By JOHN VAN KLAVEREN
GEELONG will have a fully-fledged Vietnam Veterans Avenue of Honour after a council decision this week.
Councillors voted to introduce a heritage overlay and remove a community billboard at the existing Avenue of Honour site on Melbourne Rd, North Geelong.
The Independent reported last year that Geelong Vietnam Veterans Association had requested the billboard’s relocation so the group could create a $130,000 legacy memorial.
Council’s veterans affairs portfolio holder, Rod Macdonald, said the changes would be a mark of respect for Vietnam Veterans.
“The Avenue of Honour is one of only three in Victoria commemorating Vietnam War service,” Cr Macdonald said.
“Council recognises the importance of the avenue, dedicated to the memory of the 521 Australian soldiers who died during the Vietnam War and the 60,000 troops who served between 1962 and 1973.
“By introducing a greater Geelong planning scheme overlay we’re protecting the area so future generations can come and visit a place of reflection and peace for years to come.”
City Hall would move the billboard to an “appropriate” site after May so forward bookings were unaffected, Cr Macdonald said.
Geelong Vietnam Veterans Association president Reiny Nieuwenhof called the vote “fantastic news”.
“We’re now waiting on the Victorian Veterans Council to approve a grant application for the memorial and we are reasonably confident it will come through … then work can start before the end of the year.”
Mr Nieuwenhof said the association wanted to complete the project by 2016 in time for the Battle of Long Tan’s 50th anniversary.
