THE saga of the Dartmoor police station has moved another step closer to some sort of resolution.

Glenelg Shire Council has applied to buy 398 square metres on Wapling Ave in order to put the heritage-listed former police lockup on the site.

The piece of land was home to the former Dartmoor police residence which was controversially moved off the site in June 2019.

That move, which saw the 127-year-old heritage-listed building transported to a private property in Port Fairy, without police getting necessary approval from the council, which refused a retrospective application.

However the council did not seek the return of the building, nor did it pursue a prosecution.

In the months since there have been mediation sessions between police, the council and the Dartmoor community, with the latter expressing anger at what transpired.

In December last year councillors agreed to go ahead with the land purchase for the lock-up which, along with stables were left on another part of the site.

The council says the land is valued at $3500 plus GST with the purchase subject to approval from the Department of Treasury and Finance

A community consultation process closed yesterday.

“Discussions will be undertaken with local not for profit groups regarding potential management of the site,” the council said.

Dartmoor historian Michael Greenham, who has been seeking a resolution to the sage since first notifying the Observer that the old police house was being put on a truck and taken away, said “it’s great that progress is being made on the site”.

“The future of the jail at least looks to be assured if that process goes ahead,” he said.

“It is a bit of a shame that what could have been used for landscaping around there (material from the old house such as chimney bricks) has been cleared completely so it will have to be a new beautification with hopefully some interpretive signage.”

Mr Greenham said the lack of progress on the stables was still an issue.

“Hopefully this will kick the (police) into preserving that better if they see the community and shire is serious about the lock-up,” he said

“The shire has been undertaking works in the town that the townspeople feel proud of and that shows that they are committed to things we want to work on.

“It’s still a shame it has come to this.

“I don’t know that anyone has lost their job (in police) or been demoted for this debacle.

“It shouldn’t have got to this stage because somebody made an error in allowing the property to be moved.”