Flood victims urged to plan their recovery

PROPERTY News

Flood victims have been urged to plan the restoration of their homes carefully and allow time for the home to dry out to avoid costly mistakes which could lead to having to redo the repairs a second time.

Ian Agnew, Queensland State Manager of Archicentre said while owners want to get their house back to what it was before the flood, as soon as possible, it was essential that the house was sufficiently dry before repair work is carried out. Undertaking repairs to the structure and finishes before the house was dry enough can result in:
• Mould developing.
• Poor adhesion and blistering of finishes.
• Materials continuing to move as they finish drying resulting in cosmetic cracking to plaster and paintwork.
• Lifting and bubbling of vinyl floor coverings and carpets.
• Health problems for occupants.

Mr Agnew said, "timber in houses normally has an in-service moisture content of between 12% and 20%. After standing in water, timber will absorb moisture and may take months for the moisture content to return to what if was. It must drop to 12-16% before wall linings are replaced.
“Damaged sarking or building paper in external walls may need to be replaced. This will require the cladding to be removed on the outside of the house where the damage occurs. It is not sufficient to staple new sarking to the studs on the inside". "When reinstating wall or ceiling insulation, take the opportunity to upgrade to the best practice for the area."
Any framing reinstatement work must be carried out in accordance with the Building Code, including bracing and/or any tie-down metalwork as required. Seek advice from the local council if in doubt.

Low-lying property facing a dip

PROPERTY Residential

Property prices in Brisbane’s flood affected areas will drop in price by up to 35 per cent in the next 12 months, a Queensland University of Technology (QUT) property economics expert believes.

Professor Chris Eves from the School of Urban Development said the worst-hit areas would be the ring of suburbs surrounding waterfront homes.
“People who have bought riverfront homes have bought for the amenity, so they will weigh up the risk of flood against the amenity and the amenity will win,” he said. “When it comes down to the numbers, if you take out the time properties have been actually impacted by the floods between 1974 and 2011, for more than 99 per cent of the time these homes have been dry.
“The suburbs that will suffer will be the ones that don’t have the river amenity but that are in the low lying areas.” Professor Eves, who has tracked property prices following major floods in Sydney and the UK, said history had shown low-lying areas in low-value suburbs would drop in value by between 17 per cent and 35 per cent. “The peak price fall will be at about the 12- month mark,” he said.
“What we will see in Brisbane, like what we saw post the Sydney and UK floods, is that the first few months will be spent cleaning up from the floods.
“It is after this point that homeowners will need to re-evaluate their situation. “Those that simply can't afford to rebuild, or are forced to sell, will be the hardest hit, and that is where we will see property prices fall significantly." Professor Eves said the difficulty for sellers would be that buyers would be extremely cautious about purchasing in flooded areas for some time.
“It will be hard for sellers in flood prone areas to sell,” he warned. “Buyers will stay away and the only way to sell will be to drop the price.”
But the good news for property prices in the future was that people had short memories, Professor Eves said.
“In Sydney, after about four years we saw property prices return to normal,” he said. “Buyers will be extremely aware of the floods for the next few years but studies following both extreme flooding and bushfires have shown that people have short memories.”

City’s hot spots revealed

PROPERTY residential

Brisbane’s property hotspots for 2011 have been flagged in a new report by PRDnationwide research director Aaron Maskrey.

