TYABB market gardener Steve Taranto joined the heavyweight prize-winners at this year’s Red Hill Show with pumpkins weight 204 and 175 kilograms. The journey of the giant pumpkins is one that has taken around six months, with Mr Taranto having planted the pumpkins late last year. “We planted the pumpkins in October, this whole process takes a while,” he said. “The type of pumpkin is called an Atlantic giant, so it’s not your regular everyday pumpkin.” “I’ve been growing these giant pumpkins for the past eight years. The kids love it and they love the Red Hill Show. It started…
Year: 2018
A GROUP of Mornington residents are celebrating a “victory” in their fight against a 371-unit retirement village development in Roberts Road. This comes after developer Steller Estates withdrew its application for appeal to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal after the project was earlier knocked back by Mornington Peninsula Shire Council. As a result of the withdrawal, VCAT has cancelled a compulsory conference set down for 5 April and a hearing date listed for 21 May. Opponent Christine Pingiaro, who lives nearby, described the developer’s appeal withdrawal as a “temporary victory”. First published in the Mornington News – 20 March…
THIS racing season means more than usual for Mornington-bred jockey Jake Noonan as he aims to set a positive example for his newborn son, Isaac. Noonan “is more driven than ever” to be at his best and will head into the feature Mornington Cup meeting with high hopes as he boards the Michael Meaghan-trained Prussian Vixen in the $200,000 Listed Hareeba Stakes on Saturday 24 March. Noonan said his whole outlook and perspective on life has completely changed since his son entered his world on Thursday 2 November and is hoping to be a positive role model for his four-month-old…
MORE than 20 blind golfers from across Australia descended upon the Rosebud Country Club for the Victorian Blind Golf Championships and the ISPS HANDA Australian Blind Golf Open two weeks ago. The golfers competed over two days for the Victorian Blind Golf Championships on Monday 5 and Tuesday 6 March before teeing off for the national title in the ISPS HANDA Australian Blind Golf Open on Thursday 8 and Friday 9 March. Sydney’s Rod Mills was a standout in the men’s events as he led all the way in the Australian Blind Golf Open to secure the national title with…
SOCCER THE State League season kicks off this weekend with Mornington, Peninsula Strikers and Skye United looming as serious promotion prospects. Mornington and Strikers will underpin their promotion push with quality visa players while Skye has used the local market to bolster its senior squad. Promotion for Mornington would mean a third State 1 South-East title in four seasons and would unlock the NPL door for Adam Jamieson’s men. “If anything I was probably guilty of being overconfident last season so I’m a bit more wary this time but we know what’s ahead of us and what we have to…
SUB-DISTRICT By Mr & Mrs IT Gully DROMANA cruised into the MPCA Sub District grand final after thrashing Carrum Downs in the semi final over the weekend. The Hoppers smashed 254 before rolling Carrum Downs on the second day for just 118. On the opening day on Saturday the Hoppers lost their first two wickets for ten runs before Kierran Voelkl and Jack Fowler steadied the ship with 53 and 72 runs respectively. Jedd Savage then strolled to the crease and helped himself to 63 while Sam Fowler chimed in at the end with 34 to help the Hoppers to…
DISTRICT By Mr & Mrs IT Gully BADEN Powell will play in the MPCA District grand final after a thrilling last over win against Mt Martha. Baden Powell was shaken up after two players pulled out due to injury before the match. Things were made even worse when skipper Craig Entwistle injured a calf and was forced to bat with a runner, however, with one over to spare Baden Powell was able to pick up victory and advance to the grand final. The Braves resumed day two on their home turf at 0/2 chasing Mt Martha’s first innings total of…
PENINSULA By Mr & Mrs IT Gully FLINDERS will play in the MPCA Peninsula grand final after beating Moorooduc in the Peninsula Semi Final by six wickets. Moorooduc won the toss and batted first but lost their first three wickets for just twelve runs. These wickets included Rashimal Mendis and the dangerous Madushanka Perera for a duck. Shamith Kannangara steadied the Moorooduc ship with 43 and Nick Williams scored 41 at the bottom of the innings, but it only helped the Ducks to 161 in 79.5 overs. Dwayne Field, Matt Burns and Neil Barfuss were all convincing with the ball…
