Status: In progress

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Project updates

Community engagement on the Issues and Opportunities paper has now closed. We are now reviewing all feedback and developing the draft Rural Areas Strategy.

The draft strategy will be open for engagement in mid-2025.

The project

The City of Greater Bendigo is preparing a new Rural Areas Strategy.

The rural areas of Greater Bendigo are important for agriculture, rural living and the environment.

The Rural Areas Strategy will provide certainty and clear direction on future land use and development in the rural areas.

This will ensure the long term sustainability of Greater Bendigo’s rural areas.

The project is in its early stages. We have reviewed background information on:

  • agricultural productions
  • rural housing
  • biodiversity and natural hazards
  • current planning scheme controls

The review helped us identify a range of issues, opportunities and potential strategies. We would like your input on the Background Review and Issues and Opportunities Paper.

Read the Issues and Opportunities Paper

The main themes in this paper are:

  • Protecting productive farming land
  • Enhancing and protecting natural and cultural assets
  • Identifying appropriate locations for rural residential, tourism and non-agricultural uses. This may help to reduce land use conflicts
  • Agricultural needs, particularly intensive animal industries. This includes lot sizes and buffer areas
  • Infrastructure like roads and water
  • External pressures like climate change and changing energy production

You can read the entire paper or just the sections you are interested in. Then please share your thoughts in the survey below.

Timeline

  • Timeline item 1 - complete

    Issues and Opportunities Paper open for feedback

    November 11 - February 28, 2025

  • Timeline item 2 - active

    Consider community feedback and develop draft Rural Areas Strategy

    Early 2025

  • Timeline item 3 - incomplete

    Rural Areas Strategy open for feedback

    Mid 2025

  • Timeline item 4 - incomplete

    Finalise Rural Areas Strategy and start implemenation

    Late 2025

Contact us

Have questions or want to learn more about the project, contact us below:

Contact Information
Name Andrew Cockerall
Phone 1300 002 642
Email strategic.planning@bendigo.vic.gov.au