IT’S basically the reannouncement of a reannouncement.
But it’s still major news for Inverloch and the tourist economy in Gippsland and Bass Coast this week, that a long-awaited, $15 million-$20 million expansion of the RACV Inverloch Resort will at last go ahead.
On Monday, August 11, the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Steve Dimopoulos announced the commencement of works on 36 premium ocean view rooms at RACV Inverloch, “thanks to support provided by the Regional Tourism Investment Fund”.
Overlooking Bass Strait and the entrance to Andersons Inlet, this project will help bring more visitors to the area, support local tourism operators and boost capacity to deliver large-scale conferences and events in the Bass Coast and Gippsland regions, said the Minister.
“This expansion is giving more visitors the chance to experience one of Victoria’s favourite coastal weekend getaways, and it’s only 1.5 hours from Melbourne.”
But how much the project will receive from the government’s Regional Tourism Investment Fund isn’t know except that it has been listed in the ‘Large Scale Projects’ category for grant funds.
The project will also deliver additional car parking, the relocation of an existing villa, and a new wastewater detention storage system, with the new accommodation expected to welcome its first guests by December 2026.
RACV Inverloch Resort attracts an estimated 55,000 overnight visitors to the region annually, with accommodation booked to near-capacity months in advance. The expansion is estimated to raise that number to around 75,000 annual visitors.
According to a statement by the government this week, the expansion project will provide “a massive boost to Gippsland’s tourism economy which in 2024 welcomed 6.13 million visitors who stayed 7.39 million nights and spent $1.44 billion”.
Member for Bass Jordan Crugnale said, “This exciting expansion will bring more visitors, more jobs and more opportunities for local businesses right across Inverloch and the Bass Coast.
RACV Executive General Manager Leisure Craig Peachey said: “With regional tourism booming post-pandemic, these new premium rooms will help address a significant market gap while elevating Inverloch’s status as a premium destination.”
The RACV Inverloch Resort expansion will increase visitation to the region while also creating 120 jobs during construction and 15 additional ongoing positions once operational.
What about the road?
In August 2023, the West Gippsland Catchment Authority wrote to the Bass Coast Shire Council opposing the project advising that the development would “increase the amount of people and property exposed to the flood hazard” because the plans do not allow safe vehicle evacuation from the site during a flood event.
“The proposal relies on a low-level access without an alternative ingress/egress point, which in a major flooding event would present unsafe conditions for visitors, vehicles and emergency services personnel,” the authority warned.
The advice placed council in an invidious position, of on the one hand, wholeheartedly supporting the important boost to the local economy but also being mindful of exposing ratepayers to the risk of litigation.
In the end, Council came up with a solution and a way forward which was to approve the plans but only on the condition that RACV could satisfy the Catchment Management Authority and “address the risk of climate-induced sea level rises and flooding in its plans”.
Presumably, that’s what has happened.
A spokesperson for the Inverloch Foreshore Action Group, Alan Brown, has warmly welcomed the expansion works at the RACV Inverloch Resort, as the most significant employer in the Inverloch area, and a vital asset to the viability of local commercial and hospitality businesses.
But he asks what has changed with the protection of Cape Paterson-Inverloch Road and Surf Parade?
“The road is under immediate threat as of today. We’re not out of winter yet and there could still be a storm event that will cut off that road,” Mr Brown said.
“All the government is prepared to do is pump sand in front of that rock wall but that will not save the road,” he said.
More permanent solutions area needed, he said, to not only protect the road, which is a vital link to the RACV Resort and Cape Paterson, and a key to the viability of the Inverloch economy, but also to protect the town’s infrastructure and the 300 to 400 homes in the firing line.
