WWI gun to relocated from Warrnambool's old tip site

Moves to restore the old gun are under way - action sparked in the wake of community angst that it was being left out in the weather to further deteriorate.

But it could be years before it is returned to Cannon Hill.

Warrnambool City Council chief executive officer Andrew Mason said it was looking to relocate the cannon to a site in the West Warrnambool industrial area which would happen over coming weeks.

"Council is exploring potential funding opportunities to help cover the cannon restoration however this is at a very early stage," he said.

The howitzer was one of two removed from Cannon Hill for repairs in June 2020 but only one was returned in March 2021.

Repairs to the second cannon were put on hold because the work needed to ensure they were safe for public display was more significant that first thought.

When photos emerged earlier this year of the second WWI gun lying outside in a council depot, it was met with disappointment by veterans and the RSL and prompted an offer from a war buff to do the restoration work himself.

Vietnam veteran Doug Heazelwood said a working group had now been formed to oversee the refurbishment project and they had met three times so far.

"We owe to our history an obligation, having accepted the guns are trophies for the Warrnambool community after WWI, we should maintain them," he said.

Mr Heazelwood said the community needed to understand that we all had a role in maintaining the guns.

"It's important we do the best we can with the guns in the condition they now are."

He said he was happy the working group had made progress.

Mr Heazelwood said a full restoration could be very expensive so they were instead hoping to secure funding for a "reasonable refurbishment" so it go back on display.

He said a workspace had been made and a person appointed to supervise the work.

"I'm quite sure that it's going to take up some considerable time... it certainly can't be done in a flash," he said.

Mr Heazelwood said it could take as long as two or three years.

The German field guns were brought to Warrnambool in 1921 for display, and were dedicated on Anzac Day that year.

They were part of a huge amount of enemy equipment captured by Australian forces in 1918 and were chosen because of their links to the Warrnambool soldiers who fought on the Western Front.

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