Pier for Croquet Lawn
Minister for Transport Eric Abetz with Dorset Council Community and Development Director Rohan Willis, Bridport Pier Working Group Member Marg Perkins and Bass MHA Simon Wood at Croquet Lawn Beach where a new pier will be progressed.
September 11, 2024
By Rachel Williams
Croquet Lawn Beach has been chosen as the site of Bridport’s new $5 million recreational pier project.
After consultation on three sites, Croquet Lawn was chosen ahead of Eastmans Beach and adjacent to the Old Pier, with the new 126m jetty to be accessed via the Bridport Caravan Park.
Bridport Pier Working Group has been fighting for the project for more than a decade and member Marg Perkins said she was thrilled that progress was being made.
“This is a wonderful announcement for Bridport and is the culmination of many years of work by the Pier Reconstruction Action Committee (PRAC),” Mrs Perkins said.
“The committee started with a meeting of 12 people at Phil Hall’s house back in 2011. The group had a vision of a new pier for Bridport and since then, there have been countless hours invested by members of the group to see the project come to fruition.
“My late husband Rob, who was the chair of the committee for 10 years, would be so pleased to see that Bridport will finally get a pier for the community to enjoy.”
Minister for Transport, Eric Abetz, made the announcement and said he was pleased that Dorset Council and the now-named Bridport Pier Working Group (that includes Mrs Perkins, Billy Millwood and Leonie Johnston) had worked with the community and MAST to arrive at the decision.
“There has been extensive community consultation and specific site assessments before arriving at the decision. The consultation involved meetings with key stakeholders, a public drop-in session and an online/paper survey with over 400 submissions received,” Mr Abetz said.
“MAST has received specific engineering advice on coastal processes, bathymetry and wave climate for this site. It has also discussed the land-based infrastructure and access requirements, the distance from the town centre and the potential impact on traffic and residents with Dorset Council.”
Liberal Member for Bass Simon Wood said the development would take the coastal town a step further as a tourism destination, with additional capacity for recreation and tourism vessels.
“We know locals and beachgoers have missed having a pier so the confirmation of the pier’s location will be welcome news to all of those in the community, and Bridport’s visitors, after their many years of passionate campaigning,” Mr Wood said.
“It’s a project close to my heart and it’s great to see the community supportive of the proposal we’ve put forward. For the people in the town, this pier has been a long time coming and I cannot wait to see this become a reality.”
Site assessments have started for Aboriginal heritage, terrestrial flora and fauna, marine values and planning. A development application will be submitted in late 2024 with Mr Abetz confirming money had been set aside for approvals, design and construction.
Dorset Council Director Community and Development Rohan Willis said it was important that community consultation provided a clear mandate for the project to proceed at Croquet Lawn Beach.
“It is important because we are dealing with a public asset on public land so having a social licence for the location is just as important as the next step which is seeking a social licence for the development,” Mr Willis said.
“Upon receipt of a planning application for the pier, anticipated later this year, Council will assume its role as the planning authority and objectively assess the application against the Tasmanian Planning Scheme.
“It is probably a reasonable assumption to arrive at that the process should be much smoother though virtue of this step that’s been taken. We ought not to have to get bogged down with arguments about preferred sites.
“If the DA is received by the end of the year and if it is a smooth process for that, we could potentially have approval by March or April 2025 and … with any luck we could be in a position to construct it during the back end of 2025 with a view to step out onto it at the start of 2026.
“It's another cornerstone piece in the evolution and growth of Bridport. We have big ambitions for the growth of Bridport into the future and have recognised the need for Council to do some strategic planning around that.”
While she’s sad her husband is no longer here to see the project come to fruition, Mrs Perkins said it would be well used by her family once constructed.
“If you don’t have a boat it will be somewhere to take your grandchildren fishing without clambering over all the rocks. It will be a lovely place. There is nothing like walking out over the water and just being,” she said.
“Most places in Australia near the water have a pier so it is very exciting.”