Before that planning can continue, however, more feedback is being sought from the community — with only eight days remaining before the survey period ends.
The community engagement period, involving an online survey, discussion guide and two pop-up sessions, will close on May 31 and then a draft Place-Based Plan will be developed in conjunction with Cred Consulting.
The consultancy firm, which has projects in three states, will work with the committee that was appointed at the end of March this year to develop a second plan after the 2017 PBP was hailed a resounding success.
Campaspe Shire’s 2021 Young Citizen of the Year, Rochester Secondary College graduate Dimity Pearson, is chair of the PBP Committee.
She spoke at the Rochester Community Chat breakfast last week and said of the 17 concepts put forward in the original PBP, five years ago, 15 had been realised.
“The idea is to make Rochester a bigger and better place and to do that we need to go through the consultation process,” Miss Pearson said.
“We understand people are drained, so we’ve tried to make it as easy as possible through the kitchen table discussion guide.
“We would like people to dig deep and think about what they want.”
Other members of the PBP committee are Maureen Chiswell, football/netball club president Justin Cleary, Beck Hocking, Donald Hughan, Megan Keating, REDHS chief executive officer Karen Laing, Amanda Logie from Rochester Community House, Peter Romer, Maree Trail, Rotary chief Heather Watson and Bec Wolfe.
Miss Pearson, also a member of the shire youth action group, said she hoped this PBP could emulate the 2017 achievements that included the Wirima Playspace, a caravan park upgrade, silo painting and development of new-and-improved town brochures.
She is on work placement with Campaspe Shire as part of the Diploma of Community Services she is completing at Bendigo TAFE.
Miss Pearson said the challenges facing the PBP committee included encouraging people to look beyond the flood recovery.
“We can’t just push aside the floods, but this process hasn’t just come about because of the floods,” she said.
“It is not just about what we want to improve post floods, but about the long-term future.”
Two pop-up sessions, the first tomorrow (Wednesday, May 24) outside the IGA supermarket (from 10am) and on Saturday, May 27, at the Rochester Football Netball Club match, would also allow people to make a contribution to the plan.
“From this input, the survey responses and other submissions, we will establish what are the priorities and that will go to council,” she said.
“We are asking people to think big.”
Miss Pearson said, for her, the PBP was about creating employment, schools, avoiding another flood, tourism and business.
She said for those people not technology minded a copy of the questionnaire could be printed off at the recovery hub at Rochester Community House.
“I am also happy to sit down and do the survey with anyone,” she said.
“We want to hear every idea that people have.”
Completed forms can be emailed to [email protected], while people can also drop off completed guides at either council’s service centre, Rochester Community House or Ampol Rochester.