Fort Queenscliff events among issues raised at forum

A FULL house of Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale residents attended a Bellarine community forum hosted by Corangamite federal member Sarah Henderson on Friday night.

Held at the Queenscliff Uniting Church Hall, concerns raised included a lack of community consultation between the Borough of Queenscliffe council and local residents, the withdrawal of state government funding from Destination Queenscliff, and clarification of what now remains in the project, and the possibility of securing federal government funding for local projects, such as the Queenscliff Community Hub.

One topic which received a lot of focus was the potential of opening Fort Queenscliff up to the community for an annual event, in an attempt to attract more tourism to the borough.

“I’ve had some discussion about what more we can do in terms of the creation of events in culmination with defence to open up the Fort to the community,” Ms Henderson said.

“I’d love to see an annual event at the fort which becomes a major tourist attraction.

“I’ve knocked a brewery, a restaurant and café on the head, but there has been some talk about a military tattoo – something that is going to be very unique.

“I don’t want to raise anyone’s expectations, but I am looking at a number of opportunities so please if you have any ideas, let me know. “I loved the idea of the fort wall and lighting that up, and that is the most magnificent wall you see as you are driving into Queenscliff, and we need to make that fort thrive.

“The fort is fully utilised by the Commonwealth for defence so it is a very important asset, but for the community, jobs and tourism I think the fort could play a greater role in this community.”

Ms Henderson said as the federal member for Corangamite, the forum was an important way for her to listen to the concerns and aspirations of the people she represented and then take action.