SOUTH Australian Heritage Council chair Keith Conlon has spoken out over the committee’s decision to place provisional heritage listing on Mount Gambier’s 65-year-old railway locomotive roundhouse.
A well-known television personality and history buff, Mr Conlon said the heritage committee moved quickly to place temporary protection on the historic facility giving its looming fate.
The decision – which resulted in demolition works being halted on Monday – will now make way for a three-month investigation into the heritage value of the site.
Mr Conlon said the looming fate of the Mount Gambier roundhouse was brought to the attention of the council by the National Trust SA, which requested “urgent assessment”.
After sifting through photographs and information, he said the council believed heritage listing “may stand up”.
Mr Conlon – who has been chair of the council since April – said the roundhouse had a rich railway history and was only one of three left standing in South Australia.
“I cannot say it will be heritage listed – it may be. We have now got to this stage where we need to have a good hard look at the site,” he said.
“We need to go through the process.”
Conceding the structure had been damaged by fire, he said initial assessment indicated it could be repaired.
“A three month assessment will now begin, but the minister can intervene and take it off,” Mr Conlon revealed.
He said the site had a rich historic value given it facilitated the transition to broad gauge and thousands of people attended the opening of the locomotive site.
“We look at whether the site is rare or uncommon,” Mr Conlon told The Border Watch.
He said the site also had a “big impact” on the regional community by increasing the capacity of railway services.
Mr Conlon said it was terrific to see the flurry of ideas “surging” from the community over the possible future uses of the site.
The SA Heritage Council is an independent body that provides strategic advice to the State Government regarding the SA Heritage Register.
The council – which promotes the retention of heritage – cannot over-ride a decision by the government.
The State Government and state transport department had given the green light to the demolition of the roundhouse.
A group known as Give Mount Gambier Roundhouse a Future has been campaigning to save the structure and marked the building’s 65th birthday on Saturday.
