Redevelopment begins at Yarloop Workshops

As of January 21, Yarloop Workshops, located within the Shire of Harvey, entered stage one of a redevelopment supported by the state government.

Yarloop Workshops played a large role in the timber industry of Western Australia in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Prior to its destruction by the Yarloop-Waroona bushfires in 2016, the site hosted workshops arranged around a ladder of tracks, including historic buildings and significant machinery.

The workshops hold personal significance for former Yarloop Workshop president Geoff Cattach, who said his mother, father and father-in-law all worked at the workshops in the 1930s.

"My wife also used to walk through the workshops on her way to primary school," Mr Cattach said.

"In 1930 there were 501 employees - 500 men and one woman, who was my mother.

"I really think it's terrific that this redevelopment is happening and I honestly think that this could be the entry to the South West, providing an opportunity to put Yarloop on the map and show the world what we have here."

Stage one of the project will focus on the rebuilding of the steam workshops, a men's shed and landscaping, restoration of the existing vault, as well as headworks and services supply to the site.

Shire of Harvey president Paul Gillett said the Yarloop Workshops were an "integral part of the community" and the local area's heritage.

"Rebuilding the workshops and honouring the heritage of the area is a key component of regenerating the town," Cr Gillett said.

"With a lot of community consultation to develop a masterplan for the site, along with key stakeholder engagement we are excited to be here today to officially start the construction of the first stage of the project.

"The project proposes a range of developments over a three-staged process with a focus on community development, tourism and respect for the past and future of the site."

Construction of the first stage of the Yarloop Workshops is expected to be completed towards the end of 2022.

Stage two will focus on restoration of equipment, landscaping and railway line interpretation.