Saturday, January 19, marked the end of over 150 years of Anglican worship in Pinjarra’s St John’s Church and the return of the amenity for community use.
A large crowd gathered at the site to witness the historic proceedings, during which the bishop of Bunbury, the Right Reverend Dr. Ian Coutts formally de-consecrated the church and handed the keys to the community via a presentation to Shire of Murray President David Bolt.
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According to Mr Bolt, the Shire of Murray will now oversee urgent conservation works to address damage to the church roof, which is threatening the building’s structural integrity.
“The works will enable public use and access to this significant heritage asset and allow adaptive reuse of the building to compliment the surrounding heritage precinct, which includes Edenvale Homestead,” he said.
Over $288,000 will be spent on the conservation of the church.
“Council had previously allocated $50,000 towards the conservation fund, and at the December Council Meeting allocated a further $68,000 to ensure the works are completed concurrently rather than through a staged approach,” Mr Bolt said.
Works will commence in early February and will include the repairing of wall cracks, installing an external drainage system, replacing the roof drainage system and existing roof tiles with lightweight cladding, restoring brickwork, replacing wall plates and upgrading the roof structure to meet current standards.
Mr Bolt said the St John’s Church Conservation project is an apt example of what can be achieved when the community and Shire work together.
