Author: Stephen Taylor

RESIDENTS have raised concerns about a proposal to make Point Nepean Rd to a single lane each way as it passes through Rye. A petition with 659 signatures opposing the move outlined in a draft township plan was doing the rounds Friday in the lead-up to a community drop-in session at Rye Civic Hall, 6-8pm, Thursday 14 September. Mornington Peninsula Shire councillors last month agreed to place the plan on public exhibition for six weeks. The shire issued a statement saying the plan had been “developed in close consultation with the community, sets the strategic vision and direction for the…

WESTERN Port Oberon Association president Max Bryant says he is disappointed his group’s push for a maritime centre is not included in the draft Hastings Foreshore Precinct Plan. Mr Bryant said he was “surprised” by comments of the shire’s property and strategy manager Yasmin Woods that the association does not have state government involvement and approval in having the Otama submarine as a focal point of the proposed maritime centre on the outer wall of the Western Port Marina (“Future plan has no port for a sub” The News, 29/8/17). “We do have their approval and, if she would care…

TWO of Hastings most active clubs have given the thumbs down to Mornington Peninsula Shire’s plans for the foreshore. Both clubs say the Draft Hastings Foreshore Precinct Plan ignores their needs and could put members of the public at risk. Hastings Yacht Club and Westernport Angling Club members are opposing the plan which was released for public comment on 28 August and will close on 2 October. Yacht club secretary Martin Jones slammed it as being “not encouraging of what we do here”, while the angling club’s Don Newman said members felt their submissions had been “almost totally ignored with…

THE new community animal shelter and pound on Watt Rd, Mornington, includes an updated cattery with separate spaces for 34 cats, and two quarantine rooms said to be industry best practice. Mornington Peninsula Shire says the design of the pound, which opened on Wednesday 23 August after a reported $900,000 revamp, will ensure it “continues to meet its obligations under the code of practice for the management of dogs and cats in shelters and pounds”. It will reduce the potential for disease and assist in the day to day management of the animals. A six-month trial adoption time began last…

A SPEEDING driver who sideswiped several cars in a wild ride along Nepean Highway from Blairgowrie to Edithvale was later grappled with by members of the public and held until police arrived, Friday 1 September. Sergeant Ray Box said Mornington police began receiving calls from irate motorists about the driver’s behaviour in the Canterbury-Jetty road area of Rosebud at 10.30am. He was allegedly driving on the wrong side of the road and speeding at up to 120kph in 80kph zones. Police unsuccessfully tried to head off the man in a Honda CRV at Safety Beach but he avoided them and…

A MOTORIST who stopped to help after a kangaroo collided with a car on Mornington-Flinders Rd early Friday morning realised he didn’t know who to call to help the animal in its agony. Wally Sutton and the driver of the car that hit the kangaroo approached the injured animal which had dragged itself off the road and appeared to have broken its hind legs. “It was in agony,” wife Jenny Webber said. “Then the ring-around began: the driver called his wife who suggested the Main Ridge vet’s after-hours contact, who said call the council, the council said call the ranger,…

A PETITION with 1574 signatures urging the state government to review public bus transport on the Mornington Peninsula was knocked back by state parliament last week. Nepean MP Martin Dixon was refused leave to table the petition by the Peninsula Residential Parks and Villages Group because it was “not in the correct form”. The group’s chairman, Bob Dalmau, said the refusal was a “roadblock but we’ll get around it somehow”. “It is very frustrating; they just threw it out,” he said. “We are doing this for the community which needs more buses down here. “Whole communities at Mornington, Hastings, Dromana…

ABOUT 40 cooks and catering staff formed a picket line outside HMAS Cerberus yesterday (Monday 28 August) to protest over what they claim is substandard pay. The full and part-time staff, engaged by labour-hire contractor Broadspectrum, staged the protected industrial action, 5am-1pm. This meant senior Cerberus staff had to be rostered on to prepare and serve breakfast and lunch for the Crib Point base’s 800 trainees. The striking cooks and caterers say they have no grievances with the naval base – only its labour-hire contractor. The dispute comes after failed enterprise bargaining talks between Broadspectrum and the Australian Workers’ Union.…

