Panel recommends Hollies protection be abandoned

After a three-day hearing and consideration of all submissions, Planning Panels Victoria chair Tim Hellsten last week recommended Baw Baw Shire abandon plans to apply permanent heritage protection over the site.

Mr Hellsten said the property did not meet the criteria for a permanent heritage overlay to be applied to the site.

The Main South Rd property is part of a residential subdivision.

Council considered a proposed planning scheme amendment for a permanent heritage overlay on the site in April.

It was agreed to refer the matter to an independent panel for decision.

The property includes a ruinous historic house and collection of trees.

Mr Hellsten said the level of local community interest and appreciation of The Hollies was clear.

“The panel is in no doubt that The Hollies is of local historical interest as part of the social history of Drouin and the establishment of farming in the district, the story of Bishop Green and its other locally notable landowners.

However, he said the application of a heritage overlay required “sufficient rigour” to demonstrate an appropriate level of significance.

“The panel concludes that the level of information provided in the citation and able to be tested through evidence, does not meet the identified criterion,” he said. Parties to the hearing included Baw Baw Shire, developers Montham Pty Ltd, and community representatives Judy Farmer for Friends of Drouin’s Trees and Ellen Burrows for Drouin History Group.

Mr Hellsten said the panel was presented with competing heritage evidence and detailed landscape architecture evidence from Mr Patrick.

He said structural engineering evidence identified the former house was structurally unsound.

“The panel acknowledges the efforts of council to understand the level of heritage significance associated with The Hollies through the engagement of heritage experts, seeking interim heritage controls and the subsequent steps taken to prepare the amendment.

“The panel further acknowledges the significant research undertaken by the Drouin Heritage Group and the Friends of Drouin’s Trees which has added additional useful information to what is known about The Hollies.

“However, the test for the application of a heritage overlay to an individual place is appropriately set high, with the threshold of significance needing to be clearly substantiated.

“This is particularly the case given the level of intactness of the key structures which all parties and experts considered to be in ruinous condition, the structural evidence pointing to the likelihood of the dwelling’s collapse and heritage evidence suggesting stabilisation or rebuilding would threaten the dwelling’s heritage integrity,” he said.

Mr Hellsten said while The Hollies demonstrated elements of historical, aesthetic and associative significance, it did not do so to a sufficiently high enough threshold.

He said the additional information about the architect and Bishop Green was provided by submitters was useful, but did not, in the panel’s view, establish that the threshold was met.

Mr Hellsten said while the Hollies demonstrates some attractive landscape setting qualities and the dwelling was of some architectural interest and has an interesting association with Bishop Green, this collection of elements was not the test for a heritage overlay.