Social housing needed on the peninsula
I am a retired public servant who was with what is now DFFH. A project I initiated a few years before Covid looks to be replicated (Agencies unite to fix Main St public housing troubles, The News 5/8/25).
My project, which was multi-partnered with the department (Housing Manager Frankston) , the Salvation Army, the Community Support Centre, Mi Health, Bolton Clarke, WAYSS, VicPol, Mornington Peninsula Shire and others was very successful.
Monthly meetings identified issues and encouraged the partner agencies to take action. DFFH purchased a barbeque. Monthly estate barbeques and coffee cart (funded and hosted by one of the agencies on rotation) addressed tenant support and engagement needs and significantly decreased anti-social behaviour on this small estate. Sadly, all the wonderful work the agencies and the tenants undertook ceased when Covid struck. It was disappointing to see the project come to an abrupt end.
The only way to fix any community needs is in partnership, regardless of the issue. The Main Street small estate is an excellent location for social housing, and we definitely need more social housing on the Mornington Peninsula.
It was distressing to read in the following week’s newspaper that the peninsula “records states highest homelessness numbers”. Social housing is the answer and the peninsula historically has had very low housing stock, but for some this housing needs to come with “wrap around” services and supports for the benefit of the tenants and good outcomes. An appropriate level of funding of local services needs to be part of all actions to address housing need and housing issues in our area.
Given the current focus on housing shortage, non-affordability and the lack of crisis housing on the Mornington Peninsula let’s hope all of these issues will be addressed in the upcoming expected housing expansion in Australia.
Susan Blackburn, Mornington
Names are important
Since 1975 the world has been warming 0.2C per decade. We are still adding warming emissions. The situation is, dare I say it, an emergency. Actually, my council, Darebin, was the first government body on the planet to “declare” a climate emergency. I feel that, even two councils later, with a very different council, this preparedness to look the difficult truth in the face, might mean we get better decisions, and useful, practical programs, especially for the most vulnerable residents, who, as we saw during Covid, are often not well looked after by larger jurisdictions.
Like your Hawthorn correspondent, (Climate reversal, Letters 19/8/25) I find it disappointing that a tiny majority of Mornington Peninsula councillors oppose calling the climate emergency by its name. The backers of not naming the emergency, while protesting that “it’s not denial”, are practicing what is now called “soft climate denial”, the practice of failing to translate “acceptance” into appropriate action – such as naming the situation honestly.
Naming things helps us understand. Why wouldn’t you do it?
Lesley Walker, Northcote
Ditched plan
It is good to see that the council- inspired “climate emergency” on the peninsula, regarded by most as a joke, has been ditched (Councillor flags new climate plan after “emergency ditched, The News 19/8/25).
By all means debate grandiose plans and have good intentions but realise that things like net zero emissions by a particular year are naïve silliness, unachievable, at best a crooked accountants trickery.
Why, the very best way to substantially reduce carbon emissions is to get rid of the millions of tourists and their cars which saturate the peninsula with carbon dioxide and other pollutants every year.
Council needs to spend a lot of money on mitigating the effects of the changing climate, like storm damage and repair and better storm water drainage. But council, and others, must realise that planetary warming has happened before, in recent history.
Around the years 1000 to about 1300 the earth was apparently warmer than now, followed by a long very cold snap until 1850 when it naturally started to warm again. I believe there is no “normal” temperature and variations in the output of the sun causes temperature changes and carbon dioxide changes on earth. All plant life would benefit from a little more CO2 right now.
Council, with limited funds including my hard earned rates dollars, must be very practical and disciplined in how they spend it. There are pressing, desperate needs on the peninsula, constituting an emergency, right now.
People are unable to hold, or get, a job because they are sleeping in their car, parked anywhere, no shower, no toilet, can’t cook anything. Homeless mothers and children living in a car, parked anywhere.
The list is long.
Brian A Mitchelson, Mornington
Flying the flag
It is satisfying to read that our council has made yet another decision that conforms with community expectations in it’s revision of the rules for flying the flag. There has only ever been one flag that unites us and that is the official Australian flag be it either on a blue or red background. The other intrusions that we never asked for have only served to divide us.
If the supporters of these other flags are so serious about their concerns for the welfare of the people that they represent, then let them go and spend time in some outback aboriginal community and provide some practical help rather than lecturing the rest of us of our so called obligations to these over-funded organizations.
Barry Rumpf, McCrae
Community electrification
Greg Holland, chair of the Peninsula Climate Alliance, is right – the Mornington Peninsula Climate Resilience Plan is flawed because it does not have emissions reduction, particularly community emissions reduction, at its heart (Councillor flags new climate plan after ‘emergency’ ditched, The News 21/8/25). And to be successful, climate plans need community input and community ownership.
Building on the Shire’s 2018 Climate Change Community Engagement Strategy, the 2020 Climate Emergency Plan had it in spades and even won the Cities Power Partnership Award in the Ambition category in 2021.
It’s clear by looking at the publicly available Ironbark Sustainability Snapshot tool at tinyurl.com/MPEmissions that electrification is the key to reducing the shire’s community emissions.
Replacing gas hot water and space heating with heat pumps, installing solar panels and switching to EVs will have the greatest effect.
The work of local community groups Repower, and Flinders Zero Carbon Community, helping residents to make the switch, is to be celebrated. The Council must get behind them if it is genuine about climate action.
John Godfrey, Cape Paterson
Wrong path
How wonderful to see the historic shire offices in Dromana, preserved and re-purposed as a community facility. They are constantly utilised by our community as a meeting place, every week hosting clubs and organisations for us all. And the building is still preserved, recognisable as the offices I visited over fifty years ago. They are listed on the Mornington Peninsula Heritage Overlay, prepared and published by our Council back in 1992.
So, how disappointing to see our council, recognising that path repairs are necessary, decide to install a modern concrete path. This path laughs at the heritage overlay, and clashes dismally with the brick paths adjoining, that serve the balance of the site. Civic pride and history have clearly played no part in this decision. This is a tragic mistake, that destroys the historic ambience of the site. A shameful decision, that could have been avoided with just a little competent consideration.
Mike Wilton, Safety Beach
Cutting Costs
Got my “Propaganda Peninsula Wide” the other day in my letter box. Fortunately it was the day the bins were emptied so I only had to walk five steps to bin it. The shire in its Trumpian wisdom is going to fire people in the spirit of cost reduction. Doubt that the bloated department that produces Peninsula Wide will suffer much. They continue to publish it, costing an estimated $2.5m when all costs are included with support staff, functions and other overheads are allocated properly. Would love to debate this one but it is impossible to get full disclosure data on the costs. It’s a lot of money to spend so the councillors and officers can blow their own trumpet.
The non-resident paid parking with a potential raw income of $62,268,540 is looking better and better. An issue I am willing to debate being as the shires estimates do not even consider the number of days non-resident cars are on the peninsula.
Like in the USA, We are getting what we voted for! It is time for the councillors to stop picking the low hanging fruit and get to the root problems. Have to wonder if they are financially competent to do the job? Do something! Get off your backside and contact your councillor and tell them it is not on. Silence is consent.
Joe Lenzo, Safety Beach
