UPDATE ON WILLOW COURT


Ongoing media attention and politics seems to be prevailing at New Norfolk about Tasmanians’ Willow Court:

7th November 2023 Media release Derwent Valley Council


Derwent Valley Council has terminated its lease with New Norfolk Distillery, effective immediately.
Council will now arrange inspections of the Alonnah, Occupational Therapy and Carlton buildings, including the exercise yards, to determine the state of the buildings and identify what maintenance works are required in order to make them safe and to prevent any further deterioration.

The outcome of these inspections will help Council consider the options for the future use of these buildings.

Willow Court has been part of New Norfolk’s history for over 200 years and Council is committed to its ongoing reimagining and revitalisation of this important asset. Development of a Heritage Interpretation Plan for the precinct, defines how Council, precinct partners and community stakeholders can communicate its heritage values and sensitively manage Willow Court’s story into the future.

The adaptive reuse and activation of Willow Court has already seen outcomes, such as the multi-million investment into the Corumbene Health Hub on the Avenue, and Sisters’ restoration work on the Ladies Cottage and Nurses Quarters, both currently in development.

Council will continue to seek opportunities that will ensure ongoing funding for the restoration, maintenance and activation of the site over the long term. We will continue to work with other leaseholders and land owners within this historic precinct to secure its future as an asset to our community.

https://www.derwentvalley.tas.gov.au/home/latest-news/statement-regarding-new-norfolk-distillery-lease

Another failed attempt to put ideas into action at the Willow Court Site. The history of the site and the people who have had ideas of it’s repurposing have been long. Unfortunately many ideas have failed to take off. We learnt that this idea for a rum distillery, tasting centre and conference facility was going to employ many locals, both in the construction phase and the on going running. Both haven’t eventuated. On the 7th November 2023 the Derwent Valley Council released the above media release and they have taken back control of Wards C, A and the Occupational Centre.

We learnt that the owner of the Distillery believed that the rent was going to be forfeited as in kind support. We also know that the owners believed that the buildings would be given to the company in kind. We also know that owners of the business believed that the water, power and sewage services would be connected by the council (rate payers) in kind. We also were made aware that the owners secured a 1.2 million dollar grant from the Liberal Government (outside of normal grant practices) and that one of the owners was a liberal Minister’s employee.

What we are not sure about is why the owners believed that the rate payer and tax payers would be funding their business and it’s expansion. This has been an idea and business proposal that follows on from many others who have has a similar outcome for various reasons. The Derwent Valley Council again suggested calling for expressions of interest, but this wasn’t adopted by the council at their December 2023 meeting.

Meanwhile a community group has held a community workshop that was heled to discuss what the community want from their building. The results of this workshop were shared with the council at a workshop. In between that time there has been a number of businesses applying for the use of Willow Court, including Tasmania’s Most Haunted”

A request to have access to the site from the group that started the community meeting was denied. The group call for a cohesive separate governance structure separate from the political influences of elected members of the council. This is a similar set up at Port Arthur, with the Port Arthur Authority. The new group consists of many people from a wide range of professional and business backgrounds with history in heritage, project management and governance to name a few.

The Willow Court Community Workshop group sent this update today:

14 January 2024

An update on the Willow Court Community Workshop.

The WCCW outcomes report was forwarded to the DVC on 5 December. On Friday 8 December, the council’s December meeting agenda was published online. One of the agenda items was the Expressions of Interest for Willow Court. This occurred before the WCCW group had time to present the outcomes of the workshop to councillors.

Group representatives met with the acting General Manager and Mayor the following week where we raised our concerns and it was suggested we could lodge an EOI. As it happened the EOI motion failed as it was not supported by councillors.
The WCCW group presented to the councillors at a workshop on Wednesday 10 January. Our PPT presentation is attached. In attendance were Crs. Justin Derksen, Peter Binny, Sarah Lowe, Philip Bingley, and Matt Hill, and the Mayor. Two councillors were apologies. One councillor officer was in attendance.

One of the main outcomes of the report to councillors was that the WCCW report outcomes be formally endorsed by the council so that we can move forward on the planning from the workshop outcomes, particularly towards an independent management structure for the Barracks precinct and for the inclusion of the co-design aspect of planning for Willow Court.

The council’s January meeting agenda came out on Friday 12 January. It has two items from business operators in the Willow Court Barracks precinct. One from Willow Court Tours (Tasmania’s Most Haunted) and one from the Agrarian Kitchen. These agenda items were prepared by the council before the WCCW group presented to the councillors on Wednesday evening.
Reading the background to each item there is mention of the council being approached at the end of last year, hence the attempt to get up the WC EOI motion at the December council meeting. These Willow Court business operators were aware of the WCCW.

