It’s an old story: the development of a million dollars and the locals who oppose it.
Key points:
- Some locals are concerned about the risk of flooding and damage to the environment if an ecological complex is reached on the Gellibrand River.
- The project has the support of all three levels of government and the tourism industry, which wants more large-scale accommodation on Great Ocean Road.
- Work will begin soon
But in Princetown, southwest Victoria, a battle over plans to build a green complex near Great Ocean Road is more than a struggle between development and the environment.
On the one hand there are the promoters, whose ecology and restaurant proposal has the support of the state and federal governments, regional tourism organizations, the city council and the management authority of the basin in the area.
The construction of the green complex near the mouth of the River Gellibrand is said to be vital in helping to revive a struggling tourism industry and take advantage of one of the least valued jewels of the Australian tourist crown: the Great Ocean Road.
On the other hand, there are residents and environmentalists who say that development not only puts an entire ecosystem at risk, but is a flood disaster that is expected to happen that could cost lives.
These Princetown residents have been fighting development for six years. (ABC News: Rachel Clayton)
Bigger than Uluru and the reef
The Great Ocean Road begins in Torquay, near Geelong, runs along some of Australia’s most beautiful coastlines and ends just east of Warrnambool, southwest of Victoria.
Before the pandemic, it attracted more visitors than Uluru and the Great Barrier Reef combined, contributing about $ 1.3 billion to the economy and creating approximately 11,200 jobs.
But for two-thirds of visitors, Great Ocean Road is not a place to stay: they are hikers who board a car or bus in Melbourne or Geelong, arrive at the Twelve Apostles, then turn around and return to the city.
Great Ocean Road, which includes the Twelve Apostles, is a year-round tourist attraction. (ABC South West Victoria: Matt Neal)
Consequently, the tourist route and its surroundings are seen as a land of missed opportunities.
Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism Director (GORRT) Liz Price said a recent study found that there was a shortage of 3,000 to 4,000 rooms in accommodation along the road.
“The challenge that people don’t necessarily understand is that there are a lot of small accommodations [but no larger facilities]Ms Price said the most recent large-scale accommodation built along the road was the RACV Torquay Resort, which opened in 2013.
“It’s really a pretty complex challenge to build the long-term sustainability of the region.”
But the proposed Princetown Eco-Stay project was a step in the right direction that GORRT supported, Ms Price said.
The federal and state governments have also contributed more than $ 7 million.
It is planned to build a restaurant to the left of the oval while the accommodation complex will be in the green area near the bend of the river. (ABC South West Victoria: Daniel Miles)
Rooms with views
Montarosa Pty Ltd plans to build an ecologist with 18 rooms and 20 villas for up to 200 people on farmland next to Princetown Campgrounds and now unused land.
It will also build a 300-seat restaurant and an activity center as a base for hiking, kayaking and cycling.
Located just off Great Ocean Road, the site is located along the Great Ocean Walk and the Gellibrand River, about a five-minute drive from the Twelve Apostles.
Artist print from the proposed Princetown Eco-Stay complex. (Supplied by: Montarosa Pty Ltd)
The state government’s Shipwreck Coast master plan identified the site as a possible site for “low-level ecotourism opportunities.”
Montarosa director Gavin Ronan and his wife bought the farmland about six years ago, after previously installing award-winning eco-friendly accommodation along the Great Ocean Walk that operated for more than a decade. .
Mr Ronan said they did their homework to make sure the complex was right for their property.
“We’ve gone through all the hoops to make sure we do it with the book and in a sustainable way,” Ronan said.
“It is in our interest as ecotourism operators [to] to protect and improve the natural environment around us “.
Princetown community members oppose the development of eco-friendly housing, which they say is a major environmental and flood risk. (ABC Geelong: Jessica Longbottom)
Flood concerns
Locals who oppose the development have raised concerns about acid sulphate soils, the impact of development on local flora and fauna, traffic problems and potential site pollution.
The shelter will be built next to federally listed wetlands of national importance, which are home to endangered flora and fauna.
There is also only one access road to the site and they are concerned that hundreds of tourists may be stranded or endangered in times of flooding.
Resident Kim Morton said flooding occurred regularly in the area, including heavy flooding in 2010 and minor flooding in 2015 and 2016.
