The Pukatja Community
Pukatja is an Anangu community on the APY Lands in the north west of South Australia. The Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands are held on freehold title under the terms of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights legislation. Pukatja (Ernabella) Community is located in South Australia in the Musgrave Ranges about 30 km south of the Northern Territory border. It lies approximately 330 km south west of Alice Springs and approximately 25 kilometres north of Umuwa, the major administrative centre within the APY Lands and the base for the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Executive. The land surrounding Pukatja is of great cultural significance to the local community. The population of Pukatja ranges between 600 and 700 people, including a number of Piranpa (non-Aboriginal) people who work in the community to support Anangu.
Content and Purpose of the Community Structure Plan
The Pukatja Structure Plan (Structure Plan) provides a framework within which development can proceed in an orderly and planned manner over the next 5 to 10 years.
The Structure Plan consists of the following:
- A plan depicting the physical layout of the community;
- Strategic direction, planning objectives and development guidelines;
- An explanation of the Structure Plan;
- A report on the preparation of the plan including an overview of the local and regional context.
The purpose of the Structure Plan is to:
- Establish a vision for the community and a guide to future growth and development;
- Provide a community focus for, and involvement in, the development process;
- Facilitate proper and orderly planning of the community to establish development requirements based on need within social, physical, environmental and economic opportunities and constraints;
- Provide a mechanism for a coordinated approach to the provision of services and infrastructure and enable access to existing services and infrastructure information; and
- Promote development that maximises health, safety and welfare outcomes for the community.
The structure plan provides the community with a plan that forms the basis for coordination of future development. The Plan can be used to assess future development proposals by government agencies, builders, funding agencies and the community.