~ Stanwell Park — has its own _ soap opera, ut its not on TV EE Even though Stanwell Park is close to Sydney, television reception, if residents get TV at all, is worse than in more remote areas. ROSANNE ROBERTSON reports. OT everyone with a television set these days can see that Dailas is more than just a city in the US. If you live at Stanwell Park, 45 kilometres from Sydney as the crow flies, on the South Coast, for instance, you are lucky to get television at all. But the saga of Stanwell Park, its efforts for improved reception over many years by representations to Government, experiments with aerials, transformers and boosters has, for the 7,200 or so residents, probably been more absorbing than any soap opera. “There was a viewer in the neighbour- jing community of Coalcliff whose television was fine but only until a certain time each day when a goods train departed. It was assumed the television signal bounced off a railway wagon. ‘in Stanwell Park an aerial blown down. ‘on its side improved reception no end, Charlie Goodman, who runs and lives behind the general store, found an aerial ‘on the footpath outside did the trick. John Vander, an artist who runs the local Articles art gallery, has his aerial beside the house on the ground. He gets Channel 2 best, a snowy picture on ‘Channels 9 and 10 and nothing on SBS or WIN-d. His daughter "watches cartoons on video, “It’s the only way to ees,” he said. i to blame, a fact faced by northern beach signals are fs in the inlets around lovely sid Ma ‘complaint about his “forgotten town” in f letter 10 the editor, was published recently in The Sydney Morning Herald. Te makes you want to throw a brick through the set.” ‘Mr Orrock, a Maritime Services Board clerk in Sydney, has lived in Stanwell Park for 3% years. He says he watches about five videos a week, including an episode of Fawlty Towers. “There is nothing on television for sports fans,” he said. “I would have loved to have seen the Olympic Games and Australia win the America’s Cup.” ‘The complaints are as old as Only residents in Stanwell Park’s north- eastern corner get their local Wollon- gong station, WIN-4, although the Station shows shots of the area for promotion. And Bruce Gordon, the Station's deputy chairman, major shareholder, and president of Paramount Pictures International Distribution based in New York, gives 2 Stanwell Park address to” the Australian Broadcasting Tribunal, ‘Many, especially on the south side, do not see WIN-4 at all. Those living Centrally can receive Sydney channels 7 fand 10, although some see Channel 7 2 only in red and green. Only @ minority 5 gets the ABC from cither Sydney or 2 Wollongong. According to Georg Joyce, 2 longtime resident: “There are = times you can get Channel 2, but there = are two of everything.” Some see Channel 9 but hear nothing. ‘Hangliders, which fly regularly from nearby Stanwell Tops, caus interference, so do airelevision. ‘The Country Women's Association, 38 members. strong, the Parents and Citizens group, residents at © United Protestant Association homes, the Progress Association have all hhad their say about Stanwell Park Steve Barrett, a technical officer with the NSW Housing Commission's landscape section, is speatheading a renewed attack and pushing for Stanwell Park to be included in the Sydney metropolitan stations’ service area Blaine and Ray Pugh, residents of the town for 33 years, have spent over $1,000 on a video. Mrs Pugh, CWA branch president, says television means a lot to most of the retired people in the area, who are often isolated without GOOD WEEKEND transport. Her husband Ray is one of them. He enjoys David Attenborough’s Life on Earth programs, which are recorded on video by his son who lives outside Stanwell Park. Ella McGregor who lives in one of 19 cottages owned by the United Protestant Association, gets only Channel 10, and WIN-4 with a double image. For her, seeing the news is the main thing. But she has an intellectually handicapped daughter who would like to watch TV all the time. “IFT was on my own, I'd think “plow it” and just listen to the radio,” she said Radio reception is offen not much better. The signal is sometimes so weak the radio needs a separate aerial Some of Wollongong's northern suburbs can expect to see SBS television soon when @ translator is installed soon near Corrimal, But it won't make much difference to viewers in Coalcliff or ‘Stanwell Park, In December 1983, the Department of Communications confirmed that areas such as Stanwell Park and Wollongong’s northern suburbs do not receive adequate television services but so far there has been no resolution. Robert ‘Tickner, the MP for Hughes, whose file fon the subject goes back t0 1977, says the area is being discriminated against by the broadcasting bureaucracy. He wants it to be classed as an overlap area like Gosford/Wyong which receives both Above: Elaine Pugh Left: Mark Orrock Sydney and Newcastle TV. programs WIN-4, he says, cannot claim to be serving the area adequately. The answer is a translator on the escarpment, which WIN-1 suggests should be supplied under the Federal Government's Self help Television Reception Scheme. “The community would have a 50 per cent equity, provide the site, access, and f pole for the translator; the station would provide technical equipment, installation, and ongoing maintenance. Depending on the site agreed on, WIN-4 gives an estimated cost to the community fof between $2,000. and $10,000. The > Conic on page 25 23Soap opera Continued from page 22 station was involving the community in this because Bald Hill, the location selected as the most technically appro- priate for the translator equipment, was an environmentally sensitive area popular with hang-gliders, WIN-4s chief engineer, Mr Peter Gough said. “We've allocated funds and done technical analysis