Proposed Sale of the Town Hall in Campbell Town by the Northern Midlands Council

There is a full hearing at the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (TASCAT) today to determine the fate of the Town Hall in Campbell Town.

Friday, 25 February 2022

10.00 am - 140/21SOL - 75 & 77 High Street, Campbell Town
Notice of Intention to Sell Public Land - Town Hall, Campbell Town

The decision of the Northern Midlands Council to sell the Town Hall has been appealed in a last-ditch attempt to keep this historically significant building in public hands and to ensure that the current tenants, Service Tasmania and the Campbell Town Museum and Visitor Information Centre, can continue to operate. The Council decision to sell the Town Hall was made despite the knowledge that it would jeopardise the provision of essential services to Campbell Town and the surrounding district. The next closest Service Tasmania branch is a 100km round trip to either Oatlands or Longford. The Council decision flies in the face of their own planning scheme (Northern Midlands Interim Planning Scheme 2013) which emphasises the importance of Campbell Town as “the principal service centre in the central Midlands” (page A-7). How can the Council justify selling this important building in the heart of Campbell Town and stripping the community of these essential services?

                       Image: Google Earth

Below is a document outlining my objections to the proposed sale of the Town Hall in Campbell Town. This document has been shared with the appellant for use at the Tribunal hearing.

Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal

140/21SOL - 75 & 77 High Street, Campbell Town

Notice of Intention to Sell Public Land - Town Hall, Campbell Town

I object to the decision of the Northern Midlands Council to sell the Town Hall in Campbell Town on the grounds that it is not in the public interest. This is because the community may suffer undue hardship due to the loss of access to, and the use of, this public facility and because there is no similar facility available to the current users of the Town Hall.

The sale of the Town Hall would result in the loss of the civic heart of the town and the real possibility of the loss of services that are essential to the community of Campbell Town and the surrounding district. The first concern is the closure of the Service Tasmania branch currently located within the Town Hall where it provides government services to the residents of the Campbell Town locality. The next closest branch is either 50km to the south in Oatlands or 50km to the north in Longford. The need to make a 100km round trip to access government services if the Town Hall is sold is an example of the undue hardship the community would face. There are no safeguards in place to ensure Service Tasmania could remain in the building after sale and once lost from the town it is quite likely this service would never return. Campbell Town is the major service centre in the central Midlands.

According to the Northern Midlands Interim Planning Scheme 2013:

"Campbell Town’s highway position and centrality to the Midlands district, and its existing concentration of business, community, health and education services provide a basis for Campbell Town to consolidate its role as the principal service centre in the central Midlands."

Section 3.2.8, Page A-7

Northern-Midlands-Interim-Planning-Scheme-2013-last-updated-4-January-2022-02-2021.pdf (northernmidlands.tas.gov.au) (accessed 20 Feb 2022).

The sale of the Town Hall and loss of Service Tasmania would diminish the quality of life in the central Midlands region with a knock-on effect harming local businesses. If residents need to travel north or south to access government services they will most likely conduct other business and do their shopping at the same time, leading to a decline in the viability of Campbell Town.

The other full-time tenant facing eviction if the Town Hall is sold is the Campbell Town Museum and Visitor Information Centre. The visitor information centre, run by volunteers, is the only source of information for tourists visiting Campbell Town. Its loss would downgrade the tourism experience in Campbell Town resulting in a negative effect on the many businesses in town that rely on the tourist trade. The loss of the museum would have the same consequences but there is a potentially even greater concern. What would become of the museum’s collection? There is a real possibility that if the Town Hall is sold the exhibits and artefacts telling the story of the history of Campbell Town could also be lost. This would be a double tragedy coupled with the loss of the building itself from public hands. The Campbell Town Town Hall has played a central role in the culture and history of Campbell Town throughout the past eight decades and features a memorial tower dedicated to Dr Walter Tofft, a long-serving and highly respected local doctor. The sale of the Town Hall would place all this history in jeopardy. This attack on the cultural identity of Campbell Town will create undue hardship for the residents of the town and the surrounding region.

There is no evidence the Northern Midlands Council has any plans in place to support the current tenants of the Town Hall in finding alternative premises. This includes the Community Market that takes place in the Town Hall on the last Sunday of each month. The loss of the market would impact business and tourism in the town. The hardship created would be magnified because the market also provides a regular opportunity for the community to gather which would also be lost.

There are no other facilities in Campbell Town that can compare to the Town Hall. The facility at the sportsground cannot function as a theatre or a movie cinema. It cannot provide a space for Service Tasmania or the Campbell Town Museum and Visitor Information Centre, neither can the Guide Hall located where it is in the back streets of Campbell Town instead of in the centre of town. In any case, the future of the Guide Hall is under a cloud given the Council’s decision in their meeting on 28 June 2021 to spend $15,000 investigating the conversion of 24 King Street Campbell Town into a commercial cabin/caravan/short-term accommodation facility. The Guide Hall is located at this address.

There is ample evidence that the sale of the Town Hall in Campbell Town is not in the public interest as it will cause undue hardship to the residents of Campbell Town and the surrounding district due to the loss of services and facilities currently housed there and due to the loss of the building itself from public hands, a building that is historically significant and an iconic landmark on the Midland Highway. The Northern Midlands Council has not suggested any alternative locations for the services currently provided at the Town Hall and they cannot because there are no other comparable facilities available in Campbell Town.