Council
30 June, 2026
Bollard ire heads to council
A PUBLIC meeting of residents on Natimuk Road on Saturday morning resolved to appeal to Horsham Rural City Council for another option to remove the orange bollards installed in April.
HRCC had given residents two possible alternatives: either removing three out of every five bollards and replacing them with rubber or plastic strips, or completely replacing them with the strips.
But local, Ian McCulloch, considered the installation an eyesore and said the options offered weren’t acceptable.
He wanted the path “put under the trees” as a continuation of the path next to the racecourse, calling it “common sense”.
“It’s pretty simple,” he said.
“You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to work that out.”
At the meeting, similar sentiments were aired with additional concerns raised, such as safety with school buses and normal driveway entry movement given the reduced width of the road, along with increased logistical difficulties when towing trailers.
There was also an issue raised about the potential confusion for young children using the new lane as it had appeared to some of them as if they were being told to “ride on the wrong side of the road down there”.
“You've got young kids who are still developing mental skills and road skills,” the resident said.
“This is probably a bigger concern – the kids' safety, not just our aesthetics.”
Resident Gordon Fischer was reluctant to blame the council, as he said the oversight of the project appeared to come from the state government, with the grant funding that was offered.
“I think our councillors were probably as stunned as we are with the result,” he said.
“The only communication we had was a flyer in the letterbox saying the bike path was to be extended from Bennett Road to Hillary Street.
“We wrongly assumed it would follow the existing path and go through the trees – all good in our eyes, no response needed. That was our mistake.”
But he agreed both options weren’t suitable and called for the path’s relocation.
HRCC mayor Brian Klowss was present at the meeting and admitted the council could’ve done better with community consultation.
“We have definitely got work to do in that,” he said.
He went on to explain the ‘drip zone’ under trees was an obstacle for placing a new pathway under trees, as the conditions under which grants operated were “changing all the time” – the existing pathway further up the road, unfortunately, couldn’t be used as a template for a seemingly straightforward continuation.
During the discussion on the best way forward for locals, the issue of how to respond to HRCC’s two options was raised.
There was some reservation about a petition potentially looking ugly as a residents-against-council approach – “council looks hopeless, we look like whingers” – rather than working towards a collaborative outcome.
Cr Klowss suggested that a handful of residents make a presentation in person, in writing, or as a combination.
“I actually like that idea, because ... you're presenting to the whole group,” he said.
“Every councillor, the CEO, the executive staff… can ask you guys questions, you can ask us questions and tell us what you want.”
The meeting concluded with a resolution to consult residents on the wording of a petition and to have a small group present to the council.
Mr McCulloch said afterwards that he hoped a viable solution could be achieved, especially given that it appeared paths under trees in other places could still be planned and established.
“I know they've just put a path in Bennett Road underneath trees as well,” he said.
“We want to try and get council to work with this so we can resolve this, because if anyone comes up here and looks at this from the council, they can't seriously stand there and say, ‘Yep, that looks great, (we’ve) done a good job.’
“I know it's going to be extra money, but we're all going to be here until we retire.”
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