State of our Beach
I moved to Safety Brach in April, 2015. It is one of the most beautiful parts of our world. Over the years I have both enjoyed walking and swimming on our beach, as well as sharing it with friends from interstate and overseas. Since the removal of the mechanical beach cleaning machines our beach now resembles a rubbish dump. Dead fish, smelly seaweed and all kinds of rubbish (plastic bottles and various unknown items). On the weekend I had family friends visit for the first time in a while. They commented on the terrible state of our once pristine beach. They were reluctant to let their young children play in this mess!
I am not sure what our council had in mind when you stopped the mechanical beach cleaning, but it is a disaster. These young children always enjoyed playing, building sandcastles and swimming in our beach. They never ever came across anything nasty in the sand.
I don’t know whether any of our councillors ever visit my beach, but please come down and have a look at the mess you have created. I have attached a few photographs of how our beach used to look as well as some that I took this morning.
Jeff Becker, Safety Beach
Machinations
Josie Jones reveals that a mechanical beach sand raking machine was tested (Jones calls for support for hand cleaning of beaches, The News 24/9/2024). The process was found to be almost useless, in fact detrimental. Do seagulls clean it up better?
This poses the question: Years ago in the first place, why didn’t the council do such a simple proof test, involving placing 27 items in a 100 metre stretch of sand and making multiple passes over it with the machine? Did the the council just read the manufacturers sales brochure? Did the council officers not have the wit to try before you buy “let’s do a test. It doesn’t work!”.
I wonder if the same staff are responsible for the trial beach parking fees, where your car number plate is photographed and you are forced to carry to the beach, your expensive mobile phone; have an internet account, in credit, have the council app on your phone in order to proceed and pay electronically, simply to park?
And did the same ones organise the recent free green waste dumping service over a few days without telling anyone: you must keep on looking on the internet at some obscure council publication to find this out, which (ha ha) nobody does. Don’t let the public know!
The forthcoming councillors election will do nothing. What a great pity we can’t put all council staff on four year contracts then make them re-apply for their own jobs, just like the elected councillors. That might sort them out. Some executive staff are (or certainly used to be) on enormous salaries, bonuses and perks, because “You have to pay top salaries, equivalent to private enterprise, to get the very best for our shire”.
Brian A Mitchelson, Mornington
Eagle information lacking
It was very disappointing to turn up to the “drop in” community consultation for the Arthur’s Seat Eagle expansion (which includes development of a luge) only to find it wasn’t a drop in session at all – it was a power point presentation. The limited advertising for this public information session held on Thursday 3 October said it was “from 6pm” and “6pm onwards”. Actually, the presentation started at 6pm so for those who took the time to travel from various parts of the peninsula expecting tables of information and consultants to speak to, they were out of luck. I was one of those people.
I did at least hear the Q&A which provided insight. It is plainly evident that locals were unconvinced and unhappy with the scant detail provided. Indeed, reading comments on social media since the session, residents are wondering why the Eagle representatives didn’t include the detailed drawings as supplied to the Victorian Planning Authority (VPA) in the presentation.
Let’s hope both the Arthur’s Seat Eagle and the VPA do a better job from this point. To start, we need environmental studies, traffic studies, risk assessments available to the public. After all, Arthur’s Seat is a state park.
Louise Page, Tyabb
Consider the fire risk
Parks Victoria are again partnering with Arthurs Seat Eagle as part of their $25 million park development. This is putting the communities of Dromana, McCrae, Arthurs Seat, Main Ridge and Red Hill at serious risk from fire. The Arthurs Seat escarpment is known as being at extreme risk of catastrophic bushfires yet Parks are encouraging more people, traffic and bottle necks, more hoons and rubbish into a State Park.
There is hopelessly inadequate car parking and footpaths around the summit. Visitors and children are often walking in the middle of roadways and cars parking on narrow road verges for up to one kilometre from the summit. One can only imagine the scenario of a fast moving fire up the escarpment with thousands of visitors spread across the park and 200 people on the Gondola all trying to escape on just a few narrow tree lined country roads. It is not a question of if but when a serious fire occurs again.