and gone a long way down the line. What we're really awaiting now is community support for our application to Wollongong Council.” But the support is not forthcoming because the community does not want to receive just one station when it could receive television from both Sydney and ‘Wollongong. And Steve Barrett does not Left: Ella McGregor see why the community should pay when under the Broadcasting and Television Act, WIN-4 is already required to provide “‘an adequate and comprehensive service” to viewers in its service area, “Adequate and comprehensive” is not defined under the Broadcasting and Television Act, although the Tribunal looks into complaints about poor reception at its television station licence renewal hearings. (WIN-4's next one is in 1987.) Under new amendments in force from January licensees will be required to Provide a service to a defined area and will not need extra licences for translators in return for a guarantee of no interference from other areas. The defined service area decision is another sore point for Stanwell Park which, for the purposes of council, the census and television, is considered part ‘of Wollongong. “The community of interest is with Sydney,” says Steve Barrett in a submission he is preparing for the Department of Communications. “The majority of people (in Stanwell Park) have employment, education, family, shopping and service links there on castors. Balgowlah 402 Syciney Road Ella resists peeling and chipping, complete with cutting board, 13 with "what to do about storage space” Ph. 949 3480 Burwood 185G Burwood Road Ph. 747 4600 Bondi Junction 149 Edgecif Road Ph: 288 2577 There's eight wine racks, from four bottle storage to large cellar storage, from free standing, to wall attached, from stained and natural pine to plastic coated wire.- Seven shoe racks. 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Visit your nearest Storage Shop, ‘We have all youll ever need in storage! - ot hop natural wood, or paint-yourself — concertina, wall to wall, for small Here's just a few The Hurstville 175 Forest Road Ph: 579 2204 HOKAGE eis ees Northbridge 69 Strathallen Avenue ‘The mobile Elfa kitchen tidy, designed to move with you, Ph 95 3995 26 GOOD WEEKENDHerald, for real estate classifies us as metro- Nearby Orford is the fe suburban railway to Telecom recommends in the Sydney dialling area Park has developed in rs by people moving south rather than north from community the same from Sydney (Penrith is 48 es, Gosford 47 kilometres) is ded from its television service area population of Sydney spreads, so its television services.” the department believes that iving metropolitan stations’ signals case such as this, is lucky. And in April last. year, Communications Minister Michael’ Duffy wrote that y regional stations would find it icult to exist if the service areas of however, appears tobe ‘ving well without Stanwell Park 3 the licensee company, Wollongong. Transmissions out to John Fairfax Ltd in the Brisbane TV Ltd but made a of $5 million from selling its 30 it share in Brisbane TV. TWT Led reported a 31.1 per cent rise in net profit of $2.36 million for the year ended June 1984 and a 19.4 per cent increase in turnover to $10.63 million Last year it valued its licence at $24.3, million. In May 1985 it advised shareholders of a broad restructuring and the formation of anew company, TWT Holdings Ltd, which would act as the group parent and financier Included in TWT Holdings’ investment plans are: 1. The acquisition of another television station; 2. The acquisition of a number of AM and FM radio stations; 3. Expansion in the financing, production and distribution of Australian feature films and overseas television series; 4. Entrepreneurial pursuits allied to the television industry; 5. The expansion of existing television services through supplementary television licences in the company’s existing service area; and 6. Investment in other sound revenue- producing activities, some of which are already being investigated. ‘The Department of Communications, its recently announced options for the velopment of Australian commercial vision, is strengthening the influence gional networks with an equalisation sive regional viewers the choice hree commercial services, as is the se in the State capitals, one ABC 'D WEEKEND station and one Special Broadcasting Service between 1988 and 1990, That desire for greater television choices by fringe area dwellers such as those in Stanwell Park is what equalisation is ll about, a DOC spokesman said. But it still does nothing to improve poor television reception. Some Stanwell Park residents think hope lies in the Homestead and Community Broadcasting Satellite which from January begins beaming ABC television and FM services via ‘Aussat t0 the 300,000 Australians who now get nothing in remote areas. Steve Barrett however, thinks a cable system ‘would be more economical. But a cable system would mean viewers could receive Sydney television, and radio unless an eliminator device ‘was put in, and Stanwell Park people do not want Sydney television eliminated. The words of George Joyce, 30 years in the Stanwell Park, might be worth remembering: “It's not a bad place to live, all the same — without TV.” a “If I were asked to 2 open class Championships V oi d ” _ Lindemans. Ie sn’ only James Halliday who believes Lindemans produce the best Hunter wines. Inthe 1985 Sydney Wine Show, Lindemans mature aged Hanters amassed an incredible 18 major awards, Including a Trophy, 1d Gold medals. ‘The 1982 Lindemans Hunter River Burgundy Bin 6400 continues this tradition. Ie may be savoured, while young, or allowed to develop “classic” depth and dimension with extended cellaring. nominate a single winery which regularly pro- duced the best Hunter wines, there would be only one possible choice — 20