MARTHA Cove Owners Corporation (MCOC) has expressed concerns as the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) plans to charge Martha Cove property owners $541,000 for lighting upgrades.
A total cost exceeding $771,000 would go towards upgrading 50 existing lights in the 80-metre Safety Beach underpass.
The MCOC are responsible for ongoing operation and maintenance of the underpass, however, they are concerned by the cost of the proposed upgrade.
In 2024, the MCOC was advised of the plan to upgrade the lighting, but the original company given the contract went into voluntary administration.
The project is now being revisited and the chairman of the MCOC, Neil Pope, said the proposed charge was unreasonable, unjustified, and contrary to the original agreement governing the underpass.
“It is incomprehensible that the DTP, which has a section 173 agreement with the original developer requiring it to meet the costs of replacement and maintenance work on the underpass, is now seeking to charge local residents more than half a million dollars for what is effectively a lighting upgrade,” said Pope.
In September, Nepean MP Anthony Marsh raised the matter in parliament.
He requested the minister review the upgrade, including its costs, resident liability, and its exclusion from the Victorian energy upgrades program.
“Nobody at Martha Cove is arguing against replacing ageing lights with modern LEDs,” said Marsh.
“The issue is the price residents are being asked to pay, how that price has been arrived at, and whether this particular project properly falls within the obligations they are required to meet.”
He said more than half a million dollars to upgrade lighting in an 80-metre underpass is “an extraordinary amount of money, and local residents deserve answers”.
“I have raised this matter in parliament because residents should not be left footing the bill for government upgrades that may fall outside their legal obligations,” said Marsh.
“The Minister needs to intervene, review these costs, and ensure Martha Cove residents are treated fairly. They should not be expected to write the government a blank cheque.”
In June, the Minister for Roads and Road Safety advised the MCOC 121 LED lights would be installed, over double what was originally advised.
Pope said the original agreement was intended to cover replacement and maintenance, not major upgrades.
“There is a fundamental difference between maintaining existing infrastructure and undertaking improvements at the expense of local property owners,” said Pope.
Pope said it is “extraordinary” the DTP is charging Martha Cove residents for upgrades on a public thoroughfare that will serve the wider community.
“Why should local property owners be expected to pay $541,000 to upgrade lighting in infrastructure that benefits the broader travelling public?” said Pope.
Pope said the MCOC has had ongoing conversations with the DTP and concerns have been raised about the DTP’s interpretation of the section 173 agreement.
“Having met with Department representatives and outlined our concerns about the original agreement, we had hoped the Department would acknowledge the distinction between maintenance and upgrades,” said Pope.
“Instead, residents are now facing a separate and potentially much larger financial issue, with the Department suggesting that the sinking fund maintained by Martha Cove owners for the underpass may need to be increased by potentially millions of dollars.”
Kirsten Lim-How, media lead at the DTP, requested the following statement be attributed to a DTP spokesperson:
“We’re working closely with Martha Cove Owners Corporation to ensure the underpass is maintained in accordance with our safety standards and operating requirements”.
“As a privately funded development, the owners’ corporation is responsible for the ongoing operation and maintenance works of the Martha Cove Underpass.”
Pope said the MCOC was not seeking to avoid its legitimate responsibilities for maintenance and replacement under the original agreement.
“Residents simply want the Department to honour the agreement as it was originally intended,” said Pope.
“They should not be expected to fund government infrastructure upgrades or be exposed to potentially enormous financial liabilities that were never contemplated when the original agreement was established.”
Pope said they are asking the state government’s Minister for Roads Paul Hamer to get the DTP to reconsider their position and deal with Martha Cove residents fairly and reasonably.
First published in the Mornington News – 10 November 2026
