Key priorities of Crown land 2031

Reflections Holiday Parks is partnering with community volunteers to ensure the ongoing care and preservation of this important community asset and historic site.

Reflections started as the newly appointed Crown land manager of the Norah Head Reserve in September 2023. The reserve had been successfully managed by a community board and volunteers since 2002, however, the voluntary board believed it appropriate to bring the operations of this reserve under increased corporate governance with a greater focus on the management of this iconic site.

To continue the community connection with this reserve, Reflections will work with the Norah Head Reserve Community Liaison Group, and a passionate group of volunteers, to care for and preserve the historic site which includes holiday accommodation in the former lighthouse keeper’s house.

This is a reserve management model Crown Land encourages, with community collaboration bringing local knowledge to the management of this popular and historic Crown reserve.

The NSW RSPCA operates a facility at Yagoona in Sydney’s south west. We have extended the term of the RSPCA’s lease to 50 years, to provide certainty of tenure and allow for an $18 million redevelopment including a new veterinary hospital, upgraded administrative and stores buildings, and new legacy dog kennels.

The lease extension will save the RSPCA in excess of $7.4 million, compared to what they would pay on a commercial site. The money saved can be redirected towards animal welfare and expanding the services the RSPCA offer, including educating the community about animal welfare and the services the RSPCA provide.

Many Crown land reserves have a rich and complex history, where the use of a reserve has evolved over time to meet the needs of the community. An   example of this is Hyde Park, which is now a popular retreat for workers and visitors to the Sydney CBD. At the beginning of the colony the land was used for collecting firewood and grazing animals. Its first recreational use was a racecourse and in the 1820s it was used as a cricket pitch. Later the park became a venue for Sunday oratories on political and civic topics and for election meetings.

In 2015 the Yininmadyemi: Thoust Didst Let Fall monument was completed. The work acknowledges that even before Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples were counted in the census and recognized   as citizens, they were risking their lives to defend Australia. The site for the monument, at Hyde Park South, was chosen as it was once a ritual contest ground, a crossroads for traditional walking trails, and an important site for ceremony, gathering and camping.

Nail Can Hill is home to threatened flora and fauna species, including the endangered Crimson Spider Orchid. Many groups access the reserve and its fire trails for a wide range of recreational activities and essential emergency access.

Crown Lands is implementing holistic environmental management to support conservation of biodiversity and other values of this unique reserve. Bush fire mitigation works focus on cool mosaic burns. Discussion following a fire allows community stakeholders to consider pathways for future environmental and cultural burns and to achieve successful environmental outcomes.

Future management of the reserve, including the application of fire will continue with input from all key stakeholders, including elders from the local Aboriginal community, Rural Fire Service staff and volunteers, Council, Local Land Services and National Parks and Wildlife Service.