Why do we need to review the requirements for an Estonian House in Melbourne?
The Executive Committees of the Estonian House Co-operative and Estonian Society of Melbourne wish to determine whether an Estonian House in Melbourne is still relevant as a community hub.

Therefore these committees consider it important to plan for the future Estonian House by
  1. The broad requirements of a building that would support the needs of the Estonian Community in Melbourne through to 2025.
  2. Whether the existing building supports the needs of the Estonian community in Melbourne through to 2025.
  3. Options that would meet the needs of the Estonian Community in Melbourne through to 2025
  4. How each option would be implemented including in terms of how it would be managed, operated and maintained.
These activities are scheduled to extend from early 2020 through to the end of 2021, as the Estonian community in Melbourne nears the key milestones of
  • 70 years since the inaugural meeting of the Estonian House Co-operative in 1952
  • 50 years since the current Estonian House was opened in 1972, and
  • 30 years since Estonia regained her independence, easing communications and travel restrictions to and from Estonia.
Who is leading these planning activities?
The planning activities will be led by a Working Group jointly commissioned by the two Executive Committees. The Working Group which meets monthly comprises - Imbi Knappstein, Lembit Marder, Kersti Nõgeste, Michael Payne, Bernadette Pilli and Ain Utt. Working Group member biographies may be viewed by scrolling down this page - Working Group member biographies
The Working Group may be contacted via email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or paper mail addressed c/- PO Box 6042 Collingwood North VIC 3066.

How were the members of the Working Group selected?
The members of the Working Group were jointly selected by the Executive Committees of the Estonian House Co-operative and Estonian Society of Melbourne based on applications received in response to an advertised Expression of Interest.

Who can comment on the needs of an Estonian House in Melbourne?
Comments are welcome from all people who identify themselves as a member of the Estonian community in Melbourne, regardless of their level of involvement in Estonian community groups in Melbourne or attendance at formal events held at the current Estonian House in Melbourne.

How are members of the Estonian community in Melbourne be able to comment on the needs of the Future Estonian House in Melbourne?
As the Working Group’s activities draw closer to their planned completion at the end of 2021, community members are able to comment in the following ways:
  1. By completing the Individual and Family Survey, available - email addressed to - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or
    - paper mail addressed c/- PO Box 6042 Collingwood North VIC 3066
How will the Working Group formulate the solution options?
The Working Group’s recommendations will be formulated in response to the following key questions :
  1. What are the current space/building requirements of the Estonian community in Melbourne?
  2. Does the current Estonian House meet the current space/building requirements of the Estonian community in Melbourne?
  3. How frequently does the Estonian community in Melbourne currently use Estonian House in Melbourne?
  4. Looking to the future, what are space/building requirements of the Estonian community in Melbourne?
  5. Looking to the future, is a dedicated venue required to host Estonian activities in Melbourne?
  6. Looking to the future, if a dedicated venue IS required in Melbourne, are the facilities and size of the current Estonian House appropriate?
  7. Looking to the future, if a dedicated hall IS NOT required in Melbourne, what type of venue and related arrangements are required?
What options do we have regarding the future Estonian House in Melbourne?
In basic terms, there are probably two key options – “stay” or “go”. However, there are potentially many versions of both of these – how we might “stay” and where we might “go”.

Therefore, the Executive Committees of the Estonian House Co-operative and Estonian Society of Melbourne are being very careful not to go straight into “solution mode”. Instead they wish to start by gathering community requirements before defining options. The Executive Committees want the solution to meet current community requirements along with those forecast for the future.

The property value of Estonian House must have increased a lot since it was bought in the early 1970s, can members of the Estonian House Co-operative vote to sell it and share the profits of the sale amongst themselves?
No, this is not an option because, under Victorian state law, the Estonian House Co-operative is designated as a non-distributing co-operative which must abide by a set of rules that mandate “a non-distributing co-operative is prohibited from distributing any surplus to members”.

Once solution options have been proposed by the Working Group, who will decide which option is the best?
The Executive Committees of the Estonian House Co-operative and Estonian Society of Melbourne will determine the appropriate approvers and approval process based on the range of solution options. The Working Group will not be making any decisions. The role of the Working Group is to define solution options only. How do I stay up to date with the Working Group’s activities and progress?
Working Group updates are included in “Teateleht” (the Estonian Society in Melbourne’s member newsletter), on the Melbourne page of the estonia.org.au and the Facebook group related to the Estonian community Melbourne