Works have started to restore the heritage-listed Visitor Centre at the Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve.
Opened in 1971, the building was designed by influential modernist architect Robin Boyd and for years has been the key arrival point for visitors to this unique landscape on Eastern Maar Country.
Following approval from Heritage Victoria, internal and external conservation works have now commenced to ensure the building continues to welcome visitors into the future.
The building’s conical roof, which reflects the dormant volcano in which it sits, will be carefully restored, along with its timber windows and doors, roof beams and stonework. There will also be an upgrade of lighting, heating and cooling.
Barpa Construction Services, a majority Indigenous-owned business, has been appointed to complete the works.
Restoration of the Visitor Centre follows community consultation and finalisation of a Tower Hill Activation and Linkages Plan. The plan sets a long-term vision for how to improve visitors’ experience of the reserve, celebrate its cultural heritage, and explore better connections with the surrounding region.
Located outside Warrnambool, in Victoria’s south-west, Tower Hill is a unique volcanic landscape with significant cultural, environmental, geological and historical values.
Already much-loved by the local community, it is also becoming a stop-off destination for visitors, particularly given its proximity to the Great Ocean Road region and the Budj Bim National Park World Heritage site.
This project is being managed by Parks Victoria and the Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation, with funding from Regional Development Victoria.
For further information visit: parks.vic.gov.au/projects