Civic Theatre to get extra layer of protection
Date published: 23 July 2019
Townsville City Council has today endorsed painting the Civic Theatre as part of the monsoon repair works at the Full Council meeting.
The assessment of the building identified painting the outside of the building as a way to improve water resistance of the iconic building in the future.
Local Recovery and Resilience Group Chair Cr Les Walker said the Civic Theatre is an important landmark for the city and painting it would help protect the building.
“The Civic Theatre was designed by the then City Architect Nigel Daniels in 1973 and built in 1978 – it has been a pivotal venue in Townsville since opening,” Cr Walker said.
“Part of the repair process for the Civic Theatre has been finding some solutions for making it more resilient in the future and painting the exterior was one solution identified.
“The Theatre recently went through a major refurbishment and we are eagerly awaiting these repairs to be finalised later this year so we can open it back up to the community.”
The Civic Theatre has been closed after it was significantly damaged by mould and water during the unprecedented monsoon.
Infrastructure Committee Chair Cr Mark Molachino said improving the resilience of Council’s venues is an important aspect of the recovery process.
“During the initial refurbishment of the Theatre we did do a clear water-resistant coating to the building however, this wasn’t able to cope with the huge amounts of water during the monsoon,” Cr Molachino said.
“This new coat is a high water-resistant paint to improve and preserve the building for the future without changing or impacting on the initial design intent of the building.
“Painting the building was recommended as the best option to do this and we will work with Hutchinson Builders to complete this while repairs are ongoing.
“Council would like to see the Theatre reopen as quickly as possible and I’d like to thank the community for the patience.”
The Civic Theatre will temporarily open for the Australian Festival of Chamber Music and is expected to reopen permanently in late September.
