The Kelcey Tier is a 185 ha area of remnant bushland located to the south of Devonport. It adjoins residential land in the suburbs of Stony Rise and Tugrah. The site is elevated above Devonport, with its highest point 205m above sea level. The reserve provides a scenic background to the city and contains significant biodiversity values, including habitat for swift parrot and central north burrowing crayfish as well as threatened vegetation communities and old-growth high-conservation-value trees. It also has significance for the Aboriginal community as a cultural landscape and contains sites of significance in relation to past occupation.

Kelcey Tier is valued by the local community for its recreational values. While passive recreational opportunities have been present for a long time, the use of the area for mountain biking and events has increased exponentially in recent years. The council was experiencing challenges in terms of managing expectations, illegal works, multiple landowners, conflicts between different recreational users, adjacent residential properties and infrastructure deficiencies. It therefore required a master plan that found the balance between resolving these challenges and maintaining the reserve’s biodiversity and Aboriginal cultural, landscape and recreation values.

The Kelcey Tier Master Plan, prepared by ERA with Playstreet, is aimed at providing clear direction to balance the expectations of different users and adjacent landowners while addressing infrastructure deficiencies. It does this through a set of agreed actions that are realistic and achievable within a relatively short time. A small and simple master plan that is based on stakeholder engagement, the Kelcey Tier Master Plan has been well received by stakeholders and the council, which is progressing with its implementation.

The Kelcey Tier Master Plan received an Award for Planning Excellence (best planning ideas – small project) in the Planning Institute of Australia Tasmania Division awards in late 2019.