RABBIT numbers in Mt Martha’s Briars Park wildlife sanctuary are going down as eradication action continues. Mornington Peninsula Shire rangers closed the sanctuary to the public on 25 August and it is expected to reopen on Monday 23 September. Park staff are making a determined attempt to rid the sanctuary of rabbits, which have existed inside the predator-proof fence since it was erected. Several attempts have been made in recent years but this effort is the most comprehensive with eradication techniques including filling in burrows to force rabbits into the open, allowing members of the Sporting Shooters’ Association to cull…
Year: 2015
MORNINGTON builder L Clarke and Sons has asked Mornington Peninsula Shire for approval to build a two-storey apartment complex on the Mornington Youth and Community Centre site in Wilsons Rd, Mornington. The project would include 28 apartments, basement car parking, vegetation removal and “associated works”. Clarke and Sons bought the old youth club hall and land from the shire for $2.1 million at an auction in mid-2014. The council made the decision to sell the property in 2011. More than 100 people attended the sale but it went ahead under a cloud as residents and neighbours made a last-ditch appeal…
THE state government last week warned Victorians about a long, hot and dry fire season ahead but made no mention of a key driver of drier conditions and hotter temperatures across southeast Australia – El Nino. The Bureau of Meteorology said the El Nino weather pattern now building in the Pacific Ocean could be worse than the record-breaker of 1997-98, which was one of the drivers of the so-called Millennium drought, which lasted from 1995 to 2010 in some parts of Australia. The drought in Victoria broke in March 2010 when storms pounded the state but it was not declared…
IT might be getting to the pointy end of the season for the AFL, but players were not too busy when asked to sign surfboards for a charity auction. The players stayed off the field long enough to take turns with black markers to autograph boards made in their team colours for the Disabled Surfers Association Mornington Peninsula branch. The auction for the 18 boards starts 2.30pm Sunday 13 September at the Baha taco and music bar, 2201 Point Nepean Rd, Rye. Bids, starting at $650 a board, will be taken from the floor and over the phone. Unsold boards…
CRIME gangs with a disciplined culture and ability to plan and set targets has given a new potency to crime in Frankston and on the Mornington Peninsula. The tech savvy gangs use social media, including Facebook, and encryption apps to co-ordinate activities, allowing their members to mobilise and disperse quickly, recruit members and plan their next hit. Easy access to stolen cars and quicker freeway travel times mean that our once sleepy hamlets are now high on the agenda of the often race-related gangs who regard “slap on the wrist” penalties as green cards to commit more crimes. Mornington Detective…
ITS very name means those diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD) can face criticism and families can also be stigmatised. The word ‘borderline’ tends to make many think there is not really anything wrong with someone diagnosed with BPD and an individual’s ‘personality’ is often judged by others. In fact, the ‘borderline’ aspect refers to the disorder being on the borderline of psychosis and neurosis and the causes of BPD are not yet fully understood. For those facing life with the mental disorder the road to recovery can be paved with criticism and others not taking the condition seriously. BPD…
THE opening of a $224,000 signalised pedestrian crossing in Bittern has made crossing Frankston-Flinders Rd a safer proposition for pedestrians. About 50 pedestrians an hour cross the road between the train station and shops, and in peak hour around 1000 vehicles an hour drive past at 60kph. “Without a pedestrian-operated crossing, local residents have been taking risks when crossing the busy road in between traffic breaks,” Eastern Victoria MP Daniel Mulino said. “Bittern residents will now be able to cross Frankston-Flinders Rd safely.” Hastings MP Neale Burgess last month called on Roads Minister Luke Donnellan “to get on with the…
TOORAK College, Mt Eliza, was in lock-down Wednesday morning after a bomb scare. Students were kept in their classrooms for “a couple of hours” while Mornington police searched the grounds. Nothing was found. Detective Sergeant Peter Drake said a man called the school to say a bomb had been left there. He did not leave his contact details and police were trying to track him down later in the day. “We did an exhaustive search of the general area but found nothing,” Detective Drake said. “We take all calls of this nature seriously.” Anyone with information is asked to call…
Two people have escaped unharmed after three armed men broke into their home in Hastings overnight. The men entered the house early on Tuesday while the occupants were sleeping. The 20-year-old male occupant of the house confronted the intruders while a female occupant called police. A shot was fired before the intruders fled. Nothing was stolen during the brazen break in, and the occupants of the house were uninjured. Police forensic experts and detectives were on the scene this morning collecting evidence and investigating the circumstances surrounding the home invasion.
