Month: August 2016

POLICE are praising “astute members of the public” for helping them seize a massive haul of cannabis in Rosebud last Thursday. Sergeant Chris Russo, of Mornington Peninsula CIU, said 164 plants were seized as well as 76 cuttings which were in the process of being propagated. He said the crop had a street value of $150,000. Seven police raided the Eastbourne Rd house which had been set up as a hydroponic cannabis warehouse. Six rooms were filled with black plastic tubs for growing the plants which were hooked up to a water system in the bath. A power bypass system…

THERE is no lack of interest in filling the vacancy in Liberal ranks following the announcement that Martin Dixon will not be running for the state seat of Nepean he has occupied since 1996. Russell Joseph, Mr Dixon’s electorate office manager for the past four years, has already signaled that he will seek to take over his boss’s job. “I would like to lead from the front,” Mr Joseph told The News the day following Mr Dixon’s announcement. “There’s a lot of potential for things to still be done and I’d like to see them continuing along.” Mr Joseph has…

NEPEAN MP Martin Dixon says the realisation that “life can be too short” is behind his decision to retire from politics at the 2018 state election. The “life” reference refers to his former wife and partner of 38 years, Christine, who died of cancer in April. He has two adult children. Mr Dixon said “everything has changed now” and that he looks forward to “doing something different with a lot more time to do it” after 20 years as a member of parliament. “I might buy a boat and do some travelling,” the Rye resident said. “And there are some…

A ROSEBUD road with an unenviable crash history is set for a safety upgrade next month. Works will begin on Eastbourne Rd between Jetty Rd and Boneo Rd which Mornington Peninsula mayor Cr Graham Pittock describes as a “black length”. “This road really does have a bleak crash history – including three fatalities in the past two years,” he said. “Over a five-year period 14 casualty crashes were recorded, with three of these serious injuries.” Common crash types include right-turning vehicles and parked vehicles. Eastbourne Rd will be changed from two traffic lanes each way to a single traffic lane…

THE Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital has unveiled revolutionary new technology at Frankston Hospital to connect patients who present at an emergency department with eye injuries or conditions in outer metropolitan, rural and regional areas with specialist advice without having to travel to East Melbourne. Eye and Ear Hospital CEO Mark Petty said the initiative will enable Peninsula Health’s emergency department clinicians who are not ophthalmic specialists to manage patients with the help of a remote eye and ear specialist when needed. In 2014, 2700 people travelled from the Mornington Peninsula to the Eye and Ear Hospital for urgent…

MORNINGTON Football and Netball Club players enjoyed a half day’s “experience” with the Saints last week as winners of the FOX Footy Club Rewards program. Eight Bulldogs players, who sit third on the Peninsula Football Netball League ladder, visited St Kilda Football Club’s Seaford headquarters for a behind-the-scenes view with senior coach Alan Richardson and his assistants. The aim of the rewards program is to support grassroots sport and recognise local football clubs and recognise the benefits they deliver to their community. The Mornington club has had a long partnership with the Salvation Army: it donates $1 from each club…

PADUA College’s year 10 students from Tyabb and Rosebud will be based at the school’s Mornington campus from 2019. The move comes amid a series of curriculum changes outlined in the school’s educational strategic plan, launched last week by principal Anthony Banks. “The plan will mean greater flexibility for subject choices for year 10 students, including making year 11 and year 12 VCE and VCAL subjects available a year earlier and offering more VET courses on-site,” he said. “It also outlines a revitalised, stand-alone year 9 program and a streamlined year 7-8 curriculum to be rolled out in 2018.” Mr…

KEEPING older drivers safe and mobile is the aim of a free driving seminar at Mornington Community Theatre, 10.30am-12.30pm, Thursday 1 September. The seminar is open to all senior drivers, their families and friends. “Older people make an important contribution to the economic and social well-being of the community as owners, employees or customers of businesses, as volunteers, and through the support they provide to family and friends,” organiser Nancye-Joy Gardner said. “They need to stay mobile to sustain this contribution and to maintain their own sense of independence and well-being. “It is important to keep older drivers driving safely…