“Savvy buyers will look for opportunities where prices are still affordable but have potential to grow in value quicker than other Brisbane suburbs,” he said. The suburbs Mr Maskrey has identified are Albion, Bulimba, Chermside, Grange, Hawthorne, Kedron, Milton, Seven Hills, South Brisbane, Wilston, and Woolloongabba.
Houses or units have been nominated in these suburbs depending on which are likely to perform best, according to Mr Maskrey.
“Suburbs have been chosen based on current pricing levels, infrastructure, property trends, access to amenity and other factors,” Mr Maskrey said.
He said a property’s affordability and proximity to reliable transport nodes is key. “Several picks for the 2011 hotspots are suburbs that are located in or next to highly desirable areas at an affordable price,” he said.
Mr Maskrey said with traffic congestion quickly becoming common on many Brisbane roads – suburbs that have reliable public transport or suburbs which do not rely on the main choked up arterial roads are desirable.
“For this reason, several picks for 2011 are located in the middle north of Brisbane, where much of the development in transportation infrastructure has taken place,” he said.
“The Northern Link and Busway are expected to be open in mid-2012 and shall have a positive impact on the northern region of the city. Mr Maskrey said those suburbs lying closer to the city will experience greater demand for property first, and then shall be rippled out to the outer lying suburbs.
“Investors would be wise to enter into the middle north Brisbane market before developments are completed,” he said.
Mr Maskrey said the suburbs he identified in 2010 grew by an average 10 per cent for houses and 9.9 per cent for units – almost 4 per cent above the Brisbane average. His 2010 picks proved a good growth story and despite upheaval in the property market, Mr Maskrey is just as confident of his new hotspots. The suburbs he has picked for 2011 could be real estate gold in a slow market.

If big organs are your bag, head for Passau

TRAVEL ... with travel editor David Bray

If you have a thing about organs, particularly big organs, Passau is the place. Castles, too, and rivers, works in glass, boat trips and good food and beer. Passau is in Germany, at the junction of three rivers, which is why it took us two goes to get there.

The first time, we had to stay on in Vienna (no great hardship) when serious floods made that part of the Danube out of bounds. But we make it the following year, riding a hydrofoil up the Danube from Budapest to Vienna, then a couple of hours by train.
They tell us you can see the different colours of the three rivers as they meet at the Altstadt, a little peninsula where the tiny Ilz comes in from the north, the sometimes turbulent Danube from the west and the Inn from the south. If you try really hard, this is perhaps so. Certainly it is a lovely spot. High above it is a great castle, Veste Oberhaus Been there since the 13th century, built for defence and also used by some of Napoleon's forces.
Inside is the Oberhausmuseum which gives you a pretty good idea of what life in a castle has been like through all those years. Small, dark rooms is a first impression, but there are plenty of interesting displays of arms, cooking and eating gear, clothes, and so on. You can catch a bus up to the castle and walk down, which is what we did, several times, because the views on the way down are quite spectacular.
There are several other decent museums, one of which we stayed in. Yep the Hotel Wilder Mann occupies part of a building which also holds 36 rooms testament to one wealthy man's obsession with glass. There are more than 30,000 pieces in 380 cases of Bohemian glasswork and crystal. Astonishing.
Free to guests in this pleasant, well-run hotel which over the years has a provided a bed for celebrities from Empress Elisabeth of Austria to Neil Armstrong. It's an easy walk up to the Dom St Stephen ,the big cathedral dating from the 14th century but seriously rebuilt after a big fire in 1662. It is home to what is claimed to be the world's largest church organ - 17,774 pipes. Sounds magnificent, and there are recitals most lunchtimes - three euros for 30 minutes,
We jostle our way in long with a herd of Americans from one of the long tourist boats that ply the Danube so purposefully in the season. The male Americans get restless after about two minutes. The rest of us, certainly we Aussies, revel in the wondrous sonorities.
A wet day sees us take a cruise down river which takes us through pleasant, green countryside and a few craggy gorges. We also do one of the short cruises that run several times a day to a bit of each of those three rivers.
Eating and drinking are typically good here, and we end one heavy Franconian meal being entertained by the cook who yodels enthusiastically (and well) and charms his multi-national audience, especially a couple of Germans and a charmer of a Russian woman who appears to have some connection with "the embassy"'.
This is the anniversary of the end of the war in Europe so Mr Pavarotti of the yodel brings out toasts in firewater and there are hugs all round. The spy lady gives us a postcard of the Pope.

A huge adrenaline rush

FILMS ... with Tim Milfull

127 Hours (MA15+)
Director: Danny Boyle
Stars: James Franco
Rating: 5/5 93-minutes, now screening

Calling Aron Ralston an adrenaline junkie doesn’t quite do the term justice. The way director Danny Boyle paints this American adventurer left me thinking Ralston is more of an adrenaline junkie’s adrenaline junkie.

