Month: March 2015

A TRUCK of fat lambs from Sir John Madden’s Yamala Estate, on the Mornington road, sold in the Melbourne market recently realised the handsome prise of 26s 7d per head. *** THE 283 cases of fruit forwarded to Melbourne by the Somerville fruitgrowes and residents to be sold by auction on behalf of the Belgian Relief Fund, realised the handsome sum of £149 6s which, together with £3 10s in cash, has been forwarded to the Lord Mayor’s Fund. *** OUR readers are requested to remem- ber the Jumble Fair and auction sale at Somerville Easter Monday night, the proceeds…

PENINSULA LEAGUE PREVIEW EDITHVALE and Bonbeach will launch the 2015 Peninsula League football season on Good Friday. There has been enormous talk about both clubs in the pre-season but both should still be thinking about finals in 2015. Edithvale should be eyeing off a place in the top three, given it has sensational teenagers coming through the system, as well as the fact that Brett O’Hanlon has returned from Richmond. Bookends Nick Connellan and Brent Bowden are noticeable departures but they haven’t really lost a lot of others. Some quality teenagers have gone to try their hand in the VFL…

NEPEAN LEAGUE PREVIEW NEPEAN League Football will kick off on Good Friday when arch rivals Rye and Rosebud launch the 2015 season. There has been enormous talk about Rye during the off-season and new coach and former Sorrento premiership player Josh Moore believes his side is well placed to challenge. His right hand man is former club premiership coach Steve Ryan, who is a big recruit himself. It will be tough though. The Demons have lost the key connection that helped to propel them to within a kick of last year’s Grand Final. The Semmel brothers – Jake, Luke and…

A VCAT appeal by Melbourne billionaire John Gandel against shire councillors’ rejection of a restaurant and sculpture park development in Merricks has been headed off following approval of a revised application that resolves major planning problems in the earlier proposal. Councillors voted on Monday 23 March in favour of the revised plan, which consolidates blocks of land to satisfy green wedge requirement that a restaurant cannot be built on land less than 40 hectares and must be “in conjunction with” agriculture – in this case, a vineyard, now included on the restaurant land. The Victorian and Civil Administrative Tribunal case,…

A PENINSULA tourism group and Mornington Peninsula Shire are at loggerheads over the future of the tourist information shop in Sorrento. Members of Mornington Peninsula Beachside Tourism Association protested outside the shop in George St on Friday morning, expressing dissatisfaction with a possible shire move to close the shop and replace it with a kiosk. The association’s volunteer secretary Norm Watson, who owns tourism bus company Nep Tours, said the shop was opened by then shire mayor Cr Tim Rodgers in 2006 and continued to be well patronised. “During the peak tourism season, we have about 80 walk-ins every day…

HUNDREDS of Mornington Peninsula Shire staff attended three union meetings last week to hear about their rights as the battle between the shire and two unions over layoffs continued. Australian Services Union officials held meetings at the shire’s three offices at Rosebud, Mornington and Hastings. Meetings were also held between shire CEO Carl Cowie and some of the 12 workers who were told on 13 March they would be laid off. Staff members were accompanied by union officials. Five others have been laid off for a total of 17. On 18 March the Fair Work Commission told the shire to…

Monday 23 March. Venue: Mt Martha Life Saving Club. Briefings at 5pm, meal at 6, council meeting at 7. Salmon and salad for a pleasant change and a naughty second helping of dessert. A very good crowd, overflowing available seating when the meeting started. Extra parking at nearby shops for latecomers. CHANGE can creep up on you, or crash through like Brendon McCullum taking hold of the bowling in the run to a ton. Was it change at the council meeting when the redoubtable Fred Crump of Mornington got away with an 84-word question on illegal rubbish dumping? No matter. The…

RUMOURS of the imminent closure or liquidation of the Shiva School of Meditation and Yoga heightened last week in the face of an ongoing police investigation, threat of a class action and suspension of its accredited yoga teacher training course. Signs have been removed from the school’s ashram in Tower Rd, Mt Eliza, and former residents have reportedly been told they have until Tuesday to remove any belongings. Police from the Seaford-based SOCIT (Sexual Offences and Child Abuse Investigation Teams) on Thursday confirmed they are investigating allegations of sexual assault. St Kilda lawyer Angela Sdrinis is launching a class action…

HILLVIEW Quarries had an obligation to rehabilitate its Boundary Rd site once it stopped extracting rock, sustainable environment director Steve Chapple told the 10 March council meeting. But Hillview’s application for a 10-year permit extension meant the matter was on hold, he said. In response to a question from Mark Fancett of Peninsula Preservation Group, a leading figure in the successful fight to stop the old quarry being used as a tip, Mr Chapple said the shire would soon contact Hillview “to request an acceptable time frame” for details of its proposals for the site. Quarry owner the Ross Trust’s…

