By Tyler Wright
Yarra Ranges Council has issued a statement after the Macclesfield Pony and Adult Riding clubs’ building was destroyed by a fire on Saturday 17 June.
The statement, which was published on Tuesday 4 July, said both clubs are “central to the local community” and the loss of their building is being felt “far and wide”.
“The building, which is about 50 years old, was destroyed by fire on 17 June. The fire is being treated as suspicious by Victoria Police and is currently being investigated,” the statement read.
“Council assets are insured for events like a fire, and we are currently liaising with our insurers with regards to the loss of the property.
“While the building has been destroyed, the club is still able to operate on the land once the hazardous material has been removed and the toilets that were due for demolition are now being left in place.”
Yarra Ranges Mayor, Cr Jim Child said rebuilding after an emergency can be a lengthy process and is dependent on finances.
“Staff met with the club members last week to talk through the impact of the loss of their building. Often rebuilding takes much longer than people anticipate to rebuild – usually two or more years,” Cr Child said.
“Council buildings must follow the planning controls and overlays for the ‘zone’ of the area where the building is located. The National Construction Code of Australia must be followed, and this can dictate the type of materials needed, accessibility and energy efficiency requirements.”
Cr Child said the council understands how passionate the community is about the building, as it is used by several different clubs and organisations and its loss is being felt.
“When it comes to designing new clubrooms, we will include the users of the building during that process,” he said.
Macclesfield Adult Riding Club secretary Delvene Henderson said the user groups are looking forward to working closely with the council during the re-build process.
“[We] appreciate Council’s acknowledgement of how much this building meant to the user groups and the broader community,” Ms Henderson said.
