Renewed community concern for Huskisson church

The call comes amid concerns that the building has fallen prey to 'demolition by neglect'.

Meanwhile the property owner cites current zoning and community opposition in addressing maintenance.

Members of Huskisson Heritage Association (HHA) have coordinated a letter writing campaign, highlighting their concerns to property developer Steve Bartlett, owner of the site.

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They say weatherboards have fallen from the exterior of the church, and gutters are filled with debris.

The campaigners have called for repairs and maintenance on the church building.

In a statement, the HHA said the church was 'being left to fall into ruin'.

President Dr Shirley Fitzgerald said the church's condition had been a worry since bushfires threatened the area in 2019-2020, and recent rain events had amplified concerns.

"I think some in the community would say it's heartbreaking," she said.

"There's a lot of balls in the air about what the state government is going to do and there's no DA approved, so he [the developer] can't do anything at the moment.

"People would like to get inside just to see what the condition is.

"The local Anglican parish only got final things [church property] off the block just before last July. So people would have known [the condition] then, but they wouldn't tell us, and since then we've had a lot of rain."

The South Coast Register contacted Mr Bartlett regarding the church building and its condition.

In a statement, Mr Bartlett said there are intentions to repurpose the old church, should a change in land zoning allow work to proceed.

The planning proposal in question has been in the pre-exhibition phase since 2020; it seeks to rezone the site from SP2 - Place of Public Worship, to B4 Mixed Use Zone.

As per the submitted documents, the intended outcome of the planning proposal is to enable development of a residential apartment building, tourist and visitor accommodation, and retail premises - potentially up to a height of 16m.

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Regarding the letter writing campaign, Mr Bartlett said he had received about 15 emails many from people who don't live in the area.

"I am told by many people that they find it challenging that a group of people (HHA) consider they have the right to enter, inspect and pass judgement on someone else's private property.

"I find it especially difficult to accept when that same group opposes our attempts to use the property.

"The former church building is still in good condition. We are enthusiastic to move forward and repurpose the former church.

"Unfortunately, we can't use the building until the land zoning is changed. HHA has opposed our attempts to change the land zoning so we can use the building. So, there is a catch 22 of HHA's own creation. They want the building maintained to their standards but oppose our desired use of the building.

"HHA is lobbying for heritage listing of the former church building. Such listing has been rejected by all levels of government for 20 years.

"At the same time the group opposes archaeological work needed to identify the location of graves so those graves can be considered for heritage listing."

An update on the planning proposal for the Huskisson former Anglican Church was presented to Shoalhaven City Council at its Monday evening meeting.

This week's update pertained to archaeological investigation of graves on the site, which is a former churchyard.

A deputation to council presented a historical heritage assessment and archaeological research design report, and an independent desktop peer review of a previous ground penetrating radar report.

Ultimately, councillors voted against allowing archaeological investigation - specifically, shallow surface scraping - despite Heritage NSW granting conditional approval.

The council cited a lack of consultation with community groups including Jerrinja Local Aboriginal Land Council, its own Aboriginal Advisory Committee, and the Huskisson Heritage Association, as part of the reasoning.

In its resolution, the council opted to defer the matter so councillors could receive a more detailed briefing.