COLAC and district residents have until Friday to tell civic leaders if they should ban cars from Colac Botanic Gardens.

A draft Colac Botanic Gardens masterplan has recommended closing the gardens off from vehicles, except for drivers with disability permits and for maintenance crews.

Submissions to Colac Otway Shire Council close on Friday.

Colac’s Lindsay Hulm questioned how the council would ensure motorists obeyed the rule.

“I don’t know how they’re really going to police that,” Mr Hulm said.

“They’ll have a two-year trial and then I think they’ll probably finish up closing the gardens to all cars, which I think is a shame,” he said.

“If people couldn’t drive in there, I don’t think as many people would walk through.

“Hopefully we can keep it open for the next generation.”

The masterplan cites root compaction, pedestrian safety and risk of transporting pests as reasons to restrict vehicle access to the gardens.

The plan also suggests relocating a fire brigade training track from the Lake Colac foreshore to Central Reserve, and introducing parking zones to discourage people from parking cars on grass.

Mr Hulm said the council could turn the fire brigade track into extra parking, and add barbecues, more seating and play equipment to the surrounding foreshore.

Friends of the Colac Botanic Gardens president Anne Mercer said she was excited about the masterplan’s recommendations to update lakeside plants with “more interesting specimens”.

Mrs Mercer said the group could also have a new headquarters building at the gardens, which could be an educational hub.

“That would be wonderful if that happened,” she said.