Camperdown Courthouse to remain in community hands, Corangamite Shire rules

The courthouse building will continue to be home to the town’s visitor information centre and arts and culture hub after the Corangamite Shire decision on Tuesday.

The expiry of a five-year lease with community group Advance Camperdown sparked the review. Options including selling off the Manifold Street building, entering a commercial lease or seeking expressions of interest were considered.

However, there was strong community support to retain the status quo, with a new working group in place to provide an improved governance structure and establish a new incorporated body.

Transition working group member Rachel Donovan told Tuesday night’s meeting that 199 applications had been received to join the new body, while a petition to retain the courthouse as a community-based organisation received 414 signatures.

Councillor Lesley Brown said it was encouraging to see so much community support for the courthouse.

“There are 65 ambassadors at the courthouse all volunteering their time and expertise to run the tourist information centre seven days a week. This is a wonderful example of volunteering at its best,” she said.

Cr Ruth Gstrein said retaining the heritage building, which dates back to the 1880s, as an information centre gave visitors a valuable face-to-face experience and provided wider economic benefits than a single business on the site could.

“It actually broadens the dollar, it goes further, it goes into our local businesses,” she said.

Rent for the building would be set at $104 annually, with the committee responsible for electricity and water bills and insurance.

Cr Bev McArthur said the historic building was expected to cost the council $140,000 in maintenance over the next four years. She hoped the new organisation would look at ways of becoming more economically viable and be able to contribute to the building’s upkeep.

“It’s important that we’re very aware of the fact that these buildings cost a lot to maintain and we do have to look at ways of recouping revenue to ensure their ongoing maintenance,” she said.

Cr Neil Trotter said he shared Cr McArthur’s concerns, but was impressed by the proposal from the working group. “The model that is here can go beyond the courthouse, it can benefit the community,” he said.

Cr Simon Illingworth said the courthouse’s volunteers played an important role in providing tourism information for Camperdown and beyond.

Cr Helen Durant said the courthouse was an asset for the entire shire. “A good governance structure will hopefully see this building revitalised so it can realise its huge potential,” she said.

Mayor Jo Beard thanked Advance Camperdown and Rotary Club of Camperdown members for having the foresight to set up an information centre in the building five years ago after it had previously been in commercial hands.