By Mikayla van Loon
After months of negotiations with Yarra Ranges Council, Japara Neighbourhood House has been given a financial reprieve because of the extent of what it offers as a community centre.
The decision was handed down at the council meeting on Tuesday 13 September to not implement the $2,500 planned efficiency dividend and $4,579 reduction in community engagement funding.
Japara board chair Mark Doubleday said the impact of the pandemic on all of Japara’s many and varied programs came at a huge financial cost to the community hub.
“Going into 2022 Japara had lost 70 per cent of its operating income due to Covid-19. That’s a big hit,” he said.
“It’s been tough and at times I thought Japara wouldn’t make it. There have been some sleepless nights.”
Determined to re-establish Japara as a strong and vibrant community space in Kilsyth, Mr Doubleday said everything had to change.
“The Japara Board of Management has been determined to see Japara rebuild and in one way a challenge like this is a great motivator to be innovative and connect in new ways,” he said.
From partnerships with U3A to helping operate the Montrose Community Cupboard and supporting people’s mental health with craft activities, Japara’s reach is rather broad.
Mr Doubleday said due to this range of activities offered, the occasional care facility and The Bridge House, Japara differs from regular neighbourhood houses and yet has been receiving the same amount of funding from Yarra Ranges Council.
“Council provides funding to help operate the community hub and has been reducing funding based on pre-pandemic assumptions of growing income.”
Meeting with the council on multiple occasions it was finally agreed that Japara House was in fact different from the other 11 neighbourhood houses in the shire, which for the 2022-23 financial year will each have an equal share in the funding from the council.
Councillor Len Cox said Japara’s service to the Kilsyth and Montrose area is greatly valued “but the funding cut they received has hurt very, very much.”
Making a point that should the council be the operator of the building and centre, it would cost anywhere up to $200,000 a year, Cr Cox said “this hall is costing the council a great deal less than that because it is being run by the community house.”
While Cr Cox said the participation levels are returning, with the child care facility seeing numbers grow after the pandemic, “they need time to recover from the pandemic.”
Throughout the pandemic, council leased buildings, used by sporting and other community groups, were reduced in cost but Japara was still paying the same amount for its lease.
“If left with still having their funding cut when they are still trying to recover from the pandemic, the committee will have no choice but to walk away from it,” Cr Cox said.
Although the funding reprieve was only recommended for a year, Cr Cox said he believed it could have been extended beyond that, however, it would give the council time to make a plan for the future success of Japara.
Mr Doubleday confirmed a consultant has been employed to help devise a long term financial plan between Japara and the council.
“The Japara Board greatly appreciates the Councillors’ decision to suspend those reductions…and looks forward to working with Council to review the community hub funding arrangements to ensure there is a community hub at affordable rates for the community,” he said.
“Japara and the communities we serve need a helping hand right now but it won’t be that way forever.”
The motion was passed unanimously to keep funding Japara Neighbourhood House at a total of $41,255 for the 2022-23 financial year.
