Pakenham Scout Hall
34-36 James Street, Pakenham
Heritage Council Registrations Committee
Hearing – 6 September 2013
Members – Ms Emma Russell (chair), Mr Robert Sands, Ms Patricia Vejby
Decision of the Heritage Council
After considering a recommendation and the submissions and conducting a hearing into those submissions, pursuant to Section 42(1)(c) of the Heritage Act 1995, the Heritage Council has determined that the place is not of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria and does not warrant inclusion in the Heritage Register.
Emma Russell (Chair) / Robert Sands / Patricia VejbyDecision Date – 7 October 2013
APPEARANCES
Executive Director, Heritage Victoria
Ms Roslyn Coleman appeared on behalf of the Executive Director.
Nominator
Mr John Berkelmans appeared on behalf of the Friends of the Pakenham Scout Hall, who opposed the Executive Director’s recommendation. Mr Berkelmans’ written submissions included a number of letters of support from local residents and community organisations.
Other parties that appeared
Ms Gloria O’Connor appeared on behalf of the Cardinia Ratepayers and Residents Association.
Written submissions
A written submission was received from the owner of the place, the Scout Association of Australia.
Written submissions were also received from:
· Cardinia Shire Council;
· Ms Norma Jackson;
· Ms Valerie Vale;
· Ms Margaret Turner; and
· Ms Audrey Dodson, Berwick Pakenham Historical Society.
Introduction/background
The Place
1 The Pakenham Scout Hall is a rustic log cabin style building at 34-36 James Street, Pakenham. The oldest part of the hall dates from 1937 and the place includes additions made in 1957, 1969 and 1985.
2 The place has an individual citation in the Heritage Overlay to the Cardinia Planning Scheme as HO49.
Nominations
3 On 24 September 2012, the Executive Director accepted a nomination from Mr John Berkelmans to include the place in the Victorian Heritage Register (‘the Heritage Register’).
Recommendation of the Executive Director
4 On 22 March 2013, the Executive Director recommended to the Heritage Council that the place not be included in the Heritage Register and that it be retained in the local planning scheme.
Site Inspection
5 The Committee inspected the place on 5 September 2013 accompanied by the Hearings Officer and Mr Darren Spargo, District Commissioner of Scouts in Cardinia. No written or verbal submissions were received by the Committee during the inspection.
Issues
6 This section is a summary of what the Committee considers to be the key issues, followed by an explanation of the position the Committee takes on each issue. It is not intended to be a complete record of submissions that were made to the Committee.
7 Any reference to Criteria refers to the ‘Heritage Council Criteria for Assessment of Places of Cultural Heritage Significance’ (see Attachment 1 to this report).
Summary of issues
8 The Executive Director held that the place has local historical and social significance but did not reach the threshold for inclusion in the Heritage Register.
9 The Friends of the Scout Hall submitted that the place should be included in the Heritage Register as it satisfied Criteria A, D and G. They also made arguments about rare and unique aspects of the building (Criterion B).
10 The Cardinia Ratepayers and Residents Association (‘CRRA’) argued that the place should be included in the Heritage Register for reasons of historical and social significance (Criteria A and G).
Criterion A - Importance to the course, or pattern of Victoria’s cultural history
11 The parties disputed the place’s level of historical importance.
Submissions and evidence
12 The Executive Director submitted that the place is of local historical significance for its association with the development of Pakenham and as a demonstration of the local community’s fundraising and volunteer labour used to construct the building.
13 On behalf of the Friends of the Pakenham Scout Hall, Mr Berkelmans submitted that the place is of historical importance and argued that the connection of the Pakenham Scout Hall to the worldwide scouting movement is deserving of more weight. In his view, the link that this place has to the movement is as strong as that demonstrated by the Kariwara District Scout Headquarters, included in the Heritage Register as VHR H1343. The Executive Director acknowledged this link but argued that any scout hall in Victoria could be said to have the same association and that this would not in and of itself make a place worthy of inclusion in the Heritage Register.
14 According to Mr Berkelmans, the use of the place as an aircraft spotting tower during World War Two is of historical importance. The Executive Director refuted this argument on the basis that no physical evidence for this association exists at the site nor had any written evidence been presented.
15 Mr Berkelmans submitted that the hall has been in continuous use by scouts for 75 years and is a tangible connection between early scouting in Victoria and the present day scouting environment. He also argued that the style of the building serves as a link to the log cabin dwellings of early pioneers.
16 Mr Berkelmans quoted a basic test for determining state level significance under Criterion A from the Victorian Heritage Register Criteria and Thresholds Guidelines ‘the place/object allows the clear association with the event, phase etc of historical importance to be readily appreciated better that most other places or objects in Victoria with substantially the same association’. He argued that the hall could be more ‘readily appreciated’ than other examples because it is easily accessible by members of the public. The Executive Director submitted that the scout hall in Woodend is also easily accessible.
17 Victoria’s Framework of Historical Themes identifies scout halls as a possible example of ‘forming community relations’ (theme 8.4). Ms Coleman agreed that the Pakenham Scout Hall is an example of a place that demonstrates this subtheme; however, she argued that the place must satisfy at least one of the Heritage Council criteria to be included in the Heritage Register.
18 The CRRA submitted that the place is of historic significance as an example of the Pakenham community’s rural origins.
Discussion and conclusion
19 The Committee finds that Criterion A is not satisfied. The place has a clear association with Victoria’s scouting movement and that association is evident in the fabric. The Committee considers that the scouting movement is of historical importance to the evolution of Victoria’s society; however it was not convinced that the place allows the association with the Scouts movement to be readily appreciated better than similar places in Victoria.
