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Canberra Today 14°/19° | Friday, March 29, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

The best people serving the hub of the north

COMPRISING 25 suburbs surrounding the Belconnen town centre and Ginninderra Lake, Belconnen is the most populated district of the ACT.
Originally farming land, Belconnen was developed in 1966, with Aranda as its first suburb.
Now Belconnen, as we know it, is a thriving hub for north Canberrans, with so much to offer residents and visitors.

Anne and Robert Walker.

Floor coverings come with old-school service

ESTABLISHED in 1988 by Robert and Anne Walker, Bob Walker’s Carpets, carries a comprehensive selection of floor-covering products from the most popular manufacturers around the world.
Anne says they have everything from the finest carpets to timber and laminate products as well as the latest in vinyl flooring.
“If you thought vinyl was old hat, wait till you experience the comfort underfoot and the fabulous new range of patterns,” she says.
“When it comes to service, it would be hard to find anyone in the Canberra area to equal the level of old-fashioned service, genuine friendliness and helpful support provided by the team at Bob Walker’s Carpets.
“Our experience ensures that we know the ins and outs of all types of carpet flooring, whether for home or business.”
And because of their long experience in the industry, Anne says they know how to ensure an efficient installation.
“We understand that having the job done exactly as you envisioned is important,” she says.
“We believe that a job that isn’t done to the best of our abilities is a job we haven’t completed yet.”

Bob Walker’s Carpets, 24 Walder Street, Belconnen. Call 6251 1266, email enquiries@bobwalkerscarpets.com.au or visit bobwalkerscarpets.com.au

Christine Bates.

Family business loves to give back

THE family-owned and run business, Duncan’s Plumbing, has been delivering its services to the community for 50 years, says operations manager Chris Bates.
Not only does it service the community but it also loves giving back to it, according to Chris, who says they support local sporting teams, too.
But when it comes to business, she says the friendly, professional and efficient team offer services such as plumbing, heating, air conditioning, roof repairs, gas, irrigation and rainwater tanks.
Its owner Jason Duncan says his team of office and trades staff promise to deliver the best plumbing in Canberra.
“We are licensed for both the ACT and NSW, and our tradesmen in the field are in constant contact via mobile and an internet-based SMS service, providing you with flexible, reliable assistance at need,” he says.
“Our maintenance services include all plumbing and draining.
“We also install all manner of appliances (gas, electrical, tapware, hot water systems, toilets and more), perform backflow prevention testing, service thermostatic mixing valves, and certify, fix, install and repair all gas units.”
Overall, Jason says he’s proud to boast a skilled team, a range of top-of-the-line equipment, dedicated vehicles and a workshop test bay customised for fault testing.

Duncan’s Plumbing, 1/9 Page Place, Page. Call 6254 5678, email office@duncansplumbing.com.au or visit duncansplumbing.com.au

Appreciating dance through all styles

JACKIE Hallahan established the Dance Development Centre in 1985 to deliver Canberra with innovative dance training, in many styles, under one banner.
Now, 34 years on and Jackie, who has been a teacher for more than 40 years, says a huge strength of the centre is still its innovation.
The centre offers classes such as classical ballet and pointe, jazz, tap, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary, acro/tumbling, pilates, strength and stretch, Bouncing Babies, Tiny Dancer, Quicksilver for over 50s, fencing, and a pre-professional stream.
“Children often start dance only knowing one dance style,” Jackie says.
“As they become more involved in the centre they’re inspired by what they see to try other styles and by doing this it gives them a greater understanding and appreciation of dance.”
Jackie says the Dance Development Centre has passionate teachers who are positive and encouraging, and who excel at teaching dance and making it fun at the same time.
“At Dance Development Centre we recognise each child is unique in their pattern of development, interests and talents,” she says.
Backed with four decades of experience Jackie also brings a wealth of knowledge to the centre.
“I absolutely love my job,” she says.
“Watching the children grow and develop year after year is something that makes me so proud and keeps me inspired.”

Dance Development Centre, 55 Crofts Crescent, Spence. Call 6259 1550, email canberra@dancedevelopment.com.au or visit dancedevelopment.com.au

Sean connects architecture to place

Sean Hogan of Typology Architecture.

SEAN Hogan knows Canberrans have a particular emotional connection with the ACT, which is why Typology Architecture investigates this connection through architecture.
“We are interested in exploring architecture that is authentic, connected, and is sympathetic to its unique environment,” he says.
But, with Sean’s background in large, multi-unit, mixed-use type projects and a passion for single-residential work he ultimately established Typology Architecture in late 2017 with the idea of bringing the rigour and drive from large commercial projects into the single-residential scene.
“We specialise in considered, contemporary and affordable architecture with a focus on place and site-sensitivity,” he says.
“The practice has a specific interest in residential projects. We have extensive experience in both new houses and alterations and additions/extensions to existing houses.