AN unusual census is being organised by the Western Port Biosphere. Schools, community groups and individuals are being asked to record sightings of animals, birds, reptiles, plants and insects for one week next month. The 2142 square kilometre biosphere covers the municipalities of Frankston, Mornington Peninsula, Casey, Cardinia and Bass Coast as well as French Island. The Lifesearch program – “citizen science in action” – is designed to increase knowledge about biodiversity within the biosphere and how to manage and protect it for the future. The Western Port Biosphere contains national and marine parks, rural agriculture and urban-growth areas and…
THE Western Port Steelers basketball team has re-signed Division 1 women’s coach Andrew Jacobson for next year’s Big V season. Jacobson came on board before the 2015 campaign and steering the team to just missing out on finishing inside the top five. The team fell one game short of playing finals with nine wins and11 losses in its first year in Division 1. Jacobson previously coached Frankston’s SEABL teams and was head coach for 24 years of Victorian championship sides in the VJBL – from under-12s to under-20s boys and girls. “The challenge next season is to take the next…
SACKING staff at the Port of Hastings Development Authority has seen millions of dollars “lost” to Hastings, according to Opposition leader Matthew Guy. Speaking to journalists in Frankston last week Mr Guy said 55 jobs had gone and payouts “will cost millions”. A news release from Opposition ports spokesman David Hodgett said the state government had paid out $2.64 million to 17 staff made redundant at the planning authority. “That works out to an average redundancy payment of over $155,000 a worker,” Mr Hodgett stated in a news release. “These 17 jobs should never have been lost because a second…
Emergency services have spent the evening at the scene of a crash which claimed a woman’s life in Somerville. Investigators have been told a car was travelling on Western Port Highway when the driver collided with an oncoming vehicle, near the Bungower Road intersection, about 5.30pm. The driver, a 19-year-old Western Australian woman, died at the scene. The male driver of the second car was taken to Frankston Hospital with minor injuries. Tonight’s accident has occurred only three months after another 19-year-old, Olivia Steadman, was killed just a short distance up the same stretch of road. That accident lead to a groundswell…
FRENCH artist Michael Husser has left his mark on Rye’s arts and culture precinct. His two striking murals are among the works to be spawned from Mornington Peninsula Shire’s Arts and Culture precinct at Police Point Shire Park, Portsea. The Fisherman depicts seaside themes on the wall of The Rock cafe, corner Napier St and Pt Nepean Rd, Rye. Humans is on the foreshore toilet block near the lime kilns, Rye. Husser developed the concepts and drawings during his week as artist in residence at Police Point. He said The Fisherman “symbolises that part in all of us looking to…
THE state planning tribunal did not make an “accidental slip” in its Arthurs Seat gondola permit conditions, as claimed by the Save Our Seat protest group, and no correction will be made, the tribunal has decided. SOS queried what appeared to be a contradiction in one condition the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal placed on the contentious cable car project. In condition 39, VCAT stated an emergency plan must be approved “prior to the commencement of the use” of the ride, that is, after construction was completed. Elsewhere it stated that the plan should be approved “before the development commences…
COLONIAL Leisure Group is selling the Portsea Hotel building and land not the business, says the group’s national operations manager Grady Patching. Mr Patching was responding to the report in last week’s paper about several Mornington Peninsula tourism properties on the market or sold (“Overseas investor eyes on us”, 25/8/15). He stated in an email that “the freehold only is for sale not the business. CLG will not be selling the leasehold any time soon”. The News stated the freehold was worth $16 million. Mr Patching stated that “Portsea Hotel just had the most profitable year since Chris has owned…
AN appeal has been launched to build a centre that can save and turn lives around for troubled young people on the southern peninsula. Land has been set aside for a Wellness Pavilion at Rosebud Secondary College that can provide a place for meditation and rooms for students to speak with counsellors. Two mothers spoke movingly about how the suicide of a young member has affected their lives. Year 11 student Hamish Swayn described the far-reaching impact the suicide of his uncle last year continues to have across his family and local community. “People can easily get stuck in a…
HILLVIEW Quarries says it wants to reopen the old Pioneer quarry in Boundary Rd, Dromana, claiming it is running out of rock at its existing pit, which was started less than two years ago. Hillview CEO Paul Nitas has written to residents living near the old quarry and stated Hillview’s existing quarry off Hillview Quarry Drive had been operating for nearly 50 years “and its resource is diminishing”. “While the Boundary Road site [Pioneer] has not been actively quarried in recent years, we know the site has significant reserves,” he stated. The site has not been quarried for almost 20…
ON the weekend of the 7 -9 of August the Australian Karate Federation held their National Championships in Adelaide. The Victorian team consisted of karate athletes from all over the state ranging in age from nine year old to over forty-five year old divisions. The Victorian team was a strong one with 12 athletes from the Mornington Ishinryu Dojo. Fourteen-year-old Jade Colver –Vella, a Padua College student, has now become a four time National Champion and two time Oceania champion. A veteran of the sport at such a young age, she won three gold medals at the competition; female cadet…
