The safety of children at Saint Augustine's Primary School will be improved, after Wodonga councillors voted at the February meeting to approve the closure of a section of Osburn Street next to the school.
The proposed closure - which would see the landscaping of most of the existing car park in the street - is dependent upon the sale of the neighbouring car wash business in High St.
If the closure proceeds, the parking spaces will become a safe thoroughfare and play area for children and staff.
The road is not being gifted to the school. It will remain a road reserve under council management with the community still able to pass from High St to Church St on foot or on bikes.
The closure request came from the school and was put on public exhibition by council, with a majority of respondents supporting the proposal.
At their meeting, councillors agreed the safety of children was the top priority and approved the closure, subject to the ceasing of operations by the car wash business.
Although some parking spaces will be lost, ample parking is provided nearby.
The cost of landscaping the area will be borne by the school.
In other news from the February 22 meeting, councillors also resolved to award the contract for the construction of the soccer pavilion at Baranduda Fields to Hansen Yuncken.
The pavilion will become a key part of the Baranduda Fields development, which in stage one will include two netball courts, two soccer pitches, an AFL/cricket oval and an AFL/netball change room - making it a major regional hub for sporting and family events.
Councillors also voted to appoint a contractor to supply and deliver 1,632 new environmentally-friendly street lamps.
The new LED lights will reduce the city's greenhouse gas emissions by 44 tonnes per year and deliver energy savings that will repay the cost of the purchase in less than six-and-a-half years.
