October 13th, 2022And now, just where does the Big Rainbow go?
HEPBURN Shire Council has shortlisted four sites for the Big Rainbow. They are Lake Daylesford, Victoria Park, the Community Skate Park and the Lost Children’s Reserve.
People can vote for their favourite site at the council’s Participate Hepburn website or with hard copy forms from the libraries and customer service centres. The council says it has considered a number of factors and settled on the shortlisted sites it thinks would be most suitable as the Big Rainbow’s new home.
“We are asking you, the community, for your local knowledge to help us decide which one of the four locations is best for this landmark. The purpose of the engagement is to determine the most appropriate site for the location of this Big Rainbow landmark.
“During this engagement we will: inform key stakeholders and the community about the project and the opportunity to engage; share information about the four shortlisted site options and how they have been chosen; identify any relevant stakeholder and community knowledge relevant to the final sites; and gather local knowledge that will inform council’s decision making.
” In preparing the shortlist of the four sites, council considered: access (for installation, maintenance, visitors); compliance (heritage, Djaara, VicRoads, planning, OHS); impact (significance, findability, shareability, conflicting or complementary uses, neighbours); risk (vandalism, reputation, safety); amenity (parking, toilets); and cost (any unique cost to council for a particular site?). The survey is open until Sunday, October 30.
Mayor Cr Tim Drylie, pictured, said he did not have a personal preference for the final site but many had been considered before it was brought down to the four. He said the criteria on the website was clear about why the sites had been chosen with several important factors.
“I think there will be many other sites people might consider but when you drill down into the detail there will be a mix of factors of why it is not going to work for whatever reason.” Cr Drylie said the sites did not have to necessarily be council owned but it “certainly helped” in terms of planning permits not being needed.
“I just think this is a really positive message of inclusion and diversity and a great opportunity for the visitor experience – those are the two major things here and I am hopeful that it is received within that intent and we can cover off any objections that might come along the way. Certainly the council’s intention is a very good and positive one.
“The message now is for people to jump on the website and fill out the form before the end of the month.” Cr Drylie said if anyone did not want the Big Rainbow in Daylesford they could email through “the normal channels at the shire”.