This human dynamo rushes through life looking for a thrill, and in the first few minutes of 127 Hours, we are left with no doubt about Ralston’s lust for life. Amid split screens showing clamouring masses of humanity, we watch Ralston (James Franco) packing for a trip into the wilderness, and all the while imagining that every time his wandering hand reaches through the recesses of a high cupboard in his kitchen, there’s a good reason that Boyle is focussing on Ralston’s pocketknife—it might have been very useful later... By mid-morning, the young man is mountain-biking along on the red dirt of the very isolated in Utah, and headed for a favourite canyon. After a brief, but spectacular interlude with two female hikers, Ralston tears away on his own, all the while filming and photographing his adventure. When a loose rock underfoot gives way, Ralston tumbles into a crevasse and finds himself pinned by his right hand between the wall and a very heavy boulder. And so, after priming his stopwatch, Ralston begins a countdown to a point of no return, when water and food will run out, and rescue can never come. In case you didn’t know, Aron Ralston actually endured this ordeal a few years ago, and paid an impressive physical price for his love of adventure. Franco’s portrayal of the climber is mesmerising, and his impression of Ralston’s methodical approach to dealing with his predicament had me transfixed, and more than impressed—this is pragmatism and self-responsibility incarnate. This might just be Danny Boyle’s best film yet, and he’s already made a number of excellent films.



Doing a job on global business

Inside Job (PG)
Director: Charles Ferguson
Rating: 4/5
108-minutes, now screening

Charles Ferguson is a very angry man with a story to tell, and he does so with a surprising level of calm. The director has travelled around the world making one of the first documentaries about the global financial crisis of 2008, with the intention of raising the same sort outrage among audiences as he feels about such an incredible waste of money, a waste that should never have happened.

Inside Job runs with one tagline that calls this the film that cost $20,000,000,000,000 to make, and as we watch a long line of talking heads explain exactly what started mostly in the United States, and then dragged down most of the rest of the world, one can’t help but sympathise with Ferguson.
Inside Job begins by examining the decline of Iceland’s economy, once one of the safest and admired economies in the Western world. We quickly come to appreciate that the central villains in Iceland and the rest of this story are bankers and insurance agencies.
Yes, if you’ve even remotely followed the news over the last few years, you’ll be well aware that the bloody banks screwed us on more than one level, but Ferguson and his fearsome researchers have meticulously documented the way in which they did it, and what a callous and irresponsible crew they are.
The amounts of money wasted and the methods these (mostly men) managed to con entire nations out of their savings simply are extraordinary. While the doco makers aren’t able to speak to some of the key bogeymen, they do manage to find several unwitting goons ready to step up and try to explain exactly what happened, and why their actions were justified.
Australia may have escaped relatively unscathed from the GFC, but this film shows the kind of symptoms and actions we should be wary of—if you aren’t ready to pick up the pitchforks and flaming pikes at the end of this film, chances are that you’re a derivatives-obsessed economist.


THE BINGE



TV satires hit their marks

Review with Myles Barlow (MA15+) now available through Roadshow
Tactical Response Unit (M) now available through Roadshow
The Lodger (PG) now available through Madman
The Man Who Knew Too Much (PG) now available through Madman
The 39 Steps (G) now available through Madman

Roadshow Entertainment recently released two excellent television satires in Review with Myles Barlow and Tactical Response Unit.
The first is a mock review show, where the eponymous Myles Barlow reviews life itself, responding to the letters of readers by reviewing their concerns, whether they be the notions of loss and fear, forming a cult, or anything at all, in fact.
This dark, tongue-in-cheek, series features an impressive line-up of cameos, from Myles’s arch-enemy David Stratton, to B-listers, Barry Crocker and Deiter Brummer.
Each review concludes with a laboured metaphor featuring agonising alliteration, mangled malapropos, and strained similes. I’ll lay off the spoilers, but I’ve been following Myles for a while now, and while he seems to be able to tweet from gaol, Season 3 may not be far off.
Tactical Response Unit is the latest outing by John Clarke and Bryan Dawe, and summarises another year of their appearances on The 7.30 Report.
My favourite this time around is Clarke as a climate-change denier spouting his nonsense as the screen fills with water.
Madman Entertainment continues with their excellent Directors Suite series by releasing some of the magnificent early work of Alfred Hitchcock while he was still working in the UK. The Lodger (1927) follows the adventures of a young man who is suspected of being a serial killer in foggy London. Peter Lorre stars as The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934), a film that was remade by Hitchcock in 1956 to win an Oscars and three nominations. And The 39 Steps stars Robert Donat in the definitive version of the story about mistaken identity.

