St Bathans post office’s facelift is getting closer as the village fete fundraiser returns on Sunday after a two year absence due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

It’s the first time the St Bathans Area Community Association (SBACA) has organised the fete, which was previously run by Rural Women and began in 2007.

Fete organiser Pauline Easton said the proceeds from this year’s $5 entry fee for adults (children are free) will go towards refurbishing the historic village’s two storey post office. 

“Last year the post office gained museum status . . . and we’re planning to refurbish the interior, firstly to get sunblock blinds and curtains to help to protect and preserve documents and the inside.

“[The longer term plan is] to turn the upstairs, which was the postmaster's residence back to the way it was. We’ll pick an era for that to have as a bit of a theme.”

Pauline said Tricia Batkin and a small sub-committee of SBACA had engaged an interior designer, and put in a lot of effort to scope out a longer term plan for the building.

Tricia said it had taken two years of a lot of “spadework and negotiation” to get to this point.

The initial stage of the refurbishment project is expected to cost $25,000. 

This will cover appointing a person to supervise and formulate an overall project plan, including finding the right people with specialist skills to undertake the historic preservation work.

Tricia said she viewed it as an insult to the people who used to live and work in the postmasters residence to see it with “stained wallpaper and things ripped and torn”.

She was born in the area and said she always loved the history of the place.

“If you lose too many of these places, they lose their character and that would be a terrible shame.

“The first postmaster had two daughters living there and it would be nice to put it back to how it was.”

The post office opened in 1909 and operated until 1937, and then became a private residence. In 1981 it became a historic reserve.

SBACA has taken over the lease from the Department of Conservation. It is currently a 10 year lease and SBACA is negotiating to have it extended to be an automatic right of renewal.

Sunday’s fundraising fete will have an old school festive atmosphere, with close to 70 stallholders confirmed.

“It’s never been done at this level before, so we’re a bit unsure of the crowds. We’re hoping for about 2000 people,” Pauline said.

Crowds enjoy the festive atmosphere at a previous fete in St Bathans. PHOTO: Supplied 

The fete includes music, games, face painting, bouncy castle, chocolate wheel, gold panning, flower workshops, food and stalls.

Parking is free at the St Bathans domain and a free shuttle service will be running to the fete entry, accessible parking is available at the Becks entry end of the Loop Rd. No dogs are allowed at the fete. 

Pauline thanked the Vulcan Hotel for sponsoring the children's gold rush dig and treasure chest prizes, and volunteers who have helped plan the day including Ken Gillespie for shuttle transport and Anna Easton for social media promotion. 

For more information on the fete, the post office project, or SBACA in general contact SBACA secretary Alison Fitzgerald: [email protected]

Find more information on the St Bathans Village Fete event listing.