Future of the former Camden police barracks: community concerns

Former police barracks vacant

The former Camden police barracks in John Street are currently vacant and unused, which is sad for this iconic heritage building.

Unused heritage buildings are in danger of neglect and disrepair. The best way to protect an iconic heritage building is to occupy and use it.

Change of legal status

The former Camden police barracks were closed in 2011 when the police station staff were transferred to the new station at Narellan. The former police station is an integral part of the integrity of the John Street heritage precinct. (Camden Narellan Advertiser, 21 October 2020)

In 2016, the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council lodged an Aboriginal Land Claim with the Aboriginal Land Rights Registrar. Under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983 (NSW), the former police station was granted to the Tharawal Local Aboriginal Land Council in 2020. (Camden Narellan Advertiser, 21 October 2020)

In 2020, ‘A Tharawal spokeswoman said the Land Council was excited to take ownership of the property and is exploring options for its future use’. (Camden Narellan Advertiser, 21 October 2020)

Questions

Little seems to have happened since 2020.

There are questions that the community has the right to ask the Land Council:

1. What are their plans for the building?

2. Does the Tharawal Local Aboriginal Land Council intend to occupy the building?

3. If the Tharawal Local Aboriginal Land Council is not going to use the building, will they sell it?

Leaving the building empty only encourages vandalism, threatens the integrity of the property, and does nothing to enhance its preservation.

Vandalism by neglect at the former Newcastle post office

An excellent example of vandalism by neglect is the former Newcastle Post Office.

In 2011, according to SWS Lawyers, the NSW Aboriginal Land Council lodged a claim over the former Newcastle Post Office on behalf of the Awabakal Local Aboriginal Land Council. Title was passed to the ALALC in 2011 by the Minister under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983 (NSW). (McDonald 2015)

In 2014, the land council said it was keen to reuse the post office site. (ABC News 2014)

By 2017, the ALALC had done nothing with the former Newcastle Post Office, and the building had fallen into disrepair. The building was unsafe to enter, and the ALALC had no plans for redevelopment.(McDonald 2015)

The former Newcastle Post Office closed in 1981 and has been part of the general decline of the Newcastle CBD over the past 40 years. (Crestwell)

Crestwell Consultants have stated

Typically heritage buildings are difficult and expensive to redevelop, particularly in a regional context. It would be a fair contention that these buildings would not have been restored and adaptively reused.  (Crestwell)

 Demolition by neglect at Milton Park Homestead

Worse than vandalism by neglect is demolition by neglect.  One example was the former Victorian two-storey house Milton Park at Ingleburn, which was empty and neglected for many years. Built in 1882, this two-storey house dominated the landscape between Ingleburn and Macquarie Fields. (Allen 2012)

The house fell into disrepair in the 1980s under the ownership of Campbelltown City Council. It was eventually demolished in 1992 after the council could not find an interested party to redevelop the house.  (McGill, et al, 1995)

What is the fate of the former Camden police station?

Will we see the same fate await the former Camden police barracks?

The community is well justified in asking the question: If the land council cannot, or will not develop the site, then why not sell it to someone who has the financial means to conserve the iconic heritage building?

Is the iconic heritage building going to be a victim of vandalism by neglect?

Is the Tharawal Local Aboriginal Land Council going to follow the same path ALALC followed with the former Newcastle post office?

Adaptive reuse

Adaptive reuse is the best protection for an iconic heritage building like the former police station. An excellent example of this is the Macaria building that the Alan Baker Art Gallery in John Street currently occupies.

This iconic heritage building is a missed opportunity for creative thinking and community usage through adaptive reuse.

This iconic heritage building is a lost opportunity and ideally suited to adaptive reuse as an Indigenous Cultural and Arts Centre, as Camden resident Greg Frawley suggested in 2020. (Camden Narellan Advertiser, 21 October 2020)

So what now?

I have made several attempts to contact the Tharawal Local Aboriginal Land Council without success. They have not responded to my emails or phone calls. We are waiting for their response with interest.

The former Camden police barracks, now vacant since 2011, risks neglect and disrepair. The Tharawal Local Aboriginal Land Council, which acquired the site in 2020, has yet to disclose plans for its future use. The community deserves clarity on whether the building will be utilized or sold.

References

McDonald, Elizabeth 2015, ‘The Aboriginal Land Claim’, SWS Lawyers, Newcastle, 24 March 2015. Online at https://swslawyers.com.au/newcastle-post-office-understanding-the-aboriginal-land-claim/

Rouse, Jessica 2017, ‘A boost for the neglected old Newcastle Post Office’. 2NURFM103.7, Hunter News, 20 April. Online at   https://www.2nurfm.com.au/news/category/hunter-news/

Castlecrest Consultants 2009, Building Better Cities/Newcastle, A Case Study in Renewal. Hunter Development Corporation, Newcastle, November.

Allen, Andrew 2012, ‘Milton Park Homestead’, The History Buff blog, Campbelltown, 25 June. Online at https://campbelltown-library.blogspot.com/2012/06/milton-park-homestead.html

McGill, Jeff, Verlie Fowler and Keith Richardson 1995, ‘History of Ingleburn’. Campbelltown City Council Library, from “Campbelltown’s Streets and Suburbs – How and why they got their names”, Campbelltown & Airds Historical Society.   Online at https://www.campbelltown.nsw.gov.au/About-Campbelltown/History/History-of-Our-Suburbs/History-of-Ingleburn

‘Government rules out post office court appeal’, ABC News, 22 July 2014. Online at https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-07-22/government-rules-out-post-office-court-appeal/5615776