THE PEOPLE’S HALL- CIVIC HALL FROM EARLY CONCEPTS TO FUTURE POSSIBILITIES

We are delighted to announce that the recent People’s Hall exhibition was a resounding success thanks to the support of many businesses, community groups and individuals throughout the community.  Attendance was around 500 for the 12 days that the exhibition was open.  Our Official launch was attended by 120+ people and we were treated to a performance by the Beaufort Municipal Band, winners of the 1974 South St Competition at Civic Hall .   Graeme Vendy OAM of the Vibratones opened the exhibition with his account of the many dances that he and his fellow band members performed at The Civic Hall.  Councillor Samantha McIntosh also represented the Council offering some  words of encouragement and joined in the atmosphere of the opening.

From this exhibition we were able to develop many more contacts and networks in addition to identifying additional items of memorabilia and events pertaining to the Civic Hall.

We are exploring the possibility of publishing a book from the abundance of material and contributions offered by so many ordinary citizens who over the years had some form of affiliation with the hall as a user, performer or a worker.

There have also been offers by people with expertise to write chapters and advise on publishing so we will work towards the book’s development in the near future.

The 10 Concepts were endorsed by Council to proceed with Phase 2 of the Community Design Process

Last Wednesday night the 8th July at the Council meeting, the councilors unanimously voted to endorse  Here Studio’s 10 concepts that were  developed during Phase 1 of the Community Design Process in order to proceed to Phase 2

Phase 2 is well and truly underway and Here Studio are asking for feedback on the 10 concepts in order for them to narrow down the preferences into 5 concepts at the end of this phase.  It is critical that everyone views the concepts, gets involved and selects their preferences or maybe there are other ideas among the community that have yet to be explored.  

Now is the time to visit the Foyer of the Civic Hall and put forth your preferences/ideas so that 5 designs can be selected  in order to go forth into Phase 3 which will produce 3 fully fledged designs on which  Council will vote for the re-development of the Civic Hall Site.  Phase 3 is expected to end in March 2016 which will lead to a final decision by Councilors.

The Save Civic Hall Group will advocate  on the full retention of the Civic Hall’s Main auditorium and the Lower Civic Hall.

The 10 Concepts can be viewed here and at the Civic Hall foyer:

http://www.civichallsite.org/

Feedback can be given at the Open Door Studio in Foyer at the Civic Hall on :

Tuesdays:  9-5pm, Thursdays 12noon-7pm and the 1st Saturday of the Month 9am-1pm

A CLEAN UP AUSTRALIA EVENT AT THE CIVIC HALL

Please join us this Sunday 1st March at 1.00pm-4.00pm to clean up The Civic Hall site and then afterwards for a BYO afternoon tea and a chat in Civic Hall’s own  Pocket Park..please bring  your own gloves and a chair if desired.  Rubbish bags will be provided.

The weather forecast is showers clearing with an expected top temperature of 20 degrees so it should be rather pleasant in the afternoon….Hope to see you there!!

http://www.cleanupaustraliaday.org.au/?Civic+Hall+Precient

ONE OF BALLARAT’S LESSER KNOWN ARCHITECTURAL TREASURES

Today, Merle, Judith and Barbara had the pleasure of a private  viewing of some documents from the  Ballarat Crematorium before and after it was built and opened in 1958.  This remarkable building resembles the Civic Hall and was designed by HL Coburn who designed The Civic Hall.  The building as it is seen today has had some modifications, however originally it was adorned in some beautiful Art Deco features.  Some of the features are still visible.  We are hoping to be able to display some of the Crematorium design artworks and photos for the up coming exhibition at the Backspace Gallery in June 2015.

Surrounded by beautifully kept gardens, The Cemetery Trust, staff and maintenance crew have done Mr Coburn’s building the justice it deserves unlike the Civic Hall which has been the victim of a “Demolition By Neglect” mentality by successive councils.  Hopefully this trend can be reversed by the Community Design process to find a suitable design for the retention of The Civic Hall…but it relies on your input!!

THE OPEN DOOR STUDIO IN THE FOYER

The  Community Participatory Design Process is currently in progress in the foyer of the Civic Hall.  The future of the Civic Hall relies on participation by the community so if you have not visited the foyer yet, now might be a good time to do so as the consultants are nearing the 1st milestone in the process.  Multiple visits are also encouraged.

The opening hours of the Open Door Studio are as follows: