A DRAFT master plan for the Hastings foreshore is open for public comment.
The foreshore is used daily by people exercising, fishing, playing and socialising and is also home to occasional large-scale events such as concerts and festivals.
The area covered by the draft plan stretches south from the northern end of Fred Smith Reserve and includes a playground, fitness stations and Western Port’s busiest boat ramp.
Mornington Peninsula Shire says the “five key themes” resulting from nearly 300 community responses are: playful destination; connected foreshore; resilient coast; enhanced natural environment; collaborative and engaging processes.
It says the draft master plan uses these themes and “shapes future development to provide more attractive, accessible, safe and sustainable foreshore”.
The master plan also tackles such challenges as the Fred Smith Reserve being used as a tip in the 1970s and 1980s and the foreshore being a low-lying coastal area that could flood during storms and king tides.
Residents and foreshore users can have a say before 20 November online by visiting mornpen.vic.gov.au/hastingsforeshore or picking up a feedback form from a shire customer care centre.
First published in the Western Port News – 12 October 2022
