AFTER three meetings and sometimes bitter debate, Mornington Peninsula Shire councillors have finally adopted a new expenses policy. Basically, the policy gives councillors the right to spend up to $30,000 each over four years on such things as conferences and seminars ($16,000), education and training ($10,000) and entertainment ($4000). The aggregate is $14,000 a councillor more than the previously accepted, and disputed, amounts. The policy also introduced a ban on alcohol being supplied “before, during or after council meetings or briefings on council premises”. The shire’s communications and media manager Mark Kestigian said on Friday that about $27,000 had been…
Author: Keith Platt
THERE will be at least four new faces on the 11-seat Mornington Peninsula Shire Council after next month’s municipal election. Three councillors have now stated that they will not seek re-election and the fourth seat up for grabs has been vacant since the May resignation of Watson ward’s Lynne Bowden, who was first elected in 2008. Councillors who have come out in public to say they are not standing are Anne Shaw and Andrew Dixon of Briars ward and David Gibb (Seawinds). Cr Bowden’s resignation was too close to the 22 October poll to require a by-election so her seat…
BENCHMARKS are being set to monitor the number and variety of animals living in Western Port’s seagrass beds. Known as the bay’s marine nurseries, a series of night trawls of the seagrass beds in January captured 14,073 animals from five species. The most common animals were crustacea – which includes crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill, woodlice and barnacles – and fish. A team of researchers from the Western Port Seagrass Partnership will repeat the trawl to compare animal numbers and varieties in summer and spring. Marine ecologist Dr Hugh Kirkman said January’s trawl for juvenile fish and macroinvertebrates was the…
THE first report by Infrastructure Victoria into the best site for Victoria’s second container port is scheduled to go to the state government in May 2017. The two options being investigated are Hastings in Western Port and Bay West in Port Phillip, but Infrastructure Victoria has cautioned that “evidence we gather may not be conclusive enough to identify a preferred location”. “We won’t reduce government’s strategic flexibility by making a premature recommendation now, particularly because it would be based on evidence that is likely to change. “The final decision to invest in a second container port is still likely to…
PAUL Lucas has done a bit of yachting, but travelling thousands of kilometres down the Murray River was never on his radar. But for 89 days from 1 March that’s exactly what he did. Steering a tinny powered by a small outboard Mr Lucas was trailing behind a kayak being paddled by Dave Jacka. Onshore, the pair were in turn being shadowed by friends following the winding course of the Murray as best they could by road. What sounds like a reasonable and enjoyable enterprise for a bunch of friends had one major difference: Dave Jacka is a quadriplegic with…
THE Mornington Peninsula branch of the Greens says it will be fielding five candidates in the October Mornington Peninsula Shire elections. Political parties usually run shy of endorsing specific candidates but the Greens last week issued a news release announcing a “team … [that] understand the priorities of their diverse wards, and are committed to genuinely listening to and delivering for their communities”. The outspokenness of the Greens comes a week after seven of the shire’s 10 remaining councillors told The News they were yet to decide on whether to seek re-election. Only Crs Hugh Fraser (Nepean ward), Antonella Celi…
THE state government appears to be getting ready to take over the day-to-day running of the Port of Hastings. The 20-year contract with port manager Patrick Ports Hastings ends next June and the government is awaiting a report on management options from the Port of Hastings Development Authority. The authority now has a staff of eight, far fewer than the 61 – including 31 contractors – it employed just two years ago when the previous Liberal National coalition government was proceeding with plans for a container terminal at Hastings. Those plans ended abruptly with the election of the Daniel Andrews-led…
THE Rye tip will continue to operate until new technologies are adopted to cope with waste on the Mornington Peninsula. Mornington Peninsula Shire last week agreed to extend the life of the tip beyond 2018 and join other municipalities in finding a site and method to dispose of their waste. Cr David Gibb said it would be cheaper to use Rye rather than trucking the peninsula’s waste elsewhere. The shire’s plan could also see land in McKirdys Rd, Tyabb, used as a waste reduction and disposal site by several municipalities. The plan revolves around the use of alternative waste technology…
MOST Mornington Peninsula Shire councillors are keeping quiet about whether they will seek re-election in October. Three of the 10 councillors, Hugh Fraser (Nepean ward), Antonella Celi (Seawinds) and David Garnock (Cerberus) say they will stand while two others, Bev Colomb (Briars) and her ward colleague Anne Shaw are saying they have not made up their minds. Another two councillors, David Gibb (Seawinds) and Andrew Dixon (Briars) are reported to have told public meetings they will be standing but have not confirmed this with The News. “I don’t have a comment,” Cr Gibb said on Friday after being asked to…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire councillors were on Monday poised to give themselves the right to spend an extra $14,000 over their four-year terms, bringing the total to $30,000. The success of the latest bid to define their entitlements could depend on one councillor agreeing to being paid travelling expenses of 76 cents a kilometre. A move to set new four-year spending limits – $16,000 for conferences and seminars; $10,000 education and training; and $1000 a year entertainment – missed out on being adopted on Monday 22 August by one vote. If voting patterns stayed the same on Monday this week, Cr…
