A Forest Lake woman is looking forward to seeing all her dreams come true after becoming $30 million richer and she’s planning to buy her first house with her unexpected windfall.
The fortunate woman felt like she was living in a dream as she struggled to believe her life-changing news was real.
She had the only division one winning entry across the country in the Oz Lotto draw 148, drawn Tuesday 5 July 2022.
“At first, we thought I’d won $30,000. Then we double-checked the ticket and I remember thinking, ‘oh my goodness, we’ve won $30 million!” the woman said, sharing the moment she and her husband confirmed the news.
She found herself lying awake that night thinking about all the ways their lives are about to change with that amount of money. She still could not believe it, adding that she might need to pinch herself again to make sure it was real.
The woman said the first thing on their list is buying their first home. The woman and her husband are also planning to ensure themselves and their families up for the future.
Photo Credit: Google Maps
Although they know it will change their lives forever, the woman said she and her husband are adamant that they will not let it change them as people.
The mystery woman bought her life-changing entry at the Metro News on 1st inside the Indooroopilly Shopping Centre.
The team at Metro News on 1st are hoping for the best and congratulated the Forest Lake woman and her family on their life-changing win. They hope it will make all her dreams come true.
The Hakka Association of Queensland is hosting the 2022 Parkinson Multicultural and Dragon Boat Festival, an exhilarating family-friendly event in Forest Lake where 15 teams are set to compete for the top prize.
The competition takes place on Sunday, June 5, at The Lake Parklands where there will be an area with plenty of shade sails and the stage. The event will run from 9:00 to 5:00 p.m.
There will be races every 15 minutes, starting at 9:45 a.m. Spectators may watch and cheer for their favourite teams, as well as enjoy the food and drink stalls. There will be performances on the main stage and plenty of green space for the kids to enjoy at The Lake Parklands.
The Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner will be opening the festival, whilst MP Leeanne Enoch and Leanne Linard are also expected.
Photo Credit: Hakka Association of Queensland
Per the Hakka Association of Queensland, dragon boat racing is an ancient sport dating back to 2500 years ago in China. This year’s races will include both professional and non-professional dragon boat teams.
Established in 2010, the Hakka Association of Queensland is a non-profit organisation composed of Australian families whose heritage belongs to the Hakka people, a Chinese ethnic group. This organisation, now with over 200 members, was established to reconnect with each other as they raise their kids in different parts of Queensland.
Based ondata from Queensland Health from 13 December 2021 to 26 January 2022, the area has recorded 1,727 cases. Nearby areas such as Acacia Ridge and Goodna recorded fewer cases, with 1,255 cases and 898 cases respectively.
As of the latest census, the 4078 postcode which covers Forest Lake-Ellen Grove has a population of around 27,488.
Just this January 2022, seven residents from an aged care provider in Forest Lake had died with the virus, after the nursing home was linked with 130 cases, including 77 residents and 53 staff.
Meanwhile, here’s an overview of some areas around South Brisbane, from 13 Dec 2021 to 26 Jan 2022
Queensland ended all domestic border restrictions as of 15 Jan 2022, removing the need for border passes and the presentation of negative COVID-19 test results for anyone entering the state.
Although unvaccinated individuals no longer have to present quarantine requirements, establishments will still require proof of vaccination from their customers.
Photo credit: Michael_Kretzchmar/Pixabay
As of 26 Jan 2022, Queensland’s new COVID cases were 9,974 with 818 patients undergoing hospital treatment and 54 patients currently in the ICU.
Since the beginning of the pandemic up to 26 January, the state has had 379,793 cases in total. Queensland has administered over 3.5 million doses, which accounts for 89.3 per cent of fully vaccinated individuals.
The property market in Forest Lake has outperformed itself, with a 20% growth that has taken the median house price above the half-million-dollar mark for the period October 2020 to September 2021.
Highlights
Forest Lake continues its upward trend with the property market rising to 20.05 per cent for October 2020 to September 2021.
Despite being short on supply since Forest Lake has mostly detached dwelling options, the suburb’s unit market has risen to 6.73 per cent.
This suburb’s median house price is now at $515,000 and the median unit price is at $293,500.
House Price Growth
Figures from Property Market Updates reflect a high demand for Forest Lake properties, as it experiences a 20.05 per cent growth from last year, with the median house price now sitting at $515,000.
From October 2020 to September 2021, 459 properties were sold for an average of 29 days on market, proving that the property boom in this southern suburb has continued post-pandemic.
