26/05/2026
In less than a month, Echuca’s 111-year-old municipal water tower is going to be demolished by Coliban Water. A landmark of the town since 1914, the tower is a contributory place in the Shire of Campaspe’s Echuca Central Heritage Precinct overlay.
The tower was constructed by the Reinforced Concrete Company of Melbourne, which was founded by Australian war hero General John Monash. At the time of its completion, it was the biggest of its kind in Australia and cost the Borough £2973. It was 108 feet (33 metres) in height from ground to the top of the tank, and was borne by a splayed foundation of concrete 3 feet (91cm) in depth. The tank has a capacity of 150,000 gallons (681,900 litres). The tank stands on a solid central column of iron-reinforced concrete 3 feet in diameter and an outer wall tapering from 10 1/3 inches in thickness at the foot to 9 1/2 inches. There are five flats in the tower, each floor being composed of reinforced concrete four inches in thickness. An iron ladder reaches from floor to floor. In the construction of the tower and tank, 646 tonnes of material were used. The architect was the renowned Mr Arthur E. Castles of Deakin Shire. It took around 5 months to construct.
The Shire has been awfully quiet regarding the demolition, and with the lack of community consultation by Coliban Water, it’s left many residents wondering how this decision has been reached. The Echuca Water Tower isn’t some privately owned infrastructure. It was constructed from our grandparents’ rate money, maintained for decades with our parents' rate money, and now it’s being erased from the Echuca skyline because it no longer serves Coliban Water’s purpose.
