POLICE are appealing for help to identify a man who sexually assaulted a teenage girl in Mt Eliza last year. The attack so traumatised the girl that she was unable to report it to police for more than a year. Just before midnight, Saturday 7 May, the 16-year-old left a party in a street near Toorak College to walk home with a few friends along Old Mornington Rd. Her friends were collected and she continued walking alone. Soon after, she heard two men calling out from behind. She turned but could not see them in the dark. The girl, now…
Author: Stephen Taylor
A $5 MILLION gift from Brian and Margaret Goding has paid for most of the redevelopment of the maternity unit at The Bays Hospital, Mornington, which will be named in honour of Mrs Goding. The grant from the Goding Foundation – the Mornington family’s philanthropic arm – is the largest in the hospital’s history. Mr Goding said The Bays had an “essential role in providing healthcare services for future generations” hoped his family’s support will inspire others to do the same. The Goding family, which has run Moorooduc Timber & Hardware for 60-odd years and where Mr Goding is CEO,…
THE gift of a quilt crafted by Bev Young, of Mornington Peninsula Patchworkers, has made a returned serviceman pleased and proud. The garment, known as a Quilt of Valour, was presented to ex-serviceman Tom Jones, 95, by Chelsea RSL president Michael Weissefeld and Wyn Roper, president of Quilters of Valour Australia. The organisation started in 2010 to “honour those affected by their service to Australia”. So far, more than 1000 quilts have been presented to ex-service personnel, each unique item taking many hours to craft by quilters. The message is that the quilts “wrap the wounded in love, care and…
WORK valued at $481 million to replace outdated infrastructure and facilities at HMAS Cerberus is likely to start this year. The work was foreshadowed in a Defence White Paper in March. It will include “improved underground services”, technical and physical training facilities, survival-at-sea facilities, and refurbishment of dining and accommodation areas. The funding is expected to secure the future of the base as Australia’s principal naval training base and pump money into the economies of Crib Point, Hastings and surrounding areas. “When the base opened in 1920 it could not have been envisioned how much it would grow and expand,”…
GENEVIEVE Beacom of Somerville flies to Japan this week as part of the Australia-Japan Women’s Baseball Youth Leaders Exchange. Last week she trained with the high performance squad in Sydney, focusing on skills, fitness, leadership and game development. The squad will compete against Japanese youth teams and train with professional Japanese women’s teams. Genevieve, 12, played the summer season as a left-handed pitcher for Cheltenham Baseball Club and was a member of the premiership sides in the under-12 and under-14 age groups. The year 7 Flinders Christian Community College student won the under-12 pitching award at the club and was…
RYE Community Group Alliance is urging Mornington Peninsula Shire to vote against increasing the number of boat and jet ski launching ramps at Rye. The issue will come to a head at the shire’s 17 July planning services meeting in Rosebud. Council officers have recommended the shire accept a $588,000 grant from Roads, Road Safety and Ports Minister Luke Donnellan to be given on the proviso the expansion includes a fourth boat ramp. But the alliance has urged councillors to “listen to what is being said by many in the Rye community and say no to the expansion of the…
THERE’S no sign of the heritage sheep that once graced The Briars Park, Mt Martha. They vanished – and some of the volunteers who paid for them and felt responsible for them – say they have been kept in the dark about where they were sent and whether they will be replaced. Mornington Peninsula Shire says there is no mystery: the sheep were sold more than a year ago and volunteers were offered a refund. One volunteer said he had not received a refund from Mornington Peninsula Shire Council for the cost of the heritage sheep which he had contributed…
A MORNINGTON man got the fright of his life when bailed up by police, with guns drawn, outside his house, 1.30am, Tuesday 27 June. Philippe DeKraan, of Alameda Av, said the police helicopter hovering overhead and noises in his street woke him up, so he dressed and went outside. There was plenty of action in the street, he said, with police on foot roaming from house to house. “Before I could blink they rushed towards me,” Mr DeKraan said. “Three police cars turned their headlights on me and police jumped out of their cars with hands on their pistols, shouting…
A GROUP of Mornington residents – with the backing of Mornington Peninsula Shire – is calling on the state government to hold a review of bus services on the peninsula. Peninsula Residential Parks and Villages Group chairman Bob Dalmau has organised a petition to be presented to public transport minister Jacinta Allan to end a “legacy of under-investment in public transport over many years”. The petition requests the review “to identify and resolve some very important shortcomings in our services”. “Significant residential and commercial development has occurred over the past 20 years with little or no consideration given to the…
VICROADS has knocked back a request by Mornington MP David Morris to charge Mornington Peninsula Shire a peppercorn rent for land to be used as a car park by Mt Eliza schools. Mr Morris, in a question to Roads Minister Luke Donnellan in state parliament, asked that VicRoads waive a proposed $21,746 annual leasing fee for the 2500 square metre block on the corner of Nepean Highway and Canadian Bay Rd. He said the land – to be developed as a car park with a $280,000 federal government grant arranged by Dunkley MP Chris Crewther – would benefit students at…
