By Tyler Wright
Through the installation of two new immersive light experiences, the Yarra Ranges’ peak tourism body is looking to draw more visitors to the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges in off-peak periods.
The dam wall at Maroondah Reservoir Park in Healesville and the Sir Alfred Nicholas Gardens in Sherbrooke are pinned as two potential locations for Yarra Ranges Tourism’s Light-Up Nature into Art (LUNA) project.
Yarra Ranges Tourism CEO Simon O’Callaghan said the organisation has conducted global research on best practise models for night time attractions that can emphasise or benefit from natural based environments for light experiences.
“Interestingly, one of the things we found was that both sites were always planned to be activated in some form in the night, they just never reached that stage with their development,” Mr O’Callaghan said.
Lightscape at the Royal Botanical Gardens, Moama Lights and the Gertrude Street Projection Festival are some recent local examples of similar projects.
With a community survey now available to the public, Mr O’Callaghan said Yarra Ranges Tourism will conduct testing on the sites as part of its business case to determine how to establish the installations as a seasonal or ongoing attraction.
“We know there’s not enough night time activities for people to do, both locals and visitors,” Mr O’Callaghan said.
“We’re taking into heavy consideration the environmental impacts of these types of activities and how we need to be conscious of local fauna that’s in each of those sites, and we’re looking at technology that wouldn’t interfere with their behaviours.”
Once the business case is completed – which Mr O’Callaghan expects to be by the end of June 2023 – Yarra Ranges Tourism will discuss budget options with the state government to get the project off the ground.
“We’ve already seen some good results in other creative industries that have had support from the government, so we’d anticipate that there’ll be a favourable response, but we can’t be too sure at this stage.”
First Nations narratives and artists are also expected to be given a platform in the immersive sensory experience.
Yarra Ranges Tourism will work to create the project within the next few years if given the go-ahead.
“We know that there is demand for this product and it’s going to improve people’s ability to stay in the region longer, and when they stay in the region longer, they spend more, which creates more jobs for local people and ultimately lifts our whole average spend that we can achieve per visitor,” Mr O’Callaghan said.
“What we’re really interested with our local community survey is about the attitudes of our residents towards having a more bespoke, creative installation for people to do at night.”
To have your say on the proposal, and for more information on the project, visit https://www.visityarravalley.com.au/yarrarangestourism/about-1/light-up?fbclid=IwAR1v6B9yJeLTJSBHTCnKXBPDV76h-ZgfR_FeJ844zwmUFTjim6I_Mn4K4JM
