Haddon Nintingbool Smythes Creek Ross Creek V3 Had… · ROSS CREEK The Ross Creek locality is 4031 hectares in area and is located on the Sebastopol-Smythesdale Road, approximately

AREA PROFILE

Haddon Nintingbool

Smythes Creek Ross Creek

Golden Plains Shire Council

Northern Settlement Strategy Community Consultation May-June 2016

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INTRODUCTION The Northern Settlement Strategy aims to guide Council in determining sustainable areas in the northern half of the Shire to accommodation population growth to 2030. The project study area covers approximately 1,928 square kilometres in the northern part of the Golden Plains Shire. The study area is bordered by the City of Ballarat, City of Greater Geelong and the Shires of Pyrenees, Moorabool and Corangamite. The strategy will incorporate a Residential Land Supply Review that includes an inventory of vacant land and considers variable factors influencing land use, a Typology of Settlements that recognises different categories of settlement from towns to rural communities and a Strategy and Strategic Framework to guide future planning decisions linked to growth areas and infrastructure investment.

Northern Settlement Strategy Study Area

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ROLE OF THE AREAS HADDON

The Haddon locality is 3430 hectares in area and is located approximately 12 kilometres south west of Ballarat and 130km from Melbourne. The Haddon Township was once a prosperous gold mining settlement with a large population. Haddon is set on the Woady Yaloak River in a rural landscape of open paddocks, remnant trees and scattered dwellings. The Township has a thriving primary school and provides a semi-rural lifestyle for its residents.

SMYTHES CREEK & NINTINGBOOL

The Smythes Creek and Nintingbool localities are 1951 hectares in area and are located on the Glenelg Highway, approximately 11km south west of Ballarat and 125km west of Melbourne. Smythes Creek has a strong history associated with farming and gold mining. Smythes Creek provides a rural landscape of open paddocks, remnant vegetation and a semi-rural lifestyle for the local residents.

ROSS CREEK

The Ross Creek locality is 4031 hectares in area and is located on the Sebastopol-Smythesdale Road, approximately 14km south west of Ballarat and 128km west of Melbourne. Ross Creek was named after Captain Charles Henry Ross. The creek rises as a spring at the east end of Wades Lane and is a tributary of the Yarrowee. Today, the community centres around the primary school, post office and community hall. The local area provides a rural landscape, with hobby farms providing a semi-rural lifestyle for residents.

TOWNSHIP & LOCALITY CHARACTER Townships and localities in the northern part of the Golden Plains Shire are characterised by their strong commuting linkages to Ballarat and the generally dispersed rural residential development based on communities of interest.

The townships and localities of Haddon, Nintingbool, Smythes Creek and Ross Creek border the northern part of the study area and have strong links to Ballarat.

HADDON

The Haddon Township does not possess the typical urban built form of a small township, with no dominant main street or continuous street strip development. The settlement is generally characterised by dispersed rural residential development. However, Haddon possesses a strong and resilient community spirit, with numerous community and sporting groups that are supported with sporting and recreation facilities.

SMYTHES CREEK

The Smythes Creek & Nintingbool localities within the Golden Plains Shire consist of dispersed rural residential development. There is currently no consolidated township within the locality. The area forms part of a rural lifestyle belt separating Ballarat from settlements such as Smythesdale. This provides strong commuting linkages into Ballarat for work and other services. This settlement type

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provides limited opportunity for consolidating land uses, however it maintains a semi-rural lifestyle for residents.

ROSS CREEK

The Ross Creek locality consists primarily of rural residential development and broad acre farming. The area forms part of a rural lifestyle belt separating Ballarat from settlements such as Napoleons and Smythesdale. This settlement type provides strong commuting linkages into Ballart for work and other services. A Primary School, Recreation Reserve, Community Hall and General Store are located within the consolidated township area.

HISTORY AND HERITAGE The gold rushes were the catalyst for the establishment of many towns in the northern part of the Golden Plains Shire. Mining activity saw an influx of people and money that for some townships lasted only a few years.

HADDON

The township of Haddon was once a prosperous gold mining settlement, with the Young Haddon Gold Mine, Reform Mine No. 1, Reform Mine No. 2 and Racecourse Mine being significant employers of both permanent and itinerant workforces. The gold rush that swept Haddon and district contributed to a rapid rise in population, with the settlement exceeding 3000 residents by 1871. The township was also an important centre for commercial trade and featured seven hotels, a Church of England, Wesleyan Church, post office and a large Chinese Village (Woady Yaloak Historical Society, p. 2). During the late 19th century, agriculture, particularly grazing and wool production, replaced gold mining as the predominant local industry.1


