Discover Richlands

My vibration mode cellphone buzzed during class last night and as I peered at the lit screen, oddly enough it was my boss, Neal.

"Strange?," I thought to myself and wondered what in the blue blazes could owe this totally unexpected occurence.

Thus, upon answering the call i finally found out that I was requested to drive up north to this town of Richland - to go to the Richlands Magistrates Court - to brief a barrister on a matter this morning.


"Yes, of course," I answered assuredly. I mean who says no to the boss, and gets away with it?Well, noone, except er... the boss's wife? (hehe...anyway that's a different story)

So here I was 6.55am driving to this town, which i have never even heard of before, listening to Disc 2 of Ted Dekker's Black on Audio and enjoying the M1 before it's rush hour traffic, things went pretty smooth...

Pretty smooth until I took one exit too soon after the second toll booth on the way to Toowoomba and ended up coming back round to the same booth again (I'm sure I gave the lady a sense of deja vu). But she was kind enough to direct me to my destination.



So here it is the Richlands profile:

Location:
15 km west-southwest of the Brisbane CBD.

Features:
Acreage lifestyle.

Median Price:
The median house price in the suburb for the calendar year 2004 was $249,500.

Median Weekly Rent:
The median weekly rent paid for a 3-bedroom house in this area in the December 2004 quarter was $180.

Profile:
The suburb of Richlands is bordered by the neighbouring suburbs of Ellen Grove and Inala.

Being a small Brisbane suburb, consequently not many sales have been recorded over the last period. Many of the properties in the suburb are acreage lots giving the area a distinctively rural feel.

There are some community facilities in the suburb such as the Brisbane Lions Soccer Club, the Richlands Primary School, Richlands East Primary, Richlands High School, a Ten Pin Bowling Centre and McEwan Park.

The major retail and commercial facilities available to residents are to be found in neighbouring Inala and Darra.

According to the 2001 Census there were 862 people living in the suburb with a median age of 33. The median individual income was between $200 and $299 per week. Of all occupied private dwellings 66% were either fully owned or being purchased; 27% were being rented.

Notable residents:
Sicilians and Italians who came to Australia during the 1920s, later settled Richlands. Many had family connections in the sugar industry in North Queensland or in the fruit-growing region of Stanthorpe. Some settled in Richlands prior to WWII and a tight knit community developed.

A number of individuals were interned during the war, but afterwards more families joined them. Some managed to work at places like Queensland Cement and Lime or the brickworks while they were establishing their properties.

The first major crop was grapes, followed by small crops, strawberries and poultry. During the 1960s the Richlands District Grape Growers Association was formed with Mac Pola as president. Dutch families also settled here post war.

Landmarks:
Established on 12 June 1934, the Richlands School is the oldest of all the schools in the district. The five-acre lot where the school now stands was once a flourishing vineyard.

*Source: REIQ & Mary Howell, BRISbites, 2000