TENTERFIELD mayor Bronwyn Petrie saw red when experts told her black was not a heritage colour.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
So she decided to act; she stood for council and stood up to the "paint police".
That was seven years ago and in her new role as councillor, Ms Petrie helped overturn a mandate on paint colours for Tenterfield.
But the now mayor continues to receive calls from residents and businesses, confused by conflicting advice about what colours they can paint their homes and shops.
READ ALSO:
The final word on black, as well as off-white, being heritage colours was given at the latest council meeting.
Black (and off white) are heritage colours for ratepayers wanting to use them in the heritage area.
"Black is a very common trim colour in Tenterfield and in fact, the early timber homes often appeared black because they were oiled," Mayor Petrie said.
"The [National Trust owned] Memorial School of Arts has black trim, our council chambers has black trim and there are shops with black tiles in the High Street."
It's been a bit of a grey area, because council must approve paints used in the town's conservation area.
According to Cr Kim Rhodes, some residents continue to be advised that black is not a heritage colour.
"In the past five years I've had at least eight inquiries about the matter and that's just me," Cr Rhodes said.
"One business had to repaint the whole building again because the black and grey she used were not deemed heritage colours.
"But black is an art deco colour, the original colours were black.
"The town likes black; businesspeople need their businesses to stand out from the rest and black does that, it gives a street appeal."
Mayor Petrie has traversed Australia in a bid to find out what makes a heritage colour.
"I sourced books from Toowoomba and many councils across NSW and Victoria," she said.
"I went through every page of books where there were samples of paint colours.
"I stuck a post-it note on every photo showing black and off-white as suitable for external application in heritage areas.
"When I arrived at council to discuss the issue, my notes looked like a hedgehog, there were so many post-it stickers from pages of examples."
Her golden opportunity to prove black and off-white were heritage colours came when she unearthed an 1884 edition of a Sydney paint company colour chart, clearly showing black and off-white for exterior paints.
Anyone wanting to paint their property in the town's conservation area must still seek approval from council.
But there's no grey area in the matter: black is in, and so is off-white.
Make sure you are signed up for our breaking news and regular newsletters