FIVE years ago, Julie Hooper’s life changed in a split second, as her body was crushed by a sweeper truck that had rolled out of control. In a coma for two weeks, Hooper woke to doctors telling her she was lucky to be alive, but that with a snapped collar bone, broken ribs and vertebrae, some brain damage plus a pelvis smashed in six places, the then 45-year-old had a long journey of recovery ahead of her. Now, at the age of 50, Hooper has just won the road race and the time trial in the recent Women’s National Paralympics…
Author: Liz Bell
A SPECIAL council meeting will be held 24 January, in a last-ditch attempt to appeal controversial planning approval recently given by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal for a multi-storey aged care and residential development in Mount Eliza. The meeting will go ahead after being cancelled in mid-January because of a lack of councillors available, and just one day before the appeal deadline. The Ryman Healthcare proposal for a large development in Kunyung Road, Mount Eliza, has become a battleground for those trying to protect green wedge policy directions, and developers who rely on what have been described as the…
THE unveiling of a commemorative seat at Mornington Memorial Park at 11am on Monday 23 January marks the 81st anniversary of the largest loss of life in Australian maritime history, when the Montevideo Maru was sunk in the Pacific during World War II. The memorial includes a storyboard paying tribute to the 1053 Australian soldiers and civilians who died when the Montevideo Maru was sunk during the Japanese invasion of Rabaul on 1 July 1942 and became was one of the most shocking tragedies of the war in Australia and in the Pacific. The Battle of Rabaul was the first…
MOUNT Martha’s popular Birdrock Beach stairs are off limits for the time being, after erosion made the structure unstable and unsafe. Sections of Fishermans and Mount Martha North beaches also remain closed due to erosion and fears of landslides or rock falls. Disappointed residents have taken to social media to express their annoyance at not being able to use the Birdrock stairs, with summer in full swing and potentially two months of hot weather ahead. Mornington Peninsulas Shire Council says its hands are tied in regard to foreshore infrastructure repairs and has blamed the state government. Mornington Peninsula Shire’s water…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire Council says it is not backing down from enforcing its new food truck policy, amid claims a mobile ice cream vendor in Safety Beach is being forced out of business. Melbourne Ice Cream Van, which has traded for 24 years in and around Safety Beach, has started a petition calling on the council to “work out a fair resolution” to permit issues after being told its permit could be revoked. The owner of the business – who does not want to be named – said community support was growing and more than 500 people had signed the…
Correction 24/1/2023AUSTRALIA’S largest and busiest drive-in, the Lunar Drive-in at Dandenong has not yet closed, as incorrectly stated in this article published in the The News, 16/1/2023. It has been sold for development, but will be open every night until at least later in 2023, according to drive-in directors Katherine and David Kilderry. ONE of the Mornington Peninsula’s most recognisable assets, the Dromana 3 Drive-in, recently notched up 60 years of providing access to a world of cinematic adventure. As part of the birthday celebrations, owner Paul Whitaker reflected on his 47-year connection to the drive-in, starting in 1975 when…
“SUSTAINABLE” artist Liz Walker is passionate about the environment and has created a series of inspiring and thought-provoking works to highlight the impacts of waste. In February, the Red Hill artist – who was the recipient of a Mornington Peninsula Shire Council creative community grant – will exhibit paintings, sculptures and installations that are not only beautiful to look at but highlight the negative impacts of plastic waste on the peninsula’s beaches. The exhibition has been around18 months in the planning and creating stages, with Walker scouring beaches regularly to repurpose waste into art. “The point of the exhibition is…
WHEN Harry the much-loved golden retriever went missing from Rye on New Year’s morning, his human family could not have predicted the incredible and heart-warming community response that would follow. Harry’s disappearance and eventual recovery gripped communities across the country, highlighting the power of social media and the amazing connection between people and animals. Soon after one-year-old Harry broke free of his leash and ran off from his “mum” Leonie Jarrett at the Rye shops, his devoted family took to social media to alert the community. For days Harry remained elusive and there were no firm sightings, with Jarrett and…
THE three-day search for a 20-year-old man missing at Gunamatta Beach was scaled back on Monday morning. However, local police will continue assisting rescue services, including Life Saving Victoria and the police Air Wing to find the man, who is presumed drowned. The man had been swimming with his 16-year-old brother at the notoriously dangerous beach when they both got into difficulties late afternoon Friday 6 January. The boys’ father, who was watching his sons from the beach, swam out to help when he saw them struggling but soon got into trouble himself. He and his 16-year-old son made it…
THE summer influx of visitors to the Mornington Peninsula and the amount of rubbish being left on beaches and roadsides has prompted calls for a better tourism management planning and a fresh approach to litter control. Paid and timed parking is likely to be introduced to prevent beachgoers hogging parks in hot spot shopping and residential areas. Community leaders have for years been demanding the council take proactive action on limiting the negative impacts of tourism, including rubbish, jet ski misbehaviour, and “dangerous” parking near beaches. Michelle Cheers, of Rye Community Group Alliance, said it was distressing to see the…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire Council was inundated by calls from concerned dog owners after a sign mix-up at Mount Martha resulted in dogs being banned from beaches day and night. Council’s manager community safety and compliance, Shannon Maynard, said before 2019, Mount Martha south beach had “dog prohibited” signs throughout the daylight savings period. In 2019, it was identified that this area had never been gazetted as a dog prohibited area, so “dog on leash” stickers were placed over the original signs. A standard audit by council contractors revealed that signs were missing at two smaller entrances to the beach. In…
