Churchill, Victoria

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Churchill is a town in LaTrobe Valley, located central Gippsland in the east of Victoria, Australia. The town was named in honour of former British leader Sir Winston Churchill.

Churchill Victoria
The Big Cigar, erected in honour of Sir Winston Churchill
Population:	4,826 (2001)
Established:	1965
Postcode:	3842
Location:	160 km from Melbourne
LGA:	LaTrobe City
State District:	Morwell
Federal Division:	McMillan

1 Town history
2 Names
3 Landmarks
4 Monash University Gippsland Campus
5 The end of the town pub
6 External links

[edit] Town history

Churchill began as a service centre for the Hazelwood Power Station and future replacement for Yallourn and Morwell townships. Construction on Churchill began in 1965. The town was planned with a well defined commercial centre, expansive parklands, a mix of government and privately owned quarter-acre (1,000 m²) town blocks and light industrial estates spaced from residential areas by a belt of parkland. The transport system was to be a network of restricted-access highways and a ring road fully encircling the town. Population was planned to reach 6,000 by 1971, and eventually 40,000 by 2000. However slow development of services and a slowdown of the state of Victoria's power station construction program meant that Churchill was to never realise its potential, and population reached a modest level of 5500 by the 1991, before stabilising at around 5,000. Signs of renewed growth are appearing, with a new housing estate development opening in 2005, the first for some years.

[edit] Names

Churchill was originally to be named Hazelwood, but was renamed after Sir Winston Churchill's death. The change of name has not been without its critics, and residents who pushed hard to restore the Hazelwood name were finally heard in 1989, when the town was asked to vote on whether the town would be renamed to Hazelwood or stay as Churchill. The name Churchill won by narrow vote.

Some of the names in Churchill have a distinctly local flavour. Estates in the town were named after various early settlers. These include Silcock, Medew, McMillan, Glendonald, and Northways. Roads have also been named after people (such as McDonald, Canterbury, Philip, and Manning), flora (Acacia, Hawthorn, Blackwood and Birch), and Aboriginal names (Amaroo, Gundaroo).

[edit] Landmarks

Churchill has one defining and quite unique landmark, that being a huge replica of Winston Churchill's cigar (known locally as "the big cigar"). Originally it was anticipated that five of these would be built around points of the town centre's edge, but only one was actually ever built. The Binishell is also a prominent feature visible from much of the eastern side of town.

Near the base of the cigar is a commemorative brick wall built by the Rotary Club of Hazelwood. It gives the names of the first families to move into the town.

Nearby is Mathison Park, with walking tracks around Lake Hyland. Remote Control Model Power Boat Drivers Stand was built in 1996. A variety of trees and plants are being planted.

[edit] Monash University Gippsland Campus

Monash University's third largest campus is located in the town. The Gippsland Campus has about 7,000 students, most studying by off campus learning, although the campus intends to have more on-campus students then off-campus within a few years time. The campus was opened in 1972, as the Gippsland Institute of Advanced Education (GIAE), which was formerly known as Yallourn Technical School, (and later, College), and was based in Yallourn township. A merger with Monash University took place in 1990. The campus was known as Monash University College for a few years, before becoming a full part of the university in the mid-1990s. The campus has grown exponentially in size over the years, with some of the major building additions being Science and Engineering (1986), Information Technology (1994), a two level library (1997), Gippsland Education Precinct (2006), and a new auditorium is about to be built to replace the Binishell (1980). The new Gippsland Medical School is due to take its first students in 2008.

[edit] The end of the town pub

As of August 2006 there is no traditional pub located in the town. The traditional pub was set to be developed into a Safeway store. The proposal was knocked back by Latrobe Council vote. The public bar of the Churchill hotel called last drinks at 10.23pm on the 3rd September 2006. The Bottleshop closed on the 9th September 2006. Safeway has appealed the council's decision and taken them to VCAT, the decision should be known sometime in December.

[edit] External links

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Coordinates: -38.313795° 146.420592°