Boroondara Council moves to protect former home of political figure Bob Santamaria

A local council wants the former home of post-war political activist Bob Santamaria given heritage protection.

Former house of B.A. Santamaria in Burke Rd, Kew.

A council is seeking protection for a Melbourne house that was lived in by one of Australia’s most prominent post-war political figures.

Catholic intellectual and staunch anti-communist B.A. (Bob) Santamaria played a key role in the Labor Party split of the 1950s which helped keep the federal Coalition in power for 23 years until 1972.

The former Santamaria house in Burke Road, Kew.

From 1960 to 1983, Mr Santamaria lived in a Federation house at 1207 Burke Rd, Kew.

Boroondara Council has moved to give heritage protection to the 1914 home after it was threatened with demolition under a plan to build 12 town houses on the property and an adjoining one.

But the final decision on protecting the house will need to be made by state Labor Planning Minister Richard Wynne through a planning scheme amendment.

Bob Santamaria in 1992.

A council report said that while the house itself did not have individual heritage significance, its association with Mr Santamaria, who ran the socially conservative National Civic Council, was key.

“He...wrote many of his major works in the library of the house (and) was also known to memorise his speeches by walking up and down the driveway,” it said.

Opposition planning spokesman David Davis said it was critical “our precious built heritage is protected”.

“This house was owned by an icon, Santamaria fought communism and was a giant of Australian post war politics,” he said.

More than 50 submissions to the council supported protection for the house, with three objections.

A heritage consultant for the property’s owner questioned Mr Santamaria’s influence on the local area’s history other than living in Kew.

Bob Santamaria with Mother Teresa.

The son of an Italian migrant greengrocer, Mr Santamaria was born in Melbourne in 1915 and completed an arts/law degree and later a Master of Arts at Melbourne University.

He co-founded The Catholic Worker newspaper in 1936 and became close to influential Catholic Archbishop Daniel Mannix.

Mr Santamaria founded the Catholic Social Studies Movement in 1941 which recruited activists to fight communist infiltration of trade unions and other organisations.

He was described as being the most influential post-war political figure never to be in federal Parliament.

He died in 1998.