This area was also known as Cardigan and Smythes Creek was mainly a small farming community of predominantly dairy farms, a school and two hotels. The original settlement is located further south, close to the area of the Old Cemetery. The town takes its name from Captain John James Barlow Smythe the squatter who had previously had the Nintingbool Run. The Woady Yaloak Creek runs through Nintingbool and it was known as Smythes Creek at that time. Between 1851-1853 the population of diggers fluctuated between 200-1000.There was a large Chinese camp (Phoenix camp) on the corner of the Haddon -Ross Creek road. Gold Commissioners set up camp here in January 1854 and this is where the first Police Camp in the district was erected. Gradually Smythes Creek moved southward as miners followed the gold along the creek. By 1858 the first deep lead was found at Frasers Hill. Deep lead mining required a large capital layout and a permanent workforce which encouraged miners to settle in the one place. In 1850 the township of Smythesdale was gazetted, and the name Smythes Creek was generally used to refer to the immediate north of Smythesdale.2

1 Heritage Citation Report – Haddon Memorial Reserve - Golden Plains Shire Council. 2 Ross Creek/Smythes Creek Community Plan 2011 – Heritage Overview.

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ROSS CREEK

Ross Creek ‐ named after Captain Charles Henry Ross. The creek rises as a spring at the eastern end of Wades Lane and is a tributary of the Yarrowee. The surrounding range of hills was once covered by a vast open forest which spread from Buninyong to the Woady Yaloak Creek at Scarsdale. It was timbered with white gum, messmate, stringy bark and peppermint with occasional specimens of Blackwood, lightwood, cherry tree and she-oak. Acacias grew freely in the moist open forest while the damp soils and gullies nourished orchids, everlastings and heaths. In April 1841 Captain Charles Henry Ross occupied the 30,000 acre run on the Woady Yaloak Creek, for just a £10 lease licence fee per annum. He remained there until 1843 when George Forbes took over. In 1848 the run was transferred to Thomas Sprout and John Brown. The run stretched from present day Hillcrest in the west, Italian Gully in the south, Cambrian Hill in the east and Nintingbool near Haddon in the north. Ross Creek is unique in the Woady Yaloak district in that it was not founded directly on the gold industry. It has never been a township and its population has always been relatively small and stable. The settlement had a school from 1865 but also had a Post Office, library, several churches and some public and commercial buildings. The blue stone remains of the Welsh Congregational Church can still be seen today. Most of the families were wood cutters, general farmers and dairy farmers. It was their industry which served the surrounding mining towns, selling their timber, crops, fodder, vegetables and milk to the gold mines, the miners and their families.3

3 Ross Creek/Smythes Creek Community Plan 2011 – Heritage Overview

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LOCALITY MAPS AND RESIDENTIAL LIVING ZONES Zones enable communities to direct the scale of development in different residential areas. A short descriptor of the Residential Zones is provided below. The Township Zone provides for residential and other uses in small towns and enables modest housing growth. Low Density Residential Zone usually refers to low-density development on lots of 0.4 ha which can treat and retain wastewater where sewerage is not connected and subdivided to a minimum of 0.2 hectares where reticulated sewerage is connected. The Rural Living Zone provides for residential living in a rural environment and generally restricts residential change as a result of significant increase in dwelling density. The 2 hectare Schedule to the Rural Living Zone was introduced to enable high quality rural living development within commuting distance to Ballarat and along the Glenelg Highway.

HADDON, NINTINGBOOL, SMYTHES CREEK AND ROSS CREEK LOCALITIES

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HADDON

Total Locality (Hectares) 3,340

Township Zone

Low Density Residential Zone

Rural Living Zone 2 HA Overlay


Total Zone Area (Hectares) 84.75 N/A 753.26 84.53

Total Dwellings 39 N/A 330 13

Average Dwelling Age (Years) 37.5 N/A 25.5 42.5

Vacant Parcels 52 N/A 41 7

Total Vacant (Hectares) 39.01 N/A 206.2 129.84

Dwellings built last 10 years 5 N/A 58 1

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NINTINGBOOL

Total Locality (Hectares) 189

Township Zone




Total Zone Area (Hectares) N/A N/A 119.73 47.68

Total Dwellings N/A N/A 56 7

Average Dwelling Age (Years) N/A N/A 22.32 27.57

Vacant Parcels N/A N/A 4 0

Total Vacant (Hectares) N/A N/A 6.83 0

Dwellings built last 10 years N/A N/A 1 3

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SMYTHES CREEK


Township Zone




Total Zone Area (Hectares) N/A N/A 1087.53 612.76

Total Dwellings N/A N/A 358 27

Average Dwelling Age (Years) N/A N/A 26 19.4

Vacant Parcels N/A N/A 50 42

Total Vacant (Hectares) N/A N/A 227.73 414.41

Dwellings built last 10 years N/A N/A 51 12

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ROSS CREEK


Township Zone




Total Zone Area (Hectares) 9.67 N/A 306.49 1546.11

Total Dwellings 1 N/A 132 143

Average Dwelling Age (Years) 75 N/A 23.2 26.6

Vacant Parcels 5 N/A 31 83

Total Vacant (Hectares) 9.11 N/A 49.67 643.37

Dwellings built last 10 years 0 N/A 14 33

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UTILITIES AND SERVICES For this project Utilities and Services have been grouped into three main themes: Utilities, Telecommunications and Transport. This section identifies critical utilities and services available in each locality.

