What we heard from the community

Make the most of future increases in tourist visitation and to maximise local employment, while ensuring the town keeps its village atmosphere.

Reactivate dormant sites to alleviate housing pressures and create a more diverse economy. Timber industry transition remains unclear and needs a coordinated strategy.

What will Council do?

Focus on the long term sustainability of tourism through emphasising place-centric authenticity, local history, values and character.

Diversify employment through investment in existing assets and vacant sites.

Enhance community pride and ownership, and create a unified strategy for the transition of the timber industry to create a vision of the future.

What will this deliver?

Warburton’s community will have increased opportunities to prosper as the town grows with a more diverse and robust economy.

What we heard from the community

Concerns have been raised that Airbnb is depleting housing supply and choice.

Community expressed a strong desire to preserve the intangible and tangible heritage of Warburton including Aboriginal cultural heritage. Services are lacking and access is difficult.

What will Council do

Advocate for investment in affordable housing.

Adopt the Indigenous Design Charter to engage on projects.

Advocate for improved service delivery and community support.

What will this deliver?

A diverse, connected, supported and active Warburton with increased housing choice and access.

What have we learnt from the Community?

Locals are seeking more vibrant and accessible public places that support performance, events, and initiatives for young people, winter and night activities.

Concern that the unique character of the streetscape and village-feel will be overwhelmed by tourism.

What will Council do?

Develop and Urban Design Framework to document and protect the character of the town while providing design solutions to the pressures in the centre.

Raise the profile of highly valued natural assets to be accessible and well managed.

What will this deliver?

Integrated and highly accessible services and spaces that support good health, access to the natural environment, social care and connectedness.

What have we learnt from the Community?

Community highly values the ecological and habitat quality of the forests and rivers around Warburton. There is concern this will be impacted by development and increased patronage to the townships.

What will do Council do?

Sensitive Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) principles applied to all projects with an emphasis on protecting water quality and habitat values.

What will this deliver?

A strong connection with nature and confidence that it has been protected.

Warburton town centre retains its beautiful spaces and streets leading to a greater sense of community, safety, and pride.

What have we learnt from the Community?

There are management, signage and accessibility of parking issues in the area, as well as concern that the infrastructure of the town will be unable to meet growing visitor demand in future years.

What will do Council do?

Undertake an evaluation of car parking in Warburton. This includes an assessment of current parking occupancy and travel behaviours, investigation of opportunities to reduce demand and improve utilisation of existing parking assets.

Improve wayfinding through signage and place markers.

What will this deliver?

An easier and safer town to get around with quality roads and public transport infrastructure.