New life has been breathed into the historic Greendale Half Church through the investment of $66,000 from the Federal Labor Government under the Your Community Heritage Program.
Federal Member for Ballarat, Catherine King, visited the site today to officially open the restored building which is fast becoming an important community space in Greendale and a further historic tourist attraction for the Moorabool Shire Council.
Ms King said the Your Community Heritage program enables communities to protect, share and celebrate the heritage which is most important to them.
“For years this lovely old building has been pretty much left to crumble, but now it has been brought back to life for the benefit of the whole community and that is great,” Ms King said.
“The owners were attempting to resurrect it and make it available for a variety of uses – including as a community meeting space – only to be frustrated by storm damage.
“This funding has helped repair the serious damage from the storms and continue the work that had already been embarked upon.
“I am really pleased for the owners and also for the Greendale and wider district communities which will benefit from a new amenity and tourist attraction in their area.”
Ms King congratulated Kathie Hollis and Marlene Orange for the initial rescue work carried out after the storms.
The conservation of the Half Church has transformed it from a ruin to an attractive and unique tourist destination of historical significance and enable it to be used as a community meeting space.
The Half Church was built between 1875 and 1877 of Greendale-sourced freestone, with the last service conducted there in 1924. The Church of England sold it in 1964 when it became a hay shed.
It was purchased by Ms Orange and Ms Hollis in 2010 when restoration work begun.