By Callum Ludwig
A long-time dispute over the function of a laneway in Warburton has led to it being temporarily closed to vehicles.
After a street sweeper struck part of a building in 2019, the use of the lane has been a hot topic ever since; it was closed until June 2021 when it was reopened and has now been closed again.
A local business owner has also claimed they have faced structural damage to the basement of an adjacent building due to the raised level of the right of way when it was cemented, the street sweeper incident and ongoing traffic issues at the western end of Thomas Avenue.
Director of Environment and Built Infrastructure Hjalmar Philipp said that Yarra Ranges Council can confirm that from Friday 8 November 2024, a laneway from Warburton Highway to Thomas Avenue was temporarily closed to through vehicles until further notice following traffic safety issues and possible impact to buildings.
“The laneway will still be available for the emergency services, pedestrians and cyclists. This closure also coincides with the start of high-traffic season for 2024/25 for Warburton,” he said.
“If Council determines that the laneway should be permanently closed, this will be done in consultation with local businesses.”
Mr Philipp said the temporary closures also comes alongside several other traffic changes that have been or will be taking place in Warburton in the coming months, including:
Changes to time restrictions with new signage
Asphalting parking spaces
Paid parking for visitors’ pilot project (consultation has been taking place with businesses over the past few months)
A turning circle will be constructed on Thomas Ave to ensure that vehicles (particularly vehicles towing caravans or trailers) can turn within Thomas Avenue and not use the laneway as a cut-through.
The turning circle on Thomas Avenue was the solution to illegal traffic not following the one-way designation for the laneway in 2021, put out for further consultation in 2022, amongst other smaller changes which can be found here: shaping.yarraranges.vic.gov.au/thomas-avenue-turning-area.
Founding Partner of Treehouse Nature & Healing at 3377 Warburton Highway (one of the buildings adjacent to the laneway) Tate Jerrems said they [himself and his co-founder] have faced issues since their tenancy-to-ownership crossover from 2017-2019.
“The right of way’s ‘cement version’ requires excavation simply in order for us to survey for original elevations, in having our building’s wall remediated, that may necessitate full replacement of original materials,” he said.
“The Right of Way’s legal character needs to be discussed with the owners of the title originating the asset as a road under the Land Act 1958, being us,”
“The Right of Way’s permanent future needs to be re-designed and reconstructed in alignment with our original assets, accommodating pedestrians and cyclists in a safe, practical, logical way with definite opportunity for creative materials / relevant artistry embedded into the surface of the asset.”
Mr Jerrems claims that when they bought the site after facing eviction as tenants, he discovered the internally boarded cavities and original windows in the basement had been covered with a false wall, power points and a long bench.
Mr Jerrems said they removed the bench and false wall internally in the basement in March 2021, as well as removed the boarding, masonite and original cracked glass, and informed Council in April 2021 of the structural damages.
“We informed Council of the wrong cement level of the laneway (from 2001) and our original Heritage assets, in September 2021,” he said.
Mr Jerrems provided Star Mail with previous communication from Yarra Ranges Council that the previous doorway and windows of the basement were boarded up by a previous landowner and prior to the cementing of the laneway, which had a design that ‘closely matched’ existing conditions and ground levels at that time when it was carried out in around 2001 based on plans from 1996.
Mr Jerrems has since spoken to owners of the 3377 Warburton Highway site from around 2001 and prior and received some written testimony from them, which was shared with the Star Mail, and corroborates that the cement level of the laneway may not have been as high as it is currently. Mr Jerrems believes the level is 0.5m above the level it was when the laneway was crushed rock prior to cementing around 2001-2002.
Mr Jerrems said they are yet to even consider any formal claims against the Council and their intention is to keep these issues away from the legal justice system.
“This has all destroyed my inner environment, being insinuated as ‘crazy’ or ‘a liar’ for so many years, when all I’ve ever done, and we’ve ever done, is try to show Council and others the mirror of their errors, behaviours, and impact on our person(s) and those of our reputation, both privately and commercially, within the Shire of Yarra Ranges,” he said.
“Our property is good to go, once remediated, there are no structural issues across any of the building otherwise, it was exceptionally designed and exquisitely built,”
“We all know that commercial lease opportunities are extremely rare in Warburton, this is only one of three zones in the basement that cannot be made available for the growth and opportunity of any small business ventures here, from now into the future.”
The 3377 Warburton Highway property is featured in the Victorian Heritage Database as the ‘Gainsborough Store’ and was considered ‘the region’s oldest store in near original condition’ (Tansley, 1978).
Attached to the agenda of the Council meeting in June 2021, civil engineering firm SMEC Australia recommended the full closure of the laneway.
Mr Jerrems has contacted a legal third party regarding ongoing concerns and also referred the circumstances to the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC).
