Major structural repairs begin at Governor Hieu Van Le’s home on North Terrace

Governor Hieu Van Le’s 1839-built house is about to get some long-overdue – but pricey – repairs and upgrades to bring it into 2021.

Major repair works are underway at Government House, Adelaide. Scaffolds can be seen around the roof, pictured from 2KW. Picture: Sam Wundke

Major repair works are under way at Government House in a project worth nearly $600,000.

Work at Governor Hieu Van Le’s home started in November to repair severe structural problems found in the roof of the northern wings.

Problems include loose timber struts and inadequate framing around chimneys for earthquake resistance.

Parts of old roof sheeting, possibly dating back to 1860, also will be replaced.

Other issues include:

ONE split truss;

ONE truss substantially under strength;

ROOF sheets corroding, and:

WEAK chimney bases.

The significant problems were found after general appearance and leaking issues emerged at the mansion on the corner of North Terrace and King William Road in 2018.

Scaffolding can be seen on the roof of Government House. Picture: Sam Wundke

Including the installation of additional solar panels, the project will cost nearly $600,000. Picture: Sam Wundke

The State Government saw the much-needed repairs as a good opportunity to also install additional solar panels by adding an array on the north-facing side of the building. The total cost of the repair works and solar panels is $595,498.

Funding was approved in July last year before a tender was released by the Department of Infrastructure and Transport. Works are due to be completed in March.

A government spokesman said yesterday the repair works were vital to ensure that Government House would remain “a permanent fixture of our South Australian heritage”.

“As with any building that is more than 180 years old, there is always maintenance to be done to preserve its history, while making it a functioning modern space to support the governor of the day,” he said.

South Australian Governor Hieu Van Le and wife Lan Le pictured at their home in April, 2020. Picture: Roy VanDerVegt

The spokesman said the extra solar panels were installed to uphold a commitment to improving the energy efficiency of older government buildings.

“This will further reduce its electricity costs and decrease its overall environmental footprint,” he said.

Constructed in 1839-40, the building is the oldest Government House in Australia. In 2017, The Advertiser reported that a swimming pool nestled in a secluded area of the house’s 5.6ha grounds had been filled with dirt.

A garden of native grasses and some other Adelaide Plains plants were eventually planted.

The cost was believed to be about $30,000.

The 1970s concrete pool was not being used by Governor Le and his family.

An engineer’s report deemed the pool to be on the brink of catastrophic failure so it was repurposed.

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