Future of Patrick English Pavilion
The future of the Patrick English Pavilion in Malanda was decided today at Tablelands Regional Council’s ordinary Council meeting.
In a unanimous decision, Council will submit an application for a development permit for a material change of use for the removal of the pavilion and, subject to the application, engage a contractor for the pavilion’s deconstruction.
An options analysis will be developed in 2025–26 for a multi-purpose facility that honours the history of the pavilion and incorporates salvaged components of the current building.
Deputy Mayor Dave Bilney spoke about the opportunity that this decision brings to the Malanda community and the Tablelands as a whole.
‘The Patrick English Pavilion stands as a reflection of history and it must be remembered that any legacy is built on a strong foundation.
‘In the case of the Patrick English Pavilion, you cannot build on broken.
‘The pavilion was relocated to Malanda in the late 1940s as a temporary community facility.
‘I have been told that the structure’s integrity was a cause of concern for the Malanda Show Society in the mid-1960s, and here we are some 60 years later still discussing structural concerns of the pavilion.
‘The pavilion has served our community in many ways well past its original intended life and today we have made a decision about the way forward.
‘Past generations have had the opportunity to enjoy the amenities that the pavilion provides over an extended period and the time has come for Council to ensure that our future generations are also afforded a similar opportunity.
‘It is true that in late 2019 and early 2020 there were discussions for a multi-purpose facility to be placed in Malanda.
‘This acknowledged the fact that the pavilion was nearing end-of-life and that substantial capital investment would be required to extend its use into the future.
‘At this point a budget of around $2M was forecast however the full scope of what a facility may look like was still being developed based upon those discussions.
‘A report did come to Council in December 2020 advising of the community engagement outcome recommendations and providing a concept design.
‘Over the past few years the budget for the new facility has been deferred to outer years and now sits in the 2027–28 and 2028–29 capital plan years.
‘Obviously with the current issues now evident, funding will need to be reconsidered and brought forward.
‘Although the various Councillors have not been provided with the technical condition assessment reports provided by external engineers, they have, on various occasions, been informed about the condition of the building.
‘We are where we are and will work towards the vision of what a future community facility could look like.
‘It will meet the needs of a growing community and the generations to come.
‘It is my strong view that we should respect the history and reflect that in any future design and repurpose components to bring the past into the future.
‘I will also advocate for disaster resilience to be incorporated, which may also open up greater grant funding opportunities.
‘While the condition of the pavilion has been a problem for a long time, it now presents itself as an opportunity.
‘An opportunity for us to work with the community to develop a scope of what a true, fit-for-purpose facility looks like and what it can deliver.
‘I will continue to work towards a multi-purpose facility, which I believe is supported by the vast majority of the community,’ Deputy Mayor Bilney said.
When commenting on the decision at hand, Mayor Rod Marti echoed the Deputy Mayor’s statements.
‘Malanda can still have the Patrick English Pavilion, it just has to be a new one — a new one that can serve the community for many decades, just as this one has.
‘The independent structural engineer’s report makes it clear the building and, in particular its structural integrity, is now end-of-life, so the time for band-aids, repairs, reinstating and restoration is behind us.
‘Further, the report states that the first step to move forward is for the building to be deconstructed, as repairing and refurbishing the current structure is not an option.
‘This Council will commit to working closely with the Tablelands community, Malanda Show Society and indeed with every community group that has an interest in shaping a new facility.
‘Like Deputy Mayor Bilney has made clear, the opportunity is here for the community and Council to work on a new Patrick English Pavilion, one that will serve the Malanda community well into the future,’ Mayor Marti said.
The pavilion was built in Danbulla during the 1940s and served as an army igloo during World War II.
It has arched timber trusses spanning about 17m over the 560m2 floor area.
Following the war the pavilion was relocated to Malanda as a community hall — the stage was added (year unknown) and then the supper room.
Regular structural assessments by external engineers have been conducted on the pavilion since 2016 and advice provided after the 2023 report stated, ‘The building is not considered as a risk to prevent its use. However, as deterioration continues there will come a time where dilapidation will get to a point where the building is considered none [sic] usable…’.
The assessment conducted in May 2024 focused on general structural condition, adequacy of the subfloor framing and cost of repairs.
The major findings of this report were the failure of the curved timber trusses that are the primary structural elements of the building, and failure of framing and other components of the subfloor and stage.
The report stated the deficiencies are likely to be cost-prohibitive to repair and render safe for occupancy and the pavilion has exceeded its design life and was no longer serviceable.
It went further to recommend TRC consider retiring/demolishing the asset as, ‘It is not permissible to patch repair the curved timber trusses due to the severity of the defects and the importance of the primary structural components to the structure. Therefore, the extent of the structural repairs will trigger upgrades/replacement of the whole primary structural system, including foundations, connections, hold-downs, members, etc., to meet modern design criteria. The scale of work required is essentially a reconstruction of the compromised superstructure…’.
‘The decision made at the meeting today came on the back of a month of community engagement that included a survey with two options — remove the pavilion and replace it with like-for-like, or remove the pavilion and build a new multi-purpose facility,’ said Deputy Mayor Bilney.
‘There were 281 responses to our survey, with overwhelming (237 or 84.3%) support for a new multi-purpose facility that will cater for current and future use.
‘I acknowledge the receipt of a petition at today’s meeting requesting the pavilion be restored.
‘Unfortunately the engineers’ advice is quite clear in this aspect, it would need to be fully deconstructed to be rebuilt as repairing what is there is not possible,’ the Deputy Mayor said.