Coach House stand

By Paul Dunlop
CARDINIA Council has called on the state planning tribunal to step in and order the restoration of the old Coach House at Beaconsfield.
Amid fears in the community that the heritagelisted house had been allowed to deteriorate and could even be demolished, councillors on Monday resolved to take the issue to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
Council wants VCAT to order the developer, who owns the land, to act immediately to restore the building.
Councillors said the developer had given an undertaking when an 11lot subdivision on the land was approved in 2003 that the coach house would be retained and preserved.
Central Ward councillor Bill Ronald said council had no option but to go to VCAT in a bid to “force the developer to comply”.
“It’s a shameful situation. We cannot be seen to allow this sort of neglect of our history,” he said.
The unanimous decision to seek VCAT’s intervention came as Casey Cardinia branch of the National Trust and Beaconsfield Progress Association lodged a petition with council calling for the coach house to be saved.
Residents gathered last week to call for the house to be restored with about 50 people at a public meeting.
Almost 280 people signed the petition.
Once used in the 1900s as a laundry for the nearby Berry Street Foundling Home, the Coach House’s future has been an issue of concern in the community since it was revealed late last year that a permit had been sought to have it demolished.
The building has been repeatedly vandalised in recent times and there are fears it may soon be beyond repair.
Cr Brett Owen said there was considerable support in the community for the retention and restoration of the coach house.
Council has taken legal advice to assess its ability to force the developer to restore the building.
Cr Ronald said the developer told council in 2002 that the Coach House would be restored.
He said it was vital that heritage buildings in the shire were protected.
“It is distressing to me that a significant number of buildings have been demolished, relocated or destroyed beyond repair over the years,” Cr Ronald said.
Cardinia mayor Kate Lempriere said council’s local laws officers had stepped up patrols of the area in a bid to deter further vandalism to the historic site.
Pakenham Senior Sergeant Trevor Teer any residents who saw suspicious activity on the property should contact police.