SILVERS Circus’s decades-long presence in Mornington is facing an uncertain future as its current home at the Bata shoe factory site prepares for development.
The site at the corner of Nepean Hwy and Oakbank Rd, known as the gateway to Mornington, has hosted the circus for the past 30 years, but this summer will officially be its last as it begins a desperate search for a new home, which the circus hoped would remain in Mornington.
“Unfortunately, that site is now being developed so we need another home for us,” Simon Tait, representing Silvers Circus, told The News. “We’ve become almost like a part of the Mornington Christmas culture.”
Construction is currently under way for a new business precinct called Neue Space at the Bata shoe grounds which will include a mix of warehouses, factories and shops. It comes after the state government in 2019 rejected a proposed Kaufland supermarket at the site following backlash from the community.
Tait said they were looking for a new home in Mornington so it could continue its iconic tradition of entertainment, but he added, “it’s proven a little bit difficult to find a suitable location for the circus as the most important thing is to be seen”. “We’ve been coming to Mornington almost every year for over 30 years, and we’ve enjoyed the hospitality of the lovely people of the Bata shoe factory,” he said. “The appearance of the circus is quite striking with all the fairy lights over it and the beautiful colours and so we need to be seen” as it was “one of the principal forms of advertising”. “We enjoy coming back here – good business or bad.”
One of the options the circus was considering for a new location was Civic Reserve at the corner of Mornington-Tyabb Rd and Dunns Rd, with the circus in talks with the Mornington Peninsula Shire which owned the land. “The council has been very nice and open and willing to have a chat with us,” Tait said. “We’re appealing to their better judgment considering the fact of our long history in Mornington. Also, the fact we’re very, very clean, and very professional.”
Mayor Anthony Marsh said the shire would consider all options on the table. “We recognise it’s been a feature of Mornington for several decades and we’ll make some enquiries to see if we can assist,” he said. Tait said the circus’s good neighbour policy meant they would be respectful and considerate of residents of any location it could secure, and had recently begun consultation with residents on Dunn Rd. He said a group of residents had signed a letter of consent for the circus to hold its shows at Civic Reserve if the site was approved by the shire, “otherwise, we’re in a real sticky situation because everything else (possible sites) the council showed us is inappropriate”. “We really do need to be seen, and that reserve is a perfect location, and we will be very responsible in our conduct whilst we’re there.”
First published in the Mornington News – 11 February 2025
