State Government recommends Schonell Theatre for Queensland Heritage Register
A state government department has thrown a spanner in the works of a planned $300 million development by Queensland’s biggest university.
South West
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A CONTROVERSIAL $300 million redevelopment of Queensland’s oldest university may have hit a major stumbling block after a recommendation to heritage-list the Schonell Theatre.
The University of Queensland plans to redevelop the UQ Union Complex site, which includes the theatre.
Recently released artists’ impressions show no sign of the Schonell Theatre, although UQ has previously insisted it was only a concept.
The Save the UQ Union Complex group applied to state heritage list the site as a “hub of Queensland democracy” in May.
The Department of Environment and Science has recommended the Schonell Theatre, but not the remainder of the complex, be added to the Queensland Heritage Register.
“The Department’s recommendation is based on a range of factors, including the Schonell’s contribution to the social and cultural development of Queensland and the role of student unions in providing university facilities,” a spokesman said.
It is now up to the Queensland Heritage Council to decide whether or not all or part of the complex will be added to the register.
The QHC will consider the application at its next meeting on October 25.
Greens State Member for Maiwar Michael Berkman said it was “great news”.
“I hope the Heritage Council acts on this recommendation,” he said.
“The UQ Law Revue recently described the Schonell as the ‘beating heart of UQ’s creative community’ and I hope this recommendation means it’ll continue beating for many years to come.
“It’s not clear what heritage listing of the Schonell might mean for the student union complex, but it’s imperative that the campus retains this kind of hub for students to meet and engage in political action.”
The department’s recommendation stated the theatre had been “an important social space for artistic and cultural activities at the University of Queensland since 1970.”
“Planned, managed and used by students, the Schonell Theatre has a special association with generations of University of Queensland students and alumni.”
The application was supported by many submissions, including a letter signed by 25 of the university’s own academics plus another from the co-founder of the Pizza Caffe, next to the theatre.
The recommendation acknowledged the complex’s political history as one of Australia’s “most defiant” university campuses from the mid-1960s to the 1980s and the birthplace of the state’s first FM radio station 4ZZZ.
“Radical and civil liberties groups formed at the complex, and gatherings were held at the forum, “the epicentre of Brisbane’s political dissent’ of the time”, it stated.
The recommendation stated the administration block, relaxation block, forum, and refectory had “undergone extensive change” and no longer demonstrated its “significant historical and social associations”.
A UQ spokeswoman said: “The University will await the outcome of the Queensland Heritage Council process before making any decisions on the complex.”
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