Preparations to replace the roof of the Fremantle Arts Centre began last week. This work is a major undertaking, managed and funded by the City of Fremantle, and represents the final stage of a long-term project to refurbish, repair and protect one of Fremantle's best-loved heritage buildings.
Work on this essential project will begin on Monday 13 March, and is expected to take around 12 weeks to complete. In addition to replacing the Centre's roof, specialist contractors will be removing asbestos cladding.
As part of the stringent compliance codes regarding asbestos removal in WA, a Worksafe representative dedicated to asbestos removal and disposal attended site to review the Safety Management Plan. There were no concerns raised by contractors regarding noncompliance.
In planning these works, every effort has been made to ensure there would be only minimal impact on Centre operations. However, after further assessment this week and to negate any possible risk, the City has decided that rooms on the top floor in the north wing will need to be closed for the duration of the works to ensure the safety of staff and the public.
The Fremantle Arts Centre team have explored all possible options to avoid disruption to programming, artists and the community, including rescheduling or relocating activities wherever possible. However, there are unfortunately a small number of classes that will be unavoidably affected and will be unable to complete the remainder of their sessions for Term 1.
All students in these classes are being contacted today (Thursday), and will be provided with a refund on the remaining sessions in the coming days. While tutors at Fremantle Arts Centre are employed on a casual basis, the City has committed to paying them for the remainder of their scheduled Term 1 classes.
The most recent works on the Centre's roof took place in 2016. These works were focused on a small area and were able to be carried out in a matter of days, which meant the Centre could be closed for the duration.
The final works about to commence are on a much larger area and will be undertaken in six stages, over several weeks.
The City has engaged experienced and specialist contractors to carry out this work to the highest possible standards and is following the advice received with regard to operation of the site.