HIGH-profile rescues over summer on the Mornington Peninsula have turned the spotlight on the importance of volunteer marine rescue groups and the lifesaving work they do. With the 2022/23 Christmas period being one of the busiest on the peninsula for several years, thousands of locals and tourists have been taking to the water on everything from motorboats and jet skis to paddle boards and blow-up rafts. Southern Peninsula Rescue Squad, which was formed more than 55 years ago after prime minister Harold Holt went missing near Portsea, is now so crucial to marine rescue on the southern peninsula and its…
OPPONENTS of a retirement village outside the growth boundary in Mount Eliza are refusing to give up, despite the project being given the go ahead by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. The VCAT decision released late December overrules Mornington Peninsula Shire Council’s opposition to the plan. Plans for the redevelopment of the heritage-listed Moondah mansion in Kunyung Road have been scaled down slightly from Ryman Healthcare’s original proposal in 2019, but will still include 104 independent units, 27 assisted living suites and a 60-bed aged care centre. The shire has continuously opposed the proposal, knocking back the first two…
PENINSULA Community Legal Centre has welcomed a decision by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal that could help protect renters facing eviction in the toughest rental market Victoria has ever seen. VCAT has refused to grant a possession order to a landlord who wanted to sell an investment property with vacant possession, because to do so would effectively render a family of five homeless. Importantly, the renters had not breached their tenancy agreement. They had also attempted to find alternative accommodation but, because of the tight rental market and the general economic climate, there was nothing suitable available. “The VCAT…
A HOME care provider that delivers services on the Mornington Peninsula says the current home care crisis could be alleviated by more people accessing the telehealth option. Floyd Gomes, who runs Atticus Health, says many peninsula residents are still waiting for home care, with providers Mecwacare and Bolton Clark struggling to find staff since taking over the service from Mornington Peninsula Shire Council earlier this year. “The feedback we get from our own home care managers is that those affected by the service handover and continued lack of personnel are still experiencing very long waits for services,” he said. “To…
THE future of a $10 million plan to ease the southern Mornington Peninsula’s crippling staffing shortages by building worker accommodation in Sorrento will not be decided until the new year. A permit for the 34-bedroom former aged care home Sorrento Lodge in Beach Road to be turned into worker accommodation was approved by Mornington Peninsula Shire Council in February, but progress halted when objectors concerned about traffic, noise and neighbourhood character took the matter to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT). The state government has now called in the matter because of issues raised during the VCAT hearings over…
IT was a day of celebration at St John’s Anglican Church, Flinders on Sunday 4 December, when the Archbishop of Melbourne, The Most Reverend Dr Philip Freier, dedicated a stained-glass window created by renowned glass artist David Wright OAM and his wife Sue McPhee. The window, titled The Light, is the third in a project of three windows titled Sea Windows that now grace the southern side of the 130-year-old King Street church. Each window weaves the Christian story of Jesus with the fragile ecological environment of Flinders and its surrounds. This window celebrates the rough and magnificent coast on…
WHEN Melbourne-based doctor Graham Cato decided to open a clinic in Balnarring around 43 years ago, the best indicator that he and his wife had made the right move was the area’s unquestionable sense of community. Cato, who retired at the end of November, says that after four decades of providing GP services to Balnarring and patients as far away as Flinders and Red Hill, the warmth and openness of the communities remains the highlight of his career. “When we decided to start up a practice in an empty shop in Balnarring in 1979, the area was so quiet you…
DOG walkers are being warned not to let animals drink from dams that look discoloured after dead animals were found floating in a pond at Mount Martha public golf course on Tuesday 6 December. The deaths are suspected to have been caused by algae that appeared after a combination of heavy rain, nutrient runoff and warm weather. A resident who noticed the animals when walking her dogs said it was a distressing to see a dead adult duck, a turtle and four ducklings floating in the murky water, which appeared to have a slimy film on the surface and a…
ANIMAL rescuer Nigel Williamson faces some pretty hairy situations in his daily work that would make even the bravest among us tremble with trepidation. But when it comes to helping pooches, possums and pelicans – and everything in between – the 37-year veteran of animal rescue wouldn’t have it any other way. “Yes, it can be a little dangerous and I’ve been in some tricky situations, but it’s not about me at all, it’s about the animals,” he said. “Sometimes I’m left scratching my head trying to work out how to get to a trapped or displaced animal, but I’ve…
