16 April 2010

Time to talk about the Yarralumla Brickworks

| johnboy
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The Chiefly Stanhope is asking for your input on the “iconic Old Canberra Brickworks site in Yarralumla”:

“The ACT Government wants the community to participate in a conversation about the future use and conservation of the Old Canberra Brickworks site,” Mr Stanhope said. “Over the coming weeks, Canberrans will be asked what they value about the site, how they want the site’s heritage values to be retained, and the extent to which public funds should be used to maintain the site.

“We want the community to indicate the level of development of the land adjoining the heritage site they would support, and the extent to which any development should be conditional on the preservation of the Brickworks.

Keep the chimney, sell the rest to the highest bidder, stop wasting time and money is my advice, but I doubt anything so simple will emerge.

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How many extra cars would that be. 500 or so. Its going to make one crowded suburban shop. I don’t think the infrastructure will handle it. Especially since the lake is also up for redevelopment.

altkey said :

An “extra” suburb of 4000 households

That’s 4000 people, not 4000 households.

I think putting medium density residential in this area is a good idea. Centrally located and near public transport.

Captain RAAF9:52 am 19 Aug 10

Nuke the site from orbit, it’s the only way to be sure!

An update on the future of the brickworks:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/08/18/2985961.htm

An “extra” suburb of 4000 households – living in the suburb and having received the propoganda on the brickworks it was clear that the powers that be had already made up their mind as to the Brickworks and therefore the suburbs fate. The LDA envisions any works taking place at the brickworks, big or small, as being cost-neutral, which is a worthy thought in principle, however in practice smacks money grubbing with yet another public asset to off load to the developers.

54-11 said :

I wouldn’t bother about responding to this sham “consultation” if I were you – this is yet another in a long list of “consultations” where Stanjoke is hoping that maybe this time he’ll get the results he wants. He has ignored all prvious submissions (including from the Burley Griffin Local Area Planning Advisory Council, which was abolished by Corbell).

On each occasion Stanjoke’s preferences were not supported, so absolutely nothing happened.

The question also begs to be asked – where on earth are all these people coming from? Was it 30,000 households for the Molongolo development? How many are being built in Gunghalin? What about all of the adhoc developments that are occuring through existing suburbs? What will happen to developments such as this if we actually get a ‘sustainable’ australia?

The Yarralumla brickworks’ has been used previously by artists. It would make a great space for artist studios. Why not create artist spaces that cater for sculpture and other three dimensional arts? Canberra has so many artist spaces that cater to two dimensional media but only one (ANCA) that can handle industrial processes and large scale making. The brick kilns could be made into great gallery spaces and the surrounding land would make a fantastic sculpture garden.Check out Melbourne’s Gasworks Arts precinct and Sydney’s CarriageWorks. They are perfect examples of the possibilities!
http://www.gasworks.org.au/about-us/about-gasworks
http://www.carriageworks.com.au/
Any thoughts?

Public housing, but I doubt that Stanhope will do that, more likely sell land off!

I wouldn’t bother about responding to this sham “consultation” if I were you – this is yet another in a long list of “consultations” where Stanjoke is hoping that maybe this time he’ll get the results he wants. He has ignored all prvious submissions (including from the Burley Griffin Local Area Planning Advisory Council, which was abolished by Corbell).

On each occasion Stanjoke’s preferences were not supported, so absolutely nothing happened.

sepi said :

Also, Canberra lacks in old grimy buildings. why demolish the few that are left?

Best reason yet.

colourful sydney racing identity3:00 pm 16 Apr 10

I used to love sneaking in there after it was closed. Realise now that a lot of the areas we went were death traps but it was great fun…

Clown Killer2:47 pm 16 Apr 10

I doubt the architectural considerations will be a major part component of the heritage assessment. However, I don’t doubt that the place would have too much trouble meeting quite a number of the other criteria for heritage significance.

Interestingly a number of people have drawn links between the BOld Bus Depot markets and the brickworks. If my memory serves me correctly the Old Bus Depot was where the businesses that used to trade out of the brickworks moved to after th eclosure of the markets and second-hand furniture stalls at the Brickworks.

Holden Caulfield2:22 pm 16 Apr 10

What’s wrong with the status quo – why can’t Thor’s Hammer remain there?

Otherwise it must be kept for some sort of genuine community use, be it markets or some other purpose. Selling it off the highest bidder for property development would be a great shame IMO.

Why must everything in Canberra be turned into something? I’d be happy for the place to be left alone. I’m surprised that Stanhope hasn’t sold the place to developers yet…

GardeningGirl12:58 pm 16 Apr 10

I think the idea of community/arts/antique shops/galleries/cafes/gardens/playground along with some housing is a good one . . . oh wait, I remember going to an open day there decades ago and I think that’s what the plan was back then!

It would make a nice community garden. Keep its arts/recycling feel.

It is the only brickworks in Canberra. it doesn’t have to be the only one in Australia to be of heritage value.

And it produced all the bricks for the first houses in Canberra, which makes it an important historical building. Also, Canberra lacks in old grimy buildings. why demolish the few that are left?

troll-sniffer11:52 am 16 Apr 10

Aside from those who have a vested interest in maintaining the brickworks as a reminder of days gone by, there is little of genuine heritage value in a brickworks. Yeah yeah I know all the bleaters will come on and come up with all sorts of reasons why a bunch of scrappy structures topped by a previously polluting chimney have architectural merit, but from a purely objective viewpoint there’s not a lot of true architectural heritage down there.

I worked for a time at those brickworks and my family have owned brickworks elsewhere that have since been demolished, so I speak from a position a little more ‘hands-on’ than armchair experts and academic wannabes.

However I must admit I would support a well thought out plan to use the old brickworks for community and arts uses. I believe the site has the potential to be a viable precinct for another set of markets and associated community arts and recreation uses. It would be a better site than the current Old Bus Depot markets which would be better suited to a slightly more up-market use. IMHO of course.

Build some public housing on the site.

the other big train tunnel type things (curved buildings) around the tunnel are pretty cool too. it was great when they were all filled with antique shops.

something like that, housed in the tunnels (the old brick kilns?) – a few antique shops a few nice coffee shops, a gallery, a little kiddie playground, some trendy sculpture made of bricks (Jon will like that), a little fenced in square of grass for the kids to play on, and a decent buffer of grass/space between the remaining bit of the brickworks, and the glitzy units Jon is sure to approve.

Actually – maybe they could mandate that the units be made of red canberra bricks. Or at least pave all the driveways etc in red brick (seeing as how most of the original brickworkers cottages were actually crappy weatherboards.)

I used to live right near there and I really like the brickworks. But I’m a bit over Jon’s one sided conversations, so I probably won’t bother to submit anything to this one.

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