It was a very special occasion for St Vincent de Paul Society of Tasmania when Hobart Archbishop Anthony Ireland blessed the newly developed Mill Lane Precinct on Friday 29 August, ahead of its opening in late September. 

The Mill Lane Precinct in Glenorchy is the new main base of operations for the Society’s Southern Tasmanian Members, volunteers and staff, plus several of its Special Works and a large Vinnies retail store. 

Around 150 people attended the blessing, including St Vincent de Paul Society National President, Mark Gaetani, State President Corey McGrath, CEO Heather Kent, State Council and Board members, Members of the Society, employees, volunteers and friends. 

Mr McGrath said the new Mill Lane Precinct brings several core parts of Tasmania’s southern Vincentian Family together in one place while better serving the community from a key location in Hobart’s northern suburbs. 

‘With most of the operations from the existing Southern Regional Office in Elizabeth Street relocating to the Mill Lane Precinct, together with a diverse range of other Vinnies activities, this will give us a more integrated organisation with multiple benefits,’ he said. 

‘Internally, this affords greater collaboration and efficiencies, while helping us to better shape a shared culture across our diverse organisation. But fundamentally, by extending our physical presence across key sites in southern Tasmania, we are better able to support the wider community from locations where we know our services are most needed.’ 

While emergency relief services were continuing to be offered from the current hub site on the corner of Elizabeth and Melville Streets until the former Argyle Street hub reopens, the new precinct in the northern suburbs will begin operating in late September. The site will offer an Emergency Relief centre and a Vinnies shop, provide a new base for Loui’s Van and the Society’s Dining with Friends program, all operating under a single roof.  

In addition, the Society’s supported employment enterprises, St Vincent Industries and Tas Textiles, will be co-located at the Mill Lane site. The team at Tas Textiles, which has operated from this location for over 50 years, is excited to welcome the crew from St Vincent Industries, which is relocating from its base in Burnett Street, North Hobart, where it has also been for over 50 years. Co-location provides a host of new opportunities for employees of both enterprises, enabling team members to interact with one another in a range of activities, while also becoming involved in many other parts of the Society’s broader operations through shared use of spaces and resources. 

‘The Mill Lane Precinct will provide a central and accessible location for a new emergency relief hub, including a food pantry, which will assist Members when delivering much needed support and assistance to those in need throughout Hobart’s northern suburbs and beyond,’ Mr McGrath said.  

‘The precinct will also include a new Loui’s Van Kitchen with our Loui’s Vans to be permanently based at the site as well as becoming the new location for the Southern Regional Office. 

‘Eager shoppers will no doubt also be excited to know that when the second phase of this development is completed later this year, the current Glenorchy store will move to much larger premises at the Mill Lane Precinct. Offering a much-expanded range of clothing, homewares and bric-a-brac, we know that this will also be a major drawcard to the community, helping add to the vitality of this site,’ he said. 

Mr McGrath said the Mill Lane Precinct is an investment in the next generation of the St Vincent de Paul Society of Tasmania, focusing on what the community needs and where this is best delivered.