By Jeremy Sollars
Memorabilia from the demolished shelter sheds at Swanfels’ Pioneer Park east of Warwick has been placed in safe storage, the Southern Downs Regional Council says.
The historic shelters were demolished on Friday 20 January, just two days after the council announced in a statement they were “devastated” by termite damage and were structurally “unsound”.
Equally devastated are Swanfels and surrounding residents, who are furious at the lack of notice the council gave about the demolition – and a lack of community consultation.
The timber and iron-roofed sheds, both more than a century old, had formerly been a tennis shelter and a play shed at the old Swanfels State School and were moved to the district’s Pioneer Park in the early 1980s.
Swanfels locals believe that had they been consulted about the condition of the shelters, they would have banded together and fixed them as a community project.
They have questioned the lack of a resolution on the demolition by councillors and their failure to call for tenders for the job.
They also queried as to what happened to historic items from the shelters – including a branding post – and any undamaged timbers and roofing sheets.
A council spokeswoman told the Free Times “salvageable material” from the site had been put aside for the Warwick and District Historical Society.
“The unsalvageable material would have been taken by the contractor to the Warwick Waste Management Facility for disposal,” the spokeswoman said.
“Memorabilia from the shelters, including the branding post, old school signs and old tennis signs, has been retained and is currently in council storage, where it will remain until such time as funding has been identified for (a) new shelter.
“It will be reinstated in the new shelter when it is constructed.”
No timeframe has been put around construction of a new shelter, with council saying funding will be considered “in a future budget”.
The council spokeswoman said Stanthorpe firm Rob Wilkinson Building was engaged to undertake the demolition works but council would not disclose the specific costs of the demolition or the consultant engineer’s report which deemed the shelters unsound.
“The costs of the work were recovered from within the budget,” she said.
“Costs are generally not provided as they can be considered ‘commercial-in-confidence’.
“Based on a report from a structural consulting engineer, council’s Director of Engineering Services authorised the demolition after advising the council.
“The value of the work was below the tender threshold of $200,000.”
Locals react:
Swanfels residents past and present are livid after the demolition of the historic Pioneer Park shelters.
The demolition crew rolled onto the site on Swanfels Road on Friday 20 January and by morning smoko time the 113-year-old shelter sheds were literally a thing of the past.
All that remains in council-owned Pioneer Park is a rainwater tank which was attached to the shelter shed, a concrete storage bunker and some play equipment.
The loss of the shelter sheds is a double blow to the country community east of Warwick, with the annual Swanfels State School reunion – which is always held in the park – just a couple of weeks away.
Milton Rippingale summed up the mood of the community, describing council’s lack of consultation as “ignorant and arrogant”.
“There was hardly any warning – they have just shown no respect at all to the community here, particularly the older residents,” he told the Free Times.
“The buildings had been there for a long time and hadn’t fallen down.
“We would have got together as a community and tried our best to save them.”
Yangan’s Jenn Greene-Galloway said she was bitterly disappointed she hadn’t had enough notice to be able to “go down and there chain myself to those sheds”.
Former Swanfels school pupil Ruby Johnson said the park and the shelter sheds had been well used over the years.
“There’s been a lot of events held here every year – wedding parties and anniversaries and Christmas parties,” she said.
“The park has been very popular and very well utilised.”
Ruby said those attending the Swanfels school reunion would bring tents and gazebos to the event to provide shade.
The annual Swanfels State School Reunion will be held at Pioneer Park on Swanfels Road (near Ansteys Road) from 9am on Saturday 11 February. No RSVP required, BYO picnic lunch and drinks and tables and chairs. For more information contact Ruby Johnson on 0438 674 803.
About Swanfels State School…
The former school building is now the home of the Warwick Artists Group on Willi Street, near Rainbow FM.
The school’s play shed was moved to Pioneer Park in the early 1980s after the school closed in 1980.
1888 31 August: Swan Creek Upper (Swanfels) School committee formed.
1888 24 September: Inspector reports on application to establish school.
1892 18 January: Swan Creek Upper School opened.
1892 April: Name changed to Swanfels School
1893: Swanfels School reduced in status to Provisional School
1898: First Assistant Teacher appointed
1900: Peak enrolment of 89 students
1904: Play shed erected
1919 20 March: Parents vote 13 against and 11 in favour on proposal to shift Swanfels School due to concerns over water damage from an underground stream.
1923: Horse paddock added to school grounds
1923 8 March: Telephone exchanged installed at school
1957: School connected to mains electricity
1964: Electric heaters installed in classroom
1967: Swanfels School 75th anniversary celebration
1980: Closure of Swanfels State School