JOINING the Red Hill-based Plastic Bag Free Peninsula group in May was the catalyst for Gwen Giudici’s journey towards wanting to reduce waste in general. “At the meeting I was introduced to Boomerang Bags by Shelle Hepburn,” she said. “She had been sewing the bags in Sorrento with volunteers and school kids. At the meeting I suggested I could set up a group in Rosebud. “I live in Tootgarook but I knew a centrally located deli whose owners are very active in the war on waste.” La Casa Nostra Deli owners Susan and Phil Tomasello are opposed to paper bags…
THREE public meetings are being held to explain changes to state government planning regulations that allow 11 metre high three storey buildings in residential areas across the Mornington Peninsula. Mornington Peninsula Shire councillors are concerned about the changes which will affect those living in Rosebud, Dromana, Capel Sound, Bittern, Hastings, Tyabb, Somerville and Baxter. “My fellow councillors and I believe these information sessions are a great opportunity for those in affected townships and surroundings to hear about the planning changes and what the shire is doing to save their character,” the mayor Cr Bev Colomb said. At a recent planning…
FINDING a job can be difficult at the best of times, but can be even harder for anyone with a long term disability. Nathan Edwards, an experienced kitchen hand who enjoys the busy atmosphere of a commercial kitchen, is now working part-time work at Kings Creek Hotel, Hastings. His new job came about after the hotel began working with Marillac, a government-funded disability employment service run by St John of God Health care. The service assists job seekers with a disability to find and keep paid work. It uses a reverse marketing approach to identify, contact and encourage employers to…
FOUR collectors in white and red “Legalise vaping” t-shirts were approaching shoppers at Balnarring Shopping Centre last week seeking signatures for a petition to support the use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). The collectors were overheard telling shoppers that vaping was “proven to be the most popular and effective aid to quitting smoking”. Submissions close on Thursday to an inquiry by the Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Sport called in May by Health Minister and Flinders MP Greg Hunt into the use and marketing of e-cigarettes and personal vaporisers. Tobacco companies have bought into the market by buying some…
DROMANA Secondary College student Alex Dietzel has received a senior VCAL student achievement award for his personal development skills. He is the first student from the college to receive the award. His success came from his efforts in raising awareness and understanding of people on the autism spectrum. The judges said he showed “great independence and drive” in leading three other students, also passionate about the issue, to plan, organise and run a community awareness campaign on autism. Alex – who was school captain last year – presented detailed plans to principal Alan Marr to obtain permission to run events…
ONE in four complaints about noise made to Mornington Peninsula Shire Council relate to so-called “party houses”. Upset neighbours are demanding tighter regulations for short-stay rentals and want owners held to account for their tenants’ transgressions. The shire’s environment protection manager John Rankine says those affected should call the police. If the problem is regular the shire will contact property owners and check sound levels, record complaints, collect witness statements, make inspections and possibly prosecute. The Melbourne-based We Live Here group is pushing for tougher rules on the letting of holiday houses over social media (“Tougher rules bid for party…
SEAROAD Ferries has won a lucrative contract to run the Western Port ferry service between French Island, Phillip Island and Stony Point. The company, trading as Western Port Ferries, will run the service for five years from Saturday 1 July. The existing operator, Inter Island Ferries – whose contract ends on that day – is believed to carry about 32,000 passengers a year. Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan says she “expects that number to rise under the new operator”. Searoad Ferries says it aims to increase the number of services by more than 30 per cent, including a new daily…
SLEEPING out in the cold is a tough ask even for one night – let alone on a regular basis. But it’s a common plight on the Mornington Peninsula for many people without jobs or on low incomes – and one being made worse by the scarcity of affordable rental properties and the closure of several traditionally cheap and accessible caravan parks. Mt Martha-based Fusion Australia – an organisation which works with the homeless – estimates up to 2000 people sleep “rough”, or in their cars, on the peninsula every night. To help them, it is running its third Sleep…
THE skies are blue for Mornington model aircraft flyer Daniel Arapakis who takes off for Sweden next month to compete in his second world championships. The 16-year-old started flying model aircraft only four years ago at Western Port Model Aero Club, Crib Point. In 2015, as a 14-year-old, he flew at the world pylon racing championships in the Czech Republic and won a third place and bronze medal – the youngest pilot ever to do so. Now, two years on, Daniel has multiple wins and placings in pylon racing events which are held around the country. And, according to dad…
FAMILY violence figures have been collated and publicly released for the first time as part of a push to bring domestic assaults out from behind closed doors. The Victorian Family Violence Database released by the Crime Statistics Agency shows a rise in the number of cases every year from July 2011 until June 2016. Described by the state government as “lifting the lid on the hidden scourge of family violence”, the database includes figures from Victoria Police, magistrates’ and children’s courts, the departments of Health, Human Services and Justice and Regulation, and Victoria Legal Aid. The figures show family incidents…
