Mount Buffalo Chalet in Victoria is set to reopen after being closed for two decades, beginning a new phase for one of the state’s best-known heritage buildings. Belgravia Outdoor Education (BOE) and Parks Victoria are bringing the weatherboard chalet back into use at Mount Buffalo in the Alpine National Park.
A cafe is scheduled to open first, followed by 10 apartments next month and regional workers’ accommodation early next year, according to ABC News. BOE also plans to renovate the south wing to provide 200 beds for school camps. The organisation expects about 5,000 students a year to attend camps at the site.
Students will be able to take part in activities including caving, abseiling, kayaking and mountain biking while exploring the surrounding park. BOE chief executive Richard Thornton described the three-storey building as extraordinary, highlighting its 200 rooms, 108 bedrooms and distinctive wood-panelled interiors. He said the site offered extensive possibilities for outdoor education.
The chalet will also be available to other visitors during school holidays and weekends. BOE director and Belgravia Group chair Alex Lord said the building could eventually host events such as film festivals, although the immediate plans centre on accommodation, education and the cafe.
The reopening follows a 40-year lease held by the Belgravia Group and upgrades to the site’s electricity, solar and wastewater systems. BOE said it would work with Parks Victoria, Indigenous educators and people with longstanding connections to the chalet.
Parks Victoria’s Chris Derrick told ABC News that the building carried memories for generations of visitors. He recalled bringing an elderly couple inside who had worked at the chalet in the 1960s; they had met there and became emotional while revisiting rooms filled with personal memories.
The chalet closed after the 2006 bushfires, which destroyed nearby infrastructure, including the Cresta Valley Ski Lodge. Derrick said maintaining a large timber building in an alpine environment exposed to heavy winter conditions and summer bushfires remained a significant challenge. The building retains historic features including a dining-room table associated with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip’s 1954 tour of Australia.