“But with the ACT government’s final decision to sell the site we have no choice but to pack up and head out. We’re looking in earnest for a new home, but it’s challenging.

“We had our fingers crossed when one the two finalist developers bidding for the site proposed an artisan precinct and wanted us to stay. We were a perfect fit. Sadly, that developer wasn’t selected. The one that was needs us to vacate.”

Thor says while it’s tempting to sell his stock and machinery, shut up shop and “head up the mountains and go skiing”, that’s not what he wants to do.

“I want to get Thor’s Hammer relocated so we can continue to recycle timber and make beautiful furniture. I want to save the jobs of my 20-plus staff. I want to keep training apprentices. I want to keep contributing to the ACT’s economy,” he says.

Thor’s Hammer is the ACT’s only timber recycling site and one of the largest timber recycling operations in Australia.

“What we do is important for the environment since we save valuable resources from being dumped into landfill,” says Thor.

“We also specialise in making custom furniture and architectural products and we play an important role in training apprentices in old-world techniques so they can create beautiful high-end furniture with recycled timber. We’d be the only business in the ACT where an apprentice can learn to make furniture and bench tops in solid timber.”

“We need heaps of space. We need space to work and space to store more than 600 tonnes of recycled timber and machinery. We are rationalising our stock but we will still need 3000 to 5000sqm of land with 2000 to 3000sqm of workshops.

“We need time. We need time to find a new site and move all our stock and gear. We need time to build workshop structures and set up so we can operate. This is why we’re looking for an extension of several months to our existing arrangements.

“We need a home. We want to stay in the ACT, but will consider sites within a 30-minute radius of the capital. Despite all our searching, we’ve not yet managed to find a place that suits.

“We need land at a reasonable cost. We work in an industry that is labour intensive. Timber recycling takes time (and space!). Producing artisan custom work takes time. So, if our rent goes through the roof we won’t be able to sustain the business.

“We’re trying to get an extension to our license to operate at the Yarralumla Brickworks to give us more time to find a new site.  In the meantime, the search is on for a new home.”

Possible site suggestions to thor.d@thors.com.au