A RYE mother’s complaint about her daughters being made to pick up rubbish in the schoolyard has collected plenty of comment on social media. Messages posted on the Facebook page of the Mornington Peninsula News Group (publisher of The News) ran hot with comments for and against – well, mostly against –Lisa Stone. (“Mother’s call for safety first in schoolyard clean-ups”, The News 26/5/2015). In the article, Ms Stone complained about each of her three daughters being asked by teachers to pick up litter “with their bare hands” in the grounds of Rye Primary School. She acknowledged collecting rubbish and…
Day: June 1, 2015
THE Opposition is accusing the state government of lying over its claim to be searching for the best site for Victoria’s second container port. The Labor government has all but backed away from choosing Western Port and is overseeing the slow demise of the Port of Hastings Development Authority (PoHDA). And now, with its intention of leasing the Port of Melbourne for 50 years with a guarantee of compensation if there is competition from another major port, the government appears to have abandoned its plan for another container port. The greatly diminished PoHDA says it is investigating investment opportunities for…
THE shire has more than 250 unsealed car parks and asphalting the 25 at the top of a newly created priority list could take up to 15 years and cost $10 million. These and other mind-boggling statistics were presented to the council at its 25 May meeting in Rosebud when councillors wrestled with the usefulness or otherwise of the shire’s new “Unmade car park construction strategy”. A large number of resident complaints are generated by unsealed car parks scattered throughout the 720-square kilometre shire with its 42 townships. Residents ring and complain about potholes. They complain about dust in summer…
ROSEBUD Primary School teacher Evan Rutherford has come up with a handy resource for teachers and schools called EzStaff. The IT teacher put his technological knowledge to good use by designing an app to easily and efficiently connect schools with available casual relief teachers. “I designed EzStaff to assist both teachers and schools,” Mr Rutherford said, who lives at Tootgarook. “Teachers get to choose where they work while dictating their own availability and how far they want to travel from home. “Schools can browse each teacher’s profile, match their skills and experience to the school’s needs, and then book them…
SHIRE councillors have abolished the council committee that deals with major planning matters on the Mornington Peninsula. The Development Assessments Com-mittee (DAC) was scrapped via a late-night Notice of Motion at the council meeting in Rosebud on Monday 25 May. Planning matters will now be dealt with at ordinary council meetings. The motion was put up by Cr Hugh Fraser who has pushed for what he calls the streamlining of council processes and procedures since last October. This was when the balance of power on the council changed following the election of Cr Tim Wood, who replaced Frank Martin. When…
WORK has started on Mornington’s long-awaited Gateway Park on the corner of Barkly and Gordon streets. The park was first proposed in the Mornington Structure Plan of 2007 along with several other public spaces. At one stage the shire erected a sign proclaiming work would start in 2008. Since then there has been a drawn-out process that included the shire seeking public feedback in 2009, another round in 2011, and a plan being shown to residents in September 2011. Perennial Mornington Peninsula Shire contractor Maw Civil started on the multi-stage project mid-May and the stage two work is expected to…
DRIVERS who think it’s OK to leave handbags, wallets or money in cars parked in residential streets or driveways should think again. That’s the advice from police on the Mornington Peninsula who are frustrated that thefts from vehicles are on the rise again – with almost 70 offences committed in a recent three-week period. “Most of these vehicles were left unsecured with money and valuables clearly on display,” Detective Acting Sergeant Rob Vine, of Rosebud CIU, said. “We are seeing many thefts where thieves are particularly looking for mobile phones, wallets and handbags which contain identification and credit cards, which…