A DROMANA filmmaker is on a mission to show women how to “show up for themselves” and accept the way they are. Niika Briskin has had a diverse career in film, television and broadcasting, and describes herself as being “neurodivergent”, or someone whose brain works a little differently to their mainstream peers. After growing up in a migrant family with strict expectations of how women should behave, Briskin said she felt misunderstood and on the outer for much of her childhood. But after finding her way as a young adult through embracing her creativity and uniqueness, Briskin’s mission now is…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire has been accused of costing flood victims hundreds of dollars and adding to their trauma by not telling them about a free flood waste tipping service. Rob Johnstone’s garage in Mornington was flooded during two heavy rain events in recent weeks, damaging much of what was stored there, including carpets and various bits of building materials. Johnstone, who knew the state government was reimbursing selected municipalities – including Mornington Peninsula Shire – for accepting flood waste at no charge to residents, recently took a trailer load of the sodden flood waste to Mornington’s waste disposal centre in…
IT’S beginning to look a lot like Christmas as the Mount Eliza community takes hold of the festive spirit. As part of a tree yarn bombing project, Mount Eliza Chamber of Commerce has invited the public to decorate the town centre’s trees in the Christmas spirit. Chamber spokesperson Alison Doherty said the tree decoration project had created interest from residents and shoppers from further afield, with young and old stopping to observe, touch and admire the different designs. More than 60 trees in the main Mount Eliza business area have been decorated by volunteers, including school groups, families, individuals and…
RESIDENTS living near Mount Eliza’s “nude” beach Sunnyside North are overwhelmingly in favour of shedding the “clothes optional” status. However, people who live outside the area believe it should remain clothing free. Mornington Peninsula Shire councillors will this week (at their 6 December meeting) consider the results of a community survey and a council officer’s recommendation that the clothing optional status of the Sunnyside North Beach is maintained. Earlier this year the council asked the community whether the beach should retain its clothing optional status and received 4285 responses that have now been assessed. All respondents were asked if they…
ONE of Australia’s fastest-growing sports, pickleball, has taken hold on the Mornington Peninsula. The low impact sport – a cross between badminton, ping pong and tennis – emphasises players’ reflexes and ball positioning, rather than speed and power. Julie Stuart from the Sorrento Community Centre and an avid pickleball player, said the sport had health and wellness benefits. Stuart said pickleball has had a gradual introduction into Australia since 2015 with a small group of enthusiasts starting the first incorporated association in 2017, and the Pickleball Australia Association starting up in 2020. There are now associations and playing groups in…
POLICE say they will crackdown on crime in Rosebud after community meetings raised concerns about graffiti, anti-social behaviour, hoon driving and alcohol consumption on the foreshore. The response is part of the Neighbourhood Policing Program which sees police working alongside the public address concerns and develop responses to local problems. Rosebud has been historically identified as a hotspot for crime at 6686 crimes per 100,000 population in 2014, while still behind the Victorian average of 7804. A police Eyewatch post states that police would be taking a zero tolerance approach against anti-social issues, with members from Rosebud out in force…
THE turtle nesting season started this month and volunteers at the Devilbend Natural Features Reserve are doing their bit to ensure this little understood native creature has a better chance of survival. Under a citizen science turtle nest monitoring program by The Crew at Daangean group, turtle nests at the Tuerong reserve are being protected from one of their biggest threats – foxes. It’s been a massive few years at Devilbend, starting in 2018 when volunteers from The Crew at Daangean spent six months mapping the 1000ha reserve, covering the shoreline and surrounding areas methodically two to three times, looking…
IT’S not surprising that there has been a lot of bee activity around the Mornington Peninsula lately, with spring being the busiest time of the year for the pollinating insects. Just like many other living creatures, bees spend this time of the year restocking on food, as well as starting new colonies and moving around to find new territory. But there is no reason to panic, according to Mount Eliza beekeeper Christopher Watson, who says bees are generally placid and deserve human respect for the benefits they bring to the environment. Watson only became interested in beekeeping a few years…
By Liz Bell and Keith Platt THE Mornington Peninsula seems likely to retain its political status quo in the wake of last Saturday’s state election, with two Liberal and one Labor members of parliament. However, there has been a shift of occupancy, with Hastings looking like being held by Labor and the Liberal Sam Groth decisively taking Nepean from Labor’s Chris Brayne. On Monday, Liberal Chris Crewther had a slender 0.48% lead over independent Kate Lardner in Mornington while in Hastings, Mornington Peninsula Shire councillor and Labor candidate Paul Mercurio was 1.34% ahead of Liberal Briony Hutton. Mercurio, best known…
MORE than 80 women trekked 60 kilometres from Frankston to the Cape Schanck lighthouse for the Women’s Spirit Project’s annual Frank2Schanck walk. Over three days (18-20 November) the group walked the length of the peninsula in all weather conditions – rain, shine, flood and mud – as part of a mission to help women transform their lives through accessible fitness, health and wellbeing activities. For many, the weekend’s walk was a life-changing event, said program manager Jodie Belyea. “So many women achieved personal bests after months of training having never attempted such an adventure,” Belyea said. As part of the…