WESTWYCK MEDIA RELEASE

9th November 1999

Heritage Victory - Former School Saved

The interim listing of the former West Brunswick Primary School on the National Estate Register signals the end of a long battle for Brunswick residents who have committed six years of their life and considerable financial risk to its preservation.

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Lorna Pitt, who was part of a group, West Wyck, that purchased the school back in 1993 to prevent it from falling to bulldozers, said she was relieved to know that her group’s efforts had not been in vain.

"Before selling the school in 1993 the Kennett Government had had the building removed from the National Estate Register. The reason given at the time was that it was no longer a building in the public domain, but we knew that the real reason was to make it more attractive to developers,” said Ms Pitt. “At the auction its removal from the register was made a selling point. I could see the developers circling. At that moment the West Brunswick hilltop was close to being covered with a swarm of tilt slab town houses."

Although the school was substantially modified in the 1950s, Ms Pitt believes it still retains enough of its original character and footprint to be called charming. "It would have been an absolute tragedy for a building of this significance to have been lost to the community. We still have frequent visits from students who attended the school in one of its phases. It makes us acutely aware of what the school has meant to the West Brunswick community."

Ms Pitt and her original partners have tried out many strategies to make the school project viable. "At first we contemplated reusing the school, but the reality of the area was that we were more likely to lose more schools rather than have a new one open.” For a period the school functioned as a mix of conference centre and performance venue, but that was not financially viable. “At one time we went very close to selling out but we feared that would be likely to result in the end of a beautiful piece of West Brunswick’s history."

Right through the past six years Ms Pitt has lived in the school. "Camping in classrooms might sound romantic,” she said “but it has been very cool in winter. It has been important to keep the school occupied and protected. We are also committed to communal living, and being part of a large commune within a school has been quite an experience."

The remaining West Wyck partners have now embarked on an ambitious environmental housing project. This ground-breaking residential development is based upon retention and preservation of the school building as a series of apartments and the construction of new houses on the south of the site. The driving principles of the project have been respect for the heritage of the school building, the opportunity to introduce exciting environmental initiatives to meet greenhouse objectives and retention of a focus on shared living.

"The listing of the former West Brunswick Primary School is a relief to the West Wyck partners and will be welcomed by the West Brunswick community. The school building has been a hilltop landmark in the precinct for more than one hundred years and we can now say with confidence it will remain for another hundred," said Ms Pitt.