It's a big job, but the new owners of Lithgow's former TAFE facility on Mort Street are confidant in 12 months time, the landmark building will once again be an asset to the community.
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"We want it to go from an eyesore to a sight for sore eyes," Laurent Wallace said.
New owners Michael and Laurent Wallace, who purchased the building at auction on September 12 and will officially take possession on October 24, gave the Lithgow Mercury a tour through the premises late last week.
Their vision is for the building to be transformed into Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA). It would contain residential units of different sizes, between one and three bedrooms, which will each be designed to be completely accessible for people in wheelchairs and with other mobility issues. The average size of a two-bedroom unit in the structure is expected to be about 75 square metres.
A lift will be installed to allow access to the second floor.
The building will not be the Wallaces' first foray into providing high physical support housing, with projects in Goulburn and in the Camden area.
Their company, Ethical SDA, is a registered National Disability Insurance Scheme accommodation provider, which means eligible people's housing would be subsidised by the scheme.
The units will meet Livable Housing Australia's platinum rating which, according to its guidelines, means it includes all 16 elements to ensure accessibility (such as the appropriate positioning of car parks, entrances, power points etc).
"This level describes design elements that would better accommodate ageing in place and people with higher mobility needs," LHA states.
"This level requires more generous dimensions for most of the core livable design elements and introduces additional elements for features such as the living room and flooring."
There is plenty of work to be done, internal and external, to bring the building alive again.
Fire safety is at the forefront of planning at the moment. A fire barrier, which was not required when the building was constructed in 1925, will need to be installed. To carry this out, a false ceiling will need to be installed over the top of the exposed wooden ceiling beams.
Laurent said the heritage ceiling would remain intact, but it would no longer be able to be seen.
Quotes are currently being sought to repair the roof, while there will be external window repairs, guttering and brickwork to be undertaken as a priority. Lithgow City Council had requested previous owners to repair broken windows, doors, downpipes, guttering and brickwork going back to 2011.
"One of the main issues for us is the doors," Laurent said.
"They are just less than the 950mm width we need."
Staircases in the building are also too steep for modern standards.
A few internal walls have been damaged by vandals, while in one room the floor has been partially painted with a roller. The painter obviously lost enthusiasm at some point, splashing paint up across the walls and windows.
The two sheds in place out the back of the building, fronting the Eskbank-Mort Street car park, will be demolished to make way for car parking and a communal courtyard area.
Shortly after officially taking possession of the building in the coming weeks, the owners said they would be putting a development application in to Lithgow City Council for approval to begin works.
Their plans are to have the units completed in the next 12 months.
"Our goal is 12 months, but that really depends on council. That is always the unknown in a project like this one," Michael said.
SDA was originally investigating accommodation for a person seeking accessible accommodation in Blackheath. Given a half-hour radius to look in, the Wallaces found themselves in Lithgow.
"We drove past and thought, that would be good, it's got level access..." Laurent said.
"While most of the work will be happening inside, we want to make sure the outside looks attractive, too. It's a beautiful old building - that's what we first noticed when we saw it. That's what we want others to see, too. We don't want to see it deteriorate any more."
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