Hepburn Shire Council is inviting the community to provide ideas and feedback on the future of townships around the Shire as it develops township structure plans for Clunes, Creswick, Daylesford, Hepburn Springs, Glenlyon and Trentham.

Town Structure Plans are part of the new once-in-a-generation strategic planning project, Future Hepburn, which ties into many of the priorities outlined in the Council Plan 2021-24.

These plans will look at future options for each town in terms of housing, business and economic development, transport (including walking and cycling), protecting the environment and cultural heritage, neighbourhood character and urban design.

Other plans and strategies associated with Future Hepburn include Urban Design Frameworks, Neighbourhood Character Assessments, Integrated Transport Strategy, Agriculture Land and Rural Settlement Strategy and more.

Council will be working on these plans over the 2023 and 2024 period.

“This is your opportunity to influence what type of development is allowed in your town and what changes and improvements are needed to ensure the Shire continues to be a great place to live,” said Mayor, Cr Brian Hood.

“A structure plan provides more certainty about how development occurs in the future. Residents rightly feel a sense of ownership of a town so it’s critical that our community provides input into what they want to see protected and what opportunities there may be,” he said.

The first step in the process is an online survey on the Participate Hepburn website or your local library or Council hub. Residents are invited to complete a survey before 11pm on Sunday 18 June 2023.

Council is also hosting Community Conversation events in the main towns where residents can have a discussion about priorities and ideas with Councillors, the project team and staff. These events are scheduled as follows:

Daylesford: Monday 29 May from 4pm to 6pm at Victoria Park Pavilion
Hepburn Springs: Tuesday 30 May from 4pm to 6pm at Hepburn Springs Reserve
Trentham: Wednesday 31 May from 4pm to 6pm at Trentham Sportsground Reserve Pavilion
Clunes:  Thursday 1 June from 4pm to 6pm at Clunes Town Hall
Creswick: Wednesday 7 June from 4pm to 6pm at Doug Lindsay Reserve
Glenlyon: Thursday 8 June from 4pm to 6pm at Glenlyon Town Hall.

Cr Hood encouraged residents to be involved in planning the future of their community. “We want to work closely with the community on this project as we plan for a prosperous future together,” he said.

For residents who want to be more involved, Council is calling for volunteers to join an Engagement Pool, where members can share feedback on project activities and share information with the community. Engagement Pool applications are also available on the Council’s Participate Hepburn page.

For more information visit the Participate Hepburn website.