Hartley Historic Site project
Developing new, accessible, visually discreet public amenities that cater for up to 100,000 visitors a year – all without impacting Hartley Historic Site’s heritage values? The Hartley Historic Site project demonstrates how, with good planning and careful attention to conservation, this was possible.
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Each building within Hartley Historic Site tells stories of its past. With such notable historic heritage assets in place, any change requires careful consideration.
Having been assessed as indiscreet, the public toilets behind Hartley Courthouse needed demolition. New, accessible public amenities had to be built somewhere unobtrusive and considerate of the site’s heritage significance. The challenge in this was not limited to matters of conservation, but also to logistics, given the site’s position on moderately steep valley slopes.
The project's outcome was new amenities located at the rear of Hartley Post Office. This placement had no impact on cultural heritage and, in fact, incorporated an existing slab shed – an extremely rare example of an early outbuilding – restored from ruins in 2005.
Adapting an historic building and combining it with sympathetic construction resulted in a structure that both serves the community and complements the site’s early 19th century charm.