FAQs
Community input gathered during the first stage of consultation, which included surveys, emails, drop-in sessions, and an interactive mapping tool
Analysis of key open space challenges and opportunities
A technical assessment of open space to understand walkability, as well as park quality and performance
Council direction and outcomes from community engagement undertaken to inform the new Council Plan and Community Panel priorities
- Residents across towns, rural areas, and growth corridors
- Community groups (sporting clubs, environment, arts, playgroups)
- Traditional Owners and Aboriginal organisations
- Young people and families (through schools, youth networks)
- Businesses and tourism operators
- Online and paper surveys
- Pop-up sessions and workshops at community locations
- Targeted stakeholder meetings (sports, environment, tourism)
- Public submissions on the draft strategy
- Promotion via social media, local papers, newsletters, libraries
- High value on open space: People love and frequently use local parks and trails for walking, family time, and relaxation.
- Access and connectivity: Most parks are easy to reach, but rural areas need better paths and connections.
- Desired improvements: More inclusive playgrounds, dog parks, skate parks, water play, shade, toilets, and seating.
- Environmental and cultural priorities: Protect biodiversity, create wildlife corridors, celebrate Aboriginal cultural heritage.
- Health and social benefits: Spaces that encourage active lifestyles and community gatherings are highly valued.
Improving accessibility, safety, and connectivity in walkways and recreation areas.
Providing inclusive and high-quality parks for all.
Maintaining dog parks and spaces for both active and passive recreation.
Paying a monetary contribution
Providing land
Constructing infrastructure on behalf of public authorities
How was the Draft Open Space Strategy developed?
The Draft Open Space Strategy was developed based on multiple sources of information and data, including:
How was the community consulted? What did we hear?
We engaged with a range of community stakeholders including:
Our engagement approach was through:
Community told us a range of feedback and priorities that include:
how this strategy aligns with Council Plan?
Recent engagement for the Council Plan echoed these priorities. The community highlighted the importance of:
The Open Space Strategy explicitly addresses all of these priorities, providing specific guidelines and recommendations to support their delivery.
Read the Baw Baw Community Panel Summary Report for more detail.
What are ‘Walking Access Gap Areas’ in open space and how will we start to fill them?
Some areas currently require residents to walk much further to access open space.
The Draft Strategy proposes investing in new parks to help address these gaps. This may involve improving and enhancing nearby parks with additional infrastructure to reflect their role in serving a larger number of residents. It could also include creating new walking connections, or ultimately purchasing land, following feasibility studies and community consultation.
How does Council decide what goes into each park?
Residents often request a wide variety of visitor infrastructure and natural features in their local parks, Council must plan carefully to ensure a fair and balanced distribution of infrastructure, so that some communities don’t end up with significantly more (or less) than others. To guide park investment, Council uses a Levels of Service and asset provision framework, which is developed based on each park’s hierarchy and primary function. This guide helps explain why some parks have more play equipment, some have barbecues and tables or sporting facilities, and some don't. (please see the Draft Open Space Strategy and the Summary of It in the Key Document section to learn more about Baw Baw Shire open space types and hierarchy.)
What are key strategies and Recommendations in this strategy?
Key Strategies are Shire-wide directions. They are not tied to one specific park or township, but instead guide how we manage and improve open space across the whole municipality. Examples include developing a Shade Policy, running education campaigns about responsible dog ownership, or encouraging recycling. These strategies act as ongoing guidelines and principles that can be applied consistently wherever they are relevant.
Recommendations are site-specific actions. At the end of each unit in the Strategy, you’ll find recommendations tailored to that area. These are practical, on-the-ground improvements, such as upgrading a playground, improving a walking path, adding seating, or providing new facilities in a particular park or reserve. Recommendations are about delivering tangible changes for local communities.
Together, the key strategies provide the overarching direction, while the recommendations outline specific projects to bring those strategies to life in different parts of the Shire.
What about rural and smaller townships?
The strategy recognises the importance of high-quality open spaces in rural areas and smaller towns. It supports local parks, rest areas, and community spaces that cater to residents and visitors travelling through these areas.
How will open space projects be funded?
Funding for the maintenance of parks and open spaces comes from general rate revenue. New parks and upgrades can also be funded through developer contributions and government grants. Developers may contribute to open space infrastructure by:
First Round FAQ
What is open space?
Public Open Space is a term that encompasses a variety of open spaces that are free and accessible to the community. These spaces can feature amenities depending on their primary function and can be used for recreational and outdoor enjoyment purposes.
What is an Open Space Strategy?
The Open Space Strategy will set the strategic direction for how our public open spaces will be planned, delivered and managed across the Baw Baw. Public open spaces are enjoyed by all community members, therefore it is important for those who have an interest in the outcome of the strategy to ensure that their aspirations and need for these spaces are heard.
Why do we need an Open Space Strategy?
Baw Baw Shire is experiencing rapid population growth, with the population forecast to exceed 80,000 by 2041. More people mean greater demand for open spaces, sporting reserves, playgrounds, and walking and cycling paths. Open space also plays a vital role in the health and wellbeing of our community and supports biodiversity and a healthy environment. The Open Space Strategy helps us plan holistically and strategically for the protection, growth, improvement, and management of our open space network, ensuring we can meet future demand, prioritise investment, and safeguard natural areas as we grow.
What key considerations will be addressed by the Open Space Strategy?
The Open Space Strategy will guide the future supply, design and management of open space over the next 10 years.
The Strategy will also examine the existing open space network, what the community values about it and any issues that negatively impact the current uses and future supply; it identifies the goals in terms of where we need to be with our open space in future, considering factors such as population growth, developments and broader environmental and social contexts and makes recommendations on how we can achieve our goals, including projects and actions that will protect, grow and improve the open space network.
We will also focus on ensuring the open space network can sustainably meet the needs of our growing community into the future.
How can Open Space Strategy help with environmental challenges such as biodiversity loss and climate change?
With the expansion of highly urbanised suburbs and greenhouse gases produced by industrial activities and transport at an unprecedented rate, the planet is experiencing significant negative impacts such as biodiversity loss and climate change impacting the health and well-being of humans, animals, and plants.
Open spaces and nature-based solutions are increasingly recognised as important tools to tackle challenges such as the health and well-being of the residents, the heat island effect, biodiversity loss and climate change.
Open space strategy identifies these solutions and puts them into practice within parks and open spaces where possible.