Cape Woolamai bike track declared ‘illegal’

FOR more than 40 years, the community of Cape Woolamai have benefited from an area of bush on the foreshore to safely ride their bikes and gather as a community. 

However, Bass Coast Shire Council has bulldozed the site declaring it ‘an illegal BMX track.’ 

Council stated that they took immediate action to level the track at Cleeland Bight after several reports came in from the community about the destruction of native vegetation. 

The shire fenced off the area with Mayor Cr Michael Whelan stating Cleeland Bight was one of several sites across the shire being investigated for vandalism to trees and vegetation in recent months. 

“Bass Coast Shire Council will not tolerate the illegal removal of vegetation and vandalism to trees in any form. We take all incidents very seriously,” Cr Whelan said.

“While we appreciate that riders want to enjoy time in nature partaking in a recreational activity they love, it should not come at a cost to the environment or public safety.” 

However, the families within the Cape Woolamai community are questioning this decision after so many generations have come together in this space to play and ride their bikes. 

A petition is circulating in the community reading, ‘Young kids have enjoyed pedalling their bikes around the bumps and berms of the well-worn track in the Cape Woolamai foreshore at the end of Cronulla Avenue. In an age when we are trying to get kids off their screens and out into nature, this resource was the perfect natural play area where kids could connect with the environment, develop new skills, and meet other local kids. It served as a meeting place for families, party venue and local community hub. Given most of Cape Woolamai does not have footpaths, and no other bike riding facilities, it gave kids a safe place to practice their riding skills.’

Resident Melissa Drager confirmed that all the local families are just looking for an answer to, “why we can’t have a say in what happens in our backyard, our community?” 

“A place of so many memories over generations of families. We’re now a tight knit community shattered with no warning at all,” she said. 

“This was a place that was free for all to enjoy, and now it’s just gone.” 

Melissa acknowledged that as a community the families are not against the shire looking after the environment but are questioning why couldn’t council come up with something that suits everyone before closing it off.

“Why are we still waiting for a pump track, a BMX track, and our regional skatepark that we had secured funding for?” 

The petition circulating the community confirms ‘We are not seeking that council spend any money… Many residents of Cape Woolamai are happy to commit their time to rebuild the track. We are only seeking an undertaking that it will not be bulldozed again.’ 

The Bass Coast Shire Council confirmed Council’s newly formed Mountain Bike/BMX/Pump Track Reference Group is exploring suitable locations for new facilities across the shire. This includes ensuring that the construction of jumps and skills tracks are built on suitable land that does not contravene planning or land management requirements, cause environmental impacts, or compromise public safety.