An Issues and Opportunities report for the Reimagining Bendigo Creek Project has been released to provide an overview of the challenges connected with our city’s most significant waterway and to highlight potential opportunities for the future.
Cr James Williams, Chair of the Reimagining Bendigo Creek Steering Committee, said the report was based on collaboration between eight project partners, including the Dja Dja Wurrung and engagement with the Greater Bendigo community.
“The creek is a complex environment but one full of opportunity. Our starting point is to acknowledge and understand the past and how this has shaped the creek today. The Dja Dja Wurrung people protected and managed the creek for thousands of years,” Cr Williams said.
The creek landscape was then transformed by the discovery of gold and the emergence of a new city. Our collective actions and inactions then and since have created the present conditions including water quality, the surrounding environment and the overall poor health of the creek.”
The report identifies six overarching themes: Culture and Identity, Water, Natural Environment, Built Environment, Access and Safety, and Governance and Management.
“One of the many key messages from this engagement has been a strong desire by the community and project partners to improve the creek and our connection with it as a positive, valued and integral part of the Bendigo landscape.
“We have an important opportunity to consider potential solutions to help restore and revitalise Bendigo Creek so that it is a cherished place within our city landscape, where the community and visitors can come together and celebrate the creek’s unique natural environment and heritage.”
The vision for the creek’s future with conceptual ideas is the focus of the project together with the development of a Draft Reimagining Bendigo Creek Plan. The draft plan is expected to be ready by the end of the year with an extended opportunity for community input.
For more details on the Issues and Opportunities Report, please visit www.bendigo.vic.gov.au/bendigocreek