Cradle this one in your pouring hand

WINE ... with David Bray

What do you really want from a bottle of wine? I am prompted to ask this by the promotional blurb for a book about wine, the latest manifestation of a publishing phenomenon that has produced enough books to fill the shelves of the State Library.

The message reckons “enjoying wines does not have to be difficult” and that, I must say, was the end of my interest in that particular volume. Who said it was? Enjoying wine is easy: Pick up the glass. Take a decent mouthful. Savour the flavour. Swallow. That’s about it for the bottles most us buy, those costing less than around $12.
More expensive ones deserve a bit of a sniff because if they have any genuine quality the smell will give pleasure. You know that smell and taste work together. The best wines, particularly reds, will signal their quality early on with their wondrous perfume. Sure, I have written probably more than my share of basic wine enjoyment information, but most of it was perpetrated 40 or so years ago when almost all of us were learning. Of course every day someone will have their first wine experience, but I would not dream of suggesting that it’s hard work.
But enough of this. I bring you word of a genuine bargain wine, of which I have never read a word in press release and very few words in advertising, never been sent a tasting sample.
It is Cradle Bay and when I buy white wine, this tends to be the one I go for. Clever name, reminding me of two good places, Cradle Mountain and Cloudy Bay. In terms of provenance it’s near enough an orphan.
The label tells us it is from Marlborough, NZ, made in 2010 and imported by Victorian business James Busby Fine Wines. No mention of a vineyard or winery. Nice bit of blending, though. The usual printed and internet sources are not informative. The label uses a few more words to enthuse about the wine: “ripe tropical and gooseberry fruit with a zingy finish and impeccable balance. A great aperitif or seafood wine made for drinking young. Serve lightly chilled.’
That’s pretty accurate. This has become our house white. Took it to a family do and a daughter-in-law liked it so much she bought a case for her next ladies’ luncheon, where it was well received. We took some to our gym’s Christmas party and so did several other people.
How much is this treasure? There’s some effective marketing/selling here. I first bought a box of six when it was offered with a pack of reds for a tempting price. Subsequently there have been similar deals on offer and one which saved me plenty on a bottle of scotch.
To answer the basic question, the price can vary from around $8 to around $10. All of which probably disqualifies me from the ranks of serious wine writers. Too bad, say I.

***
NOW here’s a useful idea that we are not likely to see mentioned, let alone implemented, in Queensland. Under new liquor laws that came into force in Victoria on January 1, butchers will be able to sell 1.5 litres of wine or two bottles to customers at their shop to accompany their purchase. Not only butchers.

Bed and breakfast operators, hairdressers and florists may apply for a liquor licence to sell wine with their goods and services but it must come from one designated vineyard. They won't be able to supply a range of wines from multiple vineyards. Director of Liquor Licensing said that businesses like butchers and florists where the supply of liquor is only a small part of their services won't have to hold a liquor licence but will still have to meet certain criteria.

Ignorant people need tug in right direction

FROM MY CORNER ... with Ann Brunswick

You may recall that during the recent Brisbane floods the multi-million-dollar floating riverwalk linking New Farm and the CBD was washed downstream in several large pieces. You may also recall that the captain of a tug boat took to the water to chase a large chunk of the riverwalk and shepherd it away from ships and the pylons of the Gateway Bridge.

