Ballarat City Council has voted tonight to adopt a 25-year vision for the Yarrowee River and its tributaries.
Council has also requested CEO Janet Dore identify and apply for external funding to deliver the Yarrowee River and Tributaries: River Corridor Master Plan's priority projects, which include:
Trailheads, signage and interpretation signs at the southern trailhead at Dowcra Street and the Prest Street lookout
Sunnyside Mill parklands
Redan wetlands revitalisation and
A rural trail extension, with a reserve upgrade from Dowcra Street to the Midland Highway.
Council also passed a resolution to continue to investigate and acknowledge the tributaries that connect to the Yarrowee River.
City of Ballarat Mayor Cr Ben Taylor said the Yarrowee River and Tributaries: River Corridor Master Plan was a river corridor vision for the next 25 years.
"We want the Yarrowee River precinct to be a welcoming open space that brings people together, where people can enjoy healthy, physical activities and where there are plenty of native animals and plants," Cr Taylor said.
"I believe the Yarrowee River and Tributaries: River Corridor Master Plan will make it a very special place for the whole community to enjoy for the next 25 years."
Cr Taylor said there had already been valuable investment in the Yarrowee River precinct over the past 25 years through a Landscape Master Plan and Management Plan (1995) and a Linear Network of Communal Spaces Strategy (1996).
"These works set the basis for the beautiful space we see today and this plan will further develop the vision of the Yarrowee River precinct as a highly valuable recreational area the whole municipality can enjoy."
The project area covers 38 kilometres of the Yarrowee River, 35 kilometres of tributary creeks and the adjacent reserve land.
It is a collaborative initiative between the City of Ballarat, stakeholder groups, community members and joint funding partners Central Highlands Water and the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning.
The plan outlines general and site-specific actions under eight themes, including:
Access and trails (pedestrians and cyclists)
Rehabilitation, revegetation and vegetation management
Water quality and wetlands
Sludge and contaminated sites
Recreation and parks
Land tenure and future land development
Community engagement and education, and
Sustainable waterway management
Consultation feedback showed the community wanted a good habitat and healthy plant life, presence of native animals and birds, clean water, opportunities to help care for the waters and way finding and signs relating to the area's history and stories.
