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Aerial image of the Battery Point headland depicting where a walkway could go.
Council push to revive Battery Point walkway

A fresh push for a Battery Point river path is on. Hobart Council has re-committed to the 15-year old proposal and a supporters group has formed to garner community support.

The council originally proposed a shared path over the River Derwent around the Battery Point headland in 2008.

A development application for the first stage of a walkway was lodged in 2014, but in 2015 then Resource Management Planning Appeal Tribunal upheld a resident appeal against it. 

The project has bobbed up during budget discussions over the years and it received a $500,000 funding allocation under the Hobart City Deal in 2019. Councillor Mike Dutta reinvigorated the debate with a motion for a report on the future of the project in March 2022. 

The response to his motion was debated by the council on Monday 17 July and the City of Hobart has agreed to develop a design with cost estimates, which addresses the issues raised during the 2015 appeal, and to consult with residents.

Chair of the council’s Mobility Committee Ryan Posselt says one of the easiest solutions to traffic congestion is to build a walkway that will bypass the topographical challenges of the area.

“Cities all around Australia are building walkways such as this and the waterfront belongs to the people.”

“Let’s build something that will really be a gamechanger for this city and a real city-shaping project," he says. 

The council has allocated $100,000 from this year’s budget to fund the consultation and design work and the project will be included in the upcoming Sandy Bay–Mount Nelson Neighbourhood Plan.

Alderman Marti Zucco challenged the budget allocation, saying it would not be enough and that the figure was just "plucked out of the air". He said he would prefer that money was spent on getting a ferry terminal (or two) to deal with congestion.

The council has set a December 2023 deadline for the work to be done.

Local residents David Hook and Jim Gandy have established a Friends of Battery Point Walkway email list and plan to develop a concept design that is broadly acceptable to the community.

Mr Gandy is a retired engineer and, when speaking to The Mercury newspaper, said he thought he could come up with a design using different materials, which was closer to the shore and cheaper to build.

To get involved, email friendsofbatterypointwalkway@gmail.com