PENINSULA LEAGUE LANGWARRIN denied Karingal its one and only win for the season on Saturday after coming from six goals down early in the match. In coach Gavin Artico’s last game at the helm, the Kangaroos trailed by as much as 36 points early in the match after the Bulls came out desperate to win their first game of the season. However, the Kangas slowly worked their way back into the contest and got to within 15 points at the halfway mark of the match. It wasn’t until late in the game that the home side hit the front, eventually…
NEPEAN LEAGUE SOMERVILLE will play Rosebud in the second semi-final next Saturday at Rye’s RJ Rowley Reserve after holding off a late charge from Sorrento in the Nepean Division qualifying final. Leading by four points at the final change, Somerville kicked three goals in the opening eight minutes of the final quarter to open up what appeared to be a match winning and game-high 27-point lead. However, as it so often has done this season, the Eagles took the foot off the pedal and allowed Sorrento back into the contest. The Sharks responded with three quick goals of their own…
THE picture raffled by Mrs Brunning in aid of the Red Cross Fund was won by Miss Eileen Simcock, the winning number being 16. *** MR McCormack wishes to acknowledge the receipt of 10s from Mrs J. Hogan donated to the Red Cross Fund, which was handed in to the treasurer some weeks ago. *** CR W. J. Oates requests us to acknowledge the receipt of £20 8s 9d, being proceeds from the sale of Red Cross buttons for the month of July in the Shire of Frankston and Hastings. *** MESSRS T. R. B. Morton and Son will hold…
THE Andrews government has been accused of putting public safety at risk during the upcoming trial of all-night public transports on weekends. Earlier this month the Labor state government announced a one-year trial of 24-hour Friday and Saturday train services, called “Homesafe”, across the state including the Frankston line. Liberal opposition leader Matthew Guy visited Seaford train station last Monday (24 August) and slammed the government for failing to budget for protective services officers at all stations all night. “That leaves quite a number of stations like Seaford exposed to no security after 11pm,” Mr Guy said. PSOs will be…
NOELS Gallery at Red Hill is about to enter a new phase after being renovated and refurbished by new owners Rebecca and Craig Davy. The couple previously owned galleries at Flinders and Sorrento and plan to hold exhibitions and artists’ demonstrations (sometimes with dinner) at Noels. Exhibitions will include paintings, glass, jewellery and ceramics. Craig Davy started painting six years ago and has won 70 awards. His new works will be on show for opening night, Saturday 5 September. To arrange an invitation to the opening email becdavy@iinet.net.au The yet-to-be-opened cafe at Noels will be open for breakfast and light…
HELP is at hand for those who feel they are drowning in mounting debt. A new website and mobile phone app launched late last month to offer free financial guidance can be the first step to put consumers back in charge of their finances. The financialfirstaid.org.au site is the brainchild of FMC Mediation and Counselling Victoria, a not-for-profit provider of federal government-funded family and community programs. The online site and app provides access to information split into three categories: ‘I need help right now’, ‘I need to understand’ and ‘I want to know more’. Easy-to-read information about how to recover from…
WAS it a Ghillie Dhu* or a Shellycoat* who, at the 24 August council meeting, spirited a packet of family assorted biscuits on to the hospitality table in the council offices foyer? Council Watch, noting a previous column that complained of a quality drop-off in the biscuits available at council meetings, felt he had overstepped the mark. He felt reproved. Here was a cornucopia of creams, a plethora of pastries suddenly arrived beside the glass jar of cookies provided for council-watching aesthetes. CW took a humble shortbread from the aesthetes’ jar as atonement for his previous curmudgeonly presumption. It turned…
THE shire council will ask South East Water to set aside 10 per cent of its 2.8-hectare decommissioned reservoir site in Mt Eliza for a public reserve as well as provide land for social housing. The council decision follows the release of an independent panel report into the future of 24 blocks of land on the corner of Barmah and Kanya roads near Kunyung Rd owned by the government water authority. The panel report did not recommend either public reserve or public housing blocks. In early 2014, South East Water asked the shire to rezone the 24 blocks of about…
A MT MARTHA couple woke in fright to discover “three or four” young men stealthily ransacking their home on The Esplanade, 3.30am, Saturday 22 August. The men, described as Maori and African and in their late teens to early 20s, were using mobile phones as torches to roam from room to room, stealing items, including jewellery, from bedside tables. They gained entry to the house by breaking into the couple’s car and using a remote control device to get in through the garage. Detective Senior Sergeant Nick Vallas, of Mornington police, said the startled couple jumped out of bed when…
IT’S been a nervous few months for Mornington Yacht Club members but champagne corks are popping following the signing of a new 21-year lease with the shire council for the club’s prime spot on the harbour. The nervousness came after Mornington Environment Association (MEA) opposed the proposed lease in April, and Mornington Peninsula Shire was forced to hold a hearing in June so MEA members could make submissions. Crs Hugh Fraser and Andrew Dixon heard submissions. Shire officers then had to fend off criticisms as well as answer MEA concerns. Councillors approved the lease last Monday. The club will pay…
POLICE have seized live and dried cannabis plants with an estimated value of $261,000 during a raid on a Mt Eliza “crop house”. Eight Mornington detectives smashed their way into the Wimbledon Av property at 7am on Wednesday 26 August where they found 87 plants being grown in bedrooms and bathrooms, as well as an array of drug paraphernalia, including special lighting, hydroponic equipment, extraction fans and charcoal filters. Police said electrical wiring to heat the crops had been run directly from the street supply, bypassing the house’s electricity meter to avoid detection. No one was home at the…