Idea floated, sunk by City

Pater Fargo
DID GEELONG’S council miss the boat when it rejected plans for a floating restaurant on the city’s waterfront?
City of Greater Geelong named 18 reasons rejecting plans for a licensed function centre set on a barge at Fisherman’s Basin when refusing the planning application last month.
Among the crosses on council’s scorecard were that the plan was not a tourist attraction, would reduce berths available at Fisherman’s Basin, would impact on Skandia Geelong Week and reduce the amenity of neighbouring Royal Geelong Yacht Club.
Oh, and it would intrude on views of Corio Bay.
The City also listed a volume of council strategies and planning rules that the floating function centre did not comply with.
So, according to the City, the restaurant didn’t fit anywhere and was waved away.
But surely this is the type of waterfront use council should try to encourage – something that would draw more families to stay and spend in the region.
Maybe it’s a job for Mayor Peter McMullin’s Partnerships for Progress team to work with the proponent to come up with a plan to make Geelong’s waterfront all the better.
It wouldn’t be the first time council has worked with developers to adjust plans so they get through the planning scheme.
And this would be one of the less-controversial applications in that category.
While this exact proposal is perhaps not the best option for this site, surely the concept deserves consideration – because similar operations are popular tourist attractions at other waterfront cities.
Hobart, another of Australia’s great waterfront cities, has a flotilla of floating eateries that supply tourists and visitors with some of the best fresh and cooked seafood at reasonable prices.
These floating fish and chip shops, at Victoria and Constitution docks, don’t look like the QE2 but are a Mecca for visitors who enjoy some of the local fishing fleets’ best catch together with a handful of fresh chips and a generous dollop of tartare sauce.
Like the pie floaters of Adelaide, these floating eateries have become an institution and are an essential part of a visit to Hobart’s historic waterfront.
And they don’t block the magnificent view to the mouth of the Derwent River, either.
While Geelong’s council seems obsessed with big-picture projects like a convention centre to snag more business tourists to the region, potential gems of ideas like floating eateries and proven winners such as Geelong Speed Trials seem to float away like so many unthoughtfully-discarded fish and chip wrappers.
It’s ideas like these that Geelong should be at least considering.
On the subject of Geelong’s speed trials, an organiser’s attempt to restart the popular 50-year-old event got off the line at the weekend with a successful static display at Eastern Beach.
About 100 classic cars and motorcycles lined up for the event and there were plenty of spectators.
The event may be idling now, so let’s hope organisers can rev it up and get back on the road.