Wyndham council’s decision to not rebuild the Kelly Park Centre in Werribee, nearly two years after it was destroyed by fire, has been met with fierce community backlash, including from sitting councillors.
The heritage-listed centre, which for decades served as one of Wyndham’s most popular community spaces, was destroyed by fire in June, 2022.
The decision to demolish rather than rebuild Kelly Park and turn the site into green space was made at a council meeting in December, 2023, but only made public last week.
Wyndham deputy mayor Josh Gilligan justified the decision, saying the significant out-of-pocket cost required to rebuild the centre meant restoring the land to public open space was the best option.
“This is an exciting opportunity for the Kelly Park precinct and we are looking forward to developing a public open space the whole family can enjoy,” Cr Gilligan said.
But in more than 140 comments left below the announcement on Wyndham council’s Facebook page, almost all disagreed, with the move variously labelled “disgraceful,” “poor,” and “terrible,” and one that disadvantaged its various tenants such as senior citizens, line dancing and probus clubs.
Among those voicing opposition were Wyndham councillors Jasmine Hill, Marcel Mahfoud and Heather Marcus, who pointed out that they either voted against or were absent when the matter came before council.
A common theme among the comments was speculation the Kelly Park Centre was under insured when it burnt down, speculation council denied.
“The building was insured, but the cost of rebuilding the centre to current building standards, including the removal of asbestos (that a hazardous materials audit conducted on the site after the fire identified) would not represent value for ratepayers’ money,” a council spokesperson said.
“The hazardous materials audit found that the areas identified were either not exposed by the fire or were contained within the building itself (therefore posing no public danger) but would nonetheless need to be removed by a licensed asbestos removalist whether the facility was rebuilt or demolished.”
Among the relocated groups expecting Kelly Park to be rebuilt was the Wyndham Combined Probus Club.
Club member Sandra Carnovale said she was disappointed to learn Kelly Park was gone for good.
“I was hoping they would [rebuild] mainly because it is so central to the Werribee area,” Ms Carnovale said, adding that Wyndham Probus Club’s temporary home at the Iramoo Community Centre in Wyndham Vale was much less accessible.
“It’s (Iramoo) miles from my place in Truganina. It’s not easily accessible public transport-wise.
“Our probus club services an aged population and a lot of them don’t drive anymore and Kelly Park was integral to their social life and had a bus stop at the front door.”
The council spokesperson acknowledged the disappointment caused by the decision and said council officers were working with affected groups to find alternate venues.
