Masterplan for Buninyong Botanic Gardens

A plan to fix a leak in the Gong dam in Buninyong has evolved into a wider project to put in place a new masterplan for the surrounding Botanic Gardens area.

The issue was discussed at this week's ordinary council meeting at Ballarat's Town Hall where councillors agreed to work towards a proposed masterplan.

The decision was prompted by a project to correct structural damage to the Gong dam, a body of water in the wilder, less formal side of the town's botanic gardens.

After receiving a large amount of feedback in a mySay survey about the dam works - which had been diagnosed as a flood risk - officers proposed morphing plans into a wider community consultation about the future of the gardens.

"The confluence of major issues around the Buninyong Botanic Gardens has helped catalyse a decision by Council to commission the development of a long-term master plan in collaboration with the Buninyong Friends group and local community," said Roger Permezel, the president of the Friends of Buninyong Botanic Gardens.

Mr Permezel said that discussion about a possible master plan had been going on for several years.

The area around the Gong was a mineral springs, which was then shaped into a reservoir in the mid 19th century. It was originally built to supply a brewery in 1850 then was subsequently used as a water source for the rapidly expanding town.

The officer report said the dam had been reduced in depth to prevent it from flooding in the event of a major storm as an interim solution. Full works will be postponed until after community consultation.

The Buninyong Botanic Gardens are among the oldest in Victoria, with an area of land set aside for their development in 1859.

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