Parks Victoria espouses to manage its parks and reserves in a culturally sensitive and ecologically appropriate way and protect our natural and cultural heritage on behalf of all Victorians. How does subsidising and supporting the development of ugly metal luges, sound and light shows within a state park fit within this?
Arthurs Seat State Park has one of the highest levels of biodiversity in the state. Numerous animal and plant species are classified as rare, threatened or endangered yet Parks Victoria and this state government are putting the environment, visitors, local residents, firefighters and emergency personnel at risk by converting the Arthurs Seat State Park into LUNA PARK!
Nigel Atkins, Arthurs Seat
Misinformation
Ken Anderson’s recent letter (Independents?, Letters 17/9/24) makes an accusation against Simon Holmes a Court that says more about Ken than it does about Simon.
Ken clearly believes everyone acts in their own self-interest, as opposed to the public interest. I am one of more than 300 people in Flinders who have joined the grassroots movement, Independent 4 Flinders (I4F). Like our predecessor (Voices of the Mornington Peninsula), I4F aims to engage our community in conversations about issues that matter to people live on the Mornington Peninsula. Our ‘Kitchen Table Conversations’ also ask participants the type of political representation we want. Do we want someone who blindly follows their party or someone who listens to our local community?
In his letter, Ken makes incorrect claims. Firstly, he is incorrect about preferences. Unlike Liberal, Labor and Greens, Independents do not do preference deals. In fact, they do not indicate an preferences on their ‘How to Vote card’. Each voter determines their own preferences. Some may put the Liberals second, others Labor or Greens.
Ken is also incorrect about community independents adopting the ‘left wing agenda’. Many voters in Kooyong and Goldstein in 2022, for example, were life-long Liberal Party members, supporters (and donors). They had become unhappy with the Liberal Party moving further and further to the right.
Those of us who have joined I4F are neither colour blind nor rusted on voters. We not only want integrity in politics (i.e. ‘keep the bastards honest’) but very importantly a Federal MP who genuinely represents our values, not their party’s values.
Denise Hassett, Mt Martha
Koala habitat continued
Sue Glenn is reluctant to accept that agriculture and mining dwarf land clearing arising from wind turbines (Habitat clearing, Letters 1/10/24). However, everyone agrees that habitat for endangered species like the koala needs to be protected. Sue can write to the federal minister for the environment Tanya Plibersek imploring her to get on with the strengthening of our national environment laws and stop native forest logging.
I won’t bother writing to Beijing newspapers regarding China’s emissions as Sue suggests because they can rightly point to our per capita emissions (15 tonnes per person) which is nearly double theirs (8 tonnes per person) according to Our World in Data.
Ray Peck, Hawthorn
Help for Housing
The Southern Women’s Action Network (SWAN) conducted a survey to identify which shire election candidates have ideas and plans for addressing the peninsula’s housing and homelessness crisis. Candidates were asked how, if elected, they would work to increase supply of public and social housing and emergency accommodation and ensure community support centres are better funded. Two thirds (65%) of the candidates responded. SWAN is disturbed that some candidates failed to contribute on such critical issues.
It is vital that everyone standing in this election demonstrate their willingness to address such critical community concerns. Before they vote, most residents want to know who will work to make the peninsula a better, more inclusive, and fairer place for everyone. MPSC has the fourth highest rate of homelessness in Victoria, with an increasing number sleeping rough, including victims of family violence, many on our foreshores.
Since February, SWAN has met with elected representatives across all levels of government to advocate for the peninsula’s fair share of funding for housing solutions. Feedback we received was mainly positive with three quarters of respondents offering a range of solutions to the current housing crisis on the peninsula. Candidates suggested strategies to attract state and federal funding, including for purpose-built emergency and refuge accommodation, and extending preventative support services. Also mentioned was the use of vacant government land, incentives to investors to build more accommodation, removal of red tape barriers to housing development, and implementation of the Triple A Housing Committee’s strategies.