POLICE carried six members of the Love Makes A Way refugee advocacy group out of the Hastings office of Flinders MP Greg Hunt after a four-hour sit-in. No charges were laid against members of the group, which included Uniting Church minister the Rev Alex Sangster and church members Kristen Furneaux and Jake Doleschal, after they refused a police request to leave the reception area about 6pm. They did not resist when being evicted. “The police were fantastic and very respectful and all the relationships were very cordial and polite,” Ms Sangster said after last Tuesday’s protest. The Love Makes a Way…

MORNINGTON Peninsula Regional Gallery echoed to the sounds of the second Victorian Music Crawl last week. It was all part of a contemporary music bus tour, Thursday to Saturday, hosted by Mornington Peninsula Shire Council and the Musicians Network. Maxon and Nola Lauch performed at the gallery show before musicians, managers, booking agents and industry representatives. The artists of all genders, ages and genres, performed rock, jazz and blues at live venues, including pubs, a church, festival site, mechanics hall, winery, café, radio station, art gallery, brewery, nightclub and a Mexican restaurant on the peninsula, Bass Coast and in south…

A MT MARTHA doctor has for 30 years been able to combine her twin loves: scuba diving and medicine. In that time, Dr Vanessa Haller has made more than 2500 dives in idyllic locations while photographing marine life – including large sharks – and contributing to the knowledge of the South Pacific Underwater Medicine Society. It’s a perfect fit for a diving doctor: the society studies, promotes and communicates with members on all aspects of underwater and hyperbaric medicine, holds scientific conferences at exotic South Pacific locations and fosters fellowship and friendship among members. What could be more exciting than…

MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire Council will write to the Premier Daniel Andrews urging the state government to ban the distribution of single use plastic bags. The council at last Tuesday’s (22 August) meeting voted to back the Environmental Protection Amendment (Banning Plastic Bags, Packaging and Microbeads) Bill (2016), or alternative legislation aimed at preventing the distribution of free single-use plastic bags. The shire will also develop and implement a “community engagement campaign relating to the impact of plastic bags on the environment, waste and litter minimisation actions”, and “provide a platform for local, community-led plastic bag and litter reduction initiatives”. A…

A CLASS of Mornington preschoolers was looking forward to an excursion to Mornington fire station last week – until the visit was cancelled at the last minute by firemen concerned they didn’t have the requisite Working with Children checks. Leslie Moorhead Preschool had arranged the visit for the four-year-old group to “increase their understanding and sense of community”. But the visit fell foul of laws introduced on 1 August which take a tougher line on the actual wording of the act which aims to protect children from harm. The episode highlights the added bite of the new requirements which many…

THE Oasis Pop-Up Kitchen in Bentons Rd, Mt Martha, has been forced to close over an “issue relating to the planning permit”. The kitchen – which “popped up” three months ago in its temporary home while a full-size Oasis bakery is built on 1.6 hectares on Nepean Highway, Mornington – was to close yesterday (Monday 21 August). Mornington Peninsula Shire’s executive manager planning services David Bergin said the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal had ruled on 4 August that “the use of the land must stop”. He said council was powerless to alter the decision”. Oasis manager Jess Makool said…

MORNINGTON Peninsula is ranked seventh for animal cruelty reports and 39th on a per capita basis among Victoria’s 79 municipalities, according to a list of hotspots released last week by RSPCA Victoria. The RSPCA says it received 10,180 cruelty reports across the state in 2016-17 – or around 28 a day. Of these, 321 were concerns about the welfare of animals on the peninsula, which equates to one report for every 483 residents. The state-wide average is one report for 581 residents. Reports from the peninsula included 155 relating to animals with insufficient food, water or shelter; 100 relating to…