Floods in Princetown in 2015 cover Old Coach Road, which will lead to the proposed development of the Montarosa eco-lodge. (Provided by: Kim Morton)
“The fact that it’s only a couple of hundred yards from the ocean, the storm surge affecting the place can be quite serious,” Ms Morton said.
“If we also have flooding the river, it could be catastrophic.
Concerned residents, unimpressed by the Montarosa flood reports and the work of the Corangamite Basin Management Authority, hired their own consultant to assess the flood risk in the area.
Flood plan consultant Matt Hayes, who has worked in the industry for 25 years, said that “the developer [preliminary] flood report … treated an incredibly complex piece of the floodplain like a bathtub. “
The wetlands of the river Gellibrand near where it is proposed to build a restaurant and a resort. (ABC South West Victoria: Daniel Miles)
“It has greatly underestimated the risk of flooding,” Hayes said.
“They say the flood level of 1 in 100 years is 2.3 meters, and it’s out of reach of the probability that it could be more than 3 meters … and it could be even more than that “.
Hayes said the 2016 Montarosa “Preliminary Hydraulic Report” used only two rain gauges or flow meters along the Gellibrand River and about eight years of data to make its assessment.
Mr. Hayes used 44 gauges in the wider basin or area and evaluated many decades of data.
“They have chosen the data,” he said.
He said that in a flood of more than 3 meters, the complex would only be accessible by helicopter or boat, and the waters of the flood would be in the accommodation.
“It would be pushing a large volume of water fairly quickly and the damage that comes with catchment debris can be phenomenal,” Hayes said.
An access track to the development site was underwater in early 2022. (Supplied by: Kim Morton)
“[The location] it’s too volatile: I’ve never seen anything like it.
“It is the wrong place to place any kind of complex; placing an important infrastructure in the estuary is, at best, reckless.
“This desire to have facilities on Great Ocean Road seems to blind people to the need to make sure it’s done safely.”
The battle begins
Ronan questioned Mr. Hayes, noting that another flood report had been made and that the Corangamita Basin Management Authority had signed the project.
He accused residents of spreading misinformation to “influence public opinion.”
“Our property is 120 acres in size, reaches up to 20 meters above sea level, almost 30 acres are cleared farmland above the wetland and floodplain, and we have focused our development on this land. high”.
Old Coach Road and its bridge, which leads to the proposed complex, have received millions of dollars in government funding for improvements. (ABC South West Victoria: Daniel Miles)
Ronan said the “misinformation” is part of a campaign against him and his family.
“We’re just a family business in the Victoria area, and the behavior we’ve had with these people has been very stressful.”
There have been numerous protests at the site in recent years, with a dispute over access to the property last year prompting police interventions and accusations from both sides.
Protesters rallied in 2016 to protest against the development of Montarosa. (Photo: Kim Morton)
The matter was referred to the Victoria Civil and Administrative Court (VCAT), where it was resolved after mediation and negotiation.
A development permit was approved and Mr. Ronan expects the complex to open in two years.
It’s not over yet
But Mrs. Morton said the fight was not over yet.
“The community certainly understands that we need more accommodation here,” he said.
“The community is definitely not against development – it’s just this place, this is the wrong place.”
Kim Morton says building tourist accommodation on a floodplain is a disaster waiting to happen. (ABC News: Rachel Clayton)
He noted the proposed hot springs and accommodations further along the Great Ocean Road which has the full support of his group.
Ms Morton and her fellow opponents believe Mr Ronan has failed to comply with the 70 conditions imposed by VCAT, although Mr Ronan disagrees.
Locals are again bringing the local Corangamite County to VCAT for a two-day hearing in October, alleging that the conditions are not met.
But the community also believes that the letters are stacked against it, given the extensive bureaucratic support for the project.
Former Corangamite Shire Mayor and local resident Neil Trotter said the fact that the project had been given federal and state funding to improve the road and the bridge leading to the site had been especially annoying.
Community protesters have erected signs near flood warning signs along the road to the development site. (ABC South West Victoria: Daniel Miles)
“My claim is that public money should not be spent on a project that has an inherent risk of flooding,” Trotter said.
“You sank …