PROVINCIAL By Mr & Mrs IT Gully LANGWARRIN will play in the MPCA Provincial grand final after beating Mornington with ten wickets in hand in a dominant semi final performance. Langwarrin openers Matt Prosser and Taylor Smith were both at the crease for the first ball and the final ball after both scoring an unbeaten 76 to see Langwarrin finish on 158, chasing Mornington’s 157. Mornington won the toss and batted first. Langwarrin’s Adam Campbell was a star with the ball, bowling 20 overs, nine maidens and snaring 4/37. Matt Prosser wasn’t far behind also bowling 20 overs and picking…
WE call special attention to an advertisement in another column of a public meeting, to consider the best means of perpetuating the memory of the late Sir John Madden amongst us. Since the Franskton man’s lamented death there has been singularly unanimous public expression of opinion, both in the Press and otherwise, of his many virtues as Lieutenant Governor and as Chief Justice of Victoria. Many tributes to his upright personal character have also appeared. It has been very fully recognised that in all his actions and in his many public utterances, he always was on the side of right,…
WHEN Maria Peters looks back on a 30-year career at Chisholm TAFE Institute she says it is the camaraderie between staff she will miss most of all in retirement. The CEO decided last year to step down at Chisholm Institute on 31 December and hand over the chief executive officer reins of the vocational education college’s campuses to successor Dr Richard Ede. “I know I’ll miss the people and I’ll miss the intellectual stimulation but I’m just looking to have some time to re-energise and I’ll always have my eye on Chisholm and I’m sure it’ll go on to bigger…
OBJECTIONS are being lodged and a petition signed opposing a two-storey 180-bedroom aged care centre near the corner of Bird Rock Avenue and the Esplanade, Mt Martha. The proposal by the Lendlease adjoins the company’s existing Martha’s Point and Koorootang retirement villages. Mornington Peninsula Shire has been asked to approve subdivision of 594 and 602 the Esplanade to create a lot at the rear for the aged care centre. Access to the centre would be from the Esplanade and houses in Bird Rock Avenue would back onto the proposed development. Planning consultants hired by objectors say the “constraints of the…
BERG Mt Martha, a bushland friends group for the Balcombe Estuary, is gearing up for its biannual family day on Sunday 25 March with an emphasis on art and crafts. The free fun activities are designed to help youngsters understand the environment and the creatures who live in it at the old camping ground in Mirang Avenue from 10am to 2pm. There will be art and craft activities for children (including face painting) and Indigenous artists from Baluk Arts will run workshops to create bush critters from hay and wool. Other activities will include bird watching with Birdlife Australia, model…
A BOOK launched in Mornington last week comes about after a chat between an author and a Main Street book seller. Patrick Guest got the idea for his children’s book Rabby the Brave from a conversation he had with Ann Briggs, who has worked at Farrell’s bookshop for the past six years. While chatting, Ms Brigg’s revealed she was soon to have a “small surgical procedure”. Being naturally curious, Mr Guest asked what it was all about and was told she was getting ready to donate a kidney to her husband, Garry, whose kidney function had fallen by 93 per…
AIRCRAFT of many shapes and sizes took to the skies over Tyabb (and beyond) during the Tyabb Air Show on Sunday 11 March. Peninsula Aero Club president Jack Vevers said the “pretty busy day went off without any hiccups”, with a record crowd thrilling to the sound of Rolls Royce Merlins and the roar of heavy radial engines. Nicknamed “War & Peace” the show featured planes from WWI, such as Tiger Moths and Spitfires, as well as a WWII-era Mustang fighter, a Melbourne-built A68-199, and the world’s only airworthy Lockheed Hudson bomber. Other drawcards included high powered military machines, like…
