The Northbourne public housing precinct has been given heritage protection, placing another hurdle in the way of the government's plan to demolish the buildings and build high rises.
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The ACT Heritage Council provisionally registered the buildings at the end of September. It has called for submissions on full registration.
The precinct stretches either side of Northbourne Avenue from Morphett Street in Dickson to Wakefield and Macarthur avenues and includes housing in the post-war international style, built between 1959 and 1962 for public servants.
While degraded and unkempt, the Heritage Council says the precinct is an exemplar of the style and of considerable significance; designed by one of the most important Australian architects of the mid-20th century, and demonstrating outstanding design and aesthetic qualities, which, while not necessarily valued by the community, are valued by architectural and heritage groups.
The provisional registration comes as the government has already moved tenants from the "Dickson Towers" on the corner of Morphett Street and fenced the buildings for demolition. But for heritage-registered buildings, development is only allowed if there is no "feasible and prudent" alternative.
The planning department has asked the Land Development Agency to look at alternatives to demolition.
In its response, the agency said conserving the heritage while upgrading the buildings to modern living standards would result in just 157 flats worth $15 million, compared with the government's plan to build 1099 apartments in their place, worth $70 million.
"There is a considerable quantum differential between the two alternatives in terms of both return to government and stimulus to the ACT economy," the agency said.
But Heritage Council chairman Duncan Marshall said the argument about maximising the return to the government was not relevant to the council's consideration of their future.
The government wants to clear the buildings so it can sell the land, using the money to build public housing and help pay for its new tram line from Gungahlin to the city. The viability of the tram also rests partly on more people and activity on Northbourne Avenue.
Capital Metro Minister Simon Corbell has said that many people find the buildings an eyesore, while Capital Metro project director Emma Thomas has described them as "almost like a slum".
Mr Corbell failed this year in an attempt to bypass heritage laws for particular projects, a move that, if successful, would have avoided the messy situation the government found itself in over the flats.
Conceding the possibility of "some anxiety" within government about the heritage registration, Mr Marshall said the buildings should be preserved if possible.
"We have yet to be persuaded that there is no feasible and prudent option for the retention of the precinct," he said.
But he did not rule out eventual demolition, describing it as a "complex puzzle".
"In the normal course of events, you would expect that places which are provisionally registered would be protected into the future, but there are a range of circumstances where that might not be able to be achieved," he said. "We can only achieve conservation where it's feasible and prudent to do so."
The heritage status would "reinforce the heritage voice in decision-making", he said, with a clear understanding of the site's importance.
The Land Development Agency considered three options to conserve the buildings.
The first would mean removing additions and asbestos, replacing windows, keeping internal layouts and kitchen and bathroom fittings, reconstructing a pergola that linked the buildings, installing sprinklers, joining some units to meet minimum sizes, landscaping the gardens, and building balconies, at a cost of $21.7 million.
A second option would also change internal layouts and replace kitchens and bathrooms, at a total cost of $28.7 million.
A third option would involve almost total internal demolition, with new layouts, plus new flats built on the back and side of some buildings, costing $41.5 million.
The first two options, providing 157 units (from the present 169) valued at $15 million, were "prudent" but not "feasible", given the extent of works compared with the market value, the agency argued.
The agency did not give a market value for the third option, which it said was not "prudent" and would be difficult to justify, given it wouldn't result in many extra flats.
The first two options would generate economic benefits, including stamp duty, rates and construction work totalling $31 million. The government's plan for demolition and 1099 new apartments would result in a precinct worth $70 million and generate $380 million in economic benefits.