By Trista Heath
Published by The Monaro Post
Rob and Cathy Staples would often visit the Snowy Mountains from their home in Sydney. After many visits to the region, it didn’t take them long to make the move from visitors to residents.
In May of 1982 Rob saw an advertisement in the paper for an engineering position at the then Snowy River Shire Council and applied before quickly making the move to the mountains where Cathy also continued her career as a registered nurse.
The couple’s three children grew up in the Snowies, attending the local schools, and as a family took advantage of all the great things the region has to offer including bush walking, skiing and fishing.
Their three children did not miss out either. School sport during winter time included skiing and in summer exploring the mountains.
“Since then we have seen some remarkable advances in education and opportunity available locally with the significant master planning upgrades at Snowy Mountains Grammar School (Rob was involved in the master planning process) and the re-location and construction of a new public school at Jindabyne with re-location to the Sport and Recreation Centre site south of the town,” Rob said.
Rob said what drew them to the region is all the amazing recreational activities the area offers as well as the work opportunities and the sense of connection to the local community.
“We love the environment here and the outdoors, we are on 58 acres and every day we see kangaroos and wombats and so many species of native birds. We are surrounded by trees and rocks and have beautiful views across the Monaro,” Rob said.
“We’ve been able to build our professional careers and be part of the local community. The lifestyle is one of the things that keeps us here after more than four decades since re-locating.
“Coming down as a visitor is one thing, but then living here and being able to appreciate and see that there is so much more to the area than just the tourist spots has been incredible, we’ve really been able to explore the region, more than what we would have if we were just tourists.”
Forging an amazing career in the region, Rob has worked on major infrastructure projects and has seen the town of Jindabyne evolve from a sleepy mountain town in the early 80s to a bustling and thriving year-round tourist destination that it is today.
Rob worked extensively on many local projects including as project director for NPWS on the Perisher Range resorts infrastructure upgrade project from 2000 to 2007 where he oversaw the $80 million upgrades to sewerage, water supply, roads, drainage and waste services as well as many other projects.
Rob continues his engineering consultancy practice working on various projects within the region.
Rob said he knows the importance of keeping the town’s roots intact while also building on its infrastructure to welcome people like him and Cathy, ‘tourists who become residents’.
Rob served as a director on the board of Tourism Snowy Mountains for eight years, bringing his expertise as an engineer to build on the collective knowledge of what will draw more visitors to town.
While he’s still working, Rob likes to take any opportunity he gets to go fly fishing in the various lakes and rivers located across the region.
“While working with Council I took on the role of secretary/treasurer of the organising committee for the World Fly Fishing Championships which was based at The Station Resort in Jindabyne right here in the Snowy Mountains during 1999,” Rob said.
“The event showcased to the world the great fly-fishing available throughout the region and brought many people from 25 countries across the world to Jindabyne. Thus began my passion for fly fishing and fly fishing administration leading to involvement in international events ultimately as National President of Fly Fish Australia.”
Professionally Rob was recently appointed as an Emeritus Member of the Institute of Public Works Engineering Australasia for his contribution to public works in NSW. This most coveted award is ‘the icing on the cake’ in his professional career.
Cathy too has been able to develop her career as a Registered Nurse focusing on emergency nursing and then later as a public health administrator working as Health Service manager in numerous hospitals throughout regional NSW.
Over the last 40 years Rob and Cathy have seen an incredible change to the township of Jindabyne specifically.
“I remember in the early days, when I first arrived in Jindabyne as a young engineer with the council, where the National Parks and Wildlife Services building stands now and where Nuggets Crossing sits now, this was vacant land, full of snakes, blackberries and rocks,” Rob said.
“Cathy and I have been lucky enough to have witnessed and be part of the process of seeing the town and our region evolve. We truly believe we have been blessed to be living in one of the most beautiful of locations where we have raised our children and had very fulfilling professional careers in a wonderful community.”
Jindabyne’s permanent and visitor population continues to grow each year and during its winter months almost triples due to the influx of visitors and resort staffing. The town continues to grow its infrastructure and housing developments are not slowing down any time soon.
As the town progresses to become a year-round destination, with the support of Council and the State Government, the infrastructure will only continue to improve.