The Louis Joel Arts and Community Centre has a vacant building for the first time in 20 years, and they want to know how the community would like to fill it.
For the last 20 years, the Hobsons Bay Endoscopy Centre has been the main tenant in the centre.
Now that they have vacated, Manager Karen Ingram said she will be hosting walking tours and information sessions on the building.
“I will be running small group tours on Sunday, November 26,” she said.
“As well as the community meeting which will be held in the centre, in this meeting there will be a range of activities and ways for people to express what they would like to see in the building.”
For those who can’t make it on the day, Karen has made sure to leave posters around Altona and on social media where people can give their feedback though an online form.
“We are listening to the community, and consulting with them to find out what is meaningful to them,” she said.
“The endoscopy centre provided an income for us which we will rely on to continue to extend our services to the community.”
Over the many years in which Karen has worked at the centre, she has frequently been told how near and dear the old Altona hospital building is for many people.
“I often have people tell me how they were born in the hospital, and how our gallery was once the maternity ward,” she said.
“We are talking to people who are attached to the building to acknowledge the ties that people have.
“To acknowledge what has happened in the past in order to think about what we can take from the past into the future for the space.”
Jennifer Pittorino
