Previous find of the month
August 2015
Planning or Procrastination?
A New Electrical Workshop for the Kingston Powerhouse
"Under Consideration for Some Years Now"
Yet, despite the NCPDC's approval of this "urgently required" building, construction did not take place. Executive Member, J.N. Rogers, raised this oversight during the 145th Meeting of the NCPDC in December 1955:
"The Executive Member recalled endorsement by the Committee in 1948 of the site for the proposed Electrical Workshops in Wentworth Avenue, Kingston. The proposal had been under consideration for some years and it had now become necessary for the workshop building to be erected at an early date on the site previously endorsed. To that end, Drawings ACT.2300-1-2 had been prepared by the Department of Works, and these were now submitted for consideration."
The NCPDC resolved to recommend acceptance of the new plan.
Plan No. A.C.T. 23200 of proposed electrical workshop at Kingston. Click on plan for larger view.
Plan No. A.C.T. 23201 of proposed electrical workshop at Kingston. Click on plan for larger view.
Plan No. A.C.T. 23202 of proposed electrical workshop at Kingston. Click on plan for larger view.
Construction of this workshop, with minor revisions, finally began in 1958 with work completed in 1959. Its construction necessitated the removal of several Pinus radiate and Eucalyptus mannifera trees planted by Charles Weston in the 1920s. Remnants of Weston's plantings remain on the corner of Wentworth Avenue and Mundaring Drive.
Kingston Powerhouse precinct in 1961.
In 1963, under the Australian Capital Territory Supply Act 1962, the newly formed ACT Electricity Authority (ACTEA) took over responsibility of Canberra's power supply. In 1967, ACTEA extended the eastern end of the renamed 'ACTEA Workshops'.
Kingston Powerhouse precinct in 1968.
Kingston Foreshore Development
It was during the 1980s that the Canberra community began to appreciate the historical value of the Kingston Powerhouse. In 1985, ACTEA planned to redevelop the precinct for industrial use, a plan that included the possible demolition of the Powerhouse. The National Capital Development Commission (NCDC) opposed this, encouraging ACTEA to vacate the precinct so it could be included in a redevelopment of the Kingston lakeshore area.
In 1988, under the ACT Electricity and Water Ordinance 1988, the ACT Electricity and Water Authority (ACTEW) succeeded ACTEA. ACTEW continued to use the electrical workshop.
Kingston Electrical Workshop c2000. Source: Michael Roesler, ActewAGL
In 1995, the ACT Government established the Kingston Foreshore Development Authority to advise on future development of the area. On the 24th April 1998, the Kingston Powerhouse precinct was entered on the ACT Interim Heritage Places Register.
Kingston Electrical Workshop c2000. Source: Michael Roesler, ActewAGL
In December 1999, the ACT Government gazetted a Variation to the ACT Territory Plan [No. 113] allowing the Kingston Foreshore Development to proceed. As part of the development the Kingston Powerhouse, along with the Fitters' Workshop, was preserved. The remaining buildings in the precinct including the Electrical Workshop, having been assessed as having no significant cultural or historical significance, were demolished in 2001.
Kingston Powerhouse precinct in 2004.
Links to external sites
Canberra. The Queanbeyan Leader, 12 July 1915, p.2: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article106106065
Canberra. The Queanbeyan Leader, 22 July 1915, p.2: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article106106255
Local and General. The Queanbeyan Leader, 9 August 1915, p.2: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article106102850
Modern Workshops at Power House. The Canberra Times, 29 November 1948, p.3: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2778414
Minister Outlines Big Works Programme. The Canberra Times, 22 October 1954, p.2: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2908738
Planning Committee is Doing Good Job, Says Council Chairman. The Canberra Times, 20 December 1955, p.1: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article91214355
Town Planning for the People. The Canberra Times, 1 February 1956, p.2: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article138118207
990 Home Units Completed In Record Year. The Canberra Times, 1 January 1959, p.1: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article103088671
Extension of ACTEA Workshop. The Canberra Times, 19 February 1966, p.19: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article105887800
A beacon in the early days of Canberra. The Canberra Times, 16 September 1992, p.20: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article126942997
Canberra's Engineering Heritage: http://www.engineer.org.au/chapter06.html
ACT Land Development Agency : Kingston Section 49 - Cultural Precinct: http://www.lda.act.gov.au/en/kingston-section-49-cultural-precinct
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