My ideas for redevelopment of Timbertown

The sale of local and exotic timber species as well as re-cycled structural timber to raise funds for the park. Timber is often donated to Timbertown and the Woodworking Club who can mill it into useable sizes for sale to the general public. Timber donations can be sourced from the council and also the local arborists and tree trimming businesses. Re-cycled timber can also be sold and sourced from council re-development projects, the public and local tradesmen. This needs to be available without entering the park.

This service could also be used to promote re-cycling of timber by Do It Yourselfers.

I notice in the proposed attractions several museums are listed. These would be excellent attractions for local school and tourist groups interested in the history of the area. The museums should be interactive and contain information on the history of the area as a whole from Cooks first naming Tacking Point to Flinders and on to Oxley.

Information on how the area was logged and how and where the timber was used originally right up to how the state and national forests are managing logging today would be great to make the museum relevant to todays generation and the management going forward.

The short term problem is that our over the top OH&S, compensation, insurance and litigation makes it impossible for any public facility to function without extreme measures and coverage to protect all involved .. Therefore the costs involved make it very difficult to run and facilitate the average tourism park etc .. My ideas for redevelopment would include the use of Local, State and Federal Government money to finance the " idiot proofing " of the original complex and the instalation of a kid/ teenager fun park, be it water based of ride based on the land down the back.. From there the kids will bring the parents .. The parents will not mind paying a fee ( not Gold Coast excessive ) to enter the park for their enjoyment with the kids paying the extra for the ' fun ' park day pass .. With the lack of kids things to do in the district without Peppermint Park and Fantasy Glades etc this would be a sure fire way to bring families to the valley ..Every child will want to / insist upon visiting the fun park AT LEAST ONCE each holiday .. The Hastings will NEVER be another Gold Coast .. It can, however make itself a name for short stay family holidays WITH something for the kids with the redevelopment of the only remaining tourism park and heritage park .. It will take some initial cost ( as did the Glasshouse ) .. but the longterm gain is there for the taking..

DONT be greedy with admissions .. DONT be cheap with ride quality .. DONT be afraid of the litigation experts ( there must be a legal way of combatting these possibilities )..

CMON Council ... YOU CAN DO THIS ..

Side show type amusements in the theme of the 1880s, ie Shooting gallery. Sell show bags. Possibly some form of log ride or whitewater ride similar to dreamworld. Hide substation and pumpstation etc with false facades. Possibly have some gold rush type displays / activities. Tidy up the area at front where there is just gravel to entice people to enter. Promote timbertown to schools. Have a nightly show at additional cost to the day entry? Create a park masterplan.

It's time to bring Timbertown up into the 21st Century. Look at one of the most successful UK open air attractions for ideas on heritage - http://www.beamish.org.uk/Home.aspx. Also look at MAGNA in Rotherham UK a science facility based on the steel heritage of the South Yorkshire area - http://www.visitmagna.co.uk/. You must cater for families to be successful, parents have the biggest spending power and are greatly influenced by facilities. There should be a log flume, a gold mine attraction either a simulated ride or a real underground facility, a mini interactive hands on farm, a steam train rollercoaster type ride, better food outlets, a micro brewery (Little Brewing Company are ideal for ideas here), first class toilet facilities which include a parents room. There should be facilities for business - a full conference centre, meeting rooms that are fully catered, down the line perhaps a hotel / motel. There should be nightly fireworks during school holidays. A Christmas festival - markets - carol service and singing. Easter egg hunts and carnival. Make a kite weekend. Sheep shearing demonstrations. The list is endless. Keeping it as it is, is a way of saying "Let it close". If the council can spend millions on a micro theatre such as the glasshouse which caters more to the older generation / parents then it is time to spend millions on Timbertown and make it a WORLD CLASS attraction.

There are more visitors to Port Macquarie each year than there are to Timbertown

The issue is to get more visitor dollars for Timbertown

Timbertown is the major tourist attraction for Wauchope and the only one of its kind within a large travel radius

Yet Timbertown is very poorly promoted on the Pacific Highway

If you drive South from Blackman's Point turn off there is no major advertising billboard/hoarding for Timbertowm

There are two small signs just before the Doughnut and unless you were a local you would not know that Timbertown was not a country village like Adamstown

I suggest two large billboard advertisements on the highway for Timbertown (one south of the Doughnut and one north)

I suggest a medium size billboard at the east secondary roundabout near the Doughnut informing arriving visitors to Port Macquarie that Timbertown (Heritage Village) EXISTS!!!!

Not so sure about the action / ride attractions. I do think that there is considerable scope for holding music at the venue day and NIGHT (which is largely off the agenda). We'd be interested in developing some 3-day festivals therewhich could also assist in reducing the running costs which seem substantial for such as site.

There is an increasing need for school age children to be exposed to where things come from - ranging from our food does not come from the supermarket, chickens lay eggs, meat comes from animals and vegetables are grown in dirt. I think coupling the heritage aspects of Timbertown with some educational aspects, including a small working farm, with chooks, vege garden, fruit trees, including how trees are milled, how timber is felled, how houses are constructed could be of interest to educators. If we add the ecological aspects of managing the site and resources in line with good ecological practices we could have another money spinner. I do however think this needs a true commercial management

As a parent to 3 young children (6, 4 & 2) who grew up in the region myself (thank god peppermint park and fantasy glades existed then!!!), it really saddens me that there is such a lack of family facilities within the Hastings.

Timbertown could be such a wonderful place for families locally and visiting families also, it just needs management, community and council vision to take it to the height of possiblity.

I want my children to understand the history of this area, my family have lived here for generations, kids need interactive and fun activities that teach at the same time to achieve this.... YES Timbertown is about our past, and it always should be, but it NEEDS to save this area from the shallow excuse for a family holiday destination that it has become.

From travelling central Australia last year I missed the hastings, but it feels like such an empty space to raise my kids. Yes there's the beach, but with the small pitiful and sometimes unsafe children's playgrounds and the indoors play venues (nobody can afford to visit there all the time or would want their kids indoors every weekend) there has to be a way to create an outdoor haven for families and visitors alike to enjoy an abundance of activities and fun.

Stop thinking about teaching the past at Timbertown, it goes without saying that's the main aim, but branch out to consider what else could be on offer here for both old and YOUNG!!!

Music events - these would work so well at timbertown and very few music events are family orientated these days. Day and night concerts and festivals.

Skating Rink - That's one of the fondest memories many have of peppermint park.

Summer Drive in or deck chair Theatres - Surely there is enough land to create a unique outdoor theatre it would be great for summer.

Family Market Days - with egg and spoon races for the kids, old time show bags, buskers and local stalls

Local Farmers Market - What's to stop it being moved to timbertown every couple of months?

Kids HOliday workshops - Learn knitting, painting, drama any number of things that kids love, let them learn about things children did in the past in a fun hands on way.

Rides - As others have said, I think rides are an important part of growing timbertown.

That's just a few ideas for starters, there is so much more that could be created.

Do I think the entry price should increase - YES!! Not currently, but once improvements are done certainly, you can't take a family anywhere for $12 and expect it to be great, but if there were new rides and attractions then it would be worth paying more just to have the option of having somewhere fun and interactive to go.

Timbertown may be about the past, but we need to give it a bright and youthful families where young and old in the Hastings can create memories, because as it is, the lack of family facilities in this area is the one thing that ruins it and makes families want to move away.

I have read many suggestions but find it almost impossible to agree or disagree, as most comments include so many related (and in some cases, unrelated) matters that I agree with parts and not with others. How about everybody participating in this forum tries to keep their suggestions more concise and, as far as possible, singular? Then others can make a choice and register their vote - or perhaps the moderators of this website could introduce a couple of options "partially agree" and "partially disagree"!

I don't know of any other Historical Park similar to Timbertown left in the state. Timbertown is a unique icon and all available resources should be directed towards retaining this unique asset. An idea to activate greater usage of the park would be to construct dormitories where school children from all over the state and maybe interstate could come and stay and experience what it was like to live in a bygone era. What an excellent way to teach children about their heritage and provide a hands on experience to reinforce their understanding of the hardships that settlers and pioneers had to face. More activities that showcased primitive conditions could be added to existing facilities to further compliment the overall experience. Look at the success of the Ayers Rock development in the south where school children already visit. This region is crying out for something similar. The foundation whilst a little dated is already there!!!

We know there is a market for outdoor family entertainment in the area my suggestion would be to improve the facility along the lines of Longleat park in the UK which uses a passport ticket system. The passport ticket allows unlimited entries to the park but only one visit to each attraction, further visits to each attraction are then subject to an additional charge but entry to the park itself is still free. With regard to the attractions both the peddle boats and the train should be re-instated and a large wooden adventure playground constructed. Either as a castle (Longleat) or a boat as in Bowood House in the UK. Both of these can be researched on the net as they are working models and successfully operating businesses. Other attractions could include ghost tours and concerts. This still leaves OHS and insurance issues. These should be assessed on a risk assessment basis and prioritised accordingly with the costs established for high medium and low risk issues. With high risk being treated as immediate. New businesses/ activities can also be assessed in the same manner and a cost benefit analysis carried out. With the strong focus on tourism I believe it is imperative for the future success of the area that Timbertown is saved.