Township Utilities Telecommunications Transport

Haddon Available Potable Water Supply Haddon has fully treated drinking water supplied by Central Highlands Water from Ballarat with major mains along Sago Hill Road and the Haddon Windermere Road to the South Electricity 22kV HV lines along Sago Hill Road. They are fed from Ballarat South Zone substation to the east. The main line is interconnected with lines of neighbouring towns. Much of the town appears to be supplied by radial lines due to its relatively low density development. Not Available Sewerage Recycled Water Natural Gas

NBN Fixed Wireless

Public Transport There is limited V/Line coach/bus service that operates through the Haddon Township.

Smythes Creek

Available Potable Water Supply Smythes Creek has fully treated drinking water supplied by Central Highlands Water. Not Available Sewerage Recycled Water Natural Gas

Public Transport There is limited V/Line coach/bus service that operates through the Ross Creek Locality.

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Nintingbool Available Nintingbool has fully treated drinking water supplied by Central Highlands Water. Not Available Sewerage Recycled Water Natural Gas

Public Transport N/A

Ross Creek Available Potable Water Supply Ross Creek has treated drinking water supplied by Central Highlands Water from Ballarat. The incoming pipeline is along the Sebastopol – Smythesdale Road and Ross Creek is at the end of this line. However a cross connection to other RLZ area pipelines is along Shamus Ave. Electricity The town is supplied remotely from Ballarat South Zone substation from the north, via 22kV HV lines along Post Office Road that appear to be the primary supply of electricity. This main line is interconnected with lines of neighbouring towns. Not Available Sewerage Recycled Water Natural Gas

NBN Fixed Wireless

Public Transport There is limited V/Line coach/bus service that operates through the Ross Creek Township.

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INFRASTRUCTURE For this project infrastructure has been grouped into six main themes: Early Years, Education, Medical, Recreation and Retail. This section identifies currently known infrastructure for each locality.

HADDON SMYTHES CREEK & NINTINGBOOL ROSS CREEK

Early Years:

Education: Medical:

Recreation:

Retail:

ENVIRONMENTAL RISK There are a number of areas in the northern half of the Shire that are particularly susceptible to flood, bushfire and salinity risks, creating potential hazards for development. These areas are mapped and represented in the Golden Plains Planning Scheme through land use controls (overlays). This section identifies mapped hazards in the Golden Plains Planning Scheme for localities in the northern part of the Shire.

PLANNING SCHEME OVERLAY OBJECTIVES

BMO Bushfire

The objective of the BMO is to ensure that development of land prioritises the protection of human life and strengthens community resilience to bushfire.

LSIO Land Subject to Inundation

The objective of the LSIO is to ensure that development maintains the free passage and temporary storage of floodwaters, minimises flood damage, is compatible with the flood hazard and local drainage conditions and will not cause any significant rise in flood level or flow velocity.

SMO Salinity Management Overlay

The objective of the SMO is to facilitate the stabilisation of areas affected by salinity, revegetate areas which contribute to salinity, encourage development to be undertaken in a manner which brings about a reduction in salinity recharge and prevent damage to buildings and infrastructure from saline discharge and high water tables.

HADDON

CONSTRAINTS HECTARES COVERED PERCENTAGE OF LOCALITY COVERED

Bushfire Management Overlay 630 18.35% Salinity Management Overlay 286 8.33% Land Subject to Inundation Overlay 332 9.69%

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ROSS CREEK



To view the ordinance that display the overlays contained within the scheme please visit, http://planningschemes.dpcd.vic.gov.au/schemes/goldenplains and follow the steps.

ENVIRONMENTAL & LANDSCAPE OVERLAYS The Golden Plains Shire features rich and diverse environmental landscapes and heritage assets. Balancing rural residential development along with natural and important assets in the northern part of the Shire is a key challenge for this strategy. Areas identified in the Golden Plains Planning Scheme as social assets protected through land use controls (overlays) are listed below.

This section identifies environmental assets mapped in the Golden Plains Planning Scheme for each locality in the northern part of the Shire.

PLANNING SCHEME OVERLAY OBJECTIVES

Environment Significance Overlay ESO2

The objective of the ESO2 is to prevent the degradation of water quality and erosion and protect habitat and vegetation.

Heritage Overlay HO

The objective of the HO is to conserve and enhance heritages place of natural or cultural significance.