THE Fair Work Commission has told Mornington Peninsula Shire to negotiate with terminated employees and not layoff any more people. The recommendation was made during a conciliation hearing last Wednesday when two unions took the shire to the commission following the termination of 12 staff on Friday 13 March. New shire CEO Carl Cowie laid off four people prior to 13 March and one after for a total of 17 including two of the shire’s four directors (“Jobs go in shire shake-up”, The News, 17/3/15). The Australian Services Union and Professionals Australia (APESMA) went to Fair Work to force the…

LAST week’s visit by the cruise ship Pacific Pearl was a shot in the arm for Mornington Peninsula traders and local tourist operators. The P&O liner carrying 1800 passengers docked at Mornington for the second time in a month – this time on a four-day, one-stop visit before returning to Sydney. Mornington chamber of commerce spokeswoman Kim Rowe said a younger demographic made the passengers more independent. “The average age was about 59 or younger and there were buck’s parties on board, girls on girls’ trips – it was a real contrast to last time,” she said. “A lot said…

FORMER Prime Minister and Merricks resident Malcolm Fraser died on Friday. He was revered as a radical in his retirement, perceived as a statesman. Leaving “toxic” party politics behind in 2010, having presided in 1975 over one of Australia’s most notorious political events, “The Dismissal”, he moved on to speak out against apartheid, in support of multiculturalism, strongly in defence of refugees, and on the rights of Indigenous Australians. “It’s time for Australia to grow up,” he stated. Entering parliament in 1955 at the age of 25, Mr Fraser, with his craggy good looks and gruff personality, was seen as…

HUNDREDS of names have been added to an online petition calling for the head of a Mt Eliza ashram to step down while police investigate allegations of sexual abuse. “Signatures” have come from around the world, including Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, Serbia, Kazakhstan, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the Unites States. Messages left on the petition call for the managers of the tax exempt Shiva School of Meditation and Yoga to appoint a new leader to replace Russell Kruckman, also known as Swami Shankarananda and Swamiji. One message suggests selling the ashram in Tower Rd and distributing the proceeds to…

THE state planning tribunal VCAT has been told food trucks will not return to Rye. The claim was made in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal last month during a hearing instigated by Rye traders led by one of the town’s restaurants, Baha Tacos. Traders were seeking a declaration from the tribunal that food trucks would not return to the town unless a planning application was submitted to and approved by Mornington Pe­nin­sula Shire. The case had its genesis last Novem­ber when food truck traders under the banner of Australian Mobile Food Ven­dors Group set up on a vacant block…

Fran Henke spoke to Tamie and Malcolm Fraser in 2013 about their love of gardening.  When the President of Open Gardens Australia says this will be the last time of opening her garden, you have to wonder why. Age? Aggravation? Twenty five years ago Tamie and Malcolm Fraser opened their garden in Victoria’s western district to support the new scheme and to help keep staff going on their property, ‘Nareen’. “There was drought, stock prices were low, it was a difficult time,” said Mrs Fraser now president of Open Gardens Australia. A different story today: the Frasers have gardened at…

SHIRE councillors last week voted to deal with the Arthurs Seat Skylift gondola permit conditions rather than leave it to shire officers. But they have a tough task to deal with the job by the end of this week when a 30-day “planning clock” rings. Mornington Peninsula Shire councillors narrowly approved the $18 million Skylift gondola project mid-2014 and their approval was confirmed by the planning tribunal late last year when it rejected objections from community lobby group Save Our Seat. The VCAT sent the project back to council for it to work through and approve 71 conditions set by…

SORRENTO’S historic hotel the Continental is on the market for the first time in almost 20 years. The Di Pietro family, who bought the hotel on Ocean Beach Rd in 1996, is hoping for $15 million. The hotel, known far and wide as the Conti, was built in 1875 by the “Father of Sorrento” George Coppin, and is the only four-storey limestone structure in the southern hemisphere. It has had just eight owners in 140 years. The Conti is on 3580 square metres and is being offered by Sothebys International in conjunction with CBRE. It cost £14,000 to build and…

TALES of personal grief, heartbreak and broken relationships continue to emerge in the aftermath of admissions of secret sexual relations between the spiritual leader and some of his female devotees at the Shiva School of Meditation and Yoga, Mt Eliza. In the past week several new accounts of relationship breakdowns attributed to the actions of the school’s founder Swami Shankarananda have been described on a website established by his former followers. The owners of the leavingshivayoga website have told The News that they have been advised publishing personal testimonies “does not interfere with the ongoing work by the Victorian police…

CRUISE ship passengers will again visit Mornington Wednesday on the second P&O stopover in a month. The same ship that arrived on 24 February – the 63,700-tonne Pacific Pearl – will cruise direct from Sydney to the peninsula and return on a four night, one-stop voyage. This second visit is a vote of confidence in the town’s ability to interest and entertain its 1700 passengers, with most – again- expected to remain in Mornington enjoying the town’s attractions, while 30 per cent are expected to visit Peninsula Hot Springs or ride the Mornington Explorer bus to Arthur’s Seat and Sorrento…

