Demolition by Neglect
All around our beautiful heritage green eclectic area you will find the processes of demolition by neglect.
The old butcher shop in Eureka St. Such a lovely piece of Ballarat East history and heritage. Street weeds and graffitti have added to the loosening tiles and peeling paint.
This small miners cottage has been slowly falling to the ground for years. Someone removed the weatherboards to hasten the progress of neglect.
Another small cottage with loosening paint, windows you cant open, weeds and missing weatherboards.
This was once the site of a lovely small green miners cottage. It had been falling apart for years. Until someone decided a fire would be quicker. See The Courier report here: http://www.thecourier.com.au/story/2364375/fire-tears-through-derelict-house-in-ballarat-east/
It just all makes me sad. What can we do about this? Recently the Provincial Hotel was mooted as the most central example of Demolition by Neglect. At the time council talked about increasing rates and fines for leaving buildings to rot. Do you have any suggestions we cold talk to council about with a view to protecting our quiet domestic heritage?
I believe the second photo is a cottage in Eureka Street. It will be approx 100 metres and slightly down hill from the 36.3 metre mobile phone structure. I can empathise with the owner as the property would hardly be worth spending any money on with this structure towering over it. On Eureka Street we have so many rules. Which are to enhance the character of the neighbourhood. I appreciated these heritage rules till now as being a resident and home owner very close to this cottage I am now questioning why did I bother spending 14 years renovating and making sacrifices and with one foul swoop it will all be worth nothing. My house is my home not a cheap rental. Please join us at the council meeting on the 28th January and see if we can explain our plight to our councillors.
Ballarat East has some wonderful heritage gems that should not be allowed to fall into the Demolition by Neglect pit. Cannot be replaced…Ever!
I totally agree that this is a highly pressing concern for so much of Ballarat East, but also across Ballarat as a whole. It is high time that action be taken to ensure respect is paid to the legislative rules and processes around these matters. It seems that while we have good heritage overlays in place, enforcement of such guidelines and rules is not always ocurring. We are the custodians of a city with major national heritage significance, and these matters must be confronted by those entrusted to care for our region. I am really tired of having these matters brushed under the carpet. Built fabric is part and parcel of the important cultural fabric in this historic city of ours.
This is very sad news.
Our main focal point in Ballarat should be the heritage factor .
Buildings should not get to the point where they are pulled down.
If somebody purchases a dwelling meeting any heritage overlay criteria, it should be compulsory to have it available to be rented, owner occupied or tenented by a business within “x” months of settlement.
If no work to get it up to scratch is begun in 3 months it can be compulsorily acquired by council, and organizations such as the men’s shed (and others) should be allowed to use it as a project, then have it auctioned off again with council redistributing the proceeds to the community. Any Fires occurring in that period would then be inspected thoroughly for foul play.
Great idea
Very sad to see some of our treasures go in to disrepair.
I wish one and all easties a Happy New Year, and hope what we remain viglant to any further damage to our heritage here in the east.