Zodiac Players call on council to help protect old Crescent St church

A Gympie theatre group is pushing for the council to reconsider plans to sell a centuries-old building over unpaid rates saying it risks stripping the region of one of the only rehearsal places left.

The leaders of one of Gympie’s most popular arts groups are urging the council to reconsider plans to sell a centuries-old building they say is the last line of defence for the region’s artists.

Zodiac Players Peter Blyth and Ian Wenzel want Gympie Regional Council to help preserve the Witham Theatrette at the old Crescent St church now serving as a rehearsal and storage space for Gympie’s artists.

The historic building, dating back to the 1870s, is one of nine properties at risk of being sold by the council due to years of unpaid rates.

Mr Blyth said the building is still owned by the old musical union which took it over in 1956 but “went kerfut”several years ago.

“Like good Samaritans we came in and we have been looking after it,” Mr Blyth said.

Zodiac Players Peter Blyth and Ian Wenzel at the Witham Theatre at Crescent St, which they are trying to keep from being auctioned off by Gympie Regional Council over unpaid rates.

The council had been sending the rates notices out to members of the closed union, Mr Blyth said, and they were being returned “unopened”.

“The … council hadn’t sent it on to any of us,” Mr Blyth said.

The Zodiac Players would be happy to try and pay the bill, he said, but have so far been unable to get any details on the amount still owed due to privacy issues.

Unfortunately this plan was also hindered by the continued closure of the Civic Centre, still shut after more than two years.

Zodiac Players Ian Wenzel and Peter Blyth say the building has been used as storage and a rehearsal space, and without it the region’s artists would not have an affordable space to use regularly.

Mr Blyth said there was no clear indication of when that would change.

“It’s supposed to be open by Christmas but we haven’t seen anyone down there,” Mr Blyth said.

“I don’t think it’ll be open, and now it’s got black mould in it.”

If the centre reopened the group could run shows “make money and then we could negotiate with them when we find out how much it is”.

The prolonged closure of the Civic Centre, now shut for more than two years with no clear end date in sight, has hindered the Zodiac Players’ ability to generate an income which would allow them to help pay the overdue rates bill for the Crescent Rd building.

Council acting communications manager Tom Daunt said there was still no clear date for when the centre would re-open.

“Unfortunately the Civic Centre is still very much impacted by this year’s weather events and is uninhabitable for the foreseeable future,” Mr Daunt said.

“While we don’t have an official timeline of when the Civic Centre will re-open it is crucial the health and safety aspects of the facility are addressed.

“We will let the community know how we are progressing.”

The rates bill owing on the building could be paid by anyone, he said, but the council did not itself have any plans to buy the property “given the current state of the building”.

Mr Wenzel said the loss of the space would deprive the region’s artists of an affordable space to call home.

“They’ve got sporting fields all over the place, but there’s no central place for the arts,” Mr Wenzel said.