THE Peninsula Dementia Action Group is holding an information session to mark World Alzheimer’s Day on Thursday 21 September. The event in the Village Hub dining room at The Village Glen, Rosebud, is titled “Dementia in My Community”. Dementia is a broad term which describes a collection of symptoms that are caused by disorders affecting the brain. The free event includes morning tea and a performance by the Village Singers Choir, 9.30am. Alzheimer’s Victoria will present an Understanding Dementia session and people living with dementia will share their stories while a panel of health professionals will discuss dementia and answer…

A STUDY by a boating industry-backed group has recommended building four launching ramps near Tyabb and adding another at Stony Point. Mornington Peninsula Shire has “noted” the plan which seeks to ease the “critical levels” of capacity facing recreational boat owners on both sides of the peninsula. The shire’s potential backing of suggestions by the Peninsula Marine Alliance could add 300 car and trailer parking bays for public use at Yaringa and at Stony Point on the shores of Western Port. Land for the Stony Point parking bays could come through acquisition or lease of Defence Force land at HMAS…

THREE volunteers from Bittern Fire Brigade will compete against colleagues from Australia and overseas in the 2017 Melbourne Firefighters’ Stair Challenge at Crown Plaza, South Bank, Saturday 2 September. The race to the top will see Robin Adair, Dan Beattie and Matt Zerbe climb the building’s 28 storeys in a simulated rescue – wearing up to 20kg of protective gear and breathing apparatus. “We are training hard every day,” said Dr Adair, who is also director at the company Australis Biological. “Our team, nicknamed the Bittern Stair Slayers, is in shape and ready to go for their first stair challenge.”…

REX Australis – the giant ram’s head which has graced Peninsula Link near the Skye Rd exit for the past four years – is settling in at its new home: McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park, Langwarrin. The cast-iron sculpture by Dean Colls is 14 metres long, seven metres high and six metres deep. It will feature near another sculptured favourite: the Tree of Life, by artist Phil Price, which was replaced at the Cranbourne Rd exit by Reflective Lullaby – colloquially known as the Giant Gnome, by Gregor Kregar. Fittingly, the intersections at which the sculptures attracted motorists’ attention are…

MORNINGTON’S Daniel Arapakis flew his F3D aircraft to victory at the FAI F3D world championships in Sweden, 25-29 July. The Western Port Model Aero Club member – nicknamed ‘Dannmann’ – did Australia proud bringing home the gold medal and becoming junior world champion. Daniel is the first Australian junior to win a world championship in any facet of aeromodelling, his father Andrew Arapakis said. “He was race prepared with the finest aircraft, engines and propellers fastidiously engineered by Barry Murphy, which are world renowned for their reliability and performance.” Daniel flew his Minute Master racer for 14 rounds over three…

LAND near the Mornington Peninsula Shire offices in Besgrove St has surfaced as the preferred option for an aquatic centre at Rosebud. The cost of the aquatic centre is estimated at $28.4 million-$30.7 million, depending on it having a 25-metre or 50-metre inside or outside pool. The council last week voted to spend $20,000 on a business plan for the site which is expected to be completed before its December meeting. A report to council’s 8 August meeting warned that the centre was likely to lose 800,000 to $1.075m a year, although these “may potentially be reduced” by $200,000 if…

JUST weeks after signing a new lease on his Mornington warehouse a businessman learned Mornington Peninsula Shire had approved a planning permit for an adjoining site which he says will hinder his ability to run his business. Tony Taylor says the permit for offices and storage units confirms his neighbour has sole rights over a side carriageway easement, which could mean he is prevented from unloading stock at his loading bay. He says the restrictions could jeopardise the viability of the business on the site he is now locked into for the next five years. Mr Taylor, of Direct Hospitality…

