Mount Druitt, NSW

Mount Druitt (postcode 2770) is located 43 kilometres west of the Sydney CBD, in the local government area of the City of Blacktown, and is part of the Greater Western Sydney region. It borders smaller suburbs including Bidwill, Blackett, Whalan, Tregear, Lethbridge Park and Emerton.

Source: SBS Filipino / A. Violata

The image of Mount Druitt, 45 kilometres of Sydney, has been struggling for many years. In 1997, it malignly surfaced in a newspaper that Year 12 students from Mount Druitt High who took the 1996 High School Certificate (HSC) received, then University Admission Index (UAI, now ATAR) rank below 45. Again in 2015, it prominently figured in the SBS documentary "Struggle Street" as a suburb associated with high unemployment, drug use and problems with the law.

But it's further from the truth. It has an excellent public infustructure with a wide bus network and a busy train station.

A Filipino-Australian resident Jose Engelbert was even encouraged to live in the area due to its convenience to transportation and amenities, aside from wanting to live in an area where a big number of the Filipinos reside.

Mt. Druitt is host to a sprawling Westfield Shopping Centre, home to 200 specialty stores, including a Filipino shop. Beside the mall is the recentely-built multi-purpose facility, Hub, which has become a popular venue for Filipino activities.

Westfield Shopping centre in Mount Druitt Source: SBS Filipino / A. Violata

The Mount Druitt Hub Source: SBS Filipino / A. Violata

Kevin Betts Stadium Source: SBS Filipino / A. Violata

Mount Druitt also hosts the Kevin Betts Stadium, home to the Western Sydney Basketball Association, with members mostly Filipino-Australian Basketball fanatics. Coach Rey Racuyal talks about the organisation.

Next to playing, it's coaching

The Village Hotel (http://www.pubsandclubs.com.au/venue/village-hotel/2127), with a sprawling parking area, is a popular dining area where the diner cook their own rump steak at a very affordable price.

The 200-bed Mount Druitt Hospital, which was opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in October 1982, was one of the biggest community hospitals in the western Sydney suburbs.

Mount Druitt Hospital

Filipino-Australians seem to love the area. Based on the 2011 Australia Bureau of Statistics data, almost 60 percent of residents were born overseas with the Philippines , the country where migrants came from with 12.0%; followed by 4.4% from Iraq, 4.2% from Pakistan, 3.7% from India and 3.0% from Fiji. The most common ancestries were Filipino 13.3%, Australian 12.5%, English 11.1%, Indian 5.8% and Pakistani 4.1%.

No wonder, there are many Filipino establishments in the area. The Pabico Club 55, a spacious venue restaurant along Mount Druitt Rd, has hosted several Filipino entertainers who perform in Australia, including balladeer, Martin Nivera, American singer-songwriter David Pomeranz, even held a songwriting workshop there.

Pabico Club 55 Source: SBS Filipino / A. Violata

Politically, Mount Druitt, which is under the Blacktown City Council, has two state electoral districts, Mount Druitt currently represented by Edmond Atalla of the Labor Party and Londonberry, Prue Car. In the Federal government, it is part of Chiefley, currently represented by Ed Husic of the Labor Party.

Soon the "Struggle Street" image may be gone. Recently, a four-bedroom house in the suburb was sold for over a million dollars.