The Save Barwon Heads Alliance was formed in July 2007 to advocate for protection of the town boundary against urban sprawl and protection of the internationally significant wetland surroundings of Barwon Heads. The SBHA aims to protect the integrity of Barwon Heads as a small coastal township in the face of pressure for inappropriate and unsustainable development.

Meeting date confirmed: 23rd March 2010 - Council will make final decisions on town boundary

Please come along! Geelong Council will consider the recommendations of the Planning Panel at their meeting on 23rd March and will make their final decisions on the town boundary and Structure Plan. The Save Barwon Heads Alliance urges all to attend the Council meeting. Buses will be provided departing from the Community Hall, Hitchcock Avenue, at 6.15pm on Tueday 23rd March, returning after the Council has voted on the Structure Plan.

Planning Panel Report recommendations

The Panel Report was released in January this year. It emphasises the environmental importance of Murtnagurt Lagoon and the wetland channel. The Panel Report reaffirms the international significance of the wetland, and recommends the town boundary be retained where it is. The Panel agrees with Council, the planners and community that there is no strategic reason for urban expansion and nor is there any community benefit to be gained, no matter what sweetners are on offer.

The Panel stated any future use of the Macafee Investments property could only be entertained as a means of restoring and enhancing the environmental condition of the wetland. The Panel states “this higher test is appropriate for the Macafee land given the significance of the Lagoon and channel and the lack of any demonstrable need or policy requirement to develop any part of the land for residential purposes”.

The arguments put forward by Macafee Investments at the Panel Hearing were, in summary, that the Structure Plan be abandoned, modified, or deferred. They argued for an expansion of the town boundary for residential development of their land and assured the Panel that they were not proposing any kind of industrial or commercial development. The Panel Report rejects these arguments and recommends the town boundary be retained.

The Panel also urges Council to prioritise its work on assessing future climate change impacts on Barwon Heads.

In regards to Stage C of the 13th Beach Residential Estate and Golf Course, the Panel recommendations were disappointing. The Panel recommends that Stage C retain the Comprehensive Development Zone (CDZ) for the time being. However, they said unless the land owner can come up with a development proposal in the next 2 years that achieves a net environmental benefit and is “clearly distinguishable from residential development”, Council should remove the CDZ and reconsider applying the Rural Conservation Zone and an Environmental Significance Overlay. At this time, Council should also review the zoning of other land adjacent to the Ramsar wetland.

More info:

City of Greater Geelong Council meeting agenda 23rd March 2010

Planning Panel Report, Amendment C159, Barwon Heads Structure Plan (pdf - 783 kb)

CoGG Panel Submission 1 (pdf 217kb) – including town boundary, 13th Beach development, strategic policy overview

CoGG Panel Submission 2 (pdf 142kb) – including Barwon Heads Motors and other issues unrelated to the town boundary

CoGG Panel Submission 3 (pdf 2845kb) – including the history of the Structure Plan

Flora and Fauna Assessment of Murtnagurt Lagoon, Ecology Australia (pdf - 2.33MB), (expert witness for SBHA)

Murtnagurt Lagoon, Bellarine Peninsula and Related Landforms: Nature, Origins and Geoscience Significance , Neville Rosengren GeoSurveys Ltd (pdf - 1.3MB), (expert witness for SBHA)

Other expert evidence presented at the Planning Panel

Planning Scheme Amendment C159 (Barwon Heads Structure Plan)

Barwon Heads Structure Plan, City of Greater Geelong, Adopted December 2007 (pdf - 9.3MB)

Boundary ruling: Bigger Heads denied in the Bellarine Peninsula Independent 29 January 2010

Panel Rejects Heads Change in the Geelong Advertiser 28 Jan 2010

Timeline of events