Owners of the illegally demolished Corkman Irish Pub have been ordered to make the Carlton site safe by Friday, after the Environment Protection Authority confirmed it was contaminated with asbestos.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Metropolitan Fire Brigade on Thursday hosed down the site, to allay concerns high winds would blow the asbestos onto passers-by.
The Environment Protection Authority has also ordered the owners – who could not be contacted on Thursday – to cover and secure the rubble and debris by Monday.
The 159-year-old Corkman Irish Pub, formerly known as the Carlton Inn, was built in 1857 and had a heritage overlay. It was knocked down by Shaq Demolition and Excavation on the weekend. There were no building or planning permits in place.
The site is owned by developers Stefce Kutlesovski and Raman Shaqiri, who are building apartment projects all over Melbourne. The pair bought the Carlton pub for $4.76 million last year – $1.56 million above its reserve price.
Shaq Demolition and Excavation is half owned by Mr Shaqiri.
Planning Minister Richard Wynne said that companies tied to the pair could face fines of more than $1 million.
Construction unions and Trades Hall have placed a ban on members working on any redevelopment of the site – the first such ban in Melbourne in a decade.
Lawyers for the site's owners reportedly visited it on Thursday, although they could not be reached to confirm this. Mr Wynne warned that the owners of the site would be "extraordinarily foolish" to ignore the EPA's orders.
"It's time for these rogue developers to wake up and realise the state government is very, very determined in this matter," he said.
Environment Minister Lily D'Ambrosio, who has responsibility for the EPA, said while asbestos had been found on the site it was of "a very low-level risk".
Melbourne City Council and the Victorian Building Authority are investigating whether the owners and demolishers of the old pub have breached planning and building acts.
They include not having a valid building permit, not providing adequate protection for adjoining properties, contravening a stop-work order from the council, and doing works without required insurance.
Anger caused by the pub's destruction has led to more than 15,000 people signing a petition to see it rebuilt.
