Position Statement

Eildon Tourism and Regional Development

DATE

June 2020

OUTLINE

Lake Eildon is one of Victoria’s most important recreational boating tourism destinations.

With a thriving houseboat industry, strong industry supply chain and world class fishing and boating on Melbourne’s doorstep, Lake Eildon generates significant economic multipliers and jobs regionally.

However, Lake Eildon has suffered from a lack of investment over many decades and due to a range of challenges including:

  • compounding natural disasters,

  • inconsistent governance due to multiple land managers,

  • unsuitable land zoning for development, and

  • lack of supporting infrastructure to facilitate investment.

The purpose of the Draft Masterplan is to ‘establish a shared vision for the activation of Lake Eildon, identifying priority tourism and recreation developments within an environmentally sustainable framework that optimise economic outcomes for the region’.

See the Activating Lake Eildon Draft Masterplan here: https://www.mansfield.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/Lake_Eildon_Masterplan_Final_Draft_27-3-20-REDUCED.pdf

BIAV POSITION

The potential of Lake Eildon to deliver even more significant and future regional economic development outcomes is expressed in the Activating Lake Eildon Draft Masterplan.

However, it is apparent to industry that crucial linkages between industry, recreational boating, tourism and regional development outcomes are under-defined in the draft masterplan, including:

  • Requirement for a best practice land governance model  

  • Regional Development outcomes delivered via recreation/tourism is not the core business of the water manager and therefore requires a completely different set of skills

  • Lake Eildon region is under-capitalised/under-developed and constraining potential

  • Lake Eildon is a key tourism destination without the best suite of accommodation options

  • Jobs creation that builds on current regional strengths is needed, not ‘what would be nice to have’

BIAV FOCUS

There is a suggested need for a new Governance Authority for the Lake Eildon Region that is a central, focused, accountable, leadership body whose Core Roles are:

(a) Managing Recreational & Tourism Activities on Lake Eildon and the associated Infrastructure to meet customers’ needs & expectations

(b) Coordinated Marketing of Lake Eildon

(c) Facilitating economic development of the Lake Eildon Region to provide employment for the local communities by attracting significant private enterprise tourism businesses to Lake Eildon

(d) Collecting all Revenue from current GMW Non-Core Business at Lake Eildon

(e) Being appointed as the Waterway Manager for Lake Eildon by Transport Safety Victoria, be the responsible Authority for the Lake Eildon Houseboat Regulations 2013 and be funded to perform this role

(f)  Ownership, Implementation and Accountability for the Activating Lake Eildon Master Plan

BIAV will support the Lake Eildon Houseboat Industry Association to advocate for:

       i.          re-zoning of Land to enable investment for improved accommodation and other priority projects   

      ii.          the two Sewerage Pipelines Infrastructure are fundamental to this Plan; working with State Government to make these happen

     iii.          the sealing of roads (Skyline Road/Maintaingoon Road/Sonnberg Drive) is an infrastructure project of high importance

     iv.          the release and sale, at market prices, of new houseboat licences on Lake Eildon (10 per Year over next 10 Years)