Draft budget released

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April 2, 2019

INVESTMENT in roads, traffic management around schools and funding sporting and leisure facilities are high priorities in the City of Whittlesea’s draft budget and council plan.

Whittlesea Council released the draft budget for community feedback at a special council meeting last week revealing how the $272.1 million will be spent.

Mayor Lawrie Cox said setting the budget was always a challenge.

“We do have limited financial capacity and we are trying to achieve as much as we can for our residents while being conscious of the rising cost of living.

“It’s always a balancing act where we can’t do everything so we have to prioritise,” he said.

Council will keep to the rate cap with a 2.5 per cent increase applied to the total amount of rates collected.

Councillors agreed on a proposed $12.2 million to provide services, programs and activities to enable older people to live independently in their homes, $9.07 million for provision of family and children services, $4.89 million to regional libraries, $3.45 million for traffic management services, $5.74 million for public health services and $2.28 million to local youth services.

Specific works that council proposed to fund were the Findon Road extension, signalisation of Ferres Boulevard and Findon Road, Mill Park Leisure development, Mernda Recreation Leisure Centre and a pavilion at Painted Hills Reserve.

The draft budget also made room for a Norris Bank Reserve masterplan, construction of Edgars Creek Community Activity Centre, upgrading local playgrounds and developing an ‘All Abilities Play Space’ in Mill Park.

A three per cent increase in residential charges was announced and an extra fee of $14.50 per household was announced to help recover costs paid by council to process recyclable materials.

Cr Cox said the fee was due to industry changes which mean council not only loses $900,000 in revenue from contractor purchasing of recyclable materials, but also incurs additional costs of $1.1 million per annum for processing/disposal of recyclable items. The proposed $14.50 increase is to recover the additional $1.1 million in costs only.

“We held any rises for the first year and are not going to pass the full cost of this service on to our residents but we do need to increase charges slightly this year to offset some of this,” he said.

“But we have managed to keep the waste charge increase significantly lower than most other Victorian councils, who are facing the same challenges.

”Residents are invited to make submissions on the proposed budget, draft council plan update and council action plan.

The submission form and copies of these documents are available online at whittlesea.vic.gov.au, at the council offices, 25 Ferres Boulevard, South Morang or at local libraries.

TKIS celebrates diversity

News

The North Central Review

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March 26, 2019

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THE Kilmore International School celebrated its cultural diversity with its annual International Open Day last week.

Students were dressed up to represent their culture or a notable person in history who they’ve been studying.

Stalls celebrated the food and culture from countries such as China, India, Thailand, Turkey and Cambodia.Acting deputy principal Jo Treanor, who organised the event, said it celebrated the different cultures that came together at the school.

“It’s integrated into our approach to our curriculum and the idea that we’re all from the same human race,” she said.

“The kids love it. They spent time setting up last night, they put all their energy into it and you can see some of the costumes are just fabulous and it’s a chance for them to show off their culture.

“We’ve got room displays celebrating different cultures. There’s some audio visual stuff, they actually have some dancing and the India group have some henna painting.”

Principal Andrew Taylor said the event was at the heart of the school’s identity.

“We have 50 nationalities here. The majority of students come from overseas. We’re a community of communities, if you like, that’s why I see that it represents the future of our country,” he said.

“It’s all about celebration. It’s celebrating who we are. We’re a tapestry or a coat of many colours and we need to make sure everybody knows who they are, celebrates who they are.”

Year 10 student Hannah Moore said it was important for the student body because they all came from such diverse backgrounds.

“We’re all from really different cultural backgrounds and it’s a way to celebrate it and come together to learn more about other cultures that we wouldn’t have the opportunity to do otherwise,” she said.

Australia Day celebrations up in the air

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The North Central Review

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March 26, 2019

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Australia Day celebrations up in the air

MITCHELL Shire Council will reopen expressions of interest to towns wishing to host next year’s Australia Day celebrations.

An alternative motion was moved by Councillor Rhonda Sanderson after Councillor David Lowe’s original motion proposed to ask Pyalong Neighbourhood House to forgo next year’s event to a town that hasn’t hosted an Australia Day ceremony during the past three years.

Cr Lowe said council’s Australia Day celebrations have been in Pyalong, Broadford and Seymour in the past three years.

“In the four years of this council, no council Australia Day events would have been held in several other townships that that have capacity to hold them,” he said.

“Without casting any doubt on Pyalong’s capacity or abilities, it is felt in the interests of the populations of the other townships, they should be given the opportunity to hold these events.”

Cr Sanderson’s alternate motion recommended council notes an administrative oversight regarding the expressions of interest for next year’s celebrations and called for new expressions of interest.

Cr Sanderson said Pyalong Neighbourhood House would be notified formally about the decision.The alternate motion was passed but Councillors Lowe, Bob Humm and Rob Eldridge voted against.

A subsequent notice of motion from Cr Lowe was passed asking for council officers to undertake a review of the Australia Day celebrations allocation process to ensure the events were available to every town and rotated throughout the shire.Cr Lowe said it was unfortunate the process had been problematic.

“It needs to be reviewed and the procedures rewritten to ensure the celebrations are available to the various townships within the shire on an equitable basis,” he said.

Cr David Atkinson said the process was broken and hopefully a review meant council won’t have to revisit the previous motion in future.

