Badger Weir picnic area still closed eight months after storms

A POPULAR Healesville picnic ground is still off limits with no fix in sight eight months after major storms saw it closed to the public.

Badger Weir Park in Healesville was trashed by storms in October 2016 and has been closed to the public ever since. Picture: Dale Morgan/Facebook.

A POPULAR Healesville picnic ground is still off limits with no fix in sight eight months after major storms saw the gates closed to the public.

Parks Victoria closed the Badger Weir picnic area after trees were uprooted, and toilets, a rotunda, water tanks and picnic tables were damaged when the storms tore through the Yarra Ranges National Park late last year.

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Gale-force winds hit the Yarra Ranges on October 9, bringing down trees and powerlines and causing extensive damage to houses and leaving thousands with no electricity.

Badger Creek mum Renee Feehen, 28, said she was disappointed to visit the picnic area each month and find it still not open.

Badger Weir Park in Healesville was trashed by storms in October 2016 and has been closed to the public ever since. Picture: Bronwyn Spargo/Facebook.

“Barbecues are wrecked, there is no walking track access, water tanks are damaged,” Ms Feehen said.

“Parks Victoria has done absolutely nothing. I can’t believe it’s taken this long for nothing to get done.”

Ms Feehen said the community was more than happy to organise a working bee to get the popular picnic space back up and running. “The best thing is the wildlife. It’s such a beautiful place,” she said.

“A lot of people get together and have barbecues. Everyone takes their rubbish home. Kids play cricket. It’s a well-used park.”

Parks Victoria chief ranger Conrad Annal said the picnic area, along with many other sites, suffered significant damage in October.

What Badger Weir picnic area used to look like …

… and how it looks now. Picture: Dale Morgan/Facebook.

Mr Annal said staff were working on reopening it as soon as possible and work to clear the fallen trees and debris was ongoing.

“There is a vast number of fallen trees and other storm debris on site that needs to be removed,” he said.

“Unfortunately, the scale of the storm damage means the clean-up process may take some time and we ask for the community’s patience while we undertake this work.

“We appreciate the ongoing closure is disappointing for visitors but public safety is our number one priority.”

He said Parks Victoria had reopened other sites including Donnelly’s Weir picnic ground, some walks around Marysville, and the majority of Maroondah Reservoir Park, with the intention of a full reopening within a month.

He said Goldfields and Boobyalla walks in Warburton were also nearing completion.