Make way for festival: Park trees ‘face chop’

By Michelle Herbison
BOROUGH of Queenscliffe should rethink its decision to chop down three trees to make way for the town’s music festival, according to a councillor.
Cr David Mitchell said he would ask his colleagues to reconsider axing a willow myrtle and two Norfolk pines in Princess Park.
Council approved the tree removal earlier this month following a recommendation from its vegetation advisory group.
Mayor Bob Merriman said Cr Mitchell and Cr Lloyd Davies were outvoted on the trees.
Cr Mitchell said council’s meeting agenda included a diagram showing the trees in the way of festival’s existing 45m by 45m Lighthouse Stage tent.
But the festival would next year use a 40m by 55m tent, potentially saving one tree.
“I’ve now seen the footprint of the larger tent. It would appear the tree number two Norfolk pine, which has caused me the greatest concern, is outside the footprint of the larger tent.”
Queenscliff Music Festival director Michael Currucan said the event would pay for plantings to replace the felled trees.
Using next year’s “longer, thinner tent” would require a reshuffle of other infrastructure, he said.
“We would need to move the VIP area over to that side and it would be smack bang where that tree is. In this year’s scenario, that Norfolk pine is where we’re trying to park trucks because there’s a loading dock going right through the middle of it.”
Mr Currucan said the three trees were placed at “random” and he had requested their removal to ease layout plans.
“It means we’re not digging up the road to fit a tent there and it can be orientated a little bit more out to sea as well.”
Mr Currucan said the “beautiful” trees at Princess Park were a factor in the decision to relocate the festival from JL Jordan Reserve last year, he said.
“People can enjoy that park over the weekend then think about coming back to the town, which is one of the primary goals of the festival.”
But Mr Currucan said he “wasn’t sweating” on the removal of the trees.
“If the trees went they went. If they didn’t we’d work around them. We just wanted something better for that whole area.”