But in Redesdale, a parcel of available disused public land has been right under their nose for decades. They just didn’t know about it.

Parks Victoria brought a series of maps to the town during recent consultation sessions. One of the maps showed a green patch wedged between the main street, a road reserve and the Campaspe River.

It offers sweeping views of the hills, the river and the town’s famous bridge.

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Redesdale residents had long thought it was owned by the Education Department and had become overgrown with old pine trees and other vegetation, rendering it relatively useless.

The revelation that it was, in fact, Parks Victoria land opened up a range of possibilities.

“The very next week, a group went and walked through the land and it was stunningly beautiful,” Redesdale and District Association secretary Kathy Hall said.

“We wrote a letter to the City of Greater Bendigo saying what we’d like to do with it.

“We’d like to see some parking near there and barbecue facilities, a walking track that heads down to the river and a history board.

“We didn’t even know we had this land, so we’re very enthusiastic about it. It could really add something to our town.”

Now all they need is a plan and funding to make it happen.

The surprising find was the latest piece of good news for a town that, in recent years, has undergone a significant recovery driven by enthusiastic locals and enterprising businesspeople.

It was only a few years ago that the Redesdale Hotel and rural cafe were closed, the local school’s population was dwindling and there was a sense that the town – on the edge of four local government areas – was not getting enough representation.

Beth McIlwain and Garth Campbell arrived in late-2015 to reopen the Redesdale Hotel promising local brews, local produce and a relaxed country atmosphere.

It has stood the test of time, and not only is the pub regularly busy, the whole main street has a new energy along with a reopened rural cafe.

There is still room to make improvements, however.

When the Bendigo Advertiser visited Redesdale last month, Ms McIlwain was in a struggle with the business’ eftpos machine.

The NBN had dropped out for hours – a situation that occurs several times a month in the winter, and almost constantly in the summer when travellers make their way to Lake Eppalock.

Ms McIlwain said it made it difficult to run a successful business.

“It’s embarrassing for us when it happens. We have to turn people away and cancel transactions,” she said.

“For the first two years after we opened we basically had the whole NBN to ourselves. Now it’s absolutely jammed.

“It happened three or four times last month. In the summer, when Lake Eppalock holidaymakers visit the area, the use of the NBN increases massively and it can’t cope.”

Technological problems such as relying on satellite NBN would have been foreign concepts to Anurag Gangasani who, just a few weeks earlier, was living in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Strathfield.

Now he manages the Redesdale General Store after being offered the position by a cousin’s friend.

It was a significant sea change, particularly compared to his former life in southern India, but it was a move that Mr Gangasani was glad he made.

“In Sydney, people seem to have no time to talk to each other,” he said.

“People here though are really friendly, really welcoming.

“It was so quiet here when I came.

“On Friday night we have a barbecue here with a few locals. You become like a family in a place like this.”

The rural population in the Redesdale-Mia Mia district has declined by 80 per cent in 50 years, but in some ways it has helped to bring the two small towns closer together.

They collaborate on initiatives and their community groups often intersect.

The Mia Mia Mechanics’ Institute is the heart of the Mia Mia community and locals speak with pride about the acoustics of the hall’s interior.

It hosts regular concerts, and recently held a sellout event with Orchestra Victoria.

There was only one problem: the events have almost become so popular that they have outgrown the dated facilities offered by the circa-1907 hall which has not been renovated since the 1970s.

“The power and water went out last time,” Mia Mia resident Kate Hicks said.

“If you’ve ever been inside the hall, the wooden floor, wooden walls and wooden ceiling make it like you’re inside a sound shell.

“It’s perfect for orchestras and opera singers, but all of the outside from the stumps up needs work.

“We’re only a small community. We can’t afford all the repairs.”

Without any remaining businesses, the hall is the last place for locals to gather. It features choirs, art shows, weddings, birthdays, flower shows, community meetings and the Australia Day breakfast.

Mia Mia is seeking $182,000 to bring the hall up to standard so it can continue into the future, and has been listed as part of the Pick My Project program.

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