ALBURY mayor Henk van de Ven has put his hand up to be the city’s representative for the handover of a commemorative Uiver plaque in the Netherlands in September.
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In the aftermath of the 1934 Uiver emergency landing in Albury during the London to Melbourne air race, two bronze plaques were cast by the Dutch as gratitude to the Albury community.
One is located in Albury’s LibraryMuseum, but a second one, which remained in the Netherlands, has gone missing and Albury Council is considering making a replacement plaque to be presented at the centenary celebrations for the Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam on September 15.
The proposal is in the early stages with a complicating factor being the NSW local government elections to be held on September 10.
Cr van de Ven has confirmed he would be seeking re-election for another term, but council will be in a period of limbo between election day and the proposed event in the Netherlands.
The matter will come to a head on Monday night after being discussed for the first time at the council’s community and cultural meeting last week.
Cr van de Ven left the chambers during debate when the committee recommended council in-principle proceed with the proposal presented to the council by Uiver historian Noel Jackling.
An alternative event for Albury to present the replacement plaque could be airline KLM's 100th anniversary celebrations in 2019.
The estimated cost of the project is $13,637 which includes economy class flights, accommodation and freight costs for the plaque.
The plaque cost is estimated to be $5720 and it would be an unbudgeted item for the council to absorb.
Other options for council to be represented at the Dutch function is an immediate past councillor, staff member or suitable community-based representative.
Former Albury deputy mayor Cr Ross Jackson is part of the Uiver restoration committee.
Cr van de Ven grew up in the Netherlands before emigrating to Australia with his family in the 1950s.
"It would be a nice fit if a Dutch former mayor of Albury happens to be the person council chooses to represent it at the 100th anniversary of the airport where the plaque was last known to exist," he said.