A FEMALE driver in her mid-30s was lucky to escape serious injury when her car hit an embankment and flipped onto its roof on Nepean Hwy, near Mt Eliza Way, on Thursday night. The Mornington woman, in a Kia Rio sedan, was trapped upside down for about 10 minutes and appeared to be in a state of shock. Leading Senior Constable Ron Trainer, of Mornington police, and an off-duty officer from Frankston, arrived soon after and climbed into the car to unhook the woman’s seatbelt. She was taken to Frankston hospital by ambulance but discharged herself on Friday morning. “A…
FIVE unregistered motorbikes have been destroyed after being seized by police. The vehicles were among nine mini-bikes, motorbikes and one motorised scooter impounded under an amendment to a Mornington Peninsula local law that imposes a $500 release fee. Just four of the motorbikes were reclaimed by their owners who came from Hastings, Bittern, Crib Point, Tyabb, Rosebud and Mornington. “None of the bikes crushed were able to be registered as they were not in a roadworthy condition,” Claire Smith, the shire’s environment protection and community safety manager, said. Police were given power to seize the unregistered recreational vehicles when the…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire is spending millions of dollars to reduce the risk of flooding with big projects completed or about to start in Mt Eliza and Mornington. They are part of Mornington Peninsula Shire’s $30 million, 10-year Local Integrated Drainage Strategy or LIDS, which the shire says will “flood map” the entire peninsula, “implement a capital [works] flood mitigation program” after the mapping has been completed, and develop planning overlays to “protect future development”. About $1.5 million has been spent in Mt Eliza shopping precinct, which included: A new rubbish “interceptor” beside Canadian Bay Rd near the community centre to remove…
A RATEPAYERS association and an animal rights political party are lined up against the alleged poor treatment of cats at Mornington Peninsula Shire’s pound. The clash involves the banning of two volunteers from the pound in Watt Rd, Mornington, in February, amid claims the building had been “ignored by the shire and is dilapidated, dangerous and does not comply with the code of practice for the operation of shelters”. Doris Campbell of the Mornington Peninsula Ratepayers’ and Residents’ Association wrote to shire CEO Carl Cowie in April saying $250,000 in the council’s 2014-15 budget for a cattery “has not gone…
Mornington Peninsula Shire community council meeting, Rosebud Memorial Hall, 25 May 2015. No personal account can be given of the meal, but it was up to the usual high standard, according to usually reliable sources. THIS is a Council Listen rather than a Council Watch, as your correspondent was absent from the meeting. But there’s always the shire’s recording, which is posted on its website a few days later. So let’s soak up the drama and atmosphere without actually having been there. Unsealed car parks appeared a straightforward agenda item until it was pointed out the shire had more than 250 across…
MESSRS Brody and Mason will hold their usual monthly sale at Somerville on Wednesday next, for which they invite entries. *** Messrs Alex Scott and Co will hold their monthly sale at Tanti on Monday next, when they will offer for sale a good yarding of cattle, sheep and sundries. *** Mr S. S. Price, dentist of Melbourne, will visit Frankston for the convenience of patients on Sunday, June 13th, and may be seen at Garrood’s Prince of Wales Hotel. *** Mrs J. Reynolds, of Bay St Frankston has on view in the window a “towel tidy” which she intends…
OPINION THE time has come for Peninsula and Nepean Football Leagues to take control. The farsical nature of the handling of the Player Points System issue this week by the MPNFL highlighted the fact that the current administration of the league is incapable of governing effectively. The member clubs’ appointed MPNFL Board is also incapable of providing the necessary direction to their appointed administration. The time has come for Nepean and Peninsula clubs to cease complaining about the constant poor administration of their league administration and stop accepting mediocrity. It’s time for the clubs to demand strong leadership and direction…
NEPEAN LEAGUE IT was certainly a day of upsets in Nepean League football on Saturday. Crib Point came from 20 points down at half time and 15 points down at three quarter time to beat Sorrento at David McFarlane Reserve. Dromana bounced back from an ordinary defeat the week before to beat Frankston Bombers, who had won two on the trot. Up at Red Hill in front of the 1990 premiership side, the home side was smashed by Hastings. Somerville, after a tumultuous week, went down by two goals against Rosebud in a low scoring, scrappy affair. The two expected…