Several candidates stand out for presenting clear, well considered and viable solutions, including: Josie Jones, Eddie Matt, Nic Robertson, Nick Fallaw, Paul Pingiaro, Max Patton, Patrick Binyon, Kathryn Smith, and sitting councillors Despi O’Connor and David Gill. Detailed contributions and our response rankings for these and other social justice issues can be found at: swanwomen.org.au
Southern Women’s Action Group
Concern for future
I have never written a letter to the editor before, but I’ve grown increasingly concerned about the direction of our democracy. It appears to be shifting towards a model similar to that of the USA, which is alarming. Our two major parties are becoming more alike. And when one party is in opposition, it offers little in the way of real solutions, instead focusing on distractions and innuendos. Question Time has become a disgrace—they call for respect yet both parties fail to show it. Cooperation between the parties seems to occur only when it serves their own interests. One clear example is the issue of truth in political advertising where neither party supports it, so what the public wants never comes to fruition.
Recent letters about the role of independents got me thinking about potential solutions. After some research, I’ve concluded that a strong independent crossbench is essential for keeping the government in check. Sadly, when politicians are elected as members of the major parties, they are bound to the party’s agenda rather than the people who elected them. They are forced to vote along party lines, regardless of their own views or the concerns of their constituents.
So I will vote for an independent candidate in the next federal election. I’ll rank my preferences according to the party that most closely aligns with my concerns. I will also vote above the line in the Senate to ensure my vote goes where I intend, avoiding the complex preference system.
We must do everything in our power to stop our country from adopting the US’s style of extreme politics. It’s time to hold our political parties accountable.
Hilda McLeod, Dromana
Council watching for who?
Is anyone wondering why Council Watch Victoria thinks it can interfere in our shire initiatives? Should they not be addressing issues at the state level that negatively affect councillors and constraints on them? Should they not be working on Municipal Association of Victoria and other “peak bodies” to get meaningful change to the Local Government Act?
The recent petition on “Paid Parking” is not representative of the peninsula even though it was tabled by Cr Celi. My guess is that 90% of the signatures have nothing to do with peninsula residents but are, rather, signatures from outside the shire.
Council Watch claims to have a local group on the peninsula but I can find no evidence that it exists. Is it a pseudo group run by Council Watch Victoria? If it does exist then the petition should come from them but it should be a “I agree or do not agree” petition with unbiased information on both sides of the issue. We have to wonder if thelocal groups are independent or do they have to kowtow to the state group?
Why is it that this organisation has to take personal toxic shots at some of our councillors rather than address the issue? Why is it that Council Watch Victoria continues to attack spending on climate issues when it knows that councils have no choice as it is legislated that they do so?
What’s my point? Council Watch Victoria should concentrate on statewide issues and, if local “chapters” exist, they should deal with local issues. And Council Watch should adopt the same principles and processes that they expect councils to adhere to.
Joe Lenzo, Safety Beach
Coolart Candidate
I am writing in support of the re-election of Cr David Gill in the Coolart (previously Red Hill) Ward. David has served this Ward well and with immense integrity, unlike many of his fellow councillors. We know who they are and hope people will ensure the new council is a huge improvement on the old.
David has shown leadership on so many issues, particularly in support of the Green Wedge areas which of course dominate so many parts of the Coolart Ward. And part of what he is achieving in enhancing the Green Wedge lies in his defence of the animals and birds which are an intrinsic feature of what most us of love about our peninsula.
David is also probably the most responsive Councillor when residents need help with issues, whether personal or peninsula-wide. Vote for David Gill to continue serving the Coolart Ward.
Peter Monie, Flinders
You Can Have Your Cake
To Liz Sarkie of Hampton East (Let Them Eat Cake, Letters 1/10/24). Count your blessings yours is but a holiday house. If your shire was anything like ours, you too would complain. It’s our civic duty. Despite disorientation due to pothole-avoidance, we soldier on, in the hopes of better days.
Paula Polson, Dromana
