A petition was delivered to Bass Coast Shire Council on Wednesday 18th July in support of Inverloch Historical Society’s proposal for tenure over a Crown Land site at Inverloch as the location for an Inverloch Maritime and Historical Museum.
From last Nov to May 2018, the Society sought community feedback and support for our application to Bass Coast Shire Council and the Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning for tenure of a area of Crown Land located close to Inverloch’s jetty, for the purpose of establishing a Maritime and Historical Museum.
We used two locations for these consultations, one at The Glade when markets were in progress, and a second near to the entrance of the shopping arcade on A’Beckett Street. The Society sought to communicate with residents, visitors and business owners on numerous occasions so as to obtain the widest possible range of feedback and in-put and, where possible, to enlist community support via a petition to Council.
To make our aims clear to residents and visitors we used a large display board illustrating the location and planned building. Additionally, an A4 information sheet was handed out which featured a map of proposed site for the museum building on the area of Crown Land in question.
As a result of these community engagements the Society collected 2089 signatures in support of the proposed museum and Crown Land tenure.
Analysis of signatories to the petition was undertaken to enable us to better understand where support lay. Signatories can be divided into four categories:
- Residents of Inverloch 1246
- Residents of the wider Bass Coast Shire 118
- Residents of South Gippsland Shire 92
- Visitors 633
TOTAL 2089 signatories
We thought it important to consult the “visitor” group as it is a key contributor to the town’s economy. In talking with these people it became very clear that a tourist and holiday destination such as Inverloch, requires more than a beach and places to sleep, eat and drink. It also needs a variety of activities to engage visitors across the seasons and the weather spectrum including cold and/or rainy days when beach activities are not attractive.
We believe that our proposal will add to the mix of attractions offered within the district and will attract residents and visitors throughout the year, thereby helping to grow our leisure-based economy. We further believe that a location within Inverloch’s the key tourism and boating precinct offers the best opportunity to attract visitors, and grow Inverloch’s reputation as a key tourism destination and to build awareness of Inverloch’s heritage.