“This notice of motion is looking for a degree of inclusiveness throughout the shire,” he said.

Councillors Fiona Stevens and Anne Goble voted against the motion.

Broadford vandals charged

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The North Central Review

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March 26, 2019

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Police have arrested and charged three Broadford men with 28 counts of criminal damage by graffiti, including defacing an Indigenous mural at the town’s fire station.

Police allege the incidents of graffiti damage occurred in Broadford between December 2018 and March 2019.

The three men, aged 22, 20 and 18, were bailed to appear at Seymour Magistrates’ Court on July 4.

Sites around Broadford allegedly damaged by the trio include Broadford CFA station, Harley Hammond Reserve clubrooms and the car wash.

Senior Constable Steve Holcombe said the 18-year-old put his hand up as the perpetrator of the vandalism at Broadford CFA station.

“We got a search warrant where we found the clothing caught on the CCTV footage which corroborates that,” he said.

“There was 12 metre by three metre tag on the face of the change rooms and the car wash had been hit twice, on the High St facing wall and on the railways station side where a paint roller had been used to create quite a large mural.”

Two search warrants were executed at High Street and Govett Street in Broadford on March 7 and 11 as part of an investigation led by Broadford Police.

The estimated cumulative cost of the damage incurred is more than $30,000.

Grocery donations needed for drought-stricken farmers

The North Central Review

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March 26, 2019

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Grocery donations needed for drought-stricken farmers

PYALONG Neighbourhood House has made a desperate plea for people to donate groceries for drought-stricken farmers.

The Neighbourhood House was recognised at a presentation night in Barooga earlier this month for donations given to farmers affected by the drought.

The house’s co-ordinators told North Central Review that 3500 families were isolated on their properties without enough food for not just cattle, but themselves and their children due to drought conditions throughout northern Victoria and NSW.

Pyalong Neighbourhood House president Moira Waye and co-ordinator Belinda Osmond have shown continued support for Need for Feed, an organisation that assists communities and farmers across Victoria.

People have donated food and toiletry hampers, which are then prepared and sent off with hay bundles to families in need.

“We started working on this in August last year. I went to a barbecue in Barooga recently where I received a Certificate of Appreciation from the founder of Need for Feed, Graeme Cockrell,” Ms Waye said.

“I spoke to farmers who thought they were on their own, that nobody knew or cared.

“I said, ‘You’re not on your own, there are hundreds if not thousands of little people like us that are trying to help’.

“There’s 3500 families who need help. We sent out 80 hampers last week, but it’s a drop in the ocean.

“The original money that was coming in to buy hay is drying up and once the money stops there will be no more.”

Ms Waye said the drought had taken a toll on farmers and their mental health, resulting in an several suicide deaths.

“One of our volunteers took a four-wheel drive full of groceries to a farm, knocks on the door and nobody answers,” Ms Waye said.

Ms Waye said the volunteer then found the farmer in the shed in a distraught state because he couldn’t feed his children or cattle.

“We’ve been told that we’ve been able to save three farmers lives but we really need people to continue donating groceries,” she said.

“We are happy to drive and pick things up. People don’t realise this is a life and death situation for some people.”

Ms Waye said a psychologist at the Barooga event spoke on the rate of suicide, particularly in men.

“He put this down to the fact that men don’t talk to each other,” she said.

Donations can be left at the North Central Review office in Kilmore, Wallan Neighbourhood House, Pyalong General Store or Pyalong Neighbourhood House. Staff said that if transport was a problem, they could organise pick up.

People in need of assistance, can call Lifeline (13 11 14 and lifeline.org.au), the Suicide Call Back Service (1300 659 467 and suicidecallbackservice.org.au) or beyondblue (1300 22 4636 and beyondblue.org.au).

Criminals target Mitchell

The North Central Review

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March 26, 2019

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Family violence and ‘cross-border offending’ is on the rise in the Mitchell Shire according to the Crime Statistics Agency’s latest data for 2018.

Theft, assault and breaking and entering incidents have dropped since the previous year of 2017, while breaches of orders have increased.

Mitchell Local Area Commander Peter Koger said property offences such as burglaries in the southern Mitchell shire were a concern.

Mr Koger said police attribute a lot of burglaries to ‘cross-border offending’, which was where an offender came from out of the shire to commit the offence within the Mitchell Shire.

“Burglaries seen with houses under construction have been a result of cross-border offending from people coming up from places like Epping, Craigieburn and Broadmeadows,” Mr Koger said.

Despite a rather stagnant number of drug related offences, Mr Koger said officers have been working hard to stop the movement of drugs.

“We have been working diligently to cut off supply in the area with many warrants and busts on houses,” Commander Kroger said.

“It’s an ongoing issue and a cultural problem that extends to health, police and the justice system.”

He noted that family violence incidents have risen and that was an area that police members were always on watch for.“

Family violence in Wallan, Kilmore and Broadford have gone up a little unfortunately,” he said.

“We’ve got a Family Violence Investigation Unit now in Kilmore who work on serious family violence offending and target persons of interest.”

There has been a rise in property damage in the region as seen with the recent graffiti charges in Broadford – totalling more than $30,000 worth of damages.

In comparison to other regions in Victoria, Mitchell Shire is of moderate concern with a total of 3015 criminal incidