City launches community consultation on proposed overhaul of main CBD streets

A trio of central Geelong streets will receive a complete makeover, with the city calling on members of public to share their visions for how to improve the strips.

A TRIO of key Geelong CBD streets have been earmarked for overhaul, with the city calling on members of public to share their visions for how to improve the strips before it begins to shape a new masterplan.

The move comes as road works continue on a multimillion dollar bike lane stretching down Gheringhap St from town hall to Kardinia Park – which has split opinions of residents, cyclists and business owners.

The City of Greater Geelong this week launched a community engagement period to gather residents’ ideas on what a new streetscape masterplan for Gheringhap, Mercer and Bailey Streets should look like.

“We want to make Mercer St, Gheringhap St and Bayley St in Geelong welcoming, attractive, accessible, safe and vibrant,” a city project page noted.

The new City of Greater Geelong building in Mercer Street is fast rising. Picture: Alan Barber

“Your input will help inform a vision which will guide the development of a masterplan that will consider factors such as footpath improvements, potential improvements to intersections, tree and landscaping, outdoor seating, public art, cycling and safety and accessibility.

“We want to hear from you, the people who live, travel through, work, and spend time in these streets before we start the masterplan. We want to know what could be done to make it more enjoyable to walk, cycle and spend time in the streets.”

The key city streets border the city’s major civic precinct project while also bisecting the Malop St Green Spine project and running adjacent to both the city’s designated Arts and Culture Precinct and the site of the proposed Convention Centre near the waterfront.

A proposed timeline for the masterplan project will end community consultation on December 22, aim to provide a draft masterplan to the public for further feedback by early 2022 and finalise the document before the end of next year.

Any suggested changes to Gheringhap St will need to work around the city’s Building Better Bike Connections Project, with works currently progressing on building the bike lane down much of the street.

Councillors in May awarded a $1.97m contract to build the “critical link” connecting the CBD to the southern suburbs, which included removing a lane of traffic from sections of Gheringhap St to create a separated bike lane.

The decision, which passed despite a trio of councillors voting against it due to safety concerns, has drawn mixed responses from the community, with some praising the shift towards encouraging cycling via safer infrastructure while others have complained of impacts on traffic through the CBD.

Originally published as City launches community consultation on proposed overhaul of main CBD streets