$108M Plan To Develop International Tourism Icon at Twelve Apostles

(Photo by Pat Whelen from Pexels)

The appointment of award-winning architects to design the first phase of the Twelve Apostles Precinct is set to enhance the region’s appeal as a world-class tourism destination.

Federal Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, and Victorian Minister for Regional Development, the Hon Mary-Anne Thomas MP, today announced that Grimshaw Architects, in partnership with the Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation, will design the coastal works projects as part of the Twelve Apostles Precinct Redevelopment Project.

This $108.15 million project will redevelop and protect the Twelve Apostles, the Shipwreck Coast and the Great Ocean Road as a distinctive environmental and cultural tourism destination.

The redevelopment is part of the $500 million Geelong City Deal – a 10-year partnership to transform Geelong and the Great Ocean Road between the Australian and Victorian governments and the City of Greater Geelong.

The coastal works projects include a new Twelve Apostles viewing deck and amphitheatre, safer beach access and a lookout at Gibson Steps, improved walking trails, revegetation of Loch Ard Gorge, and a weather protection pod that will shield visitors from the elements at Loch Ard Gorge.

The Twelve Apostles precinct will also include a new world-class Visitor Experience Centre that will form the gateway to the Shipwreck Coast and the precinct. Local community and stakeholders were extensively consulted, over three years during the development of the Shipwreck Coast Masterplan.