A MORNINGTON-based animal advocacy group is resorting to a Go Fund Me campaign to raise money for a costly freedom-of-information request. The group has been quoted $1108 for Mornington Peninsula Shire Council’s FoI officer to answer six detailed questions about the community animal shelter, in Watt Rd, Mornington. The shire wants half of the cost ($554) before starting a search for the information. The shire’s FoI officer estimated it would take 40-53 hours to research answers for the group which has campaigned for greater transparency in the shire’s handling of impounded dogs and cats. NSW resident Judith Anne Carter made…
THE lucrative rental of short-stay “party houses” on the Mornington Peninsula will be tightly regulated if a new residents’ group gets its way. The We Live Here group is pushing for tougher rules on the letting of holiday houses over social media to hordes of party-goers who ruin neighbours’ weekends with late-night noise and alcohol-fuelled aggression. Neighbours of one Rye holiday house – rented out for a reported $800 a night several times last year – said noisy parties and inebriated partygoers were making their weekends a nightmare. The practise is expected to grow as more people flock to online…
HASTINGS police are looking into incidences around the town of elderly users of mobility scooters being stood over and bullied by youths. Mornington Peninsula Shire mobility scooter ambassador Fran Henke went to the police after hearing from a friend who intervened last week when a woman was being bullied by eight youths in the Ritchie’s arcade. “I wanted advice on the kind of personal alarm that mobility scooter users might carry,” Mrs Henke said. “But, coincidentally, another person at the police station was making a related inquiry so I joined in. “The man had three pages listing similar events and…
ONE notable success of the Western Port Secondary College’s outreach program concerns 18-year-old Mark Pratt who left school in year 6 and never stayed for long at any secondary school. The road to getting the Frankston teenager re-engaged with learning was a rocky one as he, and school work, had never been compatible. Mr Pratt had been through residential care and briefly attended several secondary schools up until he was 15, but anger management issues were “letting him down”, Western Port’s outreach coordinator Helen Smith said. “He had found no real purpose in life and had been in a…
VOLUNTEER groups which play a huge role in rescuing those in distress on Port Phillip and Western Port bays are “bewildered” at being overlooked in last month’s state budget. The 26 marine search-and-rescue units in Victoria, include the Victorian flotillas of the Australian Volunteer Coast Guard, Volunteer Marine Rescue Victoria and Southern Peninsula Rescue Squad. They say they are the only emergency service providers not to receive regular government funding and are unable to work to a budget. A Coast Guard vessel is based at Safety Beach, the VMR at Mornington and the Southern Peninsula Rescue Squad at Blairgowrie. Their…
A WEEK-LONG walk starting on World Environment Day (Monday 5 June) is promoting the retention of wildlife habitats in Frankston and across the Mornington Peninsula. The Great Mornington Peninsula Bush Walk and Habitat Corridor, hosted by the Australian Wildlife Protection Council, began at the Pines Flora and Fauna Reserve, Frankston and will continue to Mornington Peninsula National Park at Gunnamatta on Saturday 9 June. Tuesday’s walk is from Baxter Park, Frankston-Flinders Rd, to Mt Martha. On Wednesday, walkers start at The Briars, Mt Martha, and continue on to Dromana. On Thursday they will start from Hillview community reserve, Boundary Rd,…
STATE Liberal Party president Michael Kroger spoke at the Victorian Maritime Centre’s inaugural Governors Dinner on Wednesday 24 May at which he and two others were inducted into its governorship program. Mr Kroger, along with Liberal Party Eastern Multicultural branch president Gladys Liu and financial advisor Ian Heraud will help guide, mentor and protect the $15 million project which involves establishing a maritime museum at Hastings based around the submarine HMAS Otama (moored off Crib Point for the past 14 years) and former pilot vessel, MV Wyuna (initially destined for a birth at Docklands). Western Port Oberon Association public relations…
PENINSULA Transport Assist will have its Mornington Peninsula Shire bus contract renewed for a further two years following high customer satisfaction ratings and projected cost savings. Mornington Peninsula Shire’s sustainable transport project coordinator Rita Kontos, in a report to last week’s council meeting, that an evaluation of community bus hire outsourcing over the past 12 months had proven positive. Four criteria were used in the assessment: increase in use against previous 12 months; diversity of users (youth, aged, disabled); customer satisfaction, and cost benefits. Ms Kontas said the shire saved $13,000 by outsourcing the bus hire operations. “Forward projections indicate…
DRIVING from Adelaide to Cairns to raise money for cancer research is all in a week’s work for Nick Bolitho and Martin Foad (aka The Whinging Poms) in this week’s Shitbox Rally. The pair left Mt Martha on Thursday for the short hop to Adelaide where they will join the rally and drive up through the outback, hoping to arrive in Cairns on Friday 2 June, more than 3800 kilometres away. Their Mitsubishi Verada is loaded with their swags, esky, road trip CDs, yellow fancy dress costume and union jack dinner jackets for big nights out as well as wipes…
THE $80,000 saved over two years by axing the Mornington Peninsula Shire’s pet expo at Rosebud will go towards stopping uncontrolled breeding of cats and dogs and reuniting lost pets with their owners. The money will also go towards “easing accessibility” at the council animal shelter in Watt Rd, Mornington by foregoing the need for appointments on Saturday mornings for a six-month trial. The biennial expo due to be held in November has been cancelled. Environment protection manager John Rankine told councillors the money saved would be better spent at the community animal shelter. Communications, media and events manager Mark…