Description

A former court house and police station, this 1888 building on the edge of Kew Junction has had a colourful past. Connected to a former post office the site was a functioning court house until 1971, and a police station until 1982.
A passionate community campaign in 2006, led by the Kew Historical Society, raised over $500,000 to save the site from developers. The City of Boroondara purchased the site from the State Government in 2007 and with the assistance of the fundraising campaign and numerous grants redeveloped the site into an arts venue which opened in 2011.
In 2012 the redevelopment project won the State Planning Minister’s Heritage Award in recognition of the outstanding restoration of the building and the Sustainable Cities’ Community Government Partnerships Award.
The venue now boasts an intimate 80-seat black box theatre and meeting room, and is home to resident community groups including QArts, Kew Historical Society and e.motion21.

What's On

Visitors across the weekend can explore the history of the venue including the former police cell block. Tours and children’s activities also on offer.

Children’s activities

Kids can play along on the OHM tour with an interactive game of ‘I spy’. Across the civic site and woven within the tour itself, kids are invited to a treasure hunt to find the hidden secrets of the building with visual and audio cues. The whole family can have fun learning on the tour together!