SECRECY and factions are being raised as major issues in the October Mornington Peninsula Shire Council elections. Although nominations do not close until midday Tuesday 20 September, “Melbourne Cup fields” are being predicted in at least the Watson and Red Hill wards and at least half a dozen candidates each in Seawinds and Briars. Meanwhile, a Facebook page and an email account have been opened specifically to receive tips about the council, especially anything about “infringements to our rights to freedom of information”. David Gill, a Balnarring resident and former councillor and shire president with the Shire of Mornington, sees…
ART imitating life or art imitating art? Michael Leeworthy manages to mix ‘n’ mangle the time worn adage in his latest publication “So you want to be an artist? You had better read this first ”. It was Oscar Wilde who famously made the seemingly innocuous statement that “Life imitates art far more than art imitates life” in his 1889 essay The Decay of Lying. Decades later the truth of his position remains a debating point. Leeworthy, a Red Hill-based artist and gallery owner has gone a step further by publishing a small book of cartoons depicting himself and those…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire has agreed to change land use definitions, increase building heights and the number of dwellings at the Martha Cove residential and marina development at Safety Beach. Amendments to the planning permit approved by the shire last month give the green light for buildings apartments and shops in the area designated Martha Cove Village Centre. The number of dwellings allowed at Martha Cove is now 1167, an increase of 114. The original Martha Cove permit was issued in 1999 and in 2002 City Pacific estimated the project at $650 million, including 900 residences. The latest successful application to…
MUNICIPAL officers have been accused of blunders and mistakes that have seen councillors across the state fail to fulfil a state government directive to adopt a new code of conduct. The government last week was forced to take urgent legislative action to avoid sacking 13 councils and standing down nine individual councillors after a report from the Local Governance Investigations and Compliance Inspectorate. The report listed Frankston as one of the councils that failed to meet the signing deadline and Mornington Peninsula Shire councillor Hugh Fraser faced being stood down for adding “signed under protest” to his signature. “I signed…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire’s footpath construction scheme is in disarray, with 13 projects being deferred and two others awaiting appeals. An emphatic rejection of the shire’s footpath construction plans by ratepayers has led to money being reallocated to fix footpaths at Hastings, Somerville and Bittern. The highest support recorded in a survey of property owners due to be billed for part of nine footpath schemes was just 28 per cent. In one case, the shire’s plan to build a footpath was rejected by 100 per cent of property owners. The rejection of the nine schemes has seen the team behind the…
IT is not hard to find a connection to surfing on the Mornington Peninsula with Australian surfing great Bernard “Midget” Farrelly, who died on Sunday 7 August after several years of battling cancer. At 71, Farrelly’s death came as a shock to the surfing community, both here and overseas. Many of the peninsula’s younger surfers would not know that they most likely owe Farrelly a debt of gratitude. His fame came on the cusp of major changes in surfing: the advent of the shorter board and professional surfers. As Australia’s first official world champion – won at Manly 17 May…
THERE is no lack of interest in filling the vacancy in Liberal ranks following the announcement that Martin Dixon will not be running for the state seat of Nepean he has occupied since 1996. Russell Joseph, Mr Dixon’s electorate office manager for the past four years, has already signaled that he will seek to take over his boss’s job. “I would like to lead from the front,” Mr Joseph told The News the day following Mr Dixon’s announcement. “There’s a lot of potential for things to still be done and I’d like to see them continuing along.” Mr Joseph has…
THE future planning of town and villages in the Western Port area will be a significant issue in deciding councillors for the Red Hill, Watson and Cerberus wards at the October municipal elections. One major point of contention will be the time being taken by Mornington Peninsula Shire in drawing up a strategy for coastal towns, which has been flagged in successive budgets for the past 11 years. Critics claim small towns are seeing developments more suited to the peninsula’s major centres, such as Somerville, Hastings, Mornington, Dromana, Rosebud and Sorrento. They argue that the same criteria should not be…
SAND trucked at great expense to Mt Martha Beach North has again “disappeared” after a series of storms. The sand loss has exposed the seeming flimsy supports on which many of the beach’s 90 bathing boxes sit. Some of the supports have been wedged with recently cut squares of timber while others teeter precariously on concrete pads. Many of the spindly frames have been pushed back towards the cliff by either wind or waves or, probably, both. Bolts are bent and timbers cracked. One bathing box leans backwards while another, set on a level earthen bank, is being undermined and…
THE federal election may be over, but the activist group GetUp! is still pursuing one of its regular targets, Flinders MP Greg Hunt. Mr Hunt lost some of his winning margin from the previous poll but retained his seat with a margin that would be the envy of most other politicians. GetUp!, which describes itself as “an independent movement to build a progressive Australia and bring participation back into our democracy” is running a survey to find out “your vision for Australia, for Flinders, for your neighbourhood and street?”. GetUp! claims to have had “a huge impact on the election…