A GREEN sea turtle found sick and tired on a Rye beach last August is now back at sea somewhere off Victoria’s east coast near Mallacoota. Named Terry by staff at Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium, the turtle weighed 7.7kg when rescued and “a healthy” 15.8kg when released earlier this month at Secret Beach. Terry underwent a rehabilitation program designed and supervised by the aquarium’s veterinary team. “There’s no doubt that this special turtle means a great deal to our team and we’ve been absolutely privileged to work closely with Terry over the last seven months as we’ve nursed him back…
ONE result of the Sufferfest triathlon in Mt Martha earlier this month is that councillors may take over deciding which events can be held. Permit applications are now determined by council officers. Cr Sam Hearn is expected to move at the next meeting that councillors develop an evaluation policy “as a matter of urgency”. The most obvious date-clash over the 3-4 March weekend was with the annual Clean-up Australia Day which has been running 19 years. The clash – which saw a six-hour closure of the Esplanade from Mornington to beyond Mt Martha – was described as “highly disappointing” by…
A “50 Shades of Grey” adoption promotion ending next Sunday (25 March) is aimed at finding new homes for 30 greyhounds from the RSPCA Victoria’s Animal Care Centres. RSPCA Victoria animal care manager Liz Walker said the dogs had distinct personalities. “We have excitable, attention-seeking greys through to docile, shy gentle giants,” Ms Walker said. Most are exempt from having to wear muzzles in public and come with a reduced $50 adoption fee. “Greyhounds are intelligent, friendly dogs with a gentle and sensitive temperament. They are well suited to a variety of different lifestyles and homes, which is why they…
CRISIS accommodation is now available for women, children and their pets fleeing family violence. The Eastern Domestic Violence Service (EDVOS) says pets can play a significant role in family dynamics and it is importance to also support them when women and children are fleeing family violence. EDVOS now has accommodation available at three crisis properties in Melbourne’s eastern metropolitan area that can safely accommodate women, children and their pets – each equipped with kennels, pet food and other animal amenities. The service is also working with Women’s Liberation Halfway House (WLHH) to provide the first specialist pet-friendly women’s refuge in…
A STRONG show of public support helped swing the vote in favour of building a 50-metre swimming pool at a packed Mornington Peninsula Shire Council meeting on Tuesday night, 13 March. About 150 “enthusiastic but well behaved” supporters crammed into Rosebud Memorial Hall to back the larger option for the Rosebud Aquatic Centre at Besgrove Street. Some carried signs urging approval of the 50-metre pool; others wore water polo caps. The mayor Cr Bryan Payne later described the unanimous council vote as “fantastic”. He said the councillors’ backing of the larger pool over a 25-metre lower-cost alternative recommended by shire…
SENIOR police on the Mornington Peninsula are pleased with the drop in crime across almost all categories over the past 12 months. Crime Statistics Agency figures for the year ending 31 December 2017 released last week show reported crimes in the region were down from 9123 to 8483. Mornington Peninsula Local Area Commander Janene Denton, based at Rosebud, said it was “good news that crime is trending in the right direction”. “We live in a very safe area,” she said. “There is good community spirit on the peninsula and no reason for people to feel unsafe.” Crimes Against the Person…
AS part of its commitment to become “carbon neutral” Mornington Peninsula Shire is trying out electric cars with a view to having them become part of vehicle fleet. “Electric vehicles can have zero tailpipe emissions when powered by renewable energy and will be considered in our efforts to lead the way on tackling the climate change challenge,” the mayor Cr Bryan Payne said. The acting manager climate change, energy and water Melissa Burrage said all staff and counciullors had been invited to participate in the one-week trial of the electric Renault Zoe and Kangoo. Other ways of minimising carbon emissions…
CLOSE friends and family of Joel Hawkins gathered on a Dromana roadside last Saturday near where the 17-year-old cyclist was hit by a car in June 2015. Joel, who had already notched up a long list of cycling achievements, died after spending more than a week on life support at the Alfred hospital. A white ghost bike was placed in his memory near the corner of Marine Parade and Nepean Highway and now his former coach, Chris Savage, is taking the White Bike Foundation’s safety message to Canberra. Savage left Mornington for Canberra on Saturday and is due to end…