Which got me thinking about how we could use that same type of expertise on dry land. While walking through city streets recently there were at least half-a-dozen occasions when someone coming the other way almost collided with me because he or she was paying more attention to texting on their mobile phone than to where they were walking.
This is an ever-increasing problem as more people devote more of their time and energy to their hand-held communication devices.
My idea would be to have someone like that talented tug-boat captain train up a squad of people who could roam city streets and push out of the way those whose attention is focussed on their mobile phone rather than others sharing the footpath.

***
Much has been made about Tony Abbott’s performance in the face of questioning by a Channel 7 reporter about his “shit happens” remark in Afghanistan in relation to the death of an Australian soldier.

In particular, commentators have single out the long silences that greeted repeated questions from the network reporter. I say, what’s the drama? Surely such silence should be encouraged among our politicians.
If our pollies took Abbott’s lead, we would all be a lot better off. Not to name names, but there are certainly some we could bear hearing a lot less from. You know who you are Bob Katter Jr .... oops.

***
So, Michael Klim is the latest of our former Olympians to come out of retirement and set their sights on a return to swimming glory at the London Games next year.

The news follows a similar recent announcement by superfish Ian Thorpe and previous comebacks by Libby Trickett and Geoff Huegill. A place on the pool deck at any Olympic Games is something many young Australians aspire to achieve. Which is why it seems a tad selfish to me for those who have had their golden moment - in some cases, many golden moments - to set out to snatch a place in the Olympic squad ahead of young up-and-comers.
There are only a limited number of spots in the Australian Olympic swimming team, so if Thorpe or Klim make it, then some poor youngster who might have gone to London and done us proud will have to wait another four years for their turn. Of course that all depends if some other has-been decides to make a return appearance.
C’mon guys, you’ve had your turn. Let someone else have a go at getting gold.

***
So here’s the dilemma I faced the other day: not only am I one of the few people using the Clem 7 tunnel at that time, but I’m also religiously trying to stick to the 80kph speed limit in my trusty LandRover, knowing full well that speed cameras inside the tunnel make more money each day nabbing leadfoots than the tunnel’s operators take in tolls.

But right on my back bumper bar is a rather large and very impatient truck. My speedo says 82 or 83, and this truck looms up close, makes its presence known in a very threatening manner, and then noisily brakes as it slips a little behind, just to start the process all over again.
He’s in the left hand lane – trucks have to be – and he’s trying to force me to either break the limit by an even greater amount, or swing over to the right hand lane to let him through. But here’s the catch: I’m heading for the innercity bypass that veers off to the left when you least expect it. So I steadfastly refuse, of course, to get out of his way just so he can speed, but it made for a very unpleasant few minutes inside the tunnel.
I probably saved this clown a very hefty speeding fine – so if he remembers my rear end from the other day – and a fine rear end it is if I say do myself – perhaps he’d like to drop me a simple thank-you note for possibly saving him a lot of money.
An apology for his aggressive and dangerous driving habits would also be nice but I’m not holding my breath.

Local publishing icon mourned

NEWS

Our local community has been greatly diminished by the death of Newstead resident Gloria Grant after a battle with cancer. The co-author of the excellent local historical book, Reflections of New Farm, was farewelled by about 100 mourners at the Merthyr Road Uniting Church last Saturday.

Her partner in publishing and in life Gerard Benjamin told the congregation: “People keep saying that it was always wonderful talking to Gloria. Perhaps it was her sympathetic ear or maybe a helpful word of advice. For the most part, people came away from a meeting with her, buoyed not with some wonderful gem of insight, but because she’d helped them to glimpse the wealth of spirit within themselves.
“Even in the midst of her medical travails, Gloria is remembered fondly at both hospitals for holding the hand of the ministering nurse or doctor, as if to console them for the helplessness which they felt in the face of her worsening condition.
“I can only imagine that she had a vast reservoir of spirit upon which to call, thus enabling her to offer her overflow to others. Never was there a more appropriate instance of the truth of Adam Lindsay Gordon’s verse: ‘Two things stand like stone. Kindness in another's trouble, courage in your own.’ “Long live Gloria!”
Ross Garnett from the New Farm and Districts Historical Society said in one of the many emails posted after Gloria passed away that the society had “had lost one of our valuable members”.
“Gloria was a gracious and generous lady, in particular with her historical knowledge, her insight into human nature and her gifts in writing which benefitted so many, whether they be individuals, the society or the wider community. She will be sadly missed.”