A “SPARKLING musical mash-up” will be performed this week to celebrate a century of Tallis family ownership of the now state-owned Beleura house and gardens, Mornington. The musical 1916! will be performed at 6.30pm, Friday 19 August, with a matinee at 1.30pm, Saturday 20 August and a final show, 6.30pm Saturday. Organisers predict the John Tallis Pavilion will morph into the legendary Her Majesty’s Theatre, from where the entrepreneur oversaw his empire as managing director of JC Williamson’s – known as The Firm in theatrical circles. The musical 1916! is set in Sir George’s office at the theatre on Saturday…

MESSRS Adamson, Strettle and Co will hold their next sale at Tanti on Monday next—For entries see advt. *** MR Joseph Unthank will address the electors at the Somerville Hall on Wednesday evening next, and gives a cordial invitation for all Centre Riding ratepayers to be present. *** A PUBLIC meeting will be held on Thursday evening next in the Frankston Mechanics’ Hall, when addresses will be delivered on the 6 o’clock closing question by prominent speakers. *** A PRESENTATION of a travelling bag was made to Guard Phil O’Grady, on being transferred to Mornington, by his fellow employees, Frankston,…

Twenty-six-year-old Torres Strait Islander Daniel O’Shane won the Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery’s National Works on Paper Prize of $15,000 sponsored by Beleura House & Garden.  National Works on Paper was established in 1998 and incorporated the former Spring Festival of Drawing and the Prints Acquisitive which began in 1973. The National Works on Paper is a biennial prize and exhibition organised by Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery to discover and showcase the most outstanding contemporary works on paper from across the nation. Works acquired from the National Works on Paper become a part of the Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery’s collection –…

By Andrea Louise Thomas Melbourne-based author Toni Jordan has penned four critically acclaimed novels. Originally from Brisbane, she studied physiology at the University of Queensland. She worked in molecular biology as a protein chemist amongst other things before becoming interested in copy writing. She took a Professional Writing and Editing course at RMIT and it was there that her first novel, Addition (2008), was born. It became an international bestseller. Her latest novel, Our Tiny Useless Hearts, has just been released. It’s brilliantly written, insightful and hilarious. I caught up with Jordan before she speaks at Frankston Library on August…

NEPEAN LEAGUE THREE years and three days or a total of 1099 days – that’s how long it had been since the Tyabb Football Club had been on its losing streak. The Yabbies last win had come in the final home and away round of the 2013 season against Somerville. On Saturday, facing 50 straight losses in a row, Tyabb broke the drought, dominating for four quarters to beat Pearcedale by 37 points, 13.8 (86) to 6.13 (49). The Yabbies booted the first 11 goals of the game before Travis Bravo kicked the Panthers first at the 18 minute mark…

PENINSULA LEAGUE KARINGAL put a week of turmoil behind it on Saturday, ending Edithvale-Aspendale’s 2016 season. It was a massive game for both footy clubs at Ballam Park, the Bulls hoping to respond to the resignation of their coach Michael Triep on Tuesday, while the Eagles needed to win to reclaim their place in the top five. Edithvale now needs to beat Frankston YCW at home in the final home and away game of the season while hoping that Mt Eliza can beat Seaford, who is currently in fifth spot. The Tigers are two points clear on 34 points. Karingal…

SOCCER By Craig MacKenzie BAXTER continued to celebrate promotion from State 5 South with a 3-0 win over visitor Pakenham United on Saturday. Baxter created enough chances to make this a double-figure rout as Shaun Walker turned on a midfield masterclass while strikers Mark Pagliarulo and Liam Kilner terrorised the Pakenham defence. The visitors can thank keeper Jarrod Reynolds whose heroics time and again kept his team in the contest. Baxter should have scored four goals inside a five-minute period of the first half highlighted by an interpassing combination involving Frank Ntim and Pagliarulo and ending with a first-time Kilner…

