Costs ‘no barrier’ to memorial move

Erin Pearson
WOOLWORTHS has agreed to move a lone pine memorial on a North Geelong site earmarked for retail development regardless of cost, according to a company spokesperson.
Legacy Geelong welcomed the agreement to preserve the living memorial for Australian soldiers after Woolworths executives flew down from Sydney this week.
Woolworths community relations manager Simon Berge said the company expected moving the tree would be costly.
“It would be fair to say it would cost many thousands to relocate the tree, probably around $10,000, but we’re not putting a budget on it – it’s an outcome we want to achieve,” he said.
“We’ve been advised by an arborist that he’s confident the tree can be moved and we will provide that confirmation to Legacy as part of the deal going forward.”
Mr Berge said Woolworths was unaware of the tree when the company bought the site, part of the former Geelong Golf Club, last year.
“We’ve only become aware of this recently”.
Woolworths is waiting for state Planning Minister Justin Madden to approve redevelopment of the site with a big-box retail complex.
Legacy Geelong secretary Des Downey said Woolworths had agreed to move the pine to a location “we’re happy with”.
“They’ve pointed out a few spots they feel are appropriate but we will wait until the dust settles on what’s exactly going to happen out there.
“The tree needs to be located somewhere it can be tended to in the future and we hope for a park to surround the tree.”
Legacy planted the tree, a descendant of Gallipoli’s Lone Pine, in 1994 during the golf club’s centenary.
Another lone pine stands on the site of a motel proposed for RACV’s Torquay Golf Club.
Mr Madden’s office said the minister would probably make a decision on the Woolworths plan in the next fortnight.