The old Wonthaggi High School site has been vacant for six years.
By Catherine Watson
SICK of the lack of action on the old Wonthaggi high school site, locals are planning a subversive action: a picnic next door.
On Saturday, a new group called Wonthaggi Old Tech Creative Hub (WOTCH) will host a picnic in Wishart Reserve, adjoining the high school site, to canvass ideas and gauge community support.
“We'd like to see the community getting together,” WOTCH spokesperson Jeni Jobe said. “A picnic is a lovely example, a microcosm of what could happen on the site.”
SICK of the lack of action on the old Wonthaggi high school site, locals are planning a subversive action: a picnic next door.
On Saturday, a new group called Wonthaggi Old Tech Creative Hub (WOTCH) will host a picnic in Wishart Reserve, adjoining the high school site, to canvass ideas and gauge community support.
“We'd like to see the community getting together,” WOTCH spokesperson Jeni Jobe said. “A picnic is a lovely example, a microcosm of what could happen on the site.”
With a state election next year, and a new Labor candidate, she says now is the ideal time to make some noise and tell the politicians, state and local, what is needed.
“It's a very large site in the very heart of Wonthaggi and it's going to rack and ruin. It seems there's not a lot of will in the State Government to do something there and it's probably going to be up to the community to actually make something happen.”
Even before Wonthaggi Secondary College moved to its swish new campus in McKenzie Street, the State Government promised the old high school site in the Wonthaggi CBD site would be made available to the council for a cultural precinct.
Six years later the old campus is still managed by the Department of Education and Bass Coast Shire Council has not agreed to take it over. The only change is that the site is now surrounded by a high security fence to keep out vandals and homeless people.
A working artist, Jeni Jobe says there’s a very strong case for having an arts precinct but the site is big enough for other community assets to serve Wonthaggi and the region.
“It's a very large site in the very heart of Wonthaggi and it's going to rack and ruin. It seems there's not a lot of will in the State Government to do something there and it's probably going to be up to the community to actually make something happen.”
Even before Wonthaggi Secondary College moved to its swish new campus in McKenzie Street, the State Government promised the old high school site in the Wonthaggi CBD site would be made available to the council for a cultural precinct.
Six years later the old campus is still managed by the Department of Education and Bass Coast Shire Council has not agreed to take it over. The only change is that the site is now surrounded by a high security fence to keep out vandals and homeless people.
A working artist, Jeni Jobe says there’s a very strong case for having an arts precinct but the site is big enough for other community assets to serve Wonthaggi and the region.
The old high school site. Photo: Bass Coast From the Sky
“What I don't want is to see 95 per cent of that land sold off to fund housing on part of it. Solutions like that have been happening all over Melbourne. If it happened on this site, I think it would be an appalling loss for our community.”
In 2021 the council’s arts and culture advisory committee released a detailed and ambitious discussion paper plan, A Creative Arts and Cultural Precinct for Wonthaggi.
In 2021 the council’s arts and culture advisory committee released a detailed and ambitious discussion paper plan, A Creative Arts and Cultural Precinct for Wonthaggi.
| The paper argued that this site presented a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a civic heart for the rapidly growing town and make it a destination for locals and visitors alike. Councillors greeted the report enthusiastically when it was tabled at a council meeting, and it then disappeared into the ether. inverloch artist John Mutsaers was a member of the committee and has been frustrated by the lack of action since then. If it was artists in charge, he said, the place would have been a bustling hub of activity by now. “Fix the leaks, give it a coat of paint and let’s hold some events ... Let's just try it." | - ADVERTISEMENT -  |
He acknowledges that councils have to act more cautiously but he's keen to see at least some of the buildings reused. If not the brick building then the portable tech rooms.
“They’re a bit decrepit so they would make ideal artists’ studios. It wouldn’t matter if people spilled a bit of paint. They don’t need anything but the power on.”
In the past the council has sought ownership rather than custodianship of the site. With demolition and removal of the existing buildings estimated to cost over $1 million, it also wanted to receive a vacant site from the government.
There are conflicting reports on the state of the buildings. Some say the substantial brick building on the corner is still in reasonable order. Others say it’s only fit for demolition. But after years of stalemate, the momentum seems to be building on several fronts.
In this year’s budget the council allocated $350,000 to start work on planning for the site.
“They’re a bit decrepit so they would make ideal artists’ studios. It wouldn’t matter if people spilled a bit of paint. They don’t need anything but the power on.”
In the past the council has sought ownership rather than custodianship of the site. With demolition and removal of the existing buildings estimated to cost over $1 million, it also wanted to receive a vacant site from the government.
There are conflicting reports on the state of the buildings. Some say the substantial brick building on the corner is still in reasonable order. Others say it’s only fit for demolition. But after years of stalemate, the momentum seems to be building on several fronts.
In this year’s budget the council allocated $350,000 to start work on planning for the site.
"This funding will allow us to unpack some of the complex the planning constraints, establish the necessary frameworks to guide negotiations with potential partners and stakeholders, determine land use options, and further discussions with the State Government before Council can consider the site."
Bass Coast Shire Council
Last week the council invited expressions of interest from residents and others to join a new community reference group for the Wonthaggi Structure Plan Review and planning for the former Wonthaggi Secondary College site.
This week members of the WOTCH group were poring over detailed building plans of the school procured by one of their members, local architect Barbara Moje.
John Mutsaers says he is feeling a mixture of optimism and apprehension.
“Yes, I ‘m optimistic that something is happening at last but I’m a bit fearful at my age that I won’t see the fruits of it! Maybe someone can write my name on a brick.”
Read more:
This week members of the WOTCH group were poring over detailed building plans of the school procured by one of their members, local architect Barbara Moje.
John Mutsaers says he is feeling a mixture of optimism and apprehension.
“Yes, I ‘m optimistic that something is happening at last but I’m a bit fearful at my age that I won’t see the fruits of it! Maybe someone can write my name on a brick.”
Read more:
 ‘Right time, right place’ Sept 24, 2021 -Bold new vision for a Wonthaggi creative arts and cultural precinct. |  What happened to our cultural precinct? June 23, 2023 - Five years ago the State Government announced the old Wonthaggi high school site would be handed over to the council for a cultural precinct. |