A POLICE armoured vehicle blocked off a Mornington street this morning (Friday 12 August) as heavily armed Special Operations Group police arrested a man at gunpoint. The 26-year-old was seen crawling on his hands and knees from a Pamela Place property about 10am. He was handcuffed and led to a police car. The police Eastern Region Crime Unit is believed to be clamping down on burglaries and thefts in the area. “The SOG have arrested a 26-year-old man in Mornington this morning as part of an investigation into burglaries and thefts,” Victoria Police spokesman Thomas O’Byrne said. The night before, a home-made incendiary…

Police have arrested a woman following an alleged hit run collision which occurred in Mt Martha earlier this afternoon. The collision occurred on Forest Drive at 1.20pm when a 17-year-old Mt Martha boy was struck by a Toyota Land Cruiser travelling south. The 4×4 stopped at the scene but then allegedly drove off. Patrolling police located the car several streets away, outside a local school, and arrested the female driver. The boy was treated at the scene before being airlifted to hospital in a critical condition. The 46-year-old Mt Martha woman is currently being interviewed by detectives from the Major…

FIREFIGHTERS from Rosebud and Rye had to break down a laundry door to rescue a woman trapped in a burning house in Coleman Crescent, Rosebud, early this morning (Wednesday 10 August). The woman aged in her 40s had suffered a cardiac arrest in the single storey brick veneer when the fire took hold in her bedroom. Senior station officer Grant Kidd, of Rosebud CFA, said crews carried the non-responsive woman outside where she was revived by ambulance officers and airlifted to The Alfred hospital. He said the woman called triple zero at 6.16am and fire crews arrived within minutes. He…

MT ELIZA and Mornington fire brigades rushed to extinguish a fire at a laundromat in Mt Eliza Sunday 7 August. The Mt Eliza Pumper was first on the scene at 8.10am when crews found smoke billowing from the business and flames spurting from a dryer. Firefighters wore breathing apparatus to quickly extinguish the fire and make the building safe, Mt Eliza Fire Brigade 4th Lieutenant Mark Turnham said. “Using thermal imaging cameras and a gas detector, crews investigated the premise and found all to be OK.” Lieutenant Turnham said a passer-by had made a valiant attempt to put out the…

HASTINGS FNC ON Saturday the Hastings Football/Netball Club played against its local rival Crib Point Football/Netball Club. The Hastings boys certainly had to win this game to guarantee a spot in this year’s Mornington Peninsula Nepean finals series. They achieved this with ease! The boys played a great style of team orientated football to set up a great clash next week against Frankston Bombers at Frankston. Now the club has secured another shot at this year’s premiership, it’s all systems go in preparations for this year’s finals series. Get down to training this week and show your support as we…

By Brendan Parnell LIFE on court is still getting back to normal for Western Port Basketball Association after the dramatic events of Sunday 1 May. That day – sometime before dawn – the Steelers’ long-time basketball home at Somerville Recreation and Community Centre was destroyed by fire. While Western Port was only one of 26 community groups using the centre, with more than 1500 players, 50 referees and a vast number of volunteers, coaches and team support staff the loss of the two-court facility hit them hard. The loss has had a galvanising effect on the community. “We’ve been getting…

THREE Balnarring fishermen were lucky to survive hypothermia after being forced to swim 800 metres in freezing waters, 6pm Saturday (6 August). The men, one in his 50s and two in their 30s, were fishing from their four metre dinghy when the anchor became snagged under rocks. The boat flipped when they tried to free it, throwing them into the dark water. One of the men swam to shore to raise the alarm while the others initially stayed with the boat until help arrived. The Police Air Wing helicopter, Hastings police, Hastings Coast Guard, water police and Volunteer Marine Rescue…

