Victoria's "white elephant" quarantine facility will close within days as Australia's COVID-19 pandemic response continues to wind down.
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The $580 million purpose-built quarantine facility at Mickleham in Melbourne's outer north will shut next week after opening in February and housing 2168 residents.
It was operated by the Victorian government but built and paid for by the Commonwealth after multiple COVID-19 leaks from the state's infamous hotel quarantine program, including one that sparked the devastating second wave.
Victoria lobbied for the facility for months before the Morrison government relented to its request in June 2021.
Construction was initially projected to cost the Commonwealth $200m, but the estimate has since been revised to $580m.
Other quarantine hubs, dubbed centres for national resilience, were also green lit by the former Australian government in Brisbane and Perth, neither of which currently have a use.
Victoria and other states lifted quarantine requirements for international arrivals soon after Mickleham opened, rendering it a "white elephant" in the eyes of some critics.
It was then used to house COVID-positive people unable to safely isolate at home.
With COVID-19 cases falling following the latest Omicron wave, Victorian Police Minister Anthony Carbines said the quarantine hub had served its purpose.
"Its closure is another step in our recovery from the pandemic," he said.
"Australia needed these facilities before the pandemic first hit, but this important facility now exists as an insurance policy in the event of a future pandemic, or to provide accommodation in emergencies like natural disasters."
Some Mickleham staff will continue working to shut down the site before it is handed back to the Commonwealth on January 1 next year.
Victoria's dedicated quarantine agency, COVID-19 Quarantine Victoria, will also transfer its remaining functions to the Department of Justice and Community Safety and cease to exist early next year.
With the state's health system still facing pressure in August, the Victorian opposition promised to explore repurposing 250 beds at Mickleham for hospital patients if it won the state election in November.
Opposition health spokeswoman Georgie Crozier said the coalition would not let the facility go to waste.
"Putting a padlock on Mickleham is just lazy," she said.
Australian Associated Press
