SOCCER RILEY Anderton treated onlookers to a volleying masterclass on Saturday as he single-handedly broke Berwick City’s resolve with a breathtaking four-goal display. The Peninsula Strikers ace was the catalyst for a second-half turnaround at Centenary Park that saw a 1-0 deficit transformed into a resounding and unexpected 5-1 win. Until the Kiwi first struck in the 55th minute Berwick was the better side and deserved its slender lead but Anderton levelled when he spun on a deflected cross and volleyed with his right foot into the roof of the net. Within minutes he demonstrated a deft touch at the…
Browsing: Mornington
A NEW music show aimed at all music lovers across the Mornington Peninsula has been launched by radio station RPPFM. The playlist is chosen and presented by self-described music die hard Ross Woodward, of Mount Eliza. The Music Box will be broadcast from 9.30pm on Tuesdays and use Woodward’s own CD collection to create the two hour show. Musicians that Woodward has met over the years include Brian Wilson and Al Jardine of the Beach Boys, Colin Hay, Don Walker of Cold Chisel, Guy Pearce (who has released several albums), Vika and Linda Bull, Paul Brady, Richard Thompson, Jimmy Webb…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire is investigating the positioning of dozens of signs along the path through Mornington Park on Sunday by anti-vax protesters. People out enjoying the weather could not avoid walking past the confronting signs while a small group of anti vaxxers remained in the park to talk to onlookers. The signs purportedly tell the stories of people who have had adverse vaccine reactions and claim that people are being “conned”. One woman who took photos of the silent protest said she felt the signs were “misleading” and should not have been placed in a public space. “I didn’t believe…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire officers have been “working closely” with police and the Environment Protection Agency to “combat” the illegal dumping of car tyres. The mayor Cr Steve Holland said a large numbers of tyres had been dumped “at various spots” around the peninsula. “The investigation requires extensive intelligence gathering and a strategic approach with regard to removing the dumped tyres,” Holland said. “Illegally dumping waste is a serious offence and a breach of the Environmental Protection Act.” Holland said fines of more than $9000 could apply as well as a conviction if offenders were caught and prosecuted in court. He…
MORNINGTON Liberal MP David Morris has slammed the previous state government over its “botched” Mornington pier project. His criticism comes just weeks before Parks Victoria names the successful tenderer for the replacement of the outer, condemned section of the pier. In May 2012, the state government announced it would spend up to $15 million to replace the outer section with its 125 pylons, which had been closed since August 2010 after a series of storms weakened the structure. In the Parliament last week, Mr Morris said the project had gone “seriously off the rails” under the Brumby Labor government. “In…
VICROADS is trying to offload the Esplanade onto Mornington Peninsula Shire. The shire and VicRoads have been discussing the status of shire roads for many months but councillors were briefed for the first time last week. VicRoads can force the shire to take ownership of the so-called government road but it appears the roads authority is adopting a conciliatory approach. The state government authority has told the shire it wants to downgrade the Esplanade’s status from an arterial to a local road, and give it to the shire. It told the shire the road is mainly used by locals but…
MORNINGTON Life Saving Club is in deep water after clearing an area behind its clubhouse on Mills Beach as well as starting internal renovations without a permit. The club removed sand that had built up behind the building over several years, disturbing an Aboriginal midden site. It placed two shipping containers in the cleared section as a storage area for new equipment. It also started renovating shower and toilet areas on the ground floor, which had been affected by rising damp. The existing facilities were insufficient for a growing membership. The clearing has triggered an investigation by the Office of…
THE restored grave of acting Prime Minister James Fenton will be unveiled at Mornington Cemetery at 3.30pm on Sunday 27 October. James Edward Fenton was an MP 1910-34 including acting PM for five months in 1930 during the Great Depression, one of the most tumultuous times in Australian politics. The unveiling will be the culmination of a campaign by Dunkley MP Bruce Billson and Mornington and District Historical Society to restore the grave. About $10,000 for the work came from the federal Labor government’s Your Community Heritage Program. Historical society member Val Wilson, who conducts tours of the cemetery and…
