With the decommissioning of the Dhurringile Prison now almost a month in, the community is still in the dark about what the Victorian Government’s plans are for the site once the process is complete.
The government has not confirmed how long it will take to remove equipment, fixtures and corrections-specific tools on site to be repurposed or reused at other correctional facilities.
The prison closed permanently on August 31 after almost 60 years of operation, with 50 staff retained temporarily to carry out the decommissioning.
State Member for Euroa Annabelle Cleeland has called for greater transparency about the former prison site’s future after she said she received disappointing responses to recent queries from Corrections Minister Enver Erdogan.
“After calling for more information about the future of the site, the responses from the minister only referred to the upcoming decommissioning of the site — despite this already having begun,” Ms Cleeland said.
“The closure of this prison is an important issue that is set to have a far-reaching impact on hundreds of local residents, as well as the broader region’s economy.
“The least the minister can do is provide up-to-date information about the decommissioning process.”
Ms Cleeland said the lack of transparency and consultation with the community had left many in the region uncertain.
“One of the excellent ideas proposed by the local steering committee was to hold a community open day, in which the future opportunities of the prison site can be shared and discussed with locals,” Ms Cleeland said.
“Community consultation is critical to ensuring the prison site is used for something that will benefit residents of Dhurringile and the surrounding community.”
State Member for Northern Victoria Rikkie-Lee Tyrrell received a commitment from Mr Erdogan after questioning him during parliament question time earlier this month to hold an open day at the site once the decommissioning was completed.
“We know that the best ideas do come from local communities and we are taking the opportunity ... we will be consulting the community,” Mr Erdogan said.
“I think a community open day is a good opportunity for the community to see firsthand the potential for the site.”
A date for the open day has not yet been set.
Ms Cleeland is reminding the public they can have their say on what they’d like to see replace the prison, as well as share how its closure has impacted them via a survey on her website: https://tinyurl.com/2s3khtve