:'' Eastern Beach is a specific beach in Geelong, not to be confused with

Waterfront Geelong The Geelong Waterfront is a tourist and recreation area on the north facing shores of Corio Bay in Geelong, Australia. The area was once part of the Port of Geelong, falling into disuse before being redeveloped during the 1990s. Attractio ...

.'' Eastern Beach is a popular

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

and recreation area in Geelong,

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

on the shores of

Corio Bay Corio Bay is one of numerous internal bays in the southwest corner of Australia's Port Phillip, and is the bay on which abuts the City of Geelong. The nearby suburb of Corio takes its name from Corio Bay. Etymology When Hamilton Hume and Will ...

. Built during the 1930s in the

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

style, a shark proof

sea bath The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...

is provided, as well as a children's swimming pool, kiosk, and dressing room pavilion. A number of Art Deco buildings in the area are listed on the

Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, Australia. It has statutory weight under the Heritage Act 2017. The Minister for Planning is the responsible Minister. ...

Beginnings

It was not always the beach it is today. In the early years that area of Geelong was considered an eyesore, with steep cliffs running from the northern town boundary to the shores of Corio Bay. Redevelopment plans were first proposed in 1914 by the City of Geelong. Work was to include a sea wall from Yarra Street to Limeburners Point, land reclamation, and the flattening of the cliffs along the beach. Further plans were drawn up for a chalet at the beach, which later appeared in the form of the kiosk building. Work began in September 1927 when contracts were let for construction of the concrete stairway, terraces and dressing sheds. J.C. Taylor and Sons were the successful contractor. That stage of the works was opened on December 20, 1929 by the

Mayor of Geelong This is a list of the mayors of the City of Greater Geelong, a local government area, and the second largest city in Victoria, Australia. Before amalgamation in 1993 the central area of Geelong was covered by the City of Geelong, with the surro ...

Cr Sol Jacobs. The semi-circular shark-proof swimming enclosure and children's pool were opened by Cr Jacobs on March 28, 1939. The enclosure covered and could accommodate 10,000 bathers. The precinct development cost £40,000 ($80,000), but was seen by the council of the time as being an investment in the city. To cater to beach goers, a

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

way extension along Corio Terrace (later Brougham Street) as far as Bellerine Street opened in October 1940. The line was closed in 1956 along with the rest of Geelong's tramways.

Later years

The area began a slow decline from the 1960s, with its popularity diminishing as a result of increased

motor car A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded as t ...

ownership, which gave Geelong residents easier access to ocean beaches. Later decades of neglect saw the area fall into disrepair. The decline was arrested in 1993, when the

City of Greater Geelong The City of Greater Geelong is a local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state. It covers an area of and, had a population of 271,057 as of the 2021 Australian census. It ...

announced plans for the restoration of the area. Partial funding of the works came from people being given the opportunity to purchase a plank on the boardwalk around he swimming enclosure. The boardwalk and enclosure were rebuilt, and the children's swimming pool, kiosk and change rooms were renovated. The

Beach House Beach House is an American musical duo formed in Baltimore, Maryland in 2004. The band consists of Victoria Legrand (vocals, keyboards) and Alex Scally (guitar, keyboard, backing vocals). Their self-titled debut album was released in 2006 t ...

restaurant was also opened on the upper level of the kiosk building. The late 1990s saw the original

diving tower Diving most often refers to: * Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water * Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes Diving or Dive may also refer to: Sports * Dive (American football), a ...

reinstated at the bay side of the swimming enclosure, after an absence of many years. However, the rebuilt structure was altered from the original design, with access to the topmost level being barred due to injury concerns. The improvements were the first stage of the

developments along the Corio Bay foreshore. Eastern Beach is the venue of festivals and concerts, as well as the annual Geelong Carols by the Bay concert hosted by

Denis Walter Denis Walter OAM, (born 3 January 1955) is an Australian radio presenter, baritone singer, recording artist and media personality who also presented television news for 16 years. Career Walter's music career has lasted over forty years and he ...

References

Citations

Sources

* Begg, Peter (1990). ''Geelong – The First 150 Years''. Globe Press. . {{Coord, 38.1475, S, 144.3735, E, type:landmark_region:AU, display=title Eastern Beach Parks in Geelong Eastern Beach Beaches of Victoria (Australia)

Beginnings

Later years

See also

References

Citations

Sources