BARRY LANE FEUD OVER
A GROUP of Wallington residents has emerged victorious from a month-long feud with City Hall over the “deplorable” state of the pothole-plagued Barry Lane.
City of Greater Geelong staff yesterday graded the dirt road, despite council claiming it was not responsible for the lane’s maintenance.
Wallington Action Committee chairman Lee Jabara said it was a win for the community.
“We called it the Innamincka Track — which is known as the roughest dirt road in Australia,” Mr Jabara said. “It was in a horrendous condition, and nothing was being done.
“If a winery was down the end of that lane, there would have been uproar — but because there wasn’t the council didn’t care.”
The condition of Barry Lane — which serves businesses Jimmy’s Dog Training and Bellarine Horse Riding Centre — sparked backlash from the community.
Jimmy Graham, owner of Jimmy’s Dog Training, had been maintaining the road at his cost for years, despite being ordered by the council to stop.
Mr Graham described the win as “uplifting”.
“Obviously you feel like it’s useless going up against the council, but it has worked and it feels really good,” he said.
“We’ve all complained so much that they’ve decided to do something. It’s more of an intermediate fix — but a great show of faith.”
Mr Graham said a number of people had chosen to boycott the road — and subsequently his business — out of fear of damaging their cars.
The council has advised people to use Lings Rd to access the businesses, but the detour added 3.2km to the journey.
“This is a really good sign for our businesses,” he said.
A City of Greater Geelong spokeswoman said it would consider elevating it from a category 1 road to a category 2, allowing more frequent grading.
“Due to the state of the track, immediate maintenance was needed to ensure it is safely trafficable,” the spokeswoman said.
“The city is consulting with land owners to seek their views on the upgrade and discuss financial contribution.”
“Obviously you feel like it’s useless going up against the council, but it has worked and it feels really good.”