KONGWAK Butter Factory owners Gemma Cosgriff and Damien Backholer emphatically deny intentionally allowing a buck’s party to be held there.
They are adamant the noisy event is not a reflection of what will occur if they are granted a permit to develop a wedding venue with a 130-seat dining area and 39 cabins.
"We are very disappointed that a recent booking at the Kongwak Butter Factory was made for a group that blatantly misrepresented their purpose for visiting,” the couple said in a statement.
“At no time was the organiser forthcoming in telling us the group was celebrating a Buck's Day, or that more people were going to attend than they had booked the accommodation for.”
The owners explained that they were told the booking was for a group of friends getting together after not seeing each other for some time, saying that if the true nature of the intended gathering had been revealed the booking would have been refused.
“We have had many couples and families stay over recent months who have enjoyed Kongwak immensely and have been entirely respectful of our peaceful town,” they said.
While Gemma and Damien have expressed their intention to move their young family to Kongwak after completion of the Butter Factory redevelopment, they currently divide their time between there and Melbourne.
“We received a message from a friendly neighbour about the noise, and we saw this after midnight on the Saturday night and acted immediately,” they stated.
The couple said that while any member of the community can raise a noise or safety concern, no one did.
“Neighbours withheld their complaints until after we emailed late Saturday night letting them know that, as the owners of the property, we had become aware of the noise, called police and apologised,” the owners said.
Damien and Gemma are adamant the situation could have been diffused early on had someone reported it, but argue some nearby Kongwak locals chose to document what was happening rather than reporting the situation at the time.
The owners are adamant that controls over who rents the Butter Factory accommodation will be tightened, saying it will be made abundantly clear it is not a ‘party house’.
That was how the accommodation was labelled by the Save Kongwak Group in a statement released after the party, with the incident seized on as an example of the owners’ inability to control guest noise and behaviour.
The couple stressed they are treating the situation seriously and will be taking every measure to ensure the impact on neighbours is minimised in future.
As reported in the January 16 edition of the Sentinel-Times, the Save Kongwak Group highlighted constant yelling, day and night, during the Buck’s gathering.
“This unfortunately is just a taste of how the owners’ future plans will destroy the amenity of Kongwak for residents,” Save Kongwak Group spokesman Michael Knowles said.
Gemma and Damien addressed that accusation in their statement.
“Regarding future plans for the Kongwak Butter Factory, it is important to distinguish the difference between our current short-stay accommodation versus the future; developing and running a new licensed premises will allow for acoustic controls being incorporated in the future design,” they said.
The pair added that further details of noise controls and measures will be shared publicly as part of the planning process, noting noise can be managed effectively, and in line with strict EPA regulations.
"Despite not yet being in planning, we have undertaken extensive community engagement and communication through the development phase of the project so far,” the joint statement said.
That public engagement process includes 11 direct engagement sessions with community stakeholder groups to share and discuss plans, get feedback and answer questions.
“Feedback received has been carefully considered in shaping our future design and offerings to ensure that community impacts are adequately managed, and benefits maximised,” the owners said.
While appreciative of those providing feedback, they argue some misinformation has been spread raising alarm and concern amongst others.
“We trust that broader visibility of our plans once released through planning will provide necessary context and dialogue in relation to our vision and intentions,” the owners said.
