A group of approximately three-dozen Mudgee residents collected on the steps of the Mudgee Regent Theatre to take part in a public hearing conducted by members of the NSW Land and Environment Court.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The case pertains to an 'appeal matter against a DA refusal', with a section of the Mudgee community fiercely opposed to a proposal by the building's owner and hope to get the building listed on the Heritage Register.
Also making news:
The development - if approved in its current form - would turn the Regent Theatre space along with the adjoining space at 33 Short Street into two connected but distinct buildings.
The ground floor of the Regent Theatre space would serve dual purpose as a theatre auditorium and a function area with a 'provision of ancillary uses within the theatre entry foyer for a cafe and at the the rear of the theatre a kitchen (for function use) and backstage area of the theatre.'
The modified DA was put on exhibition in August this year.
"The theatre's integrity is of social and cultural significance within this community,"
One of the speakers at the hearing outside the theatre was Chair of the Gulgong, Mudgee, Rylstone Branch of the National Trust of Australia, John Bentley who shared his thoughts on the Development Application for the Regent building.
"It is well-known that the Regent Theatre is architecturally of great significance. The evidence for this does not need to be re-canvassed," Mr Bentley said.
"All the critical elements within the theatre which combine to provide that significance are still intact, or redeemable
"The theatre's integrity is of social and cultural significance within this community, and it increasingly being seen as such in wider circles."
More Regent Theatre news:
Following this, a public hearing was held at Mudgee Courthouse.
It's been confirmed to the Mudgee Guardian that at its meeting on 5 November 2019, the State Heritage Register Committee of the Heritage Council of NSW, resolved to advise the Special Minister for State, the Hon Don Harwin MLC, that the Regent Theatre is of state heritage significance, and to recommend its listing on the State Heritage Register under the NSW Heritage Act 1977.
The owner of the Regent Theatre has been contacted for comment.
A decision will be handed down today.