title: Bacchus Marsh Avenue of Honour Management Strategy council: moorabool state: vic category: strategy classification: MINOR status: active last_compiled: 2026-05-31 source_docs:
- bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf
- bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf
Bacchus Marsh Avenue of Honour Management Strategy
The Bacchus Marsh Avenue of Honour Management Strategy is less a growth strategy than a long-life governance framework for a heritage road landscape that is aging, operationally risky, and tied to a commemorative obligation: keeping a tree memorial for each service person in perpetuity (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.14). Its planning significance is that ordinary road, access, utility, parking, drainage, farming and redevelopment decisions along Bacchus Marsh Road are constrained by a heritage landscape with state registration, local overlay controls, Tree Protection Zone effects, and a programmed 20-year replacement cycle (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.17-20; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.11-21).
Background
The Avenue runs for about 3.3 kilometres along Bacchus Marsh Road from Fisken Street to the Lerderderg River and is divided into three parts: a western approach of 40 sites dating to the 1880s, the dedicated Avenue of Honour of 281 sites planted in 1918, and an eastern approach of 39 sites dating to the 1960s (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.2-5). The dedicated avenue was planted on 10 August 1918, when 281 trees were planted from the existing avenue at the eastern end of town towards the Lerderderg River, with each tree commemorating an individual soldier from the Bacchus Marsh district and planted by a relative or friend (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.5). The original ordering mechanism placed plaques alphabetically and numbered trees with odd numbers on the north side and even numbers on the south side, which is important because the heritage value is not only the tree canopy but the one-to-one link between tree, place and named service person (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.5).
The management problem has changed over time because the road corridor changed function and responsibility. The Avenue formed part of the Western Highway until 1972, when the Bacchus Marsh Bypass was completed, after which Bacchus Marsh Road was redeclared as a Main Road and Council assumed day-to-day management as agent for the Department of Transport (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.6). That history matters because the Avenue now sits across heritage, road safety, local access, commercial frontage activity, agricultural frontage activity and state transport interests rather than being only a memorial planting (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.6, 17-20).
Analysis
Heritage Control as the Main Planning Mechanism
The dedicated 281-tree Avenue is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register as VHR H2238, and the registration area includes the road reserve plus 20 metres into adjoining land on both sides to encompass Tree Protection Zone requirements under AS4970-2009 (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.18). This creates a practical planning effect beyond the kerb: service works, buildings, structures, vehicle crossovers and other works within the road reserve or within 20 metres of adjoining land can trigger Heritage Victoria control unless covered by an exemption (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.18).
The local planning scheme adds a second control layer. The Avenue is affected by Heritage Overlay HO47 for the dedicated Avenue and HO204 for the eastern and western approaches, with HO204 applying tree controls while HO47 does not apply tree controls because the state heritage registration performs that role for the dedicated section (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.19). The dedicated Avenue is also within Transport Zone Schedule 2, adjoining private land is affected by Design and Development Overlay Schedule 2, land near the Lerderderg River is affected by Environmental Significance Overlay Schedules 2 and 8, areas are identified as areas of cultural heritage sensitivity under the Aboriginal Heritage Regulations 2018, and land near Woolpack Road is affected by Public Acquisition Overlay PAO1 (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.17).
The mechanism is therefore layered rather than singular. Heritage Victoria is the responsible authority for relevant permits in the dedicated Avenue, while Moorabool Shire Council is responsible for relevant permit decisions for the eastern and western approaches under HO204 (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.18-19). In simple terms, the road works like a shared hallway: Council can clean and maintain it, but some doors are controlled by Heritage Victoria, some by the planning scheme, and some by transport agencies (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.17-19).
Tree Aging Turns Conservation Into Staged Replacement
The core strategic issue is that conservation cannot mean freezing the Avenue in its current physical state. The original dedicated avenue trees are over 105 years old, the western approach trees are about 140 years old, and the management strategy states that Dutch Elms in urbanised Australian conditions may achieve about 100 to 150 years if well maintained (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.20-21). The documents therefore treat replacement as a conservation action, not a loss of heritage value, because the stated objective is to maintain the memorial landscape and the service-person tree association in perpetuity (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.14; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.11).
The 2023 Preservation Plan provides the operational evidence for that shift. The dedicated Avenue species inventory records 163 Dutch Elms, 93 Huntingdon Elms, 11 Wych Elms, 4 Variegated Elms, 4 English Elms, 2 Desert Ash, 1 Golden Elm and 3 vacant sites within the 281-site dedicated Avenue (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.6-7). Across the broader Avenue, the age profile is heavily skewed to mature and over-mature trees, with less than 20 percent young or semi-mature, which aligns with many trees being about 105 years old (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.7).
