Closure, Sale and Demolition 1998

In 1998 the hospital was closed. In the subsequent years thieves and vandals largely had the run of the place, although some people also went in to take photos. A 22 ha site including all the buildings and the access road was sold in 2004, and the remainder of the land was incorporated into Woodlands Historic Park, apart from the 19 ha adjoining Somerton Road which had been sold in 1986, and the 21.9 ha which had previously been reserved for Weeroona Cemetery and it’s conservation zone. Demolition started in May 2005 and all the buildings were gone by the end of 2006, apart from a timber patient hut, which was the only building to obtain heritage protection. (Comparison of the photographs indicates that this was not one of the original “framed tents”, which were much larger.) Heritage Victoria rejected a proposal to move it to a safer location, and as a result it was burnt down by vandals in 2008, very soon after the owner stopped employing 24 hour security.

At the time of sale the site was zoned for a very restricted range of uses, including Hospital or Place of assembly (other than Amusement parlour, Cinema, Drive-in theatre or Nightclub) (see Hume Planning Scheme – Schedule 6 to the Special Use Zone 19/01/2006). However the purchaser was obviously given every indication that rezoning would be considered, and in 2014 was seeking ministerial approval for a 600 unit housing development. The concept plan supplied to Heritage Victoria in 2007 also shows a 4 story aged care facility in much the same spot as the 4 story aged care facility they demolished.