A historic church in Golden Square will go under the hammer this weekend but those who want to restore it to its original condition have not given up their long-running fight. 

Former Mernda Uniting Church council chairman Bob Parry lodged a complaint at the Victorian Ombudsman last week in which he calls for a new investigation into the removal of pews from the Golden Square Uniting Church.

“What do I want to achieve with this? number one: get the pews back in place… all the pews,” Mr Parry said.

“It’s as simple as that.”

More than 70 original pews – which covered most of the first floor of the building – were removed from the church prior to its last attempted auction, back in September. 

Concerns from Heritage Victoria that the removal was in violation of heritage obligations scuppered the auction at the last minute and saw the agency threaten the prospect of hefty fines and even prison sentences if the pews were not returned. 

Weeks later, however, Heritage Victoria said it had conducted extensive liaison with Uniting Church members and decided to accept the return of 10 pews as a representative sample of the building’s original seating.

Executive director Tim Smith declared case closed – Mr Parry and former Golden Square parishioners did not. 

“This is very far from over as far as I am concerned,” the chartered accountant said. 

“The pews were illegally removed and should still be afforded the full protection of the Heritage Act 1995. 

“This church is an absolutely prestigious building and, otherwise, is in immaculate order.

“It’s the best example of its era in Australia that’s the reason it’s got to be kept.”

Last September was the second time the Gothic-style church – built in 1870 – was given an 11^th hour reprieve. 

In late 2013, the Uniting Church revoked its decision to put the disbanded church under the hammer after a grass roots campaign to preserve the building. 

Tweed Sutherland real estate agent Matt Leonard said the Uniting Church owners were now quoting between $500,000 and $550,000 for this Saturday’s auction. 

A spokesperson for the Victorian Ombudsman said the agency did not comment on ongoing cases.