Detectives from the Major Collision Investigation Unit today charged a teenage girl following a fatal crash in Frankston last year. A 19-year-old Safety Beach woman was charged with culpable driving, dangerous driving causing death, drive in a manner dangerous, careless driving, drive whilst impaired by drug, disobey traffic control signal and possess drug of dependence. The charge follows a crash at the intersection of Cranbourne Road and Moorooduc Highway on 13 July, 2017. A Kia Rio sedan travelling east on Cranbourne Rd, 9.40pm, was crossing Moorooduc Highway when it ran head-on into a pole. Its passenger, a 16-year-old girl, of…
An off-duty police officer fought off a man armed with a knife in an attempted aggravated carjacking in Frankston. The incident took place on Ashleigh Avenue when the man, armed with a knife allegedly tried to steal a car which was parked in a car space at the local shops just after 8pm on Tuesday evening (13 March). The driver of the car, an 82-year-old Frankston man, was attempting to start the car when he was approached by the armed man. The off-duty officer, understood to be a Dandenong area police officer, was walking on Ashleigh Avenue when he saw…
THE Western Port Biosphere organisation wants volunteer citizen scientists to help keep an eye on foxes. The biosphere has been given a government grant for a two-year fox “monitoring and control” project in the northern coast area of Western Port. “Our aim is to abate the predation pressure by foxes on stock, small native fauna and ground dwelling shore birds,” executive officer Cecelia Witton said. “Photo-monitoring in the first year will assess the distribution and abundance of the red fox, which will determine the most effective areas to undertake control activities in the second year,” she said. Ms Whitton said…
HASTINGS volunteer Sue King is out to encourage more people to be involved with Peninsula Health’s community advisory group. “I was coming up to retirement and thought I needed to do some voluntary work,” she said. “I’d done some social voluntary work through sporting clubs over the years and I thought I want something to do so I came to the Western Port Community Advisory Group meeting and found it quite interesting.” Now, years later, Ms King is encouraging others to join the group. “We need more members from a diverse range of backgrounds across Western Port so we can…
STATE opposition MPs have been told that the Mornington Peninsula needs an overall roads strategy. A delegation from Mornington Peninsula Shire last week met with Liberal Party MPS, including roads and infrastructure spokesman David Hodgett. Cr David Gill said the shire also intended to meet with members of the Labor government to press the need for safer roads. “We had a good hearing [from the opposition] and they basically said they were interested and would look into it,” Cr Gill told The News. “They’re local MPs and want to do something and they could possibly be part of the next…
CONSULTANTS have drawn up an $80.3 million plan for a Stony Point to Phillip Island car ferry service. The business case prepared for the state government and Mornington Peninsula and Bass Coast councils predicts the ferry would inject an extra $93.3m into the two municipalities over 30 years. The business case also envisages 278 jobs being created “for the first year of operation”. The shire’s economic development and tourism manager Tania Treasure sees the car ferry as “a strategic contribution to the current tourism offering” that would “provide the missing link for a world class touring route linking the Great…
IN an entertaining double-header, Rabbi Jonathan Keren-Black will speak at Rosebud Uniting Church on Judaism, faith and the environment before the screening of Al Gore’s new film, An Inconvenient Sequel. Truth to Power. The events are being held from 5-8pm, Sunday 18 March. Rabbi Keren-Black says the Mornington Peninsula, like islands in the Pacific Ocean, are in peril from the rising seas. He believes people of faith have a religious obligation to act. Australian Religious Response to Climate Change is hosting this event with the cooperation of the church at 6 Murray-Anderson Road, Rosebud. Light refreshments will be followed by question time afterwards.