By Callum Ludwig
The high number of events rolling through Warburton in recent times has divided opinions among residents, particularly after the Giro Della Donna was recently held.
Some see the incoming tourist dollar and the exciting atmosphere as an opportunity to enjoy the town, while others find the road closures, traffic and parking management and noise as a disruption to their lifestyle.
Resident Theo Howard said he enjoyed the recent Giro Della Donna event despite not being a fan of road cycling himself.
“My wife, daughter and I all had a fantastic time, watching the riders come in, checking out the market stalls, dancing at the disco and soaking up the good vibes. Everyone was smiling and positive,” he said.
“My brother and his mates came all the way from the city to attend. We’re friends with many other young families which came down to enjoy the event, despite the rain.”
The Giro Della Donna event saw over 2000 riders take to Warburton over the opening weekend of April to compete in gravel and road cycling events.
Mr Howard said the increase in tourist events in Warburton may help to keep Warburton residents from moving away as his generation did.
“Most of my generation left the area in our teens, because we didn’t see a future in Warby. There was nothing happening here, no interesting career paths. We had very few recreational facilities, events or attractions growing up here,” he said.
“This led to a brain drain, where the most intelligent and promising individuals all moved away, started their careers and families elsewhere and never came back here.”
Mr Howard was born in Yarra Junction in 1979 and grew up in Warburton, going to school at Warburton Primary and Upper Yarra Secondary College, and today he is a self-employed designer, photographer and videographer.
Since the 1990’s, Warburton has seen local business closures, namely the still-standing Sanitarium Weet-Bix factory, three major bank branches and the Adventist hospital. Jobs in the timber industry around the town are also falling, and look likely to be lost soon due to the State Government phasing out native timber harvesting.
Mr Howards said he hopes Warburton may be seeing the beginning of a recovery.
“Three years ago I moved back to Warburton, after spending 20-odd years away and one of the main reasons is because Warburton is becoming a vibrant, active town, with facilities, events, new shops, opportunities and interesting people living here,” he said.
“I think tourism is one of the major drivers behind these positive changes in Warburton. The town does get uncomfortably busy from time to time, our infrastructure needs upgrading, and tourism needs to be carefully managed to minimise negative impacts.”
East Warburton resident Greg Roberts has concerns about large events in Warburton like the Giro Della Donna in Warburton, but insists he is not anti-events.
“I’m not anti-events, but I am anti-events that disrupt the town because we have plenty of events. The Giro Della Donna is the only one that has road closures, an a lot of the other events tend to put back into the town a little bit,” he said.
“This one tends to take and they don’t show respect.”
Mr Roberts started a petition on Change.org campaigning to stop the Giro Della Donna, which received 118 signatures, and he says there were more phone calls in support.
The local resident thinks the infrastructure in Warburton simply isn’t prepared for large-scale events.
“Over three days there were 18 road closures, even though some of them are just stop and go signs,” he said.
“It’s a huge problem, especially when you can often go to Warburton and drive backwards and forwards to each end of the town and not find a parking spot.”
Mr Roberts said despite the influx of cyclists brought in by the event, some Warburton businesses suffered.
“A lot of locals said Warburton was dead quiet and eerie on the Saturday, with shops in town saying they had a lower taking on this weekend [Giro Della Donna weekend] rather than a higher taking,” he said.
“Supporting local businesses would help but I don’t believe they’re bringing the people that support local businesses. The actual genuine tourists bringing money in are avoiding the place because of the event.”
Stay tuned for an update sharing the thoughts of Warburton businesses.
