Beltana Progress Association is excited to announce that once again the Beltana Town Hall will play host to the fantastic Festival of Small Halls on 15 March 2020! Put the date in your calendar now to ensure that you can make it to what will be a fantastic night. In keeping with 2020 being the year of Scotland, the international act will be from Scotland and we are investigating how we can elaborate on the theme - pack your kilts and let’s have a bonny time!
Hall Cellar Restoration
As part of the ongoing work of restoring the Beltana Town Hall, Beltana Progress Association was fortunate to receive funding from FRRR, ANZ, the OCA and PIRSA to begin the renovation of the cellar under the wooden floor of the hall.
Opening up the access hatch we were confronted with the remains of the time that had passed since the cellar was last used, however, undaunted the community pitched in to clear, first the staircase and then, with the assistance of SouthVac, the rest of the area.
Once the space was clear, carpentry, electrics and stone masonry works were undertaken to add partitions, lighting, and to make the stairway safe for our future plans of displaying a collection of Flinders Ranges art.
The next stage is to finalise some stone masonry on the walls (which are in fantastic condition considering their age!) and undertake protective work on the floor. Stay tuned for the next update!
Regional Growth Fund Announced
Beltana Progress Association has been fortunate to be successful in securing funds for the continuing renovation of the Hall from the Regional Growth Fund and were happy to host the OCA and Minister Van Holst Pelekaan as a part of the announcement of these funds. Further information, including the other communities who have received funds can be found by contacting the OCA.
ANZAC Day 2019
Community members and visitors gathered at the Beltana Hall at dawn to commemorate ANZAC Day, a meaningful service was followed by breakfast, music by John O’Dea and then Lunch for those who stayed on. We look forward to gathering again next year on this special day and hope to see you there.
Small Halls Concert Enjoyed by All
On March 16 2019 Beltana was host to a fantastic event presented by the Woodfordia Foundation - The Festival of Small Halls. People arrived at the Beltana Town Hall from far and wide in the late afternoon for a BBQ dinner and stayed into the evening to enjoy performances by John O’Dea, John Flanagan and Canadian band The Once. Everyone was impressed by the quality of the artists and all agreed that we look forward to doing it again! With just over 70 people attending the evening was a wonderful introduction to the Festival and we would like to thank our sponsor, the Fund for Rural & Regional renewal who helped make this social occasion the success that it was.
Water Supply to the Hall
Here in the Outback, water is a precious resource and until recently Beltana has been providing public toilets in the town which were hooked into the meagre supply of rainwater at the hall. Obviously this was not a sustainable situation. Therefore, with help from the OCA we were able to trench and lay a pipe from the town well to the hall, enabling us to fill a separate tank with ground water that can be used for the bathroom facilities and to irrigate the plantings of trees around the hall. These small steps towards sustainability will enable the town to continue to provide improved services to the community and public in general well into the future.
