Question - Disused nursing home in Launceston
Thursday 10 November 2022, Question without notice
Ms ARMITAGE question to the LEADER of the GOVERNMENT in the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, Mrs HISCUTT
[2.32 p.m.]
Further to my question asked and answered on August 2022 relating to the disused Nurses Home between Howick and French streets in Launceston, can the Leader please advise:
(1) What progress has been made by Housing Tasmania towards inspecting this building and considering whether it is suitable to be utilised for community housing, as the per the answer given to me in August?
(2) Are there properties in Launceston currently under consideration by Housing Tasmania to determine whether they are suitable to be utilised for community housing? If so, which ones?
ANSWER
Mr President, I thank the member for her question, and I apologise to those members for whom I do not have any more answers.
Ms Forrest - Some of them have been with you for three weeks.
Mrs HISCUTT - I have been struggling to get some answers.
The answer to the question from the member for Launceston:
(1) The Nurses Home building, owned by the Department of Health, has been assessed as being in very poor condition, and is currently uninhabitable for any purpose. Significant capital works will be required to bring the Nurses Home building up to a standard suitable for occupancy, and to comply with the Building Code. The former Department of Communities Tasmania, on behalf of the Director of Housing, has completed a strategic assessment of the Nurses Home building and note the site’s potential suitability for future housing if a complete refurbishment of the building is undertaken. The Department of Health is considering the potential future use of the Nurses Home building, and in its planning for future stages of the Launceston General Hospital Precinct Masterplan.
(2) The Director of Housing recently purchased a key inner-city vacant land site at 4‑6 Boland Street, Launceston, for the development of housing. Several other Launceston sites are under consideration for social and affordable housing. These include a portion of the University of Tasmania’s site at 75 Newnham Drive in Newnham, and two housing land supply order sites, Technopark, and Kings Meadows at 50 Wildor Crescent, both of which are currently advertised for community consultation.