Feedback wanted on reserve’s future

MEMBERS of Friends of Paddock Creek are making progress towards their new vision for the Gordon Reserve.

After receiving a State Government tiny towns grant of more than $25,000 earlier this year, along with support from Moorabool Shire Council and Barwon Water, the group are looking for feedback from the community about how they use the reserve.

“We’re looking for information about people who use the park, what they use it for, how they travel there, their age and things they’d like to see in the reserve,” said committee spokesman Stephen Derrick.

“We just want to get a better idea of the range of activities people do in the park and what’s really important to them.”

Initial feedback has indicated the community would like to see a toilet and footpaths to access the reserve.

A review and some preliminary assessments are also being undertaken at the site.

Eventually, a plan will be developed for the five-hectare reserve to guide the future of the area.

“We’ve commissioned a native vegetation survey which is a formal process of looking at what’s there,” said Mr Derrick.

“We are trying to determine what extent we should go with new plantings and how we deal with weeds that are there.

“That’s at the stage of a draft report and we’ve had comments in from all the stakeholders.”

Mr Derrick said it is important to look at the future of the area as the community grows.

“The vison is a reserve that is much more connected to the town and signage in the town saying ‘rec reserve that way’,” he said.

“It’s a really important asset to the town, five hectares of green space right in the heart of the town.

“Gordon, is like a lot of towns in West Moorabool growing significantly.”

To complete the survey head to, bit.ly/3NkNTeY