Last Thursday it was the Aboriginal communities of Bowraville and Bellwood who had a visit from the Member for Oxley, Melinda Pavey, together with her ministerial colleagues Anthony Roberts (Housing) and Sarah Mitchell (Aboriginal Affairs) to commit to significant infrastructure and service upgrades if the Government wins the election.

Mrs Pavey said the $55 million investment, part of the NSW Government's Roads to Home project, aimed to improve the quality of life and economic opportunities in discrete Aboriginal communities.

"This will see the subdivision of the Bellwood Reserve and will provide the community with infrastructure upgrades including improving road surfaces, storm water and drainage, kerb, guttering and footpaths, street lighting, power and telecommunications connectivity.

"Bowraville will see improvements to existing roads, new footpaths and pram ramps, bio-retention ponds and fire hydrants."

Mr Roberts said the upgrades would fundamentally improve community amenity.

"There are challenges like emergency vehicles having difficulty locating patients due to lack of street signs, waste not being collected due to un-passable roads and school buses being unable to reach children because of road and drainage issues," Mr Roberts said.

"I look forward to seeing communities like Bellwood Reserve and Bowraville benefit from this significant investment."

Ms Mitchell said the investment ensured the communities had access to the same standards and ongoing maintenance as their neighbours.

Bellwood Reserve and Bowraville are two of 10 communities who will receive upgrades this year thanks to this commitment. 

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