News

Community consultation feedback

1 July 2025

Thank you to everyone who shared their ideas on the Alex Wilkie Nature Reserve and Sense Trail Upgrade consultation.

About the consultation

Throughout February, March and April 2025, we consulted a range of stakeholders on the draft concept design.

We used the following ways to promote the consultation and seek feedback:

  • online activities (survey and points activity on our consultation website, yoursay.greaterdandenong.vic.gov.au)
  • flyers mailed to surrounding properties
  • posters placed in the reserve
  • community drop-in session at the reserve
  • in-class workshops with school students
  • social media posts
  • consultation with community groups who actively use the reserve.

In total, we heard from 84 community members.

The feedback we received showed strong support to enhance the reserve's facilities and infrastructure to enable the park to be used for both informal and active recreation.

What we heared (Key themes):

As a result of what you told us, we are making the following adjustments and improvements:

  • improved wayfinding signage to help people with mobility impairments better assess the accessibility of the path network.
  • provision of shade facilities and installation of shade trees in the Sense Trail to support Nature Play activities.
  • inclusion of a small, permeable pedestrian gate to prevent access to the Live Steamers rail tracks while trains are operating, for safety reasons.
  • construction of a granitic sand path connecting the Live Steamers station to the toilets at the Alex Wilkie Education Centre via the existing laneway, improving accessibility for people with disabilities.
  • installation of large birdbaths to provide additional water resources for wildlife.
  • locally indigenous planting around the Live Steamers area to enhance the conservation value of Alex Wilkie Nature Reserve and improve amenity for visitors and the Live Steamers club.
  • upgrades to the Environmental Education Centre to make it a more versatile space for community groups and to accommodate council officers on-site, enabling extended opening hours.
  • removal of the Alex Nelson car park sealing component from the project, due to high cost and minimal benefit for people with mobility impairments.
  • inclusion of a permanent water play feature in the Sense Trail, in response to strong community support for water-based play.
  • removal of the fence realignment from the project due to concerns about the impact on sensitive vegetation nearby.
  • removal of multilingual audio guide from the project, based on the feedback that many community members that may benefit from a multilingual audio guide are likely to have difficulty navigating a technology-based solution.

Next steps

Approvals to commence works has been granted by Council and our funding partner, the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA). Works already began in June 2025 and are scheduled to conclude by May 2026.