The state's rail authority has sent plans out for public consultation during a delay-plagued Bendigo Tramways expansion project.
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VicTrack originally hoped to turn Bendigo Tramways into a bigger heritage restoration hub by March 2022, but the pandemic slowed everything down.
The planning minister has since declared the project one of state significance to help avoid even more delays, though the City of Greater Bendigo and Heritage Victoria are yet to give their approvals, a planning document advises.
"[The minister's] priority project approval will allow the project to be delivered without further delay," it said.
When finished, the $10.7 million project will drive up the number of trams that Bendigo Tramways can restore.
Construction is expected to start in 2022, assuming planning approvals and a tender process goes to schedule.
Before that work can start, the public must have a final say on detailed plans, according to rules set by the planning minister.
That includes for new storage sheds and workshop facilities as well as ways to minimise impacts on nearby residents during construction.
Feedback to a previous consultation push shows 36 per cent of respondents are concerned about construction issues like noise and dust.
The same survey found people were largely happy with the direction that designs were heading but had some advice..
More than half of respondents said the most important thing was to make sure it blended in with heritage listed buildings.
Many emphasised the importance of tourists being able to see real tram restorations taking place.
A heritage advisor employed for the project said people had been recorded using the site since miners began scouring Back Creek for precious metals during the Gold Rush and later gave parts of it over to the Tramways and a fuel depot.
There has been so much ground disturbance over the years that the site cannot be deemed an area of Indigenous cultural heritage sensitivity, an expert working on the project said.
Parts of the site has held soil contaminated by old industrial waste, including a "hotspot" where dirt needed to be replaced and capped.
The project has been funded by VicTrack, the Victorian government and the City of Greater Bendigo.
People can have their say on the final concept design by completing an online survey on the VicTrack website - www.victrack.com.au/bendigotramways - before 5pm on Friday, 5 November.
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