By Derek Schlennstedt
Despite impassioned pleas from a number of local historic groups about its ‘historic value,’ Yarra Ranges Council has made the decision to sell the site at 1632 Burwood Highway.
The building, which was built in 1920, acted as a grammar school, as well as an antenatal clinic in its formative years, and was most recently the home of the Dandenong Ranges Emergency Relief Centre.
This year, council gave public notice of its intention to sell the property which resulted in eight objections and one approval.
Speaking at the council meeting on 10 July, Susan Heywood-Downward, President at Dandenong Ranges Historical Council put forward alternative suggestion to re-purpose the site as an information centre, a museum and a home for the Belgrave Trader’s Association.
“There is no information service on this side of the Dandenong Ranges,” She said.
“Since investigating the need for such a service we have been overwhelmed with stories from local people who have been stopped in the street and asked where various sites, walks and services can be found.”
A council report to retain the building showed it would require significant upgrades to make it suitable for community use. This cost came to over $250,000.
However, according to a costing estimate under taken on behalf of the historical council by Georg Harmon, a quantity surveyor from Belgrave, the cost was closer to $170,000.
At the meeting Glen Chandler, President of the Belgrave Traders Association also showed concern about the loss of the historic building as well as an interest in using it for the community.
He said, not only would it be useful to house the meetings there, but if it were to be re-purposed as an information centre they would be able to base their co-ordinator there who could help with enquiries.
By basing the trader’s there this would help in operating the information centre and museum, which was a concern put forward by Yarra Ranges Council Director of Social and Economic Development, Ali Wastie.
Ms Heywood also said they would easily find plenty of volunteers to operate the museum and information centre.
At the Council Meeting on 10 July, Councillor Mike Clarke moved for an alternate recommendation that Council liaise with the Belgrave Traders Association and other interested parties about retaining the building and the costs associated with it.
This recommendation drew support from Councillor Tim Heenan and Noel Cliff, though, the motion was outvoted by Councillor’s Stevenson, Avery, Child, Higgins and Mayor Len Cox.
Speaking against the motion, Councillor Avery said the new ‘Belgrave Hub well and truly made up for the loss of older buildings.’
“Look at the great outcome we have with the new Hub … look at that and retire the old buildings as a result.”
While the site was nominated for consideration in a Heritage study in 2000, it was considered insufficiently significant to be included. However, the Dandenong Ranges Historical Council feels the study was vastly inaccurate and only concentrated on Belgrave as whole, not on individual buildings.
Speaking in defence of the building, Councillor Clarke made a passionate speech about the importance in retaining and remembering the history of the area.
He said he was ‘disappointed’ by the response from council.
“I’m very disappointed to hear as a council that we’re not interested in retaining our history, we are a culture that has suffered from the problem where we are willing to just throw away our history and our heritage.”
“It was the community who raised the money to buy that land and somehow council has ended up with it and are now just going to sell it, for not a lot of money.”
