Almost 150 people completed a survey about their use of Quarantine Bay and their hopes for the site. Photo: Bega Valley Shire Council.
A community survey has revealed calls for more parking and accessible access at an Eden jetty as the council plans for an overhaul of the site.
Bega Valley Shire Council (BVSC) has been investigating planned upgrades to Quarantine Bay, an area in Twofold Bay near Eden.
Consultation started earlier this year, with the council launching an online survey and holding workshops with stakeholders.
The project is expected to include the replacement and relocation of amenities, improvements to fishing platform access and accessible pathways. Concrete repairs will be made to the surrounding infrastructure.
According to a recently-released consultation report, there is opposition to upgrades that would hamper people’s ability to access the site for recreational and tourism reasons.
“Survey feedback is that the primary function of Quarantine Bay is a boating and fishing facility and should continue to operate as such,” the report states.
About 60 per cent of respondents said their preferred parking layout was ‘Option 1’, which would prioritise boat and trailer parking capacity.
Meanwhile, about 75 per cent of respondents supported having fish cleaning tables near the water.
Survey results also found that about three-quarters of respondents use Quarantine Bay for boating and launching.
“Fishing is also a major activity, used by approximately 60% of respondents, while walking, swimming and general recreation is reported by about half of users,” the report states.
“More organised or specialised activities are less common, including club events or regattas (around 20%), paddle sports (about 15%), and other uses (around 15%). Yacht club activities have the lowest participation of the respondents, (under 10%).”
People also reported that there should be no reduction in the number of boat and trailer parking spaces, saying this was “already insufficient during peak periods”.
Respondents also called on the council to ensure it was accessible, suggesting sealed surfaces and reduced gradients.
“While accessibility improvements are widely supported, many respondents emphasised that these should not come at the expense of boating function or parking capacity,” the report states.
These concerns were echoed in a 2025 letter from the Eden Amateur Fishing Club, according to the consultation report.
Council’s manager of parks, aquatics and recreation John Grady said the project’s concept designs were amended following the feedback.
“We received valuable feedback through the public survey and targeted stakeholder engagement, and the concept design has since been refined to reflect that feedback,” he said.
“We now invite the community to come along, view the updated concept design and share any further feedback before it is submitted to council for consideration.”
During an information session later this month, people can see the updated concept design, an overview of consultation outcomes and how feedback has helped shape the project, and information about environmental and technical considerations that BVSC must manage.
The next step for BVSC is to review feedback to further refine the concept designs before a detailed design is developed.
“This process will balance user feedback with site constraints, accessibility requirements, environmental considerations and the available project budget,” the report states.
According to the council’s website the project is expected to be finished by June 2028.
Upgrades are being jointly funded by a $527,000 grant through the NSW Boating Infrastructure for Communities program and a contribution from BVSC.
The information session will be held on 17 June at the Barclay Street Pavilion in Eden from 5 pm. The consultation report is available for download from the council’s website.
