TEMPORARY road barriers were removed from Goldsmith St last Friday, but work on replacing the Goulburn Uniting Church steeple is ongoing.
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Plans for the new steeple have been drawn up and tenders have been put out for the work. The site had had road barriers since March last year.
The council last week advised church representatives that they will have to submit a development application (DA) for the steeple replacement.
Goulburn Combined Church Council secretary Margaret Hall said the church's project manager had been told they would not need to lodge a DA.
But recently, "our project manager was told by the council that we would need to lodge a DA to proceed," Mrs Hall said.
"The current steeple has to be taken off and a new one put on. A temporary roof will be placed on it while this is done, for about two to three weeks. The plans have been completed and tenders have been put out to do the work. It is not a job that people do everyday."
In a separate statement to the Post, Reverend Julie Furner said members of the Goulburn Uniting Church "appreciated the concern and interest shown by the local community regarding the damage that occurred to the spire on the Goulburn Uniting Church in December 2014".
"In effect, the spire is not attached to the tower due to deterioration of the timber structure. It has been deemed unstable," Ms Furner said.
"Therefore, Goulburn Mulwaree Council saw fit to fence off the area and close the actual building.
"We are acutely aware that the processes have been long and laborious, and we are frustrated by this, but assure that everything is being done by the powers-that-be to reinstate the church spire and building to its former glory.
"No original plans for the spire structure were able to be found and, as such, heritage architects have had to start from scratch. Every effort is being made to match the new structure to the old.
"We have been blessed to know that insurance will enable us to reinstate the spire; however, the processes that need to be put in place are taking longer than expected.
Ms Furner said the church continued to meet weekly at Craig's Hill through a generous arrangement with the Crooks family.
Meanwhile, in a report to the February 3 council meeting, Goulburn Mulwaree director of growth strategy and culture, Louise Wakefield, advised the steeple had been inspected by a structural engineer and builder on March 6 last year.
"As they determined the steeple was certified to be structurally unsafe with a real risk of its collapse, demolition was recommended. The church has remained unoccupied since this time," Mrs Wakefield said.
The council's heritage advisor, Louise Thom, had inspected the property on March 16 last year and advised on the heritage impacts of its demolition.
"A development application is required for any temporary roof and the replacement of the steeple at the Uniting Church," Mrs Wakefield said.
"In the meantime, given the ongoing traffic impacts on the local community arising from the fencing and barriers, the traffic management arrangements have been reviewed by the council's operations staff.
"The council's engineer is of the opinion the presence of the barriers and fence is not likely to prevent the risk posed by the damaged steeple, and as a result the replacement of the fencing and barriers with appropriate warning signs for the public identifying the potential risk will be undertaken."
The cost to date of the fencing and barriers since March 20 last year is $39,490, the full cost of which will be borne by the church.
