JUST in the nick of time, the Bass Coast Shire Council has put itself in a position where it can award a $4,246,240 contract to Simpson Construction Company Pty Ltd for an extensive upgrade to the Mahers Landing Boat Ramp Facility.
The decision to award the contract will be voted on at Wednesday’s council meeting.
Officially awarding the contract is subject to Council receiving a signed funding agreement from Better Boating Victoria, which awarded $4 million to the project, under the State Government’s the 2022-23 Victorian Recreational Boating Action Plan.
With internal project management costs of $100,000 and a contingency of $424,624, the total outlay could go as high as $4,770,864.
The project is supposed to be started by the end of this financial year as a condition of the grant allocation.
The planning permit was only issued by council in March this year.
But, subject to approval of the additional cost, the works should be able to get underway soon.
The project is to be constructed in two parts:
Part 1: Construction of a new boat ramp, rock revetment and jetty.
Part 2: Upgrade of the car park and a new toilet block.
The new design features an all-tide, double-lane concrete boat ramp with a jetty, along with a sealed car park with more than 50 formal car and boat trailer spaces including provision for accessible spaces.
One-way anticlockwise traffic flow throughout the facility will ensure simple circulation and the provision of rigging and de-rigging lanes will assist in efficient launching and retrieval of vessels.
What’s changed?
Alterations have been made to the design to provide greater numbers of formalised car and boat trailer parks, the configuration of the ramps has also changed from the western side to the eastern side to improve launching efficiency, traffic flow and accommodate a longer queue.
The double laned ramp itself now extends further out into the water providing all tide access for boats up to 8m in the length and provision has been made for the installation of a jetty to enable temporary on water berthing.
What sized boats will be able to use this facility?
While the facility will generally cater for smaller vessels the design will enable boats up to 8m in length to launch from this site. Car and boat trailer parks have been designed according to Australian Standards and the Victorian Boating Facility Maintenance and Design Guidelines.
Will the Mahers Landing boat ramp be shut during construction works?
Some parts of the facility may have to be shut while construction works are underway to protect contractors and members of the public.
Access to the existing ramp will be maintained where possible which will remain open and operational for most of the construction period for boaters to use.
Construction will also be scheduled during the off-peak period to avoid any major disruption during the peak tourism and boating season.