THE proposed demolition of what is described as “a rare example of an early 1900s timber cottage” in Sorrento’s main street has upset members of Nepean Historical Society. Ratio Consultants has applied to Mornington Peninsula Shire Council for a permit to develop a three-storey building with 16 dwellings and two shops at 141-145 Ocean Beach Rd. If approved, the development will involve the demolition of Sandarne, which was built about 1915 as the home of Swedish immigrant seaman and fisherman Albert Backius. He is said to have designed it and named it after his home town in Sweden. Historical society…

ROSEBUD’S Mark Krieger has spent three years working on his latest book: High Spain Drifter, based around cycling in Europe. In the story, the keen cyclist sets off on another of his fascinating journeys – this time around Spain and Portugal’s Iberian Peninsula with Roz and daughter Emma in tow. The former teacher taught English and History at Mornington Secondary College for 22 years from 1992, after arriving in Rosebud the year before. “Of our five children, four have followed in our footsteps. Each has taught or is currently teaching on the Mornington Peninsula,” Krieger said. “Cycling-wise, I have spent…

A LACK of regular maintenance is the “crucial safety issue” at the Rye boat ramp, according to Rye Community Group Alliance, which opposes the contentious fourth ramp. Chair Mechelle Cheers said her group was angry that Mornington Peninsula Shire had backed plans to develop a fourth ramp when it was “rarely” needed. The cost of the works is about $1.2 million, with the shire receiving $588,000 from Ports Minister Luke Donnellan, on condition a fourth boat ramp is built. No additional car parking is planned. A council report said the project would “alleviate the on-land and on-water congestion experienced at…

UP to 200 litres of diesel fuel spilled from the United Terminals’ Hastings depot into Olivers Creek last week from what is believed to be a damaged pipe flange. Earlier, it was reported that 100-1000 litres had escaped from the Barclay Crescent site before the leak was stopped about 1pm on Monday 31 July. United’s COO David Szymczak said the seepage was mostly contained in bunds – protective earth or concrete walls – designed to trap fuel overflows. “All our tanks are in bunded areas but, on this occasion, a small amount – in the 200-litre category – seeped out…

KATHRYN Whatmore knows all about the pressures felt by the wives and girlfriends of professionals cricketers – especially when their partners are on tour. “There’s a lot more expected of cricketers these days as they are full time and there is so much travel involved,” the wife of former Test cricketer and now international coach Dav (Davenell) Whatmore, said on Monday from their home in Bittern. “There are many more competitions now; people don’t realise how difficult it is for wives to have their men so far from home and away from their young families.” Players are required to arrive…

TWO men who robbed a pensioner while he was riding his mobility scooter and walking his dog along Rosebud foreshore last week have been described as “despicable” and “callous”. Barry Morris-Shaoul, 69, of Rosebud, was walking his dog Uke near the back of the bowling club when he was confronted by the pair wearing dark-coloured hoodies and jeans, 6.30am, Wednesday 2 August. “They came up to me and asked for a light,” the Vietnam veteran said. “That’s not unusual around here as some people are struggling, so I went to give him one and that’s when they started abusing me.…

LIMITING short-stay rentals on the Morning Peninsula to a maximum of two people a bedroom would be “overkill” and unlikely to reduce problems, the owner of an established holiday rental said last week. Christine Delamore, who said she had never had problems with tenants at her Dromana holiday house, said a “few bad apples” at other rentals were tarnishing the industry. Many holiday rentals have three beds a bedroom – such as a queen size for the parents and bunk beds for young people, she said. “It’s good to have regulations and high standards … but to limit bedrooms to…

MORNINGTON police were involved in a dramatic incident on Friday when a stolen car was driven up the wrong side of Bungower Rd – and even up onto the footpath on the wrong side of the road – during school pick-up time. Frightened parents and sobbing pupils from St Macartans Primary School scattered as the silver Holden Commodore – nicked earlier from Roxburgh Park – roared up onto the footpath in its efforts to get away. Senior Sergeant Steve Duffee, of Mornington police, said the “manner in which the car was being driven” brought it to their attention near…