Community
16 May, 2024
A welcome return
STONEMASON David Long has returned to Terang to commission a new sign on the western entrance 30 years after building the iconic entrance sign on the opposite side of town.
Mr Long began work this week on the new signage for Terang on the Warrnambool-side of town as part of the $50,000 Terang Gateway Project.
Over the next six-to-eight weeks he will set about the task of completing the entrance sign which will mirror the entrance sign on the Camperdown-side of town, which at the time had been his first commissioned construction.
Mr Long said there was a feeling of nostalgia getting the invitation to return to Terang after so many years.
“A lot of water has passed under the bridge,” he said.
“In the years since I was commissioned to build Australia’s largest freestanding dry stone wall on the Morning Peninsula, was winner of the Inaugural Lone Sculpture Exhibition and I was asked to complete works at the Eureka Tower Plaza in Melbourne.
“It takes you back because Terang is where it all started, so you’re coming back to your roots.”
Mr Long said he was excited to build the new signage, the lack of which he felt had left Terang “a bit like a one-armed man”.
“It’s going to bookend the township, and I think give it a mark of respect,” he said.
“The original design, by Neil Roberts, he was inspired to create the shape through community consultation and the shape of the entranceway came from those consultations.
“I still remember having a meeting in town in one of the then-Hampden Shire offices and I was quite nervous; it was my first commission and I was sitting at a table across from them and it felt a bit like a board meeting.”
The work formally began on the Terang Gateway Project at the beginning of May, with local contractor Sean Moloney excavating the footing for the stone wall structure.
Large volcanic rocks have been sourced from Kolora to make the new wall which will be erected over a period of six-to-eight weeks, weather permitting.
Corangamite Shire provided funding for the project in its 2023-2024 Budget, and is managing the Terang Gateway project in a partnership with the Lions Club of Terang and the Terang and District Historical Society.
Cr Geraldine Conheady said the beautification of entrances to shire towns had been on the shire’s radar for some time, and she felt this would be a “lovely outcome” for Terang.
“This has been a really positive project for Terang,” she said.
“We’re so grateful that we’ve got the likes of the Terang and District Lions Club and the Terang and District Historical Society which are so interested in this kind of project and are always out to explore projects which bring a benefit, beautification and enjoyment to our towns.
“It’s been a happy collaboration which we’re so pleased to be able to make a financial contribution to, and also through Gary Moorfield helping to get through the regulations so this project can get off the ground.
“What I admire is the design very much pays tribute to the agricultural history of Terang.”
Terang and District Historical Society executive member Des McKinnon said it was “plain to see” the original design held great value to the Terang community.
“The design encompasses a lot of areas – there is agricultural inspiration, and it shows what the district was based on,” he said.
“The big plus is to have the builder and engineer from the first project still available, which makes it very easy to proceed.
“We thank the council for allocating funding and endorsing the project, which has come together quite quickly.
“The historical society is always keen to promote the town, a lot of people say Terang is such a pretty town, so this feature compliments our community quite well.”
Mr McKinnon said the society was proud to be able to support the new addition, which not only enhances the entrance to town, but holds such significant ties with the town’s existing history.
“Terang is the hub of one of the most productive agricultural areas in the world,” he said.
“So the design is a real statement on the history of what this area has achieved.”