One had been consulted in the early stages of planning and the other attended part of the community workshop.
Should there be any progress on these two agenda items at the council meeting on Thursday 18 January it will indicate the council is happy to stay on its merry-go-round of piecemeal decisions on the future of the Willow Court Barracks precinct, in the complete absence of a long term vision for what the site could be and a masterplan to ensure the site is developed and governed to its full potential, or in consideration of the WCCW outcomes and the valuable input of the many people who gave their time and knowledge to the workshop.

You can read the council’s meeting agenda (Click on Picture) will open in a separate window.


One of the outcomes of the WCCW was the request by participants to tour the council owned Willow Court buildings. The response to our enquiry from the acting General Manager was first that we needed to have a bona fide reason to access the buildings, and on Friday last week his response was that he wouldn’t let us tour the site today unless we had an understanding of building maintenance. He suggested a small group could tour the buildings on that basis to get an understanding of the issues and scope of what is required to make them habitable.
The workshop group will be meeting next week to discuss next steps.

So, the future for Willow Court is still as clear as it was when it first closed in 2000. The opportunity to hear the people and what they want from their site is still not clearly being heard by those whose job it is to manage this site on behalf of the owners, the people of Tasmania.

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DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION and SALE of COUNCIL OWNED BUILDINGS AT WILLOW COURT

Last opportunity to have your say on the sale of Willow Court to a private business.

On February 2018 the Derwent Valley Council opened Expressions of Interest for future uses for Willow Court, which has resulted in four proposals being presented: two community and two commercial proposals.

A Development Application (DA) for the adaptive reuse of part of one Alonnah, which was previously the Women’s high security Ward, as a Rum Distillery has been lodged with Council. The application states that ‘Alonnah is proposed to become a rum distillery with the front roadside section of Alonnah comprising a mini still, tasting and storage, being Stage 1. … The buildings of Occupation Therapy and Carlton together with the small exercise yard are included in the property site.’ Minutes of the Council Meeting on 20 September 2018 (p143) note that the proposal includes a request to purchase these buildings. Submissions for public comment on Stage 1 are due by 5pm on 4 May.

The application lists a proposed development:

“Works comprising partial demolition, internal fit-out and external alterations in association with production (rum distillery) and also incorporating tasting bar and signage”

Works to the north-east corner of Alonnah, adjacent to the Agrarian Kitchen, are listed as

  1. Make good building defects
  2. Remove an existing window
  3. Form new wall opening for door entry into tasting room
  4. Form new opening with window in front wall
  5. Demolish existing wall, install full height glazing or public viewing of barrels
  6. Fit out (including bar, rum still, barrel storage, office, toilet)

The application can be viewed on the Council website, or in person at the Council during working hours.

http://www.derwentvalley.tas.gov.au/page.aspx?u=701&c=12356

More information about future stages can be viewed on the Distillery website, which lists the proposed future stages and show images of future work, which include significant alterations to this entire building, and to Occupational Therapy and Carlton (Ward C).

https://www.newnorfolkdistillery.com/

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Stop press

According to the developer, the Derwent Valley Council has just given permission for the Developer to move ahead to the next stage of creating a Rum Distillery using the Occupational Therapy Centre, Carlton and Allonah Wards.

The Council rejected all historic based proposals put forward tonight and have committed any new council to the proposal which was based on a survey which is attached.

Open Survey HERE

 

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A Rum Proposal

Local business identities of the Derwent Valley have put together a proposal for the use of the Council owned section of the Willow Court site. Many local residents received a phone call asking their opinion about a Rum Distillery and warehouse going into Willow Court. Many residents were confused as the phone survey didn’t indicate which section it was. There were a number of comments on social media which related to the oval wards and also the private section and many people were in favour of developing these areas.

The actual site is the area which was recently rejected for National Heritage Listing and includes Carlton House, Allonah and the Occupational Therapy building that connects the two wards which were once used for forensic mental health patients and later people with disabilities.

Kelvin Derksen who is one of the proponents of the project has joined our Facebook Group to discuss and answer any question people may have in relation to the business proposal.

New Norfolk Distillery The full proposal is on the website. The Derwent Valley Council currently have one Expression of Interest after their advertised period of time. That was from the Friends of Willow Court and the Council has encouraged them to pursue the plan.

The local Government election are currently in full swing with new and sitting Councillors all getting out and about. One of the issues that has been raised is the timing of this proposal and the current election, bad timing or good management, at this stage it’s hard to tell. Last week with Glenora Ward (G Ward) burning down there was a noticeable absence of local government figures commenting on the loss of yet another ward around the oval. Some have seen the site as an anchor around the neck of each council elected since 2003 as many residents still believe that most of the site is in a state of disrepair, open to vandalism and arson attacks. The concern, that a quick ill thought out decision could be put forward as early as the next Derwent Valley Council Meeting this month. This would commit the incoming Councillors to years of planning and negotiations.

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