Browsing: Mornington Peninsula

PROPERTY owners have been connected with native vegetation on their properties through the 2023-24 Meet Your Bushland pilot program led by the Mornington Peninsula Landcare network and the Western Port Biosphere Foundation.The program, which included a walk-and-talk with a bushland restoration specialist, also provided the 26 landholders with a comprehensive report detailing the conservation values of their property and outlined the support mechanisms such as grants to aid in conservation efforts. The program finished on 2 June with a community event held at Carranya in Main Ridge, a property that has been undertaking successful restoration over several years. Biosphere spokesperson…

REACTION has been mixed to news that studies will resume into the environmental effects on Western Port of a terminal to assemble offshore wind turbines near Hastings. Business lobby group the Committee for Frankston and Mornington Peninsula “welcomes the news” while the Save Westernport group has said the Port of Hastings Corporation will need to prove “that all environmental impacts can be managed”.Plans for the terminal to assemble and ship wind terminals offshore to Gippsland were put on hold in January when federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek’s rejected the project for having “unacceptable and unmitigable risks to the Ramsar Wetlands…

Mornington Peninsula Crime Investigation Unit detectives are appealing for public assistance following a spate of burglaries across the southern suburbs. Police are investigating after small businesses were targeted in 15 incidents between 15 May and 8 June. In each instance two unknown offenders have forced entry to a business, usually by smashing a glass door. The offenders appear to have been solely focused on stealing cash, usually going directly to the register before fleeing the scene. Each of the businesses targeted was located along or in the vicinity of Point Nepean Road in either Dromana, Rosebud, Capel Sound or Rye.…

A STORM is brewing in Safety Beach and Dromana, and it’s got nothing to do with the weather.Renewed concern that a McDonalds fast food restaurant could take up residence in the redeveloped Dromana BP complex in Marine Drive has reignited a debate about whether the area needs more fast food franchises. A planning application is now before the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council for the development of a petrol station/fast food complex on a corner site bordering Safety Beach and Dromana, despite a similar application being knocked back at the Victoria Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) in 2021.The council, which will…

THE reality of life for people doing it tough can be unseen and unimaginable to those in warm homes and with food in the fridge.Georgia Hourn, CEO at Western Port Community Support ‐ the largest provider of emergency relief in the Western Port region ‐ said the centre was seeing a massive increase in people needing support. “We have just witnessed the worst six months on record in terms of demand in our agency’s 43-year history and we don’t expect things to improve any time soon,” she said. “But as an agency we are a strong team of five paid…

Southern Metro Crime Squad detectives have charged three teenagers following a series of fifteen alleged armed robberies across Melbourne’s southern and eastern suburbs. The alleged incidents which occurred over a 10-day period include: – A series of armed robberies at service stations in Kew, Burwood, Noble Park, Rowville & The Basin on 25 May. – A series of armed robberies at service stations in Lyndhurst, Mount Eliza, Mornington, Rosebud & Red Hill on 28 May. – A series of armed robberies at service stations in Highett, Mentone, Patterson Lakes, Murrumbeena & Burwood on 3 June. Detectives executed search warrants in…

CONCERN is growing over the increasing numbers of native animals being killed or injured on roads across the Mornington Peninsula.While exact figures are not available, 28 koalas and an unknown number of kangaroos and wallabies have been hit and killed by vehicles. The carnage on the peninsula’s roads is reflected throughout the state and nationally, with one insurer warning that animal collisions jumped 22 per cent last year.“Alarming” research from Australian Associated Motor Insurers (AAMI) “found more than 40 per cent of Aussie drivers don’t pay attention to wildlife warning signs, and most drivers (60 per cent) would dangerously swerve…

MPNFL MEN’S DIV ONEFRANKSTON YCW picked up a huge win over rival Pines last weekend. Just three senior games were played across the MPFNL over the Kings’ Birthday long weekend. The Stonecats’ clash with Pines was a catch-up game from round six.Eric Bell Reserve hosted the match on Saturday. After a tight first half, Frankston YCW led by eight points at half-time.A dominant third quarter put the result beyond doubt. Frankston YCW piled on six goals and managed to hold Pines to just two behinds. They opened up a 46 point lead, which proved too much to overcome.Pines had a…

Stand together and help the homeless I experienced homelessness as a young woman (Women’s group targets housing crisis, The News 6/6/24). Unless you have that lived experience, you cannot know how debilitating it is to not have a space of one’s own. Each day was a fight for survival, simply maintaining hygiene, enough food and a relatively safe place to sleep. Add the social, economic and personal impacts and it is very difficult to maintain motivation and any sense of self.I was appalled to read that homelessness especially among older women is such a big a problem on the Mornington…

MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire Council’s draft Our Urban Forest strategy is aimed at reducing the loss of trees on the peninsula. The strategy – on public exhibition until 10 July – follows a move by Cr Steve Holland in 2022 that called for action to stop “tree recession”. Holland said tree removal and loss was a significant issue on the peninsula, an area loved by most residents for its rich and thriving flora.The draft strategy sets an evidence-based target that 45 per cent of the public streets and parks in urban areas are shaded by tree canopy by 2034. The peninsula…

MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire Council has released its quarterly report, revealing a net operating position of $86.2 million for the year to end of March.The report states $6.1 million was spent on capital works, and $3.4 million on grants, subsidies and sponsorships. The amount spent on materials and services was 47 per cent of the annual forecast.Highlights included adopting a pedestrian access strategy, completing the Flinders Civic Hall redevelopment, a climate action grant to a kelp nursery in Dromana, and the Womin Djeka – Balnarring Ngargee (festival).Sponsorship highlights included the Sorrento Writers and the Flinders Fringe festivals. The projects leave $7…

THREE years after concerns were raised about hundreds of kangaroos trapped on a Cape Schanck property, animal welfare advocates have ramped up their campaign to educate communities about kangaroos and the importance of protecting them.The Save Kangaroos on the Mornington Peninsula (SKOMP) group is running a series of kangaroo “walks and talks” around the peninsula and other parts of Victoria to educate people on how to coexist with the native animals and the “national icon”.Spokesperson Craig Thomson said it was appalling that the kangaroos on the Cape Schanck property were still stuck behind fencing, with wildlife advocates unable to check…

STUDENTS at Our Lady of Fatima Parish Primary School, Rosebud, have been using their textile lessons to create an undersea wonderland.The completion of the colourful masterpiece, created with a lot of love and pricked fingers, is to celebrate World Ocean Day on 8 June. The school’s Dolphin Research Centre ambassadors are using the display to highlight the danger of foil plastic, which is commonly used as lolly or biscuit wrappers.Students learned that the inside of foil plastic packages is shiny silver and glitters like a fish and, when ingested by marine animals, causes illness and death. The students also produced…

RESIDENTS who live near a flood–prone block of land for sale in Mount Eliza fear any development will exacerbate flooding issues and put their homes at risk.The block in Valley Court has been vacant since the early 1980s after a house on the site collapsed and had to be demolished due to flooding problems. The sloping block, which experts have confirmed has a creek bed running underneath it, was the subject of court cases involving Mornington Peninsula Shire Council, builders, and the then–owners of the site because of its instability. While the outcome of the legal challenges is unclear, the…

THE latest review of Mornington Peninsula Shire Council’s planning scheme has found it to be “strategically robust and operationally sound”.The mayor Cr Simon Brooks said last year’s four-yearly review of the planning scheme covering “our amazing and diverse shire” also supported continued lobbying of the state government to release “surplus land” around the Port of Hastings. He has also called on peninsula residents to back the shire by lobbying their local MPs.Other issues involving approaches to the state government included action on sea level rise hazards; reforming bushfire controls to minimise unnecessary vegetation loss; stronger controls to protect the green…

POLITICIANS can expect to face increasing pressure to provide housing for the homeless, especially women, on the Mornington Peninsula.A report on the “homelessness crisis” by community group Peninsula Voice showed that more than 1000 people couch surf, sleep in their car or sleep rough every night on the peninsula. Increasingly, these people are women and children fleeing family violence. Emergency accommodation is virtually non-existent and women on the foreshore have experienced family violence and sexual assault before and while on the foreshore.These statistics and first hand experiences of the crisis were given to Housing, Water and Equality Minister Harriet Shingh…

BOATERS are being asked to watch out for southern right whales which have made their seasonal return to Victorian coastal waters. The Conservation Regulator says southern right whales visit Victoria’s coast from May to October to give birth and raise their young.Restrictions on boats include lowering engine noises which can interrupt whispering between mothers and calves to avoid predators. It is believed there are about 300 southern rights left in the south-east population. The endangered whales are vulnerable to vessel strikes, and boaters are being encouraged to watch out for the whales as they have no dorsal fin and can…

MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire Council may consider increasing the number of waste bins at popular foreshore campsites and is reminding residents and visitors not to use them to dump household waste.The mayor Cr Simon Brooks said anyone with concerns about an overflowing bin should report it as soon as they can, either by using the QR code on the bin, visiting the council’s website or by calling the customer service desk. “We will then arrange for the bins to be emptied and, if it appears to be an ongoing issue, consider installing extra bins,” he said. “Sometimes people use bins ……

HIKERS of all ages and from all walks of life enjoyed the spectacular coastal scenery of Mornington Peninsula last Friday (24 May) as they took part in Coastrek in support of the Heart Foundation.More than 2400 trekkers in various locations around the country participated in the 50km, 30km or 20km challenge to highlight the benefits of walking for heart health, while aiming to raise $800,000 in support of the Heart Foundation’s research into heart disease. Money raised will also support the foundation’s initiatives to end rheumatic heart disease in Australia – a preventable disease that is particularly prevalent in remote…

RESIDENTS pushing for a speed reduction on the four kilometres of Cape Schanck Road that runs between Boneo Road and the lighthouse will meet with the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council in a bid to enforce a 60kph limit.Resident Suzanne Vigenser, who lives on the road, said there was wide support to reduce the existing 80kph limit, which she said was “too dangerous” for road users and wildlife, with animals regularly hit and pedestrians put at risk. “Apart from the animals we see killed and injured, there are walkers who use the road and it’s really not safe because people drive…

RESIDENTS have started a watchdog-style Facebook page focussed on “inappropriate” developments in the Mornington Peninsula’s green wedge zone.The Peninsula Green Wedge Protection Group. (PGWPG) was formed to oppose an application to build a $4.5 million Hindu temple on green wedge land in Pearcedale. That case is going to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal in September.The group, headed by Pearcedale resident Craig Gobbi, has now started a new social media campaign to highlight all inappropriate planning applications within the peninsula’s green wedge zoned areas. “We are now being contacted by more and more people and groups that are involved in similar…

PENINSULA Quarries is inviting applications for a share of $5000 it will distribute this year through its community grants program. The program is open to not-for-profit organisations in the Somerville, Tyabb and Mornington areas.Last year, grants were allocated to a family day event, two primary schools and a recreation reserve. Somerville Family Day received $2500 to provide first aid for the the event, Tyabb Primary School received $1500 for improvements to its environment centre, Somerville Rise Primary School received $1500 to upgrade its courtyard and the Emu Plains Racecourse and Recreation Reserve received $2800 for repairs to its roads and…

THE Port Melbourne-based Happsa Group has won the cleaning contract for more than 100 Mornington Peninsula Shire-run community services. The $2.3 billion worth of shire assets include halls and maternal and child health centres, public toilets, foreshore amenity blocks and public barbecues.Happsa will also be responsible for litter collection in “high profile precincts”. The group’s contract starts in July and could last for seven years. The contract is separate to beach cleaning which, also from July, will be done by hand instead of mechanical beach cleaners. The 12-month trial on Port Phillip beaches will cost about $733,000 (Hands up for…

PUBLIC comment is being sought on the future of Dromana, with the release of a draft plan. Feedback will provide input on the use and development of the Dromana and Arthurs Seat escarpment area and Parkdale/Hillview Community Reserve, to help with the management and masterplans, which are concurrently being prepared.The Mornington Peninsula Shire Council is looking for comment until Friday 21 June on the proposed overall vision for the greater Dromana area, as well as to inform the community about current, future and advocacy initiatives being for the area. Greater Dromana takes in the coast at the base of Arthurs…

Public golf course is there for all to use I am writing to correct and give some perspective to a recent front page headline and, in particular, the subsequent comments from Cr David Gill stating that Mornington Peninsula Shire was effectively subsidising $9000 to each member of the Mount Martha Golf Club (MMGC) (Market call to end golf losses, The News 7/5/24 and Questions over golf ‘shire subsidy’ claim, 14/5/24).Mount Martha Public Golf Course (MMPGC) exists to make the game of golf accessible to all members of the community. Historically, much of the land was donated for this use and…

BEACH users moved by the high number of drownings on Mornington Peninsula’s notoriously dangerous back beaches have started a petition calling for “urgent action” to improve safety. The Mornington Peninsula Back Beaches Collective is directing the petition to Parks Victoria through Environment Minister Steve Dimopoulos, following a summer marked by drownings and water incidents.In February 20-year-old Cranbourne man and promising athlete Jona Kinivuwai was pulled out to sea by a rip while in the shallows at Rye back beach. His body has still not been found. One of the petition organisers, Rye surfer Drew Cooper, said it was another tragedy…

IT was a sight to behold for Kombi lovers and classic VW fans on Saturday (18 May), as more than 100 of the iconic vehicles were on display at Dromana 3 Drive-in.The car show was part of a celebration of the Kombi and a screening of the Kombi Man movie. The event was a sell-out, with about 150 people arriving for the display, live music, the movie screening (which included Bob Marley One Love) and the inspirational story of the Kombi Man told by film maker Jeff Bird and others.Kombi and “beetle” owner and organiser Amber-May Jukes said she and…

PELICANS always seem to attract attention. They waddle along beaches, gracefully paddle in the water and fly overhead following the thermals. But while they appear to be common, especially when looking for scraps around piers and jetties, pelican numbers are declining.The Westernport Pelican Study Group reports that just two of a previously known 10 Victorian breeding sites remain.A breeding site on French Island “went extinct” in 2001, according to the group, and pelican numbers in Western Port have been declining ever since.Study group members look for and photograph banded pelicans and have also appealed for members of the public to…

A MORNINGTON Peninsula diver has made a remarkable underwater discovery that is sending ripples of excitement through the marine world.Emily May, of Tootgarook, had a recent encounter with a rare frilled pygmy octopus (Octopus superciliossuss) on Portsea West Reef, and was able to capture some video and photos of her amazing find. Her footage has been confirmed as the first taken of this species in the wild and only the second viewing in the wild. All other footage was taken at the aquarium at Queenscliff Discovery Centre in the late 1990s. May said this was confirmed by Dr Julian Finn…

POLICE investigating a series of copper thefts from Mornington Peninsula sports clubs are urging anyone with information to contact Crimestoppers.Football clubs at Balnarring, Hastings and South Mornington have been hit in recent months, with some hit more than once as thieves target copper wires and copper water pumps.Two weeks ago, Hastings Tennis Club was hit for the second time, with thieves taking copper from three lights poles.Coach Reece Driscoll said it was a sad blow to the club and the community. “It’s terrible that community clubs are being targeted like this, it’s costly, and for us it means we can’t…