POLICE are hunting a man and woman over the theft of a “much-loved family pet” from outside a home in Hargreaves St, Mornington, last week. Bailey, a small, white shih-tzu cross, was let out from the front yard of his home by his owners about 2.30pm on Monday and disappeared a short time later. Witnesses reported seeing a man and woman park their vehicles at either end of Hargreaves St in order to catch the frightened pet. “They were seen chasing the dog up and down the street until it was picked up by a passer-by, who then handed it…
THE state government has called for tenders to replace the condemned, outside section of Mornington pier. Replacement of the 75-metre long section will cost at least $13.5 million, allocated by the government last year. Work is expected to start later this year and be completed in late 2014, subject to weather and contractor availability. The value of the project is likely to see pier contractors from far and wide submit tenders. Mornington MP David Morris said the design for the outer section and wave protection would ensure “this iconic pier will continue to provide a destination for the residents and…
THE last of 74 large concrete wave screen panels was lifted into place on Mornington pier’s middle section last Thursday. Completion of installation is a significant event in the long-running saga to make the harbour safe from westerly and northerly storms. Carrum Downs-based K V Johnson Constructions started installing the panels – 43 on the outside of the pier and 31 on the inside – in late June. The screens are 1.2-metres wide on the bay side and 1.6-metres wide on the harbour side with some up to 6.7 metres long. Made in Geelong, they weigh about 15 tonnes each,…
ASBESTOS has been removed from vacant land in central Mornington, leaving a neighbour fearing that fragments of the deadly substance have been carried from the site by truck tyres. The former industrial land at 73-75 Barkly St is being prepared for townhouses. The land is next to Mornington Primary School and Josh Dawson, assistant manager of the Gillon Group development company, said asbestos removal was timed to coincide with school holidays. In a “courtesy” letter to nearby residents, Mr Dawson said asbestos on the vacant land was “limited to sheet fragments” and was classified as “non-fibrous and does not present…
MORNINGTON beaches are being polluted by rubbish from Melbourne. Trash collected by beach walkers in the past two weeks included five syringes as well as plastic containers, lids, straws, small pieces of plastic and parking slips, in total enough to fill several large garbage bags. More than three dozen parking slips came from the cities of Melbourne, Maribyrnong, Darebin and Yarra, revealing the exact time and date the slips were issued. Several had taken just three days to float from Melbourne to Mornington. Mornington Environment Association president Jan Oliver said “rubbish in appalling amounts was washed up on Mills Beach…
MORNINGTON solicitor and developer Joseph Alesci and his company Porsh Pty Ltd have been fined $12,000 and ordered to pay costs of $8000 over planning breaches at his Epicurean Centre in Red Hill South. Mornington Peninsula Shire communications manager Todd Trimble said the shire took Mr Alesci and Porsh to Frankston Magistrates’ Court “for various breaches of the planning permit and the planning scheme”. “The offences included the construction of a concrete pad and blast wall on the road reserve; creation of a dam for the purposes of waste water treatment; failure to satisfy a section 173 agreement; and constructing…
MORNINGTON MP David Morris says he is relaxed about his electorate receiving nothing in the recent state budget. “The budget doesn’t reflect my commitment to the electorate,” he said. Mr Morris spoke to The News after announcing the next stage of reconstruction of Mornington pier – a $1.5 million contract to install wave screens on the upgraded middle section of the pier (“Pier wave screens in June”, The News, 21/5/13). He said the electorate and peninsula region had done well over the past two years. Last May the state government promised up to $15 million to rebuild the outer, 75-metre…
A MORNINGTON woman missing in Victoria’s remote eastern high country for four days was rescued by police late Sunday morning. Lynette Joyce Bond, 68, was found lying on the banks of the Snowy River, where she had scrawled the word “HELP” in the sand. Her plea was spotted by Air Wing police searching the area by helicopter and she was winched to safety about 11.30am on Sunday 7 April. Police said Ms Bond had been touring in the Snowy River National Park when her car broke down on Wednesday. Ms Bond’s plight was not discovered until Saturday when a hiker…
THE Mornington Park precinct was marred by rubbish after the hot weekend and looked like a Third World country, says resident Paul Smith. Mr Smith and former chamber of commerce president Scott Crowe are “citizen cleaners” who pick up rubbish in the precinct during regular morning and evening walks. The pair has been calling for improved rubbish collection for several years. “At 8pm on Sunday I visited the precinct while walking my dog. The whole area was absolutely disgusting, littered with rubbish and picnic waste everywhere,” Mr Smith said. “Rubbish bins where overflowing in Mornington Park, the Mothers Beach picnic…
UNITED Energy could face claims of hundreds of thousands of dollars following a massive power surge from a Mornington electricity substation on Wednesday morning. Up to 10,000 properties in Mornington, Mt Martha, Moorooduc and Somerville received 300 volts, 20 per cent more than normal, surging through power lines at about 9am. The CFA said there had been more than 55 calls for assistance, mostly generated by householders smelling smoke from electrical appliances and smouldering wiring. The CFA set up an emergency response team at its Moorooduc incident control centre to take calls from 000 and coordinate its response. Calls were…
MT Eliza university student Andrew Dixon has a new interest in his busy life – Mornington Peninsula Shire Council. The 25-year-old was perhaps a surprising winner at the council election on Saturday when he grabbed the last of three seats in Briars Ward, the new super ward that takes in the former Mt Eliza, Mornington and Balcombe (Mt Martha) wards. Cr Dixon joins his Briars colleagues Bev Colomb of Mornington and Anne Shaw of Mt Eliza in representing more than 42,000 voters. Many judges thought Leigh Eustace, who had represented Mt Eliza since 2008, would be elected, but the 11-candidate…
MORNINGTON Peninsula’s oldest house is in danger of closing unless more volunteers are found to help run the historical property. The National Trust has appealed for assistance to keep McCrae Homestead open to the public. McCrae Homestead manager Sharon Bowen said peninsula residents could “keep alive our pioneer heritage”. “There is an urgent need for more people to assist in guiding visitors, housekeeping and maintenance of the house, visitor centre and gardens,” she said. Volunteers are asked to give two half-days each month. Built in 1844 on Arthur’s Seat Run, the largest lease in the fledgling Port Phillip colony, the…
ELECTION candidates delivering final statements to the election office in Rosebud late last month were surprised to see one of their number pull up in a Porsche. Leaving the engine running, John Woodman strode into the office, handed over his election material and strode out again. Mr Woodman is the millionaire head of Watsons Pty Ltd, the Mornington-based firm that provides town planning, urban design, surveying, civil engineering and project development services for land developers. Watsons’ website states Mr Woodman “has qualifications in urban development from RMIT (University) and has spent the past 30 years in the land development industry…
A 22-year-old Frankston man has been charged with the assault of Mical Jones in Mornington last month. Kyle Pollard appeared in Frankston Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday charged with intention to cause serious injury and multiple assault-related charges after he was apprehended at his home around 6am on Tuesday. He did not apply for bail and was remanded in custody to appear in Melbourne Magistrate’s court on Monday. Detective Senior Constable Rohan Brock of Mornington crime investigation unit said police were still investigating a second person believed to be involved in the assault in Empire Street Mall about 4am on Sunday…
DOGS may be banned from Mornington Peninsula National Park, bringing it into line with nearly all other national parks in Australia. Parks Victoria is seeking community feedback before deciding whether to ban dogs from the park, which covers the beaches and foreshore from Portsea to Bushrangers Bay and inland along Main Creek to Greens Bush at Main Ridge. Chief ranger Libby Jude said there had been “numerous reports of dog attacks and threats to local wildlife”. “There are 32 fauna species listed as endangered, vulnerable or near threatened living in the Mornington Peninsula National Park and we need to protect…
A MORNINGTON-based construction company has gone into receivership owing 92 creditors almost $465,000 and raising fears it could be the first of more bankruptcies due to a softening in the building industry. The 92 people and companies listed as being owed money by Nepean Constructions (Australia) were notified of the company’s demise in a letter from liquidator David Vasudevan. It came as a surprise to many, particularly those still working on construction sites on the peninsula. Michael Knoop, proprietor of Alltrade Scaffolding, which is owed $7784, said he knew of one Nepean Constructions building site where a delivery of timber…
MORNINGTON MP David Morris has called on the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Jeanette Powell, to help speed up repair of the Esplanade at Mt Martha. Speaking in the parliament, Mr Morris asked Ms Powell for “prompt action [to be] taken to complete a cultural heritage management plan required for road repairs”. It is mandatory in Victoria to have a cultural heritage management plan (CHMP) for works in areas of known Aboriginal cultural heritage. The coast at Mt Martha was used by the Boon wurrung people prior to European settlement and is a registered cultural heritage site. There is evidence of…