MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire councillors will look to explore “alternative delivery models” for The Briars master plan to ease the financial impact on ratepayers as the project ran into a $3m loss. Development of the master plan for the 230-hectare conservation park and wildlife sanctuary in Mt Martha, which includes a heritage homestead, began in 2018 and sets out a vision for the site’s potential. Among the master plan’s successful projects has been the expansion of the existing wildlife sanctuary, which is nearly finished with 7000 plants having been donated (The Briars expansion nears completion, The News 10/04/25). The Ark Program,…
Browsing: The Briars
A PROJECT to expand the size of the existing wildlife sanctuary at The Briars conservation park in Mt Martha is nearing completion with volunteers working hard to plant thousands of trees. The sanctuary, managed by the Mornington Peninsula Shire, will increase from 90 hectares to about 130 hectares with the community having already planted more than 7000 indigenous plants as part of revegetation efforts. According to a shire report, fencing of the new section is almost complete. New walking trails for people of all ages and abilities, outdoor education nooks, quiet reflection nooks and educational signage including Aboriginal cultural stories…
ENDANGERED southern brown bandicoots have been thrown a lifeline after being reintroduced to The Briars in Mt Martha in the hope of increasing its numbers to the peninsula.The small nocturnal marsupial has few populations remaining in southeastern Australia due to habitat loss, predation by introduced species, and changes to the landscape. But the relocation initiative at The Briars wildlife sanctuary has given hope of safeguarding its future on the peninsula, which hasn’t seen any known populations for at least two decades.The milestone project is being led by PhD student John Black, and jointly supported by The University of Melbourne and…
THE review of governance and decision making around the “Harry Potter: Forbidden Forest Experience” held at The Briars has been approved by shire councillors after a fiery meeting on 16 September. The report, hundreds of pages in length, was sent to councillors Friday afternoon (13 September) to be discussed at the unscheduled council meeting on Monday 16 September, mere hours before caretaker period kicked in.The report followed a council resolution on 28 May to “review the processes leading to, and the outcomes of the event being held at The Briars” requiring the report be “presented to councillors prior to the…