Category: Homepage Latest News

Sections of Centenary Motorway registered the slowest inbound traffic speed during peak hours, according to a March 2017 report comparing motorways and freeways in the Brisbane area

The report from the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland (RACQ) is based on Bluetooth average speed data from the Department of Transport and Main Roads for the month of March. The data covered state-controlled motorways and freeways in Brisbane and surrounding areas.

Topping the list are the section of the highway from Warrender St to Sumners Rd and the section 1.5km south of Toowong roundabout to Miskin St. Both sections registered an average inbound speed of 22 km/hr during peak hours from 6 am to 9 am.

The 22 km/hr speed from Warrender St to Sumners Rd is frustratingly slow compared to the average speed of 92 km/hr registered from 9 am to 4 pm. This peak-hour speed is 31% lower than the 32 km/hr speed in March of the previous year.

Traffic in other sections of the Centenary Motorway is also found to be up to 72 km/hr slower than the usual free-flow speed. Aside from Centenary Motorway, commute on some sections of Pacific Motorway is also significantly slow compared to uncongested traffic.

Need for Upgrade

Because of the steady decline in traffic speed in state-controlled corridors, RACQ believes that authorities should address the issue with Brisbane’s road network before it gets any worse.

RACQ spokeswoman Renee Smith stressed the need for the government to urgently invest in upgrades of the road infrastructure, especially as the Brisbane continues to grow and more vehicles fill the highways.

Ms Smith finds it alarming that commuters are forced to drive at a speed more than 70 km/hr below the usual speed during free-flowing hours.

Travel time reports and other road surveys and assessments done by RACQ are available at www.racq.com.au.

They started out in a small trailer, but five years hence, the Centenary Suburbs Men’s Shed has more room to grow in their new permanent home.

Men’s Shed 100 Inc, better known as Centenary Men’s Shed, has managed to grow continuously since it was formed in 2012. Now, the group has a place to call their own after moving from temporary headquarters.

With their new base, the Centenary Men’s Shed can conduct all their activities at three large sheds located at 139 Monier Rd in Seventeen Mile Rocks.

The group’s most recent shed was at the Jindalee Golf Club. But their number grew that it came to a point where their shed felt small for all their activities. The group managed to claim their new home with the help of the Brisbane City Council, the State Government, the Federal Government and sponsors such as Wacol-based Ausco Modular.

The buildings will be big enough to house all their tools and will be spacious enough to hold meetings as well as conduct the group’s carpentry, metal work and welding projects.

Disaster Brought Them Together

Centenary Men’s Shed was formed in 2012 after the region was devastated by floods in 2011. The 2011 disaster was one of the darkest moments in Brisbane. But out of that gloomy time, it was good that an organisation such as the Men’s Shed was born to bring people together.

Many people lost their possessions and lives were in disarray. The group served as a means for men to support one another during that time when people were recovering from the devastation.

Since its founding, the local group has been an excellent venue for men to come together, socialise and learn from each other.

The group conducts workshops and share skills and experience. More importantly, it is a great way for local men to form friendships and be socially active.

Centenary Suburbs Men’s Shed is part of the Australian Men’s Shed Association, which serves as the umbrella organisation for more than 930 Men’s Sheds across the country.

 

Photo credit: Milton Dick MP / Facebook

With the weather getting cold, it is good to know that there are kind-hearted people who are using their skills and creativity to give warmth to people in need.

Helping people in need is the main driving force of the Centenary Knitting and Crochet Circle. Members of the group share a common love for knitting and crocheting. They meet every fortnight at Sibro Coffee in Middle Park to knit or crochet squares that will be donated to various charity organisations.

Knit a Square

The charity activity is part of the annual “Knit a Square Campaign” of the Centenary ladies’ craft group. Blankets created by the members are given out to people who need to keep warm during the winter season.

Charity groups that receive blankets from the group include Life Without Barriers, the Giving Grannies Inc , and the Brisbane Motorcycle Street Feed. Through these charity organisations, the blankets can be distributed to homeless folks, children in foster care and victims of domestic violence.

Centenary Knitting and Crochet Circle has been creating blankets for charity for many years now. Group founder Inga Ng expressed happiness that with the group, they can all express their love for knitting and crocheting. At the same time, they are blessed with the opportunity to give back to the community.

Community Knitting Day

The group’s meeting every second Friday has attracted much attention from people who visit the coffee shop. Due to the number of enquiries and expression of intent to help or donate, Mrs Ng is setting up a community knitting day on July 15.

During the community knitting day, the group will invite people from the community to knit squares to add to the blankets they have made. Mrs Ng targets some 500 squares to be added from that event.

The July community event will be held at the Westside Church of Christ at Jamboree Heights.

 

Photo credit: CC-BY / derya / flickr

Left to the elements, Wolston Park Hospital in Wacol has turned into an “attraction” for urban explorers hunting for ghosts or plain curious about the centuries-old mental asylum.

For years, the asylum has been a notorious place in the eyes of people in Brisbane. The mere mention of Wolston Park points to the asylum, which not everyone wants to talk about.

Behind the rotting wood floors and the graffiti-covered walls are the stories of people who went through some horrendous experiences that damaged them forever.

Now called The Park – Centre for Mental Health, the mental health facility has progressed remarkably, with some of the more modern buildings standing detached from the notorious reputation of the old hospital. But what will not escape the scrutiny of the curious is the old asylum building, which seems to silently speak of the horrors of the past.

Deep Wounds

Until its closure in 2001, the Wolston Park Hospital was the most notorious mental asylum in the country. Patients who survived or escaped from the institution spoke of how they were sexually abused, tortured, electroshocked and administered with drugs that are now illegal. They described how young women barely in their teens were sexually assaulted by other patients or the warders.

Surviving victims carried with them the horrific experience they had during their stay in the asylum. They have to live through non-stop nightmares where they hear the shouts of abused children or women whose babies were aborted.

Torture and abuse had been associated with the asylum for many years. The first known case is said to have happened just less than two years after it was opened. From then on, it was a cycle of abuse that lasted for more than a century.

Urban Explorers’ Destination

Today, the abandoned asylum is a hit among curious explorers. The 150-year structure is a heritage-listed psychiatric hospital, which means that it cannot be demolished. But left to natural decay, restoring it would be highly expensive.

The eerie atmosphere at the old asylum is what draws urban explorers to the place. All over the internet, one could find explorations and walk-throughs of the decaying and abandoned house of horror.

A walk through the spooky abandoned asylum. (Credit: jody sedgwick)

Many would naturally suspect and imagine that the place is haunted by ghosts of people who had their share of the unspeakable events inside the asylum. Any curious mind would put the Wolston Park Hospital on their to-do list. Some would test their tenacity by staying overnight inside the old building.

Unresolved Issues

Survivors of Wolston Park continue to fight for the right to be heard and compensated for the damage that the asylum had done to their lives. Many of them are in their senior years and are yet to feel that justice has been served.

The Queensland government had issued a blanket apology, which many of the survivors and their relatives feel insufficient.

Dr Adele Chenowyth, who is pushing for the Wolston victims to be heard and recognised, is also pressing for redress for the victims.

“These women want redress, they want ­financial compensation for the way their lives have panned out,” Dr Chenowyth told Courier Mail. She stressed that “there needs to be some tangible and quantifiable and meaningful response.”

Stories shared by victims about the cruelty in Wolston Park are too painful to hear. Anyone lurking through the abandoned and collapsing structures of the asylum would feel a sense of the horrible things that occurred in the past, but hearing the details would help bring light to dark past trapped within.

 

Centenary locals need not go to Brisbane City for a weekend full of fun, music and smashing good food. Right in Seventeen Mile Rocks is a gathering of culture, lifestyle and fine food.

The Rocks Riverside Markets at 5 Counihan Rd is just the place to be for anyone looking for a good time to cap a busy, tiring or crazy week.

The markets offer everything from great food to live music, kids’ zone, lifestyle stalls and many more.

Every weekend, from Friday to Sunday, people from Centenary area and beyond can enjoy unique and delectable cuisine from dozens of top quality food trucks and stalls.

There’s a variety of food to please and satisfy the palate, including Italian, Greek, Vietnamese, Dutch, Mexican, Thai and American dishes. Great-tasting coffee, delectable wine and colourful drinks are also available for all to enjoy.

Truly, the Rocks Riverside Markets is a food haven, formed in response to a demand from the local community wanting to have their own market.

The weekend markets have also become a venue for many local businesses to showcase their products and handmade crafts.

Creators of the markets wanted to make it like Eat Street in Hamilton offering great dining experience mixed with lively entertainment. Judging by its popularity among the locals, Rocks Riverside is making a name of its own.

Get a glimpse of what it’s like in the Rock Riverside Markets.

The dates for the 2017 Centenary Rocks! festival has been announced, but the announcement came with a hint of sadness.

Volunteers from Centenary Community Connections (CCC) made the announcement on their website, noting that this year’s event will be the last time that the festival will be held.

The 2017 event will be held Saturday, 22 July and Sunday, 23 July. While this will be the last Centenary Rocks! festival, organisers promise that it will be a fun-filled weekend that everybody will enjoy for sure.

Saturday highlights will include the Blues Brothers tribute band, Casey Barnes, and Tim Gaze and the Allstars. For the finale, stunning fireworks will light the sky.

Sunday activities will include a car, bike and 4WD show, while Aussie legend Ross Wilson and Dragon band will rock the stage.

How It Began

The festival has become an annual event since its inaugural in 2003. Since that year, it has been considered as a premier event in Brisbane’s western suburbs.

The first Centenary Community festival was held at Centenary State High School. It was later in 2003 that the Rocks Riverside Park had its grand opening. A year later, the event was moved to the Rocks Riverside Park.

The organisers changed the name of the 2-day festival to Centenary Rocks! to reflect the music and dance events as well as to carry the name of the venue.

Centenary Rocks! is made possible through the voluntary efforts of CCC, a non-profit charity group dedicated to bringing the community together through various community events.

Aside from the Centenary Rocks! festival, the group also manages the Centenary Community Hub, the annual Santa Sleigh, Music at the Hub nights and other community events and charity work.

For more information on Centenary Rocks! festival, visit their website at www.centenaryrocks.com.

Brisbane is set to experience one sensational night of hilarious hypnotic fun as Andy Vening brings his Comedy Hypnosis Show to Jindalee this May.

The “Trans-Spectacular” show promises to be a night the audience will remember for years. Vening’s hypnosis show has gained rave reviews in 2016. This year’s entertainment is expected to be a hit with the audience once again.

The master stage hypnotist is on tour across Australia, with several shows in New South Wales, Victoria and one night in Brisbane, Queensland.

Vening’s Brisbane show will happen on May 19, at The Jindalee Hotel on Sinnamon Road, Jindalee. Vening is also expected to tour Tasmania and New Zealand.

Vening is known for using clinical hypnotherapy for counselling and brain training. With years of experience in hypnotherapy, Vening has created an exciting and engaging live act that is both mystifying and thought-provoking. His hypno-comedic act effectively blends science and entertainment into one unforgettable night of mayhem fun.

Want to enjoy a sensational night at the Andy Vening show? You can book your tickets online via Eventbrite.

To find out more, visit Andy Vening’s website at www.andrewvening.com.au.

Get directions to The Jindalee Hotel.