Northside History - Property Developments

While everyone else has had a break, the Property Team has been very, very busy. 

Right across the campus, there have been people moving, carrying, taking down, refurbishing, building, and upgrading as they have worked through a long and varied list. 

We are so grateful to God and to all who have been part of enabling this work and making it happen. 

Two very visible changes are to the creek area in Junior School and the properties fronting onto Keona Rd. As the school year came to a close in 2022, the initial clearing started.

As the Junior School Parklands development grows, I thought it would be interesting to reflect on the ‘history’ of that particular area of the campus. 

When the first half of the church was built in 1976, the property was the single block of land with the road in from Flockton St situated on the western side of the church, going up past where the Main College office now sits, and up the hill to the church. It was not until 1994 that the road was moved to the current side, after the purchase of the third block of land – where the CINC building and the oval are now situated.

The second block purchased was on the western side, where the Administration and the first Secondary buildings were built.  

The creek area that will be the Parklands was initially an unfenced, natural creek with a few trees and no buildings. It wasn’t until the fifth year of school that the first stage of A Block became the first official school building. The area was an open space where the students could play. One past student I spoke with recently remembers sitting on the creek bank to eat and watching the ducks and the turtles. There was a small, stone bridge built by the parents and many games and picnics were enjoyed in that area. 

It was only as A and B Block buildings were built, a stage at a time, that the creek became the fenced area filled with trees that have been a familiar sight in recent years. It was 1999 before both buildings were finished to their current size. 

Now, another new era has begun and we look forward to witnessing the developments that are taking place. The project brings temporary challenges for Junior School but, on completion, those difficulties will eventually become memories as the new facilities are enjoyed.   

- Bev Starrenburg, College Archivist