TWENTY nine dogs have been seized from a property owner at Blind Bight for contravening a local law that limits the number of animals allowed to be kept without a permit. Troy Scoble was found guilty at the Dandenong Magistrates Court in late June 2016, of keeping too many animals on his property and failing to meet basic registration requirements. “Council is in regular contact with the owner of the dogs, who are being vet-checked and will be cared for until a decision on their future is made,” Casey mayor Cr Sam Aziz said. “Council acted as swiftly as it…
THE Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal has refused permission for a bottle shop to be added to the sales and restaurant activities at Tully’s Shed, in Moorooduc Highway, Mornington. The decision follows a site inspection by VCAT senior member Russell Byard who described the “shed” as a supermarket offering goods from around the world. The decision to not allow the bottle shop can only be overturned by the Supreme Court or VCAT. The 17.3 hectare property at the Wooralla Drive intersection is within a Green Wedge zone which bans shops but allows plant nurseries, sales of primary produce and restaurants.…
RESIDENTS who successfully stopped a quarry at Dromana from being used as a tip are now gearing up to oppose approval being given to extend the life of the quarry. If approved as requested, there would be no expiry date on the permit, allowing quarrying “for the life of the resource at the quarry”. A previous planning permit expired on 23 March 2004 although Hillview says the quarry is allowed to operate under Work Authority 380. Objectors will be arguing that the quarry is uneconomic and that by having an “open” permit its owners will not be required to spend…
THE Victorian Ombudsman has interviewed Mornington Peninsula Shire mayor Cr Graham Pittock, CEO Carl Cowie and governance manager Joe Spiteri as part of an investigation into secrecy in local government. Complaints about the shire have been made to the Ombudsman’s office by several individuals and community-based organisations. The Ombudsman Deborah Glass announced in March that she was making an “own motion” investigation into Victorian municipalities after receiving complaints. “Secrecy in local government can create conditions in which improper conduct and poor administration can flourish,” Ms Glass said. “It also fuels suspicions of wrongdoing and erodes community trust. “Members of the…
THE focus of the master plan eventually adopted by the state government for Point Nepean National Park is likely to take a broad approach, rather than focussing just on developing the Quarantine Station precinct. The plan will take account of Point Nepean’s connections to Point Lonsdale, the marine national park, its occupation and use by Aborigines as well as “appropriate” commercial and educational developments. A report being released this week on the results of public consultations earlier this year is seen as the first step towards the adoption of a master plan largely based on one favoured by the state…
FOLLOWING months of accusations and claims of accounting inaccuracies and overspending, Mornington Peninsula Shire councillors are struggling to agree on the definition of expenses. The expenses are separate to councillors’ $28,000 yearly remuneration; $85,000 for the mayor. Shire officers last Monday asked for an extra month to prepare a draft of the councillor expenses policy by 31 August. Legal advice in March cast doubt on the validity of a previous policy which limited each councillor to spending up to $4000 a year on such things as conferences, seminars and courses, giving a total $16,000 over a four-year term. Included in…
FLINDERS MP Greg Hunt has been appointed Industry, Innovation and Science Minister in the ministerial reshuffle announced today by the Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Mr Hunt replaces Christopher Pyne who has been given the new role of Minister for Defence Industry. Josh Frydenberg replaces Mr Hunt, taking an expanded environment and energy portfolio. All three remain members of the Cabinet. As Environment Minister Mr Hunt was the target of many protests throughout Australia and particularly outside his Hastings office. “I am delighted to have been appointed to the position of Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science,” Mr Hunt said in…
THE final financial steps are in place for a viewing platform and beach access ramp to be built overlooking the beach at Point Leo. A project of the Disabled Surfers Association Mornington Peninsula branch, the platform will be at the end of a boardwalk running from the lifesaving club to the beach. The six metre square viewing deck will be open to the public and also provide lifesavers with uninterrupted views along the beach. Steps and a wheelchair access ramp will run from the deck to the sand, making Point Leo the first surf beach on the peninsula to have…
ROB Lippiat is reviving the days when paddle steamers regularly circumnavigated Port Phillip. But he’s not about to embark on a voyage of the bay, it’s more about looking at the past in scale, about 100 to one. Lippiat is building model replicas of the boats and admits to doing things by halves. His wooden boats and split down the middle and mounted on mirrors. “I used to make them complete, but this way they can fit in with any decor,” Lippiat says while sitting at his workbench in Mt Martha. “That was more than 14 years ago when I…
PROPERTY owners on French Island are worried that koalas are eating themselves out of house and home. Although not native to the island, the introduced koalas are so successful that their numbers have increased past the point of being able to sustainably coexist with the vegetation on which they feed. Islanders fear the koalas will die of starvation or need to be culled as hundreds were in 2013 and 2014 near Cape Otway, south-west of Melbourne. “The extent of damage and loss of koala habitat has increased over the last three years to the point where koalas themselves are becoming…