Toowoomba Goods Shed Restoration

Abstract

The Toowoomba Railway Goods Shed was first constructed in the 1880’s to support the commencement of rail industry expanding to Toowoomba. The Goods Shed throughout its 120 years of operation saw many different functions performed and multiple major renovations undertaken to align the facility with demands of the day. In the 1990’s the facility was State Heritage Listed recognising its place in the expansion and development, of not only rail in Toowoomba but more broadly across the State. When undertaking the construction of the Outer Circulating Road in Toowoomba, Toowoomba Regional Council took ownership of The Goods Shed. The area forms part of TRC’s priority development area and The Goods Shed Project is viewed as a catalytic project for progression and long-term success of this area. The Project to restore and refurbish The Goods Shed posed many challenges to TRC. Over the 130 years of life some sections of the facility had become very dilapidated with some areas been completed destroyed by rot and termites. The facility was deemed structurally unstable and before any planning or design was undertaken urgent temporary works were required. This set the scene for a challenging two plus years of investigation, design and construction works. The project sought to refurbish the shed into an adaptable community space which provided a space for a range of community events to be held. The project faced many challenges including land contamination, inconsistent ground conditions, heritage considerations and limited availability of required materials. Through these challenges TRC were able to apply sound Project Management and Governance to the project to deliver an widely accepted successful project and a facility which has seen wide use by the community since opening in April 2019. Through the challenges encountered TRC has undertaken a review of this project and identified some key areas of learnings which they look to take forward onto future projects.