Community groups receive Ray Walsh House furniture
Tuesday 28 March, 2023
The Tamworth Men’s Shed, Tamworth Regional Astronomy Club, as well as the passionate volunteers at the Tamworth Regional Film and Sound Archive and Tamworth Powerstation Museum are the new recipients of furniture from Ray Walsh House no longer required by Tamworth Regional Council.
While a large percentage of Council furniture in Ray Walsh House has been reused at the new office locations for the approximately 280 relocated staff and other Council locations including depots, additional furniture will now be donated to community groups in the region.
The Tamworth Men’s Shed today received several large pieces of permanent furniture from the Ray Walsh House Council Chambers, which were unfortunately unable to be removed from the building intact due to their size. As a result, the quality timber furniture has been donated to the Tamworth Men’s Shed to be repurposed and given new life by the club.
Tamworth Men’s Shed Secretary Kenneth Smith said “The Tamworth Community Men's Shed are very happy to receive the furniture donated by the Tamworth Regional Council from their Ray Walsh House premises. The furniture will be put to good use as furniture or recycled timbers to be used on new projects and go back to the community.”
Furniture including tables, chairs, shelving, filing cabinets and other office furniture will also be donated to the Tamworth Regional Astronomy Club for their use, while additional tables and chairs have been relocated to the Tamworth Community Centre for use by Tamworth Regional Film and Sound Archive and Tamworth Powerstation Museum volunteers.
Tamworth Astronomy Club President Steve Rogers said that as the club is made up of volunteers, furnishing the facility has been a major task.
“The furniture the club has received from Council is fabulous, as it will slot straight into the centre and we are over the moon with what we have received”, he said.
Tamworth Regional Council’s Chief People Officer Marie Resch said that Council is doing everything it can to make sure nothing goes to waste.
“A few items of furniture no longer required and unable to be used as office furniture were also recently sold to the public via Country Auctions, while some redundant information technology equipment will also be publicly auctioned. The aim is to ensure Council’s forced relocation is as cost efficient and beneficial to the community as possible.”
“Council is in the process of reaching out to additional community groups wishing to obtain any of the remaining office stationery and equipment. Interested community groups should get in touch via Council’s customer service team.”
Tamworth Regional Council was forced to relocate staff from Ray Walsh House in 2022 due to the failure of the building’s air conditioning system, which provided all heating, cooling and air circulation in three of the five floors.
The presence of friable asbestos in the form of fire proofing Vermiculite meant that the replacement of this air conditioning system was not possible without first removing the asbestos containing material. The Office of Public Works from the Department of Regional NSW were selected by Council in September 2022 to project manage the remediation works, which are expected to begin in mid-2023.
The final report on costs of the relocation from Ray Walsh House will be reported to Council at the Ordinary Council Meeting this evening, Tuesday 28 March 2023.