Australian movie director the fate of the cinema has changed.

George Miller who created and successfully delivered Happy Feet 2, the sequel to Happy Feet, came to the rescue.

The director of the musical adventure featuring a penguin colony needed a state of the art digital cinema for his film - but once the movie was delivered it was set to be sold."

See the full heartwarming story here.

The upshot of course is that the Regal is set to reopen next month. Not just reopening, but this time with the latest digital equipment. 

Now that's a happy ending!


The Cinema Regal from Brett Piva on Vimeo.

The Cinema Regal from Brett Piva on Vimeo.

 Related:

Friends of The Regal 

Friends of The Regal Facebook Page

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/2034908/regal-cinemas-gift-from-happy-feet-2-crew/?cs=305

Find The Regal Map

Tin City: Stockton

Great write up in the Herald

These dunes have secrets. One day in the 1980s, Garland found the half-buried skeleton of an Aboriginal girl. There are also ancient Aboriginal middens, dotted throughout the sandy swales, white shoals of sun-bleached shells periodically uncovered by the wind. Some of them date back 1200 years. Then, a jet fighter will scream overhead, on a training run from nearby Williamtown air force base.

There are no roads to Tin City. You drive along Stockton Beach (in a 4WD, unless you enjoy getting bogged). As you drive, you will marvel at the crazily raw and elemental beauty of this beach – the colossal sky, the foaming sea; the way the ocean meets the earth here like a smack in the chops. There are no signs of human habitation. It's just sand and rolling dunes until suddenly a cluster of 11 shacks appears, off behind the beach, half buried and looking quite strange and lonely. Several scenes of the hit 1979 movie Mad Max were filmed here.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/off-the-grid-living-in-tin-city-20140108-30h1m.html#ixzz2prLUpbA5

EPA Targets Lawnmowers While Ignoring Coal Pollution In Hunter

The Hunter Community Environment Centre said its analysis of theEnvironment Protection Authority’s 2013 data showed a 50% increase in air pollution breaches throughout the year in the Hunter Valley and Newcastle, compared with 2012.

Coal crackdown urged as air pollution breaches rise by 50% in Hunter Valley

Environment centre wants all coal wagons and stockpiles covered, and plans for Newcastle coal terminal to be rejected

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• Oliver Milman
• theguardian.com, Thursday 2 January 2014 

The group, which has campaigned against the mining industry on health grounds, said the national standard for a particle called PM10 was breached 171 times last year.

Significant quantities of PM10 can cause respiratory illnesses, such as asthma, and cardiovascular disease.

The breaches showed the NSW government should block a fourth terminal at Newcastle that would export an additional 70m tonnes a year, the environment group said.

The group is also campaigning for the mining industry to cover coal wagons on trains, which it blames for spreading harmful coal dust. A Senate inquiry last year called for better monitoring of potentially harmful effects, although submissions from the mining industry said covering wagons would be too expensive.

“I was surprised by the number of breaches but also by the EPA, which has steadfastly refused to implement any measures to control pollution,” James Whelan, from the community environment centre, told Guardian Australia.

He said there was no week during the year when the pollution did not exceed national standards.

See full article in The Guardian 

Highlights of the Port Stephens, Sydney, Canberra Bush Fires 2013

Newcastle Light Rail Not Full Steam Ahead

Newcastle's proposed light rail is causing controversy

Updated Mon 23 Dec 2013, 

The NSW government says work could start on light rail in Newcastle's CBD as early as next year, but critics are questioning the benefit of privatising the port and replacing trains with trams.

Philippa McDonald

Interesting video on the proceedings via ABC website. You can see it on the link below.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-12-23/newcastles-proposed-light-rail-is-causing/5173176