Australian made

There's very little clothing and textile manufacturing left in Australia. It's wonderful to still see this iconic sign at the Koala factory in Arncliffe.

Arncliffe used to be a mix of light manufacturing and working class housing - a working class inner suburb.

Now the factories have all but disappeared as the high rise housing development has encroached. In planning circles they are called "brown fields sites." Once upon a time, the manufacturing workforce could afford to live in these inner-ring suburbs, and their jobs were located nearby, or on public transport corridors.

How long before the small industrial site is swallowed up?

Hats off to the owners of the family business, Koala, for the following statement on their website. It's a really informative website, with a short video(click here)  of their 82 year history, and a photo gallery of the whole process from designing to manufacturing (click here).

Statement by Koala: 

Australian Manufacturing Is Our Future.

We have a single-minded purpose… to keep Australian manufacturing jobs in Australia. This is our primary goal and it’s at the heart of everything we do. We believe that as long as there is a loyal market of Australian customers who value locally-made high-quality products, Koala Clothing will continue to move from strength to strength. We’re proud of the past 80 years and we’re excited about the next 80 years and beyond!

The A to Z of 2205: Arncliffe St Arncliffe to Wolli Creek

Arncliffe St is a street mainly of light industry and car workshops etc. Many of the car yards on the Princes Highway back on to Arncliffe St. It is narrow. Recently the Wolli Creek end has been re-developed with multi-storey apartments. At first I thought that surely the road must be widened to cope with the increase in traffic. No! Then there was a breakdown in undergound services uner the road (water and electricity, I think) and it was dug up for months on end. I think it is a case study in how NOT to undertake a development. I am not necessarily troubled by re-use of land for alternative purposes, but such developments cause unnecessary inconvenience and seem designed to benefit the developers more than anyone else.

Starting at the Wolli Creek end

Below: Looking from Brodie Spark Drive up Arncliffe St from the Wolli Creek end
Below: "Proximity" is the high rise development fronting Arncliffe St. The amazing thing is that this narrow road, which carries a large amount of the traffic into and out of Arncliffe is also a designated "cycle route" ! They have to be joking.
Below: Proximity, by developer Multiplex. Two bedroom apartments routinely cost over $400 000
Below: What is this? A Substation?
Below: Warehouse building currently used for indoor Go-Kart racing


Below: Looking towards Brodie Spark Drive at Wolli Creek, 'Proximity' on the left.


Below: Morris McMahon was the site of a prolonged industrial dispute in 2003
Below: There used to be houses, however, there are only two left, and they have been converted to other purposes. One is a sandwich and lunch shop servicing the factories in the area, and this one.
Below: Looking towards the Arncliffe end. On the right, the other house, now afood outlet, and across the railway line the Al-Zahra mosque
Below: Looking from the corner of Allen St
Below: On the station side of Arncliffe St, near Burrows St, looking along Arncliffe St. Allen St corner is in the middle. This is the station's commuter car park
Below: Looking in the oppositie direction from the previous shot.
Below: From the corner of Allen St. Empress resewrve is on the left. The green box near the letter box is a mail collection box for the postie to pick up from.

Below: The station from the commuter car park
Below: The park at the end of the carpark, behind Arncliffe Scots. The walkway extends from the end of Arnclife St where it meets Burrows St to the station overpass.


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Photos taken 03 and 04 August 2008

The A to Z of 2205: Argyle St

Named after the county of Argyll in Scotland, birthplace of John McInnes who subdivided this area as the Innesdale Estate.(The Origins of Street Names in the Municipality of Rockdale, compiled by Alderman Ron Rathbone, 1990)

Part 1: The residential end

Below: At the Ann St end, the street sign is one of the older black and white variety
Below: Nothing but units in the stretch between Allen and Ann Sts.
Below: looking from Allen St towards Ann St
Below: from Ann St
Part 2: The Other End

Below: The end of Arglye St looking from Allen At. It goes around the corner at then end and emerges on the Princes Highway.

Below: Looking towards the Princes Highway
Below: The most interesting thing about Argyle St is that it has a "mound" cutting off one end from the other. It is an elevated section of the Southern and Western Ocean Outfall Sewerage pipes.

Below: The next bit of Argyle taken from on top of the sewer
Below: Lookign along the sewer, back to the Princes Highway. You can see the minaret of Al-Zahra mosque.
Below: The last stretch of Argyle St
Below: From Princes Highway

Below: Looking towards the sewer
Below: The Princes Highway at the end
Below: From Allen St to the sewer


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Photos taken 03 and 10 August 2008

The A to Z of 2205: Allen St Arncliffe

Name may be a mis-spelling. Alland and Ann Streets were named after the parents of John McInnes who owned this land before it was subdivided. (The Origins of Street Names in the Municipality of Rockdale, compiled by Alderman Ron Rathbone, 1990)

Below: A small park, Empress Reserve, on the corner of Allen and Arncliffe Streets.
Below: Looking along Allen St towards the Princes Highway. The large building is Ford motor repairs and service

Below: Looking towards the Princes Highway from the intersection (a roundabout) with Arncliffe St

Below: Looking from the Princes Highway down Allen St
Below: Intersection of Princes Highway and Allen St
Below: Purnell Motors Used cars is on the corner of Princes Highway and Allen St. It goes through the whole block to Ann St (more photos from that side in Ann St entry)
Below: I like this mosaic at Purnell Motors

Below: Mazda repairs and service is on the corner of Allen and Arncliffe Sts (opposite Empress Reserve)
Below: This pair of semi-detatched cottages are the only houses left in Allen St

Below: On the southern side of the street there are a couple of large blocks of 3 storey walk-up flats.


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Photos taken 3 August 2008