AN early morning bike ride on Friday 6 March has left a father of three young children fighting for his life. Luke Matthews, 34, from Mount Eliza, was riding along Beleura Hill Road in Mornington at about 6.45am when he was hit by a concrete truck travelling in the opposite direction. Mr Matthews was knocked off his bike and suffered severe life threatening head injuries. The truck driver, a 57-year-old male, from Woodleigh Vale, has co-operated with police investigations. Mr Matthews, who works for ANZ Bank, moved to Mt Eliza from Mentone in 2008 for the open space that Mount…

MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire’s new CEO Carl Cowie has started retrenching staff. The first of several axes fell last Friday, the 13th, when 17 people lost their jobs. It is understood more people will go this Friday. The job losses come after a three-month review of the entire shire operations by Mr Cowie and his senior executives. The shire’s four directors were called to meetings with the CEO on Friday 6 March to be told the fate of their departments. The shire has about 1000 full-time equivalent staff. The News understands that some directors, managers and middle management staff are among…

THE Langwarrin-based Ahmadiyya Muslim Association Victoria has been credited as providing the third highest number of volunteers at this year’s Clean Up Australia Day. On Sunday 1 March more than 200 volunteers from association helped collect rubbish at selected sites in Langwarrin, Dandenong and Werribee South. At Langwarrin, above, the clean-up began at the association’s mosque, Bait-ul-Salam (House of Peace), with a recitation from the Quran and its English translation. Imam Janud said Ahmadi Muslims volunteered “very enthusiastically” because cleaning up was “a part of our faith” and Muhammad had proclaimed “cleanliness is half of your faith”. “Secondly, we are…

Frankston Crime Investigation Unit detectives are appealing for public assistance to help identify a burglar who stole a safe from a Frankston shopping centre last week. The burglary took place at the Cranbourne Road shopping centre on Saturday 7 February at 9.30pm. The burglar approached a pop up sushi shop, which was closed at the time, and crawled under a tarpaulin to access a safe. The man removed the safe from the shop and walked from the centre. Frankston Crime Investigation Unit Detective Senior Constable Jason Hamilton-Smith said that the man was wearing fairly distinctive clothing that someone may recognise.…

FRENCH Islanders have again been left stranded by the ferry. Engine problems put both the main ferry, George Bass, and its back-up, Schouten Passage, out of action. It is understood the Department of Transport issued a stop notice on the George Bass on Friday 27 February. The ferry is reported to have been running on one motor and was docking on the outside of the Stony Point jetty because restricted maneuverability prevented it from using its normal landing inside of the jetty. Without the regular ferry service schoolchildren were being brought from the island in small private boats. Over the…

A HASTINGS musician is heading to Gallipoli to play The Last Post on the 100th anniversary of the Anzac landings. Able seaman and bugler, Racheal Byrnes, of HMAS Cerberus, is part of a musical group playing aboard the frigate HMAS Anzac when it anchors in Anzac Cove on 25 April. A ceremonial service on board will complement the three Australian and New Zealand commemorative services at Gallipoli: a joint Dawn Service at the Anzac Commemorative Site, an Australian Memorial Service at Lone Pine, and a New Zealand Memorial Service at Chunuk Bair. Ms Byrnes left on Thursday for a week’s…

THE remains of what is thought to be the bodies of two men missing off the coast of Cape Schanck were found today. The 42-year-old St Albans man and a 34-year-old Vermont South man were diving for shellfish off the rocks north of the cape at Fingal beach when they got into trouble about 8am on Saturday. A third man, a 50-year-old from Keysborough, managed to get to shore and raise the alarm. He reported that his two friends were unable to get out of the water and were clinging to a rock and getting smashed by waves. Sorrento SES’s…

FRANK Yamma and former Killing Heidi singer Ella Hooper will perform later this month at the second Baany to Warrna Ngargee – Water to Water Festival at The Briars, Mt Martha. Yamma, who sings in English and Pitjantjatjara, has toured Australia and overseas. Hooper, a singer-songwriter, radio presenter and TV personality, won four ARIA awards in 2000 as a member of Killing Heidi. Yirrmal and the Yolngu Boys will return to The Briars to join musicians, dancers and artists during Cultural Diversity Week, Harmony Day and the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Mornington Peninsula resident…

LARGE tracts of Arthurs Seat State Park near the summit will be taken over for car parking to service the proposed Skylift gondola ride, a meeting organised by Save Our Seat was told last week. More car parking will also be developed near the gondola’s bottom station, beside the historic Dromana cemetery, the 70 attendees were told. There were gasps from the audience when pictures were shown of the total car park area, which will accommodate well over 600 vehicles. An audience member and local resident, Gabrielle Johnstone, protested that the summit’s number two car park would cover an area…

The search continues for two missing men off the coast of Cape Schanck, although police sources are now saying it is now a recover rather than a rescue. It’s believed three men were diving for shell fish near rocks off Fingal Beach when they got into trouble about 8am. A 50-year-old Keysborough man managed to get to shore and raise the alarm. A 42-year-old St Albans man and a 34-year-old Vermont South man are still missing. Water Police are being assisted by Air Wing, SES, Parks Victoria, Lifesaving Victoria, Ambulance Victoria and local marine volunteer groups. Anyone with any information…