Empty Heidelberg West police station sprayed with graffiti again as its future is debated

A POLICE station in a crime hotspot in Melbourne’s east which has stood empty for nearly a decade is proving a magnet for crime, attacked by graffiti vandals amid argy-bargy over its future.

The closed Heidelberg West police station was vandalised by taggers last week. Photo: 3AW

VANDALS have once again graffitied the increasingly unkempt Heidelberg West police station which has stood vacant for nearly 10 years.

Police last week cleaned up tags on the empty building which is now proving a magnet for crime instead of a deterrent — not good news in Heidelberg West where the latest statistics show crime is up 26.2 per cent, more than double the state average of 11.6 per cent.

The suburb was also recently named by the RACV as among the top 10 areas most at risk of burglary in Victoria.

Police officers from the Heidelberg West building were moved to the new Heidelberg station in 2008, while all counter services at the old station were discontinued in 2010, leaving Heidelberg West without a police station.

The police station, on the corner of Waterdale Rd and Altona St, has been closed since 2010. Picture: Mark Dadswell

Victoria Police says discussions are underway over the future of the building, but politicians are demanding answers.

State opposition leader Matthew Guy says the vacant station was “symbolic of the law and order crisis in Victoria” which he said was “fast becoming the nation’s crime capital.”

“It’s a waste of taxpayer dollars and a waste of police resources, rather than catching criminals, the police are being dispatched to deal with their own stations being vandalised,” he said.

Mr Guy said a Liberals Nationals government would “consider” reopening the station, but it “would require a large amount of investment” given its poor condition.

Shadow Police Minister Edward O’Donohue said it was “concerning that criminals feel so absolvent as to attack police stations and police buildings”.

He said there was “a serious law and order problem” in Heidelberg West and the community “wants police stations to be open as places of sanctuary and safety.”

Mr O’Donohue said Premier Daniel Andrews and State Labor MP Anthony Carbines had previously campaigned for the station to be reopened while part of the Opposition, and it was now “time for the government to put up or shut up”.

Politicians Danielle Green, Anthony Carbines, Daniel Andrews and Jenny Mikakos campaign to reopen the Heidelberg West Police Station in 2014 while in opposition.

Mr Carbines said the police station was no longer “in a state to be reopened” and it was up to Victoria Police to determine its future.

He said the new 17 police custody officers at Heidelberg Police Station freed up more than 2500 shifts for sworn-in officers to police the Heidelberg West community, and that the state would spend $2 billion over five years for more than 3000 new cops across Victoria.

Victoria Police spokeswoman Inspector Anne Pattison said police station had been tagged over the past few months but that police regularly patrolled Heidelberg West.