Melbourne Developers Fined Almost AUS2 Million For Illegal Demolition Of Historic Irish Pub

Irish expatriates in Melbourne were devastated over the illegal demolition of a traditional Irish pub.

The Corkman, Melbourne’s much-loved traditional Irish pub, was reduced to a pile of rubble following its illegal demolition in 2016 by a pair of developers. Built in 1858, it became an epicentre for Irish immigrants flooding to the new country as well as for their children, grand children and great-grandchildren over the years. Its traditional weekly Irish music nights were famous and much-loved, not just by the city’s Irish immigrants but also with local Aussies.

Both communities were so devastated by the demolition that an Irish wake was held for the building days after it had been illegally torn down. Sadly, even a petition signed by 19,000 of its fans didn’t get the building restored. The villains of the piece, expat developers Stefce Kutlesovski and Raman Shagiri, had bought the land the previous year for AUS$4.8 million, and were immediately dubbed the ‘ Corkman Cowboys by the furious Irish community when they ignored the fact they had no permits and went ahead and demolished the much-loved icon of Irish immigrant history in Melbourne.

However, what goes round seems to have finally come round for the pair, as a Melbourne court has now found them guilty of illegal demolition and were fined $1.3 million. In addition, a further fine of $600,000 was handed down as they’d failed to dispose of the on-site asbestos revealed when the pub was flattened. They’ve also been forced to clear the site and turn it into an ‘informal outdoor recreation site’ by the end of November.

Given that some 12,000 Melbourne residents were born in Ireland and expatriated to Australia, with a total of some seven million Australians claiming part-Irish heritage, it’d be no surprise if a new pub was eventually erected, but it’ll never replace what was lost as a result of the greed and ignorance of the disgraced developers.