Garden makeover brings new life, hope

NEWS

By Linda Brennan

Have you been down the far end of Brunswick Street recently? A small oasis of green was spared from the floods and is flourishing at the New Farm Neighbourhood Centre next to the Bowls Club.

It’s a new garden makeover, installed by a proud “green team” with a special talent for achieving exceptional things. This amazing productive garden is a wonderful success story and not just because it’s growing fresh organic food for the local community.
The landscape team was a swish band of volunteers plus eight men who came from difficult circumstances. Four of the team installing this special spot were engaged by the 139 Club, having experienced homelessness and marginalisation. Four others were clients of the New Farm Neighbourhood Centre. While working on this garden, eight team members achieved their horticultural qualifications through TAFE under the guidance of landscape professional Kevin Boulton.
While gaining qualifications may not sound too remarkable, this is the first formal qualification for some of these fellows. The regular, enjoyable work has given them security and an income after being unemployed for some time.
For the new horticultural professionals on the team, this is not the end of the story though. One is continuing at TAFE and intends to go on the study design at uni, one has been employed as a trainee, three are studying additional to compliment their skills and two have been offered work by a local landscape maintenance contractor.
We wonder if maybe our very own Jamie Dury lookalike is about to grow out of this local team from New Farm? Who knows? Manager Rod Kelly from the 139 Club who made the project happen, says that “the Club will remain engaged with the guys for six months in a mentoring and support role”.
“I’ve never seen such a determined group of guys. They’ve turned up to work no matter what the weather has thrown at them, and they’ve been seriously committed to achieving their certificates. It’s been a great experience to have them on board,” says Rod.
He describes the clever design created by Kevin, as “allowing for access and seating so that even folks in wheelchairs, and those who couldn’t bend over could still enjoy the benefits of growing and tending foo.
“When we heard the Neighbourhood Centre wanted a community food garden, it was too good an opportunity to miss. They provided the space while we were able to pull it all together for them with Linda’s terrific support’. Centenary Landscapes also provided many landscape materials at cost price and Kennards generously provided all the machinery we needed to install the project.
Fiona, manager at the New Farm Neighbourhood centre, tells us that “the skilled work of the team and volunteers has seen raised beds, paths, fences, irrigation and drainage installed, completed with the expertise you’d expect from a seasoned landscapers.
“It’s a credit to all involved that even with the wettest December on record, the gardens have not only survived, but gone on to flourish. Their determination to do a good job and finish on time was amazing.”
If you peek in through the garden archway you’ll see a marvelous mix of traditional and exotic food plants growing luxuriously. They will provide varied and delicious harvest over the wet Queensland summer.

Above: Sean, David, Martin and Michael helped bring the garden to life.
Below: Some of the participants show off their horticulture certificates.
Bottom: Local state MP Grace Grace with participant Martin Muenzel (left) and 139 Club general manager Rod Kelly.

Flood cleanup volunteers praised

NEWS

Local State MP Grace Grace MP has issued a “big “thank you” to all those residents, businesses and community groups in her Brisbane Central electorate who worked so hard to soften the blow of the recent flood event to hit our suburbs.

“As we all have seen it has been a truly amazing response to what has been for many a difficult and trying time, if not a disaster,” Ms Grace said. “Neighbours, friends and strangers have been pitching in to clean up the areas most affected like parts of the CBD, New Farm, Windsor, Herston, Newstead and Albion,” she said.
“I would also like to pay tribute to the many volunteers who assisted at the Bowen Hills Evacuation and Recovery Centre who were looking after 1500 people at the height of the emergency.
“It was truly heart-warming to see the continual flow of people in cars and trucks donating food, clothing and goods to the centre to help the evacuees.
“I have been distributing recovery information to as many people as possible affected by the floods but if anyone requires additional assistance with information on how to get back on their feet please call me on 3832 1322.”