Greater Bendigo City Council last night adopted the Heathcote Township plan to support the town’s future growth and respond to the needs of the community as it continues to develop over the next 10 to 15 years.
Mayor Cr Margaret O’Rourke said the Heathcote Township Plan identified the important elements of Heathcote that the community valued and wanted to protect, but also considered what services, facilities and infrastructure would be required in response to a growing population.
“Now that the plan has been adopted, the next step is to begin the implementation which will include various changes to the Greater Bendigo Planning Scheme, a number of infrastructure improvements that will occur over time and to advocate for service improvements on behalf of the community,” Cr O’Rourke said.
“We will also be seeking expressions of interest from the community to participate on a Heathcote Township Committee that would oversee the implementation of the township plan, be a conduit for sharing information, provide advice to Council and provide local input into projects.”
Key actions within the Heathcote Township Plan include to:
Prepare a planning scheme amendment to implement various zone and overlay changes and to prepare a “Local Area Plan” to be included in the Greater Bendigo Planning Scheme
- Recommend the preparation of a landscape plan for the town centre that will consider issues around planting, safety, amenity and street furniture
- Establish a Principal Cycling and Walking Network that connects key destinations to the town centre
- Provide support for a dog park with its final location to be determined
- Improve wayfinding signage
- Advocate for an extension to the 50km zone along High Street past the IGA supermarket
- Prepare an investment prospectus for new and existing businesses
