Public encouraged to have a say on draft harbour masterplan

Warrnambool City councillor Peter Hulin said it appeared the council had “trouble” listening to residents in the past, but the release of the Port of Warrnambool plan gave people another chance to be heard.

“I encourage the people of Warrnambool to look at this and give us submissions,” Cr Hulin said. “In the past they have given us ideas of what they expected and it seems we have trouble listening. If you look at other areas ... we probably could have put something a little bit more exciting.”

He said the south-west was in a unique position with Western Victoria MP James Purcell’s “tremendous pull within the state government”.

“I'm at a loss why we seem to apply for crumbs when we could apply for a considerable amount,” he said.

The council voted 7-0 to release the plan. Cr Sue Cassidy said the fishing industry brought in $18m to the region, which was “something that can't be sneezed at”.

The plan includes extending the northern car park, building a horse wash and constructing concrete terraced seating with access to the beach. Boating facility upgrades include constructing a three-lane launch with a new road configuration to allow for queuing areas, building a two-level jetty and mooring facilities and providing de-rigging bays.

The harbour is a state government-owned asset, managed by the council.