Jennie Morrison, Woodend
Acknowledging that cycling is a healthy pursuit and fun for families, the Macedon Ranges Shire Council plan for the desecration of Woodend’s Avenue of Honour is in no way justified to achieve that objective.
This significant site, registered with Heritage Victoria and the National Trust, is the object of a proposal for a three-metre-wide bitumen cycling path on the avenue’s western side. This would add an ugly, discordant element to the green and gently sloping fall from Golf Links Hill. In some sections a cut would be required to level the track, endangering the health of the oaks with possible damage to root systems.
The aim of this plan, at great cost to our community, is to enable potential users, 90 per cent of whom are said to be tourists, to enjoy ‘nature’. These tourists (especially those from warmer climes) can be seen peddling along this ice-covered path, in howling winds, below 10 degrees on a delightful Woodend winter’s day. I think not!
So, are we as residents prepared to accept this damaging avenue proposal, for short-term use, at great cost both financially and aesthetically to a much loved part of Woodend?
As Daryl Kerrigan says in The Castle, “Tell ’em they’re dreamin'”.
