Day: January 10, 2015

THE annual general meeting of the Frankston Mechanics’ Institute will be held on Thursday, January 28th. *** OWNERS of horses suitable for artillery or remount purposes, who wish to dispose of them are notified that Messrs A. Scott and Co will hold an inspection at Tanti yards, on Monday next, at 12 o’clock. *** MR P. Wheeler notifies by advertisement the hours in which the Frankston Pharmacy will be open for business, he also notifies that in special cases he will dispense medicines at any hour, day or night. *** THE anniversary of the Frankston Methodist Church will be held…

THE co-founder of the Mornington Railway Preservation Society, Howard Girdler, has died at age 85 of pneumonia. Mr Girdler’s funeral was held at Tobin Brother chapel in Mt Martha last Wednesday and as his coffin was being taken from the chapel to a hearse, the sounds of a steam train were played, putting smiles on the faces of crying mourners. The former teacher was the driving force behind the foundation of the railway society, which saved the section of the rail line between Moorooduc and Mornington, although the society was unable to stop the state government selling the railway reserve…

A MAJOR legal obstacle to the $18 million gondola chairlift on Arthurs Seat has been removed with Save Our Seat announcing it will not appeal a planning tribunal decision in the Supreme Court. Save Our Seat had until last Wednesday to lodge an appeal against the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal’s December decision to confirm Mornington Peninsula Shire Council’s approval of the ride last June. Save Our Seat spokeswoman Kylie Greer said “on advice from our barristers, we would be hard pressed to overturn the VCAT decision”. Ms Greer said deciding not to appeal would not stop SOS from “pursuing…

AS tens of thousands of holidaymakers descend on the Mornington Peninsula over summer, official statistics show record numbers of residents are out of work. While locals may appear to be on holidays, the federal electorate of Flinders – covering most of the peninsula from Mornington south and across to Hastings and including Phillip Island – has had one of the highest jumps in unemployment across Australia. A drop of 4.8 per cent in job participation rates puts Flinders as the second worst hit electorate in in the country. Neighbouring Dunkley (Mornington, Mt Eliza and Frankston), saw a 3.1 per cent…

THE audience on top of Rye pier ducked the splashes as more than a dozen sets of arms and legs flailed around in the water below, scrambling for a piece of timber tossed into their midst by a man wearing an intricately woven cloak and wearing an impressive headpiece. Reverend Father Eleftherios Tatsis of the Greek Orthodox Church Panagia Kamriani at Red Hill was back on the pier for the annual Epithany, or blessing of the water ceremony. And the people splashing around in the water were church members eager to be first to seize the wooden cross tossed by…

DESPITE the new state government’s apparent lack of enthusiasm to build a major container terminal at Hastings, Liberal MP Neale Burgess maintains the port expansion will go ahead. He believes the Labor government led by Daniel Andrews will establish a panel to evaluate Hastings and the so-called Bay West area in Port Phillip before announcing it will go ahead with long-held plans for Western Port. The government says no decision will be made until after a review by the yet to be formed Infrastructure Victoria. The new body will assess the merits of developing the state’s next container port at…

MT Eliza’s Nepean Highway and Tower Rd intersection needs traffic lights or turn restrictions to make it safer, says resident and former shire councillor Leigh Eustace. Mr Eustace and other residents continue to lobby for improvements at the black spot intersection, which has claimed two lives and seen a number of crashes that have injured drivers and passengers since 2008. A man in his 70s was killed at the intersection in June 2012 when his car struck the back of a truck that was stationary in the centre median waiting to turn north, having crossed southbound lanes from Tower Rd.…

NEXT year could be the most lively and productive year Mornington Peninsula Shire has had in a long time. A new chief executive officer, Carl Cowie, and councillors appearing to bury their differences are welcome developments. Here are a few items, dealt with briefly, for councillors and officers to consider over the summer break. The subjects can be classed as boring but important: no soaring visions, just matters of tidy housekeeping. An astonishing amount has already been accomplished but there’s more to be done. Rates They have been going up at well over the rate of inflation, more than doubling…

MORNINGTON Peninsula residents and visitors have been warned to be ready with bushfire survival plans. The warning from the mayor Cr Bev Colomb followed a 120 hectare blaze at Hastings that razed much of Warringine Park after a desperate battle by fire fighters to save houses. Cr Colomb said residents and visitors should “remain aware of the importance of acting on the fire danger ratings and having a bushfire survival plan”. Hastings had “dodged a bullet” despite the Saturday 3 January fire which swept through the bushland reserve, the chair of the shire’s municipal emergency management planning committee, Cr David…