THE council will pump more than $1.2 million into St Clair over the next two years.
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A structural engineer has also recently cleared the upper level for community access, making the way for this Saturday’s re-opening.
But should the Goulburn and District Historical Society headquarters have been closed in the first place?
Only minor physical work completed in the year since its closure has addressed Council’s initial reason for shutting the facility. St Clair was closed in March, 2014 due to building code, fire safety, termite and insurance concerns.
Several studies, including the structural engineer’s report, have since been completed.
This investigation confirmed that while upstairs floor board spans were larger than what one would find today, they were structurally sound, Council’s community services manager Jim Styles confirmed.
The report also found that flooring underneath the archives area was adequate to carry existing weight but should not take more. Downstairs, some problems need addressing and it can’t be opened to public access just yet.
“Council made its decision (to close St Clair) based on the information we had at the time,” Mr Styles said.
“There were concerns about the roof, the level of cracking and its structural soundness and it was thought there were too many risks to keep it open to the public when there was no commitment made to spending money on it.
“Since then we have got more information and Council has made a strong financial commitment to St Clair’s future.”
Over the next two years, Council proposes to spend $1,260,000.
It pledge followed formation of a working party, including Mr Styles, chairman Cr Robin Saville, Historical Society president Garry White, member Linda Cooper and Clare Baddeley, a Goulburn resident and senior art curator at the Australian War Memorial. Their report made recommendations for St Clair’s long-term conservation.
Meantime, the council spent money on repairing cracking, which was found not to be “terminal,” replaced some roof sheeting and addressed the termites. Society vice-president Roger Bayley said the roof was not as bad as Council thought.
A Conservation Management Plan (CMP), strongly recommended by Council’s heritage adviser, Louise Thom, will underpin future work.
Council successfully applied for a $15,000 grant from Museums and Galleries NSW to complete the plan which will explore a proposal to build archives at the rear, its possible linkage with St Clair and re-use of former stables, perhaps for storage and a coffee shop.
“It will be a public document and we’ll be looking for community comment on it,” Mr Styles said.
The council will call for expressions of interest in the report.
An archives at the rear would free up space in St Clair villa for a wholly dedicated museum.