Fabrik is an arts and heritage hub, run by Adelaide Hills Council. Based amongst a thriving industrial site, Fabrik sits nestled within the buildings of the former Onkaparinga Woollen Mill, reflecting the history of the town and its community.
In December 2019, the Cudlee Creek fire surrounded the town of Lobethal, with fires burning to the edge of Mill Rd, metres behind Fabrik. While the efforts of firefighters protected the old mill site, homes on the hill across the road were lost. By the next morning Fabrik was located in the midst of an extensive fire scar.
As a newly established arts organisation, Fabrik’s public program had commenced earlier that year, with a remit covering both community and economic development goals.
Knowing the recovery period after such a large fire would be substantial, Fabrik’s staff immediately looked to ways the premises and public program could play a role in supporting the community in its recovery, initially by offering its premises as an evacuation centre and later, through a series of carefully curated ongoing public programs developed closely with the community.
