CITY MOVES ON OSBORNE HOUSE, GAOL

COUNCIL AGREES TO SELL OLD GAOL

THE Old Geelong Gaol is no longer in public hands, with City Hall voting to sell the historic building to a private company.

Geelong business Montgomery International Pty Ltd was awarded the tender at Tuesday night’s council meeting.

The company is set to splash almost $1.6 million on maintenance works over the next three years.

The decision was made behind closed doors due to local government laws surrounding confidentiality.

The $1.5 million sale completes a five-year process for the council, which decided in 2013 that selling the costly facility was its preferred option.

Offloading the gaol from council’s books removes a financial liability for City Hall, with maintenance costs last year estimated at $1.56 million.

Mayor Bruce Harwood said the sale would release “some pressure” on its budget, describing it as a “very expensive” property to retain.

“Since identifying the need to sell the gaol five years ago, today we’re able to sell this asset to someone who has experience in maintaining historically significant buildings and who is keen to maintain the building as a destination of heritage significance for the community,” Cr Harwood said.

The gaol housed some of Victoria’s most notorious prisoners from 1853 until its closure in 1991.

It has been owned by Geelong council since 1994.

As part of the sale, the buyer has agreed to keep the gaol open to the public for at least 500 hours per year.

However, that clause has raised concerns from one of the gaol’s key tenants.

Members of Geelong Rotary, which leases parts of the property, were at Tuesday’s meeting to question councillors on the condition.

Frank Thompson, a former president, said the facility was currently open to the public more than 1800 hours each year.

He said the group’s objective was to increase the opening hours for what he described as a “valuable tourist asset”.

Rotary’s lease will expire in April 2020, while Lazarus Community Centre will remain a tenant until at least 2022.

Montgomery International will set up a head office at the site, as well as providing commercial carparking. Sole shareholder Dean Montgomery also owns Glenormiston College, Fletcher Jones Factory and Gardens, and St Albans Stud.