Condition data shows why the replacement program is not optional. The Preservation Plan states that tree health improved after the millennium drought period because of proactive Council management, but has started to decline again as the trees continue to age (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.8). Structural ratings declined between 2014 and 2023, with a drop in good structure and a shift towards poor and very poor structure, while Useful Life Expectancy also declined between 2014 and 2023 through reduced 20-40 year and 40+ year ratings and increased 5-10 year and 10-20 year ratings (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.8-10).
Replacement Strategy and Canopy Continuity
Council has selected an infill replacement strategy rather than block replacement or complete renewal, meaning individual trees are removed and replaced over an extended period (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.11-13). The advantage is lower immediate landscape impact, but the tradeoff is that replacement trees are harder to establish under mature canopy conditions and the avenue can have an uneven appearance while tree ages vary (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.12-13). This is a conservative heritage-management position because it avoids the abrupt visual and commemorative disruption of mass removal while accepting a longer operational burden (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.12-13).
The plan identifies a 20-year replacement program, with mature trees allocated into 0-5 year, 6-10 year, 11-15 year and 16-20 year replacement windows, and review required every five years because future condition depends on environmental conditions, adjoining land-use activities and tree stress responses (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.13). The short-term program identifies 50 trees for replacement within five years, including hazardous or declining trees and strategically selected trees in fair or good condition where species or location is inconsistent with the intended avenue structure (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.14). The future program proposes 71 trees for the 6-10 year period, 66 trees for the 10-15 year period, and 68 trees for the 15-20 year period, while 55 juvenile or semi-mature trees, 3 vacant sites and 36 mature trees are outside the main 20-year replacement program (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.14-16).
The propagation mechanism is critical. Replacement trees are to be propagated from bud material collected from existing Avenue trees, because the intent is to maintain true-to-type Dutch Elm clones with a biological connection to the original plantings (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.17). The Preservation Plan states that nursery production takes about three to four years before a replacement tree is ready to plant, so removal timing is constrained by stock supply as well as tree risk (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.17). The plan also states that, unless a tree is imminently hazardous, an Avenue tree must not be removed until a replacement is available for planting within the same season (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.14).
Interface With Roads, Access, Utilities and Adjoining Land
The principal land-use conflict is that the Avenue is a living memorial inside a working road corridor. The management strategy identifies dedicated-Avenue issues including high occupancy under tree canopies from parked cars and visitors to fruit stalls and cafes, unregulated vehicular crossovers, advertising signs, soil compaction, replacement-tree establishment difficulties, vehicle impacts, Woolpack Road safety, intensive horticultural practices within Tree Protection Zones, compacted laneways and frequent cultivation likely to damage roots (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.20). The western approach has a different pressure profile: vacant sites, insufficient replanting space, redevelopment, car parking, driveway crossings, utility installation, kerb and footpath conflicts, and root-zone compaction (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.20).
The Preservation Plan converts those conflicts into design rules. New access points should be treated as a last resort, should not involve tree removal, and existing informal or unauthorised access points should be reviewed for closure opportunities (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.20). Road works and upgrades should use a project arborist, satisfy Heritage Victoria, Moorabool Shire Council and DTP, avoid permanent tree loss, retain the paired pattern and original alignment where possible, and keep road signage minimal except where needed for safety (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.20).
Utilities are a binding operational risk because trenching in Tree Protection Zones can cut structural and absorbing roots. The Preservation Plan requires underground service installation within TPZs to be directionally bored rather than open trenched, requires excavation within TPZs to be supervised by a project arborist, and requires roots greater than 20 millimetres to be pruned by the project arborist using sharp tools in accordance with AS4373-2007 (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.19). This means infrastructure delivery along the corridor must be designed around tree biology, not simply around road reserve availability (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.19, 24-25).
Transport Tension and Woolpack Road
The unresolved transport issue is Woolpack Road and the broader Bacchus Marsh congestion problem. A previous proposal to upgrade Woolpack Road with a roundabout and a northern link to the Western Freeway would have required removal of some Avenue trees and replacement planting on a splayed alignment, and the Planning Minister refused a permit for tree removal in January 2012 after Heritage Council involvement (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.27). The Preservation Plan states that traffic congestion along the Avenue remains unresolved and that DTP is progressing investigations and design work for the preferred Eastern Bypass alignment to help alleviate congestion in Bacchus Marsh (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.27).
