Warrnambool's former saleyards site would become mostly housing under plans being considered by the city council which also include a corner convenience store.
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The long-awaited draft masterplan for the site has now been made public more than a year after the last livestock sale there was held in December 2022.
A controversial 4-3 vote of council at a fiery council meeting in November 2022 ended 140 years of history for the city with a decision to close the ageing yards which were in need of a multi-million-dollar upgrade.
The concept plan, which city councillors are expected to make public at a council meeting on Monday March 4, 2024, features a predominately residential development.
A "small" convenience store has been earmarked for the corner of Coghlans Road while the remainder of the Caramut Road frontage would be used as commercial land.
In a bid to foster job creation, a 1400-square metre "convenience centre" on a 5000-square metre parcel of land would support a mix of retail and offices, such as a medical centre.
A bulky goods centre and warehouses were ruled out because of the large amount of undeveloped commercial land east of Caramut Road.
A valuation of the 12.45 hectare site in 2021, when property prices were cheaper, found the Caramut Road portion of the land was worth up to $6.145 million and adjoining land an additional $3.1 million.
Much of the land would need to be rezoned if the council decided to adopt the plan - something that would also involve neighbouring land that was privately owned.
Land west of the indoor sports stadium would be set aside for any future expansion of the facility.
The remainder of the former saleyards site - and buffer zone land - would be set aside for a housing development.
But some of the land would have to undergo remediation work with a small amount of asbestos found on site. Soil tests found two locations which marginally exceeded containment levels of arsenic and copper.
"However, these were considered unlikely to represent an unacceptable risk to human health or ecosystem maintenance," the report said.
The council had been set to spend about $5.6 million upgrading the ageing facility but after a heated public debate over the long-term future of the site councillors voted to close it rather than spend the money.
Katrina Lovell
Katrina Lovell is a senior journalist at The Standard who covers council news and human interest stories.
Katrina Lovell is a senior journalist at The Standard who covers council news and human interest stories.