Whilst the boom is good news for sellers and investors, industry experts believe that the rising trend will be sustained well into the next year. Thus, buyers are no longer sitting on the sidelines to wait for the cooling period.
Most buyers looking at Forest Lake go for four-bedroom properties, although three-bedroom homes are also selling fast.
About 92 per cent of dwelling options in this suburb are detached houses with nearly half on the mortgage, which has been one of the main drivers of the rumbling market with the current low-interest rates.
Unit Price Growth
While first-home buyers are struggling to compete in other markets with million-dollar price ranges, they could easily get on the property market with much less budget. The median unit price in Forest Lake is currently at $293,500 for the period October 2020 to September 2021.
During this 12-month period, 20 units had new owners following 52 days on market. Most of these have been three-bedroom homes, an ideal size for a growing family. The growth has been notable since unit stocks are low on supply in Forest Lake and apartment values in Brisbane generally do not enjoy the same rise in values as detached houses.
About Forest Lake
Established in the early 1990s, Forest Lake was developed and master-planned with families in mind and that has remained the same in the last 30 years. To the centre of the suburb is the parkland and lake from which Forest Lake was named.
Covering 10-hectares of natural space, the Forest Lake parkland offers residents plenty of things to do. With its careful layout as a leafy and relaxed community, this beautiful suburb has plenty of bike and walking tracks, playgrounds, and sports fields for adults and kids to enjoy.
Photo Credit: Google Maps
The suburb also offers comprehensive school options for both primary and secondary education. Public transport access for trips to the city and neighbouring suburbs is fairly regular and residents could easily get everything they need at the Forest Lake Shopping Village.
“We have lived in Forest Lake for 5 years now and we adore it! We were inner city Dinks when we moved here almost 6 years ago, and had only lived in West End Wooloongabba and East Brisbane. Needless to say it was a change of pace! The first few nights we were shocked at how early everyone seemed to go to bed! We joked it was “lights out at 9:30 in Forest Lake!”. It’s very safe, very quiet, leafy, clean and so very very pretty!”
Vanessa Soma
“Forest Lake is a great place for kids with all the parks and families of all ages in the area. The neighbors on my street are all well educated, friendly professional types, and maintain their properties immaculately unlike other suburbs in Brisbane. Lots of community events like BBQs and kids parties as well which is fun for the family. Many of my family members are cops and they say the southwest of Brisbane has dramatically improved over the last year as patrols have increased and more first time home buyers are moving in.”
Jana 15
“I purchased in this suburb in late 2019. I was a bit worried at first, being 30 minutes with no traffic from the CBD and not in one of the so called “blue chip suburbs” that are shilled so much by “property experts”. The truth is, this suburb is great for young families that want to own their own property and have great outdoor recreation activities around and plenty of schools to choose from.”
Mr Kevin Lai, owner of Red Chilli Thai, said that after months of thinking over their options, he and his wife Kate have decided not to renew the lease of the restaurant. November 2021 will be the last time they will serve customers their authentic Thailand dishes like chilli cashew chicken, red curry beef, Pad Mae vegetables, and rice cakes.
Mr Lai bought the lease of Red Chilli Thai from its former owners in 2012 but the restaurant has been open since the shopping centre’s rise in the late 90s. The family has no plans to move the business elsewhere and will mull over their next chapter in the coming months.
Photo Credit: RedChilliThai/Google Maps
Red Chilli Thai has always been the reliable choice for families who need to sort out their lunch or dinner. Far from being a trendy eatery, Mr Lai and his crew have adapted to the times and willingly changed things up to entice repeat and regular customers.
Rebecca McKeown, the manager of Forest Lake Shopping Centre, has not yet named the establishment that will take over the venue but they welcome the opportunity to evolve the selection and meet customers’ needs.
It comes as Forest Lake Shopping Centre, a state-owned estate, ditches its plans to expand the southern section of the mall for more tenancies. The north side’s improvements, on the other hand, will entail a reconfiguration of the parking spaces and some much-needed upgrades and facelifts.
Brisbane’s housing market has shown steady growth amidst the pandemic lockdowns with areas in the southwest consistently showing resilience. The median house price of properties in Forest Lake, for example, has exhibited a 13.05-percent growth in the 12-month period ending June 2021, making it a likely candidate to be one of Brisbane’s $500-k suburbs soon, if the trend continues.
During this 12-month period, the median house price for Forest Lake is $485,000, up from $429,000 from July 2019 to June 2020, per Property Market Updates. House listings in this suburb stayed on the market for an average of 43 days.
