Structurally unsound building to be demolished
A structurally unsound, flood damaged building in Maryborough’s Queens Park will be demolished with the site to be reinstated as park land.
At its meeting today (Wednesday 28 April 2020), Fraser Coast Regional Council considered a structural investigation into the condition of the Maryborough Sailing Club building in Queens Park.
Cr Daniel Sanderson said the Maryborough Sailing Club building was constructed in the early 1900s on the banks of the Mary River and had suffered significant damage over the years from floods.
“As a result of the ongoing flood damage, only the ground floor of the building has been occupied by Council’s Parks staff with the upstairs area remaining unused,” he said.
“After receiving community requests to lease the building, Council commissioned an independent engineering assessment, which found the building was in a general poor condition with the roof, wall and floor framing failing basic structural checks.
“The report concluded that upgrading the building in an attempt to meet current standards and codes could cost in excess of $750,000, and there would still be the potential for future flood damage to occur.
“As a result, Council has endorsed a recommendation to demolish the building at a cost of about $65,000 with the site to be returned to park land consistent with the Queens Park Botanical Garden.
“In addition, Council’s Parks staff who had been working from the building will be relocated to Council’s Moreton Street depot in Maryborough.”
Cr Sanderson said while the Maryborough Sailing Club building sits adjacent to heritage listed Queens Park, it was outside its heritage boundaries.
“While there is a lot of social history associated with this building and it is unfortunate that it needs to be demolished, Council has an obligation to ensure our staff are working in a safe environment and the building is just not suitable for long term use in its current condition,” he said.
“As part of the restoration and rehabilitation of the site into parkland, Council will add a plaque recognising the previous use of the site as a location of the Maryborough Sailing Club.”