Work stalls on the old headmaster's cottage as grant funding runs out

Recognising its heritage significance, Bathurst Regional Council embarked on a major project to restore and conserve the central business district property.

Built in 1866-77, the headmaster's residence is one of the few remaining examples of designer G.A. Mansfield's work and a fine example of Victorian Rustic Gothic style.

Council's strategic planning manager Janet Bingham said the restoration project has been made possible through grant funding.

Council received $60,000 from the NSW Government's Strong Country Communities Fund in 2018, and then another $200,000 from the Federal Government's Drought Communities Fund.

READ MORE: Federal funding boost for 13 projects in and around Bathurst

"The commencement of restoration of that building has been under taken through grant funding. That's stopped at the moment because the grant funding has been expended," Ms Bingham said.

"There's still some work to go there, there's still some underpinning work to do, and some restorations of floors and that sort of thing, the critical bracing work, so it's still got a long way to go."

How the cottage will be used in future is uncertain.

The building falls within the former TAFE precinct, which council has called for expressions of interest for the adaptive reuse of.

READ MORE: Take a look inside Bathurst's old TAFE building as council waits for EOI

Director of Environmental, Planning and Building Services, Neil Southorn, said ot is likely that some of the interested parties will put forward their own ideas for how to use the cottage.

"We're hoping that there will be proposals for its adaptive reuse as well," he said.

"The good thing is that council has gone to some extent, with grant funding, to prevent any further deterioration of that building and make it structurally stable for future use."

The expressions of interest phase will close on February 15.

Council will come up with a shortlist of proponents in mid 2023 and then make a request for more detailed design proposals.

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