Some 456 houses were sold in Forest Lake during this period, amidst reports that over 30,000 interstate residents moved to the Sunshine State overall in 2020. The race for space has families and investors making a shift to homes with tree-lined streets, seascapes, or coastal and lake views as the trend towards remote working could remain the norm for many companies years after the pandemic.
Forest Lake’s median unit price took a three-percent dive from July 2020 to June 2021 with only 20 properties sold.
Since the suburb’s master plan from the 1990s has mainly consisted of a series of villages with spread-out houses, apartment living has mostly focused on retirement villages or unit residential dwellings for downsizers and retirees who prefer to live in a quiet neighbourhood without any traffic
Photo Credit: Sivaswamy sithampalam/Google Maps
About Forest Lake
According to the 2016 census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Forest Lake has a total population of 22,896 with 2.9 people per household, primarily professionally employed couples with children. Residents are predominantly in the 40-49 years age group.
Homebuyers have been flocking to Forest Lake because of its abundance of large homes with backyards, good schools with sporting facilities such as St John’s Anglican College, a 10.9-hectare man-made lake with heaps of recreational spaces for biking, walking, and playing.
Plans to expand Forest Lake Shopping Centre to accommodate more retailers and food establishments will no longer push through despite an approved development application. However, the reconfiguration of the parking spaces and upgrades on the outdoor sites at the north section of the property will proceed.
Queensland Investment Corporation, the owner of the Forest Lake Shopping Centre, has ditched the original plan to extend the south section to include spaces for two more cafes and a discount store. Brisbane City Council approved the plans in late 2019.
Instead, in May 2021, the company applied for a new development plan (DA A005742977) to incorporate the following changes:
Removal of the mall extension and specialty store component;
Car parking layout within the southern part of the site maintained as per current site conditions;
Revised Aldi extension and amended landscape and servicing arrangement.
“The revised siting and design of the extension does not result in dramatic changes to the built form in terms of scale, bulk or appearance,” the developers noted. “The extension is small in scale, has a reduced floor area and is of bulk and appearance similar to the existing approval.”
Photo Credit: Developmenti/BCC
“The revised Aldi tenancy extension comprises a building footprint and external appearance is consistent with outcomes regarding bulk, scale, articulation and variation in the Centre or Mixed Use Code.
“The proposed extension remains as a single storey and adopts materials and building form to maintain consistency with the existing building. The proposed change includes a new roof deck which includes appropriate screening of services to ensure the rooftop does not appear cluttered.”
According to the manager, Rebecca McKeown, the decision to slim down its redevelopment plans was based on the changing needs of consumers. The enhancements will also complement its new tenancies, Kmart and Magnifique Hair Salon.
Following the completion of the St John’s Sports Centre in 2020, the Anglican school in Forest Lake has announced plans to build a new $16-million world-class aquatic centre that will put the suburb on the map.
Principal Mrs Maria McIvor confirmed the approval of the concept design for the facility, which will include a 50-metre outdoor swimming pool with 10 lanes, an indoor pool for swimming lessons, a strength and conditioning gymnasium, and a grandstand with 800 seats. BSPN Architecture created the concept design.
With Brisbane officially confirmed as the host of the 2032 Olympics, MsMcIvor envisions that St John’s Anglican College‘s upcoming aquatic centre, the first of its kind in Forest Lake, will be utilised as an Olympic training facility. The principal said that they look forward “to establishing key partnerships and programs” to support these Olympic programs, as well as the community’s needs.
Highlights
St John’s Anglican College in Forest Lake will build a $16-million aquatic centre.
The school plans to open the facility for other school’s use, swimming lessons, and for Olympic training programs.
The project is expected to be completed in 2025.
The centre will deliver swimming lessons for the students on campus and boost St John’s performance and interschool sports offering. However, it will also be open to other local schools and other public programs. The site will have its own community cafe.
St John’s Anglican College restructured its sports department to boost student enrollment and the $16-million aquatic centre will complete its College Sporting Centre of Excellence.
This project has been part of the Master Plan for the senior campus, which includes the delivery of six learning areas for the next five years, including a sporting precinct with swimming facilities.
The school intends to submit the BGA application in January 2022 and conduct a consultation with the wider community. Construction for the aquatic centre is projected to start in 2024 and competed by the end of 2025.