The mechanism is a classic transport-heritage tension. Road safety standards see mature roadside trees as fixed-object hazards, while the heritage framework sees the paired tree avenue as the asset being protected (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.20-21). The plan prefers modest alignment adjustment at replanting and posted-speed reduction over barrier protection where safety conflicts arise, because barriers would have a visual impact on the heritage landscape (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.21). Specific trees N215, N217, S158 and S160 are identified as being very close to the road edge, so their future replacement is a point where safety offset and heritage alignment will need to be reconciled (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.21).
Risk, Disease and Maintenance Load
Council uses proactive and reactive inspections, 3-yearly assessments, and Quantified Tree Risk Assessment methodology to manage public safety risk (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.4-6). The risk environment is high because canopies overhang roads, car parking areas, buildings and footpaths, and the plan recommends pruning, timely removal and replacement of unacceptable-risk trees, peer review for removals outside the preservation strategy, ongoing funding for pruning, and target exclusion where feasible under canopies (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.9).
Pest and disease management is also a hard dependency for canopy longevity. Elm Leaf Beetle control is undertaken using imidacloprid every two years, with soil drench applied annually along both sides of the road for half the Avenue length, and the plan recommends continued on-label soil drench rather than stem injection because of tree age and significance (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.6). Dutch Elm Disease is not present in Australia but is established in New Zealand, can spread through grafted roots and Elm Bark Beetles, and would require early detection and rapid reporting to DEECA if suspected (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.24). Decay is managed through inspection and tomographic testing where removal is being considered, with removal required where decay exceeds acceptable thresholds (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.24).
Current Status
The strategy and preservation plan are 2023 documents, with the management strategy to be reviewed as required and the preservation plan to be reviewed every five years (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.3; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.3). Implementation is active because the action plan assigns ongoing tasks for tree propagation, preservation-plan implementation, proactive inspections, Heritage Advisory Committee updates, annual resourcing review and funding exploration (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.24-25). The short-term action program also includes Years 0-2 actions for centralised tree information and original plaque display options, and Years 2-4 investigations for western-approach civil infrastructure, a walking trail to RV Moon Reserve, online interpretation and lighting feasibility (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.24-25).
Dependencies
- Blocks: Road upgrades, new access points, utility trenching, adjoining buildings and works, and tree removals can be blocked or redesigned where they affect the VHR area, HO204 controls, Tree Protection Zones, the paired avenue pattern or memorial plaques (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.17-19; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.19-21).
- Blocked by: Tree replacement depends on suitable propagated Dutch Elm stock, Heritage Victoria acceptance for relevant dedicated-Avenue changes, Council operational funding, community notification, DTP traffic management requirements, and ongoing arboricultural assessment (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.14, 17-19).
- Informed by: The strategy is informed by the 2023 Preservation Plan, previous tree audits from 2008, 2014, 2019 and 2020, the 2004 Strategic Management Plan, plaque research, heritage controls, QTRA methodology and Australian tree standards (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.5-6; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.10-11, 26).
- Implements: The documents implement a conservation objective of retaining the Avenue as a living memorial, maintaining a tree for each service person, managing risk, and replacing trees over time to preserve canopy and commemorative continuity (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.14; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.11-17).
- Conflicts with: The strategy identifies continuing pressure from Woolpack Road traffic safety, informal parking, driveway access, fruit-stall visitation, signage, market-garden operations, utilities and road safety standards (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.20; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.20-27).
Cross-Jurisdictional Links
The main external agency relationship is with Heritage Victoria, which controls permits for the state-listed dedicated Avenue and must be notified or approve relevant tree removal and preservation-plan changes (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.18-19; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.24). The Department of Transport and Planning is relevant because Bacchus Marsh Road is a transport corridor, Council manages the road landscape as agent for the transport authority, DTP notification and traffic management are required for some tree works, and DTP is investigating the preferred Eastern Bypass alignment (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.6; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.18, 27). DEECA is relevant only as a biosecurity response agency in the source material, because suspected Dutch Elm Disease should be reported immediately if symptoms are identified (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.24).
Gaps in This Analysis
The available corpus is sufficient to analyse the management mechanism, statutory controls, tree replacement program and operational conflicts, but it is thin on transport decision status because the underlying DTP Eastern Bypass investigations, Woolpack Road design material, Heritage Council report and any current traffic modelling are not in the manifest (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.27). The corpus is also thin on implementation progress after publication of the 2023 documents, because no council minutes, budgets, work orders, Heritage Victoria permit records or updated tree audit data after the 2023 preservation plan are included in the manifest (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, pp.24-25; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, pp.13-16). Further analysis should check _gaps for the DTP Eastern Bypass material, Heritage Council Woolpack Road material, current Council budget allocations and the next five-year preservation-plan review cycle (Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-management-strategy.pdf, p.24; Source: bacchus-marsh-avenue-of-honour-preservation-plan.pdf, p.13).