The focus of the Fortuna debate should centre on whether Bendigo as a community has saving this historic villa at heart.
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Opinions were divided in a Bendigo Advertiser website poll yesterday.
By 7pm last night, 64 per cent of the more than 400 votes cast favoured keeping Fortuna in public hands with 36 per cent against. It’s a clear margin, but not overwhelming.
Of course, that’s only the thoughts of 400 people who bothered to vote, but that in itself could provide a hint of public perception given the thousands of views recorded for Fortuna stories on our website yesterday.
The focus of debate yesterday was all about saving Fortuna. No one was talking about what happens next.
The Department of Defence will happily maintain the site until the day the new owner takes over.
The department will then probably even more happily hand over responsibility for the present maintenance bill, which exceeds $1 million a year.
That doesn’t take into account clean up costs for the site or the work needed on the villa itself.
Would any good business take on such a financial commitment without a good plan?
The reality is Bendigo has been talking about the future of Fortuna for years, mostly driven by the passion of small groups such as the Villa Fortuna Action Group, Friends of Fortuna, and Bendigo Historical Society.
There has been no major public push. So the question remains – has this community really got saving Fortuna at heart?
If the answer is yes, well, what happens then?