St John's gets behind #Brisbane2032 announcing approval of concept and planning for a world-class Aquatic Centre with an Olympic swimming facility! This $16million project will be a one of a kind facility in the local area. Expected delivery 2025. @AnnastaciaMP#GreenGoldDaypic.twitter.com/MYPr4Wp3sF
— St John's Anglican (@stjohnsanglican) July 30, 2021
Did you know that Forest Lake has the third-highest illegal dumping complaints since kerbside collection was temporarily halted? Much to the relief of the residents, the service is due to resume soon.
In April 2020, kerbside collection was initially paused due to the pandemic, triggering an increase in illegal dumping reports across Brisbane. For the next 10 months, Forest Lake had 35 illegal dumping cases.
On the other hand, Inala (74 reports), Doolandella (36 reports), Calamvale (29 reports) and Zillmere (27 reports) were also in the top five suburbs with increasing illegal dumping cases, causing waste to scatter in footpaths, roads and parks. Tipshop trips increased by as much as 18.6 percent as residents were left to dispose of their large, unwanted items commonly collected during the regular kerbside run.
Photo Credit: Geebung Treasure Trove/Facebook
Brisbane City Council Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner announced in mid-2020 that kerbside collection will not resume until July 2022 as funds for the service would be used for COVID-19 recovery initiatives. To appease angry ratepayers, the Council launched an expanded free waste voucher program to allow residents to dispose of their household wastes at no cost.
Council said that 617,384 of these vouchers were redeemed in 2020, up from 520,468 in 2019. This suggested that many residents have been properly disposing of their unwanted items.
However, illegal dumping reports rose to 117 during the first three months of the kerbside collection pause whilst the complaints were less than 10 during the pre-COVID lockdowns. Meanwhile, residents kept rallying for Council to reinstate the service.
Following the release of the budget for 2021-2022, Mr Schrinner confirmed the resumption of kerbside collection beginning July 2021. Residents of Forest Lake Ward have to keep tabs on these kerbside collection dates.
Did you know that the 803 school bus service to Pallara State School has expanded, extending to service areas such as Sanctuary Pocket and Chain of Ponds estates in Forest Lake and Heathwood?
The 803 school bus service to Pallara State School extended its services on the 12th of July 2021, utilising existing bus stops in Old Blunder Rd and Wadeville St as well as additional bus stops in Sanctuary Pocket and Chain of Ponds estates to expand the existing 803 route.
Photo credit: Facebook/Cr Angela Owen
Councillor Angela Owen encourages parents to give their children the opportunity to use this school bus service as less cars on the road means reduced congestion around the school. The 803 school bus service brings children all the way from Heathwood Estate to Pallara State School and back.
Morning
Afternoon
7:55 a.m.
Parkwood Dr near Juniper Street
2.42 p.m.
Vied Rd near Landel St
7:55 a.m.
Parkwood Dr near Acacia St
2.44 p.m.
Esky Rd near Kraft Rd
7:55 a.m.
Parkwood Dr near Coolibah St
2.46 p.m.
Laxton Rd near Esky Rd
7:56 a.m.
Parkwood Dr near Laurel St
2.50 p.m.
Ritchie Rd near Wadeville St
7:58 a.m.
Ritchie Rd near De Vries Rd
2.53 p.m.
Parkwood Dr near Juniper St
7:59 a.m.
Ritchie Rd at Ritchie – Van Dieren
2.54 p.m.
Parkwood Dr near Coolibah St
8:00 a.m.
Laxton Rd near Ritchie Rd
2.55 p.m.
Parkwood Dr near Laurel St
8:05 a.m.
Vied Rd near Landel Rd
8:08 a.m.
Sweets Rd near Ritchie Rd
8:11 a.m.
Kraft Rd near Esky Rd
8:13 a.m.
Ritchie Rd at Palla
Pick-Up Rules and Regulations
Drop-off and pick-up areas have been marked with passenger loading zone signs, and passengers who wish to enter or leave the bus have a maximum of two minutes to do so. Parents are allowed to leave their vehicles to help their children enter safely, however they are not allowed to stray and walk too far from their vehicles.
Parents can also stay in the signed area for a maximum of two minutes, and taking any longer will result in a fine. In the event that a student is not ready to enter the vehicle, parents will have to drive around and queue once again. Children should only enter and leave vehicles at the signed area as it is unsafe to let them in or out while waiting in a queue.
It is also important to remember that parking and stopping across pedestrian crossings is a criminal offense that could lead to fines as it endangers the crossing supervisors, students and parents who make use of the crossing. The Pallara State School has a large parent car park next to the drop off/pickup areas, and parking on the road outside of the grounds is not permitted and could result in fines.
The Pallara State School can be found at 39 Ritchie Rd, Pallara. For more information, visit their website here.
