Tamworth's Victoria Park masterplan includes koala, wombat enclosures for marsupial park

Tamworth Regional Council's masterplan encompasses all areas within the Victoria Park precinct, including: the marsupial park; Tamworth Miniature Railway; the botanic gardens; astronomy and science centre; Tamworth Men's Shed; Arthur Emblen Park; Oxley scenic lookout; and the walking trail to Flagstaff Mountain.

Other key additions to local attractions include a tourist train to connect the botanic garden and the marsupial park; a nocturnal house, education amphitheatre and free-flight aviary at the marsupial park; and a new lookout with a shelter and bench seat on Flagstaff Mountain.

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The council's sport and recreation strategy officer Sam Eriksson said the council was "acutely aware" that connectivity throughout the precinct was "not great", so the tourist train would help alleviate that.

"Putting in a new road going off Endeavour Drive is part of the masterplan, which will make it easier as well," he said.

"A lot of people walk up [Oxley] Lookout and it's proposed to have a cantilevered boardwalk up there to improve safety, and improving the walking track up Flagstaff Mountain and the lookout area up there as well."

The next stage is to hear the public's opinions.

"We've worked in close consultation with the key user groups in those areas to come up with the masterplan and at the moment the plan is on public exhibition for ideas from the community on what they would like to see in the area moving forward," Mr Eriksson said.

"I think the community will be really engaged with the project. Victoria Park is an extremely popular precinct and I think the community will have a lot of great ideas and hopefully ones that we haven't thought of that will make the park even better than what it is now."

So far the draft plan is unfunded, and Mr Eriksson said the council would be seeking grants from the state and federal governments once the plan was finalised.

"Implementing the plan is based on funding and council will work hard at chasing grants, but we'll also start to put it into our annual operational budget as well," he said.

"[The cost] would be in the 10s of millions, to be honest, because we're talking some really large infrastructure.

"Things like the koala sanctuary, getting power and water here to the marsupial park, all the way to improving the bush chapel out at the botanic gardens. They're big ticket items that will cost a lot of money."

He anticipates that the overall project may take about 10-15 years before it's fully finished, but said the plan included short, medium and long term priorities.

"The overarching project is very exciting, I guess the key idea is to make Victoria Park a tourism destination, so another reason that people come to Tamworth, not just something you do in Tamworth," Mr Eriksson said.

"We could start building tomorrow if the funds were made available."

Locals can have their say on the masterplan by visiting https://yourvoice.tamworth.nsw.gov.au/victoria-park

A number of pop-ups will also be happening later this month, so locals can chat to council staff about their thoughts. Dates can be found at the above website.

After this, all information provided will be reviewed, and Tamworth councillors will discuss the draft masterplan in March.

The final plan will then be completed in April, before being presented to councillors for adoption in May.