It has taken 18 months and hundreds of hours to painstakingly remove tonnes of asbestos, but the iconic former Newcastle Post Office is now at a point where it can be considered for reuse.
Jerry Schwartz has laid out his vision for the 1903 building in a $3.7 million development application, which he lodged with the City of Newcastle this week.
"We are well on the way; we are now finally in a position where we can start to bring it back to its former glory," he said.
Dr Schwartz, who does not plan to turn an immediate profit from the post office venture, bought 1903 building from the Awabakal Aboriginal Land Council in mid-2018 for $3.5 million.
When completed, the building's basement will be an Aboriginal cultural centre featuring a cafe and gallery, the ground floor will feature wedding retail outlets including dress shops, florists and photographers and the first floor will be a function centre.
"I'm still really hoping we can get the Aboriginal centre open by the end of the year. The other two levels are more complicated because we need to install services and make some modifications so it will probably be towards the end of next year before that is done," Dr Schwartz said.
A heritage impact statement prepared for the building says the interior fit-out will preserve the original features associated with the former post office, particularly the main postal chamber.
The construction of a service wing will allow most of the major services to be confined to the south-east corner of the building.
Other features include the construction of a new entrance from Bolton Street to the basement and the installation of a lift to service the building.
The heritage impact statement notes the building is a "landmark structure" that makes a strong contribution to the aesthetic character, historical value and amenity of the east end's character and to the surrounding conservation area.
"The former Newcastle Post Office has been empty for 20 years during which time this magnificent structure has been left to deteriorate," the statement says.
The building's exterior sandstone is considered to have weathered well and remains a highlight of Newcastle's historic inner-city buildings.
"The building also forms an important group of buildings in association with the former police station and former public works building displaying the work of four colonial and NSW government architects," the report says.
It not considered that the proposed work will affect the building's heritage significance.
