Residents’ Action Group
Truth, Justice and the Minto Way

The Residents Action Group (RAG) was formed in the aftermath of the Minto renewal announcement in May, 2002. Existing groups such as the Macarthur Community Leadership Programme and Minto Healthy Community Project took up the redevelopment issue, and there were discussions about the need for a resident run organisation. Exactly a month after the renewal project was announced, the RAG met for the first time.

“The other early role of the RAG was that it was a place where people were sharing immediate reactions and stories about the impact on themselves - that became an important role for the group. It was a space to be heard and to find out that others were feeling the same way.”

“One of the key things we did right at the beginning, people had lots of questions, so we started building up a list of questions that needed answers... they were all submitted to the DOH for answers. There were some preliminary answers and then eventually there was a Fact Sheet put out with each of the questions answered.”

“You remember the survey of Valley Vista in the beginning? The results the residents got were virtually the same as the research report which they did later but at that time, because it was done by the residents, the Department weren’t willing to listen to the results... When it was done by a university with virtually the same information, they took notice of it!”

“One of the RAG members played an important role with the safety committee that grew out of the RAG. I remember he went round and checked the numbers of the lights that weren’t working. Because as people moved out, it became more important to have the security lighting.”

“We had a session in the theatrette at Parliament House one lunch time. We had two children from here because it had been a children’s project and they spoke at that meeting about what it was like for them to know that they were going to move and lose their friends.”

“We were putting forward positions, arguments and concerns that couldn’t be ignored and if they were going to be ignored we had a number of papers, even the Sydney Morning Herald who were interested to hear the residents’ opinions.”

“And Stateline on the ABC TV, the residents spoke and the RAG had some media workshop preparation before that but it was the residents that spoke.”

“The Department was unsure, I think they thought that they’d demolish all the cottages. The survey showed that there was more stability there than in the other areas, and so why completely disrupt something that’s more stable than anywhere else? So the Precincts where the cottages are, 174 cottages are going to remain and that policy was significantly influenced, we believe, by the RAG.”

“I think the other thing was getting the commitment to 30 percent [public housing] because they started to get that to come down too. All the stuff around - that Minto was a strong community - was acknowledged because they were saying it was a dysfunctional community and that’s why it had to go. They stopped that and started to acknowledge the community’s strength.”

“The other significant thing was that we became very aware of the emotional stress the residents were experiencing in the relocation so it was put to the Department that there should be someone to support the residents - a residents’ advocate... This was another thing the RAG fought for and gained.”

“We’ve had links with a range of suburbs which have had rumour of, or are being redeveloped including Erskineville, Dubbo, Macquarie Fields, Airds...”

“Because when demolition starts and there are still people living there… it can be a bit scary because houses are being knocked down and all kinds of people are wandering about there at night time.”

“The RAG have gotten a meeting with the Minister for Housing on several occasions so about five or six people from the RAG and maybe from another agency, went in and had a discussion about their concerns with the Minister of Housing at that time.”

“Yvonne just said that she’d sum it up as truth, justice and the Minto way.”