New $41k Aboriginal heritage walk planned for Lake Illawarra

Shellharbour City Council is expected to vote at Tuesday's council meeting on whether to allocate more than $41,000 to create an Aboriginal Interpretive Signage Walk along Lake Illawarra.

The walk could include physical signs and art works as well as online material including recordings and additional resources on mobile phone apps.

Read more: The plan to get Dharawal language taught and spoken in Illawarra schools

Shellharbour mayor Marianne Saliba said the idea for an interpretative walk was raised by a community member who had an interest in Aboriginal history.

She said the council's Aboriginal Advisory Committee members had already had input on the creation of the walk and she was wanted suggestions from the broader Aboriginal community including elders and organisations.

"We want to find out what are the most important areas that need to be highlighted, how much information should we tell and we need to find out the correct Aboriginal language to use," Cr Saliba said.

She said for example, a sign could tell the Dreaming story of Windang Island or how black swans came to be black.

Council's report suggested signage sites could include Mogurah Point, Boonerah Point, Whyjuck Bay, Reddall Reserve and Pur Pur Point.

Cr Saliba said there was an opportunity to extend the signage walk beyond the lake, and inland towards Albion Park and along the coast towards Killalea.

This would connect a series of landmarks across the city and encourage walking and exploration beyond the lakes edge.

"The walk would be another addition for people to look at when they visit Shellharbour but I see it more as an educational tool for locals and visitors," Cr Saliba said.

Council staff would also like to see online content created as part of the walk.

This could include video footage of a Welcome to Country, footage of interviews with key community members, story telling, music and dance, as well as links to other online resources.

Council will decide on the best types of signs which could include welcomes signs at both ends, infographics or totem signs to mark trail elements such as place names, landscapes and specific viewpoints.

The report said the walk would complement the existing art trail around the lake.