20 The Committee was not persuaded by the argument that the place had a high degree of significance due to its connection to the global scouting movement. The Committee received no evidence to show that the place held more importance to the scouting movement than any other scout hall in the State, and considers that the connection, in and of itself, does not raise the historical significance of the place to a state level.
21 The Committee was persuaded by the evidence presented that the place was the site of an aircraft spotting tower during World War Two. Notwithstanding local oral history, the tower is also visible in the background of a photograph included as Attachment 9 to Mr Berkelmans’ submission. However, in the Committee’s view, this use of the place is not of such historical importance to the State as to warrant inclusion in the Heritage Register.
22 The Committee was not persuaded that there is a link between the log cabin style of the place and early pioneer dwellings.
23 Mr Berkelmans argued that the place is worthy of registration because it can be more readily appreciated as it is in an easily accessible part of the State. The Committee is of the view that this test relates to the fabric of the place itself not to its physical accessibility due to geographical location.
24 The CRRA submitted that the place is a reflection of Pakenham’s rural origins, other examples of which no longer exist. While the Committee regrets that there is little or no evidence left of the rural and semi-rural eras of Pakenham’s development, it considers this to be a matter of local concern.
Criterion B - Possession of uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of Victoria’s cultural history
25 Some arguments about rare and unique aspects of the place were presented to the Committee.
Submissions and evidence
26 The Berwick Pakenham Historical Society submitted that the granite fireplace with fleur-de-lis tile work in the hall is unique and Ms O’Connor cited local oral history indicating that the fireplace was made of rubble from the same Tynong quarry where stone was sourced for the Shrine of Remembrance (VHR H0848). The Executive Director argued that the evidence about the stone used in the fireplace is anecdotal.
27 The Historical Society argued that the likely demolition of this place means that Criterion B is relevant.
Discussion and conclusion
28 The Committee finds that Criterion B is not satisfied. Every place in Victoria is unique and may have one or more rare or unique aspects. The relevant consideration is whether this aspect is of state level significance. The Committee accepted that the place is constructed from rubble from the same Tynong quarry where stone was sourced for the Shrine of Remembrance, but it is not satisfied that this association with the Shrine of Remembrance is of sufficient importance to warrant inclusion in the Heritage Register.
29 The potential demolition of a place has no bearing on its cultural heritage significance and was not taken into consideration by the Committee in reaching its decision.
Criterion D - Importance in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a class of cultural places and objects
30 The parties disputed the importance of the place as an example of a log cabin style scout hall.
Submissions and evidence
31 The Executive Director submitted that the place is of local architectural significance as one of a number of scout halls in Victoria designed in a rustic American log cabin style. Ms Coleman submitted that the use of this style for scout halls was not unusual, particularly in country Victoria in the 1930s.
32 Ms Coleman argued that the rustic appearance of the hall relates to the bushland links of the scouting movement and the district’s thriving timber industry. The natural appearance of the log cabin style was thought to evoke the adventurous spirit of the scouting movement. The style was also considered to be particularly suited to country settings where timber was easily accessed.
33 It was submitted that a number of scout halls in Victoria used a particularly distinctive notched log technique, fine and early examples of this being at Woodend (1931) and Wangaratta (1933). In contrast, the Pakenham Scout Hall and Colac Scout Hall (1940) exhibit post and beam construction on a rustic log base.
34 In the Executive Director’s view, the Pakenham Scout Hall is not the earliest or most distinctive remaining example of a log cabin style scout hall in Victoria. Ms Coleman submitted that in the absence of a typological study or detailed comparative analysis, it is difficult to identify examples worthy of inclusion in the Heritage Register and it is inappropriate to include individual examples on an ad hoc basis.
35 Mr Berkelmans submitted that the place is a highly intact example of a log cabin style scout hall. He submitted that it is one of only a few such halls remaining intact in Victoria rather than ‘a number’ as stated by the Executive Director and also submitted evidence that the Colac Scout Hall is based on the design of the Pakenham hall. He argued that the post and beam construction of the Pakenham hall is more durable than the notched log technique demonstrated at Wangaratta and Woodend.
36 Mr Berkelmans submitted that the hall ‘symbolises what people in the early twentieth century felt about scouting’ and as such, embodies the ideals of scouting. As one of the letters in support of Mr Berkelmans’ submissions states, visitors to the hall have said ‘this is what you call a Scout Hall’. Mr Berkelmans argued that the place demonstrates the way people felt about scouting at the time of the inception of the movement in Australia.
37 Ms O’Connor quoted from a letter of support tendered by Mr Berkelmans, which in turn quoted Chief Commissioner G Anderson who at the hall’s opening praised it as ‘one of the finest scout halls in the State...of solid construction giving the appearance that it would stand for centuries’.
38 Ms O’Connor also submitted that this type of place is a rarity in the Shire of Cardinia. She argued that local Pakenham history is part of Victorian history. The place has been recognised as of heritage value to the Shire, the Shire is part of the State therefore the place is worthy of state listing, according to Ms O’Connor.
Discussion and conclusion
39 The Committee finds that Criterion D is not satisfied. In the absence of a typological study or thorough comparative analysis of scout halls in Victoria the Committee was not able to ascertain whether this is a type of place worthy of registration. Nor was the Committee convinced that this example warrants registration. There may be more intact, earlier or more influential examples of scout halls in Victoria. The Committee notes that a typological study may assist in identifying more significant examples.
Criterion G - Strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group for social, cultural or spiritual reasons. This includes the significance of a place to Indigenous peoples as part of their continuing and developing cultural traditions
40 The parties disputed the place’s level of social significance.
Submissions and evidence
41 The Executive Director submitted that the place is of local social significance as an important community building for the residents of Pakenham since the 1930s. According to Ms Coleman, the place is highly valued by the local community, but no evidence has been provided to indicate that it has a special social significance to the State.