“We also have extensive experience in multi-unit housing, master planning, commercial and community projects.”
Sean says the architecture produced by Typology Architecture doesn’t have a particular style but he likes to think they do contemporary work that explores the connection of place.
“We are a small practice, so we don’t take on a lot of work at any one time,” he says.
“This ensures that we can provide a high level of client service, we are friendly, approachable.”

Typology Architecture, 10/36 Petterd Street, Page. Call 0438 352904, email office@typologyarchitecture.com.au or visit typologyarchitecture.com.au

Legal firm pushes traditional boundaries

Principal solicitor Allyson Hogan.

NAMADGI Legal is pushing boundaries by delivering traditional legal services in non-traditional ways, according to its principal solicitor Allyson Hogan, who established the firm in 2017.
Allyson previously worked in an inflexible environment with high work hours at a national, mid-tier law firm and decided there was a better way of doing things.
“[At Namadgi Legal] we’re 100 per cent cloud based, which means I and all my staff can work anywhere, anytime,” she says.
“It’s good for clients because it means that everything is efficient. We have everything on hand whenever we need it.
“We also don’t have the high overheads that other law firms have, which translates to better value for clients.”
Allyson is an accredited specialist in commercial litigation but says Namadgi Legal also specialises in areas such as employment law, business law and succession, which covers wills and estates and superannuation.
“We try to keep people out of court if we can and only go to court if we absolutely have to,” she says.
“[And] we like to spend a lot of time developing relationships with our clients.
“We see our clients as real people with real lives and we have an important role to play in helping them achieve a solution.”

Namadgi Legal, Ground Floor, Unit 10, 36 Petterd Street, Page. Call 5104 3110, email admin@namadgilegal.com.au or visit namadgilegal.com.au

Charnwood video store says goodbye

NETWORK Video Charnwood is having a barbecue and giving out sausage sizzles on Saturday, June 1, to say “thank you” to all its customers before it closes down, says owner Josh Mudford.
On Friday, May 31, they will be stopping rentals and from June 1, Josh says they’ll be selling everything.
“There’s about 26,000 discs [including DVD, Blu-ray and games] which need to go,” he says.
“There’s plenty of new releases and about 2500 TV series including ‘Game of Thrones’, which is always popular, ‘Third Rock from the Sun’, ‘Buffy’, ‘Charmed’ and ‘NCIS’.”
Josh says the advantage of DVD and Blu-ray is that people will always have them.
“You won’t lose access to them because the streaming services decided you won’t have access to it anymore,” he says.
“It’s also a good opportunity to come and get some games.”
Josh suggests getting in quick to grab games such as “Kingdom Hearts” for Playstation, which combines lots of different Disney characters, as well as other popular games like “Lego”, “Need for Speed”, “Halo” and “Crash Bandicoot”.
“Video stores were always really good archives for things,” Josh says.
“We’re sorry we couldn’t continue being here and I want to say thank you to everyone who supported us.”

Network Video Charnwood, shop 1, 23 Charnwood Place, Charnwood. Call 6258 8054 or visit networkvideo.com.au

Early learning centre celebrates diversity

THE proud and inclusive environment at YMCA Canberra’s Early Learning Centre in Belconnen celebrates many different cultures within the centre and its wider community, says centre director Kaitee Foster.
Kaitee says this also means they acknowledge how they play and live on Ngunnawal land and pay respect to the elders past, present and future, as well as seek to learn about the traditions and ways of Australia’s first people.
“Each day at our centre we embrace the opportunities to grow and learn together as at YMCA Belconnen, everybody belongs,” she says.
“We are strong advocates for children and [at the early learning centre] they are each treated with love, dignity and respect.
“We encourage learning and growth for our children but in their own way and time.”
YMCA Belconnen started a new program this year called ELLA, which is a language program for four-year-olds and five-year-olds.
“This program will introduce the children to different languages and dialects, which will encourage appreciation of linguistic diversity,” Kaitee says.
“Our preschool children are currently learning Japanese.”
Kaitee says YMCA Belconnen’s outdoor garden is a big part of the centre’s program.
“We play outside in any weather,” she says.
“[And] we are just about to start up a big outdoor garden project which extends on from our nature garden.”

YMCA Belconnen Early Learning Centre, corner of Aikman Drive and Joy Cummings Place, Belconnen. Call 6242 4040 or visit canberra.ymca.org.au

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