THE future planning of town and villages in the Western Port area will be a significant issue in deciding councillors for the Red Hill, Watson and Cerberus wards at the October municipal elections. One major point of contention will be the time being taken by Mornington Peninsula Shire in drawing up a strategy for coastal towns, which has been flagged in successive budgets for the past 11 years. Critics claim small towns are seeing developments more suited to the peninsula’s major centres, such as Somerville, Hastings, Mornington, Dromana, Rosebud and Sorrento. They argue that the same criteria should not be…

CRIMES by youths across Melbourne and its suburbs mean people increasingly feel unsafe in their own homes according to state Liberal opposition leader Matthew Guy. Mr Guy visited Seaford and said it is unacceptable that young offenders are released on bail, especially for violent crimes including home invasions and carjackings. Some of those released show no respect for the law and reoffend upon release. “We need to get tougher on law and order in this state by changing the bail laws, particularly for juvenile offenders who can’t now be held,” he told The News. “You don’t give a second chance…

HOW to make a scarecrow? That was one class especially enjoyable for grade 5 pupils at Eastbourne Primary School. Red Hill artist Michael Leeworthy was at the Rosebud West school as part of the Mornington Peninsula Hinterland Scarecrow Festival and Trail. “Scarecrow making takes pupils away from the digital world into craft making and gets them to use their imaginations and work with others,” he said. Leeworthy is visiting eight peninsula schools and kindergartens as part of an artist-in-residence program. Showing the pupils two ways of making a scarecrow he sensibly kept the details simple. In his kit was a…

CREWS from three volunteer rescue organisations joined forces off Safety Beach last week for coordinated water training exercises. The Water Police took an active role and oversaw the exercises on Sunday 31 July. About 40 volunteers from Southern Peninsula Rescue Squad, Mornington Volunteer Marine Rescue, and Safety Beach and Queenscliff Coast Guards, manned six boats to practise man overboard drills and search and rescue operations at sea. Crews reported that the sight of the rescue vessels all lined up in Martha Cove was “impressive”. The aim of the exercises was to simulate the demands and dangers of real life rescues,…

INCREASING pressure from developers to build bulky multi-storey apartment towers along Ocean Beach Rd, Sorrento, has prompted Mornington Peninsula Shire to amend the planning scheme. Some of their planning applications – for buildings five storeys above ground level – are at odds with the low-scale character of the historic town. Senior planner James Bryan, in a report to the shire’s 25 July meeting, said that “without clearer development controls, the out of character developments will erode the valued historical character and built-form aesthetics of the village”. Amendments C203 and C204 aim to protect properties in the Sorrento activity centre, along…

A DOG was killed and two other dogs injured, one seriously, when a car they were riding in crashed into a pole at Rosebud, Thursday (4 August) night. The driver of the car, a 55-year-old Safety Beach man, was airlifted to Royal Melbourne Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The accident occurred at 6.40pm at the intersection of Point Nepean Rd and First Av. Sergeant David Collins, of Mornington Peninsula Highway Patrol, said the dead dog was on the front seat and hit the windscreen and the others were in the rear. He said marks on the rear of the front…

SAND trucked at great expense to Mt Martha Beach North has again “disappeared” after a series of storms. The sand loss has exposed the seeming flimsy supports on which many of the beach’s 90 bathing boxes sit. Some of the supports have been wedged with recently cut squares of timber while others teeter precariously on concrete pads. Many of the spindly frames have been pushed back towards the cliff by either wind or waves or, probably, both. Bolts are bent and timbers cracked. One bathing box leans backwards while another, set on a level earthen bank, is being undermined and…

IT’S not unusual for a mum to be proud of her son – that’s what mums are like. But the obvious joy and encouragement shown by Mornington’s Anita Duesterhaus for her 18-month-old bundle of joy is enchanting. Malakye was born without a right forearm and hand. In the great scheme of things, such an omission should hardly be noticed, so Ms Duesterhaus’s defence of her progeny, even while he was in her womb, is unsurprising. “I was offered a termination at 34 weeks,” she said last week. “There was nothing wrong with my son other than he never grew his…