Vegetation Protection Overlay VPO2

The objective of the VPO2 is to contain significant remnant vegetation located within bushland reserves and government road reserves.

HADDON


Environmental Significance Overlay Schedule 2 144 4.21 Heritage Overlay 0 0.01% Vegetation Protection Overlay Schedule 2 32 0.93&

http://planningschemes.dpcd.vic.gov.au/schemes/goldenplains

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Environmental Significance Overlay Schedule 2 1 0.05%

Vegetation Protection Overlay Schedule 2 34 1.74%

ROSS CREEK


Heritage Overlay 8 0.21% Vegetation Protection Overlay Schedule 2 34 0.84%

To view maps that display the overlays contained within the scheme please visit, http://planningschemes.dpcd.vic.gov.au/schemes/goldenplains/maps and follow the steps or contact Golden Plains Planning Department (03) 5220 7111.

NATURAL ENVIRONMENT The Golden Plains Municipal Strategic Statement Clause 21.04 identifies that the environment is the most important factor influencing the economy, lifestyle and recreational choices in the shire. Four key challenges are identified that face the shire, these include the degraded nature and condition of the environment, balancing vegetation conservation against protecting people from wildfire, supporting the sustainable management of land and water resources and the need to minimise and manage the effects of flooding. Haddon, which is set on the Woady Yaloak River, is part of the Woady Yaloak Catchment area. The Woady Yaloak Catchment covers 120,000 ha, with approximately 80% privately owned and 20% under public management. The private land is mainly used for agriculture, with grazing and cropping the dominant enterprises. Very little remnant vegetation remains on private land. The public land is largely forested and used for commercial timber production or conservation.4 Smythes Creek and Ross Creek have a number of tributaries which form part of the Leigh Catchment. The Leigh Catchment covers an area of 890 square kilometres including the Yarrowee River which becomes the Leigh River at its confluence with Williamson’s Creek. The Leigh River flows into the Barwon River at Inverleigh. The Leigh Catchment contains a diverse range of topographic features from gently undulating hills, wide valleys and river flats, to steep escarpments and rocky gorges. The catchment supports areas of significant remnant native vegetation including forests, woodlands, grasslands and wetlands occurring on private and public land. The Leigh River supports intact corridors of riparian vegetation with important fauna habitat values. Agriculture is the predominant land use in the catchment. The urban and semi urban areas of Ballarat are also a significant component of the catchment.5

4 Woady Yaloak Catchment Group – Five Year Action Plan 2014-2018 5 Leigh Catchment Action Plan – 2008-2013

http://planningschemes.dpcd.vic.gov.au/schemes/goldenplains/maps

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KEY POLICY REFERENCE Regional Context: Central Highlands Regional Growth Plan: The Central Highlands Regional Growth Plan provides a regional approach to land use planning in the Central Highlands. It covers the north-west section of the Golden Plains Shire as well as a number of neighbouring municipalities. The plan seeks to accommodate growth and manage change over the next 30 years. It promotes a number of measures to protect the rural landscape character, including using planning provisions to create clear urban boundaries and maintain development to locations with minimal landscape impact. The plan recognizes a number of key influences that need to be managed within the context of significant environmental and economic assets and risks from natural hazards (especially flood and bushfire). The plan promotes the development of sustainable and vibrant communities and encourages the Golden Plains Shire to capitalise on its close links with Ballarat. Golden Plains Municipal Strategic Statement: Clause 21.03-2 provides a Township Hierarchy Framework that lists Haddon and Ross Creek as Town commercial and retail centres. Clause 21.07-4 relates to the north-west area of the Shire. Future planning of the north west area must take into account the timely provision of servicing and infrastructure for more dispersed communities, the disposal of effluent on-site where reticulated services are unavailable and meeting the need for planned rural residential development according to demand and supply projections to provide for sustainable long term land and environmental management. Haddon Structure Plan: Golden Plains Planning Scheme Clause 21.02-2E sets out the Haddon Structure Plan. The Haddon Structure Plan outlines development strategies for the township. It defines the town edge with a growth boundary, creates a town feature in Anzac Park, proposes to develop an open space area and focuses key township support facilities near the existing commercial centre. The Structure plan indicates a preferred layout of residential, commercial, community and other land uses based on a ten to twenty year outlook. Ross Creek Structure Plan: Golden Plains Planning Scheme Clause 21.02-2L sets out the Ross Creek Structure Plan. The Ross Creek Structure Plan outlines development strategies for the township. It seeks to place residential development on existing vacant land, consolidate the township to support commercial and community facilities and to control development along the creek.

Documents

Haddon Nintingbool Smythes Creek Ross Creek V3 Had… · ROSS CREEK The Ross Creek locality is 4031 hectares in area and is located on the Sebastopol-Smythesdale Road, approximately