The No Quarry for Beveridge/Wallan community group is planning a protest outside Member for Kalkallo Ros Spence’s office on Thursday next week.
The group opposes a proposed quarry south of Wallan, which Planning Minister Sonia Kilkenny will decide on this year.
No Quarry group spokesperson Skye Forster said members believed they had been ‘shut out of the planning process’ and were frustrated at a lack of answers from politicians.
“We’ve had three planning ministers in 12 months and despite countless phone calls and emails not one of them has agreed to meet with the people who will have to live with this quarry if it goes ahead, making our suburbs an experiment for something untested that planning experts advise against,” she said.
Ms Forster said the group planned to protest outside Ms Spence’s office to make its frustrations clear.
“We have had enough of being ignored and kept in the dark during this process so we’re going to front our local member,” she said.
“We’re calling on anyone who doesn’t want this quarry to go ahead to join us out the front of Ros Spence’s office at Craigieburn Central, 340 Craigieburn Road, at 11am on Thursday, April 20.
“We encourage all community members to come along to voice their concerns.”
Ms Forster said the protest came on the heels of a petition tabled in parliament recently, as well as postcards and emails sent to MPs outlining the group’s concerns.
“We’re simply asking for a seat at the table in the biggest planning decision in our suburbs,” she said.
“We’re the ones who have moved here, bought property here, chosen to raise our families here and yet we’ve been shut out of the process at virtually every step.”
Proposed quarry operator Conundrum did not wish to comment.
• The Review is owned by Wally Mott, who also owns the land upon which the proposed quarry could be built.
All you will get as a answer from Ross will be a fluff that means nothing, tell her it’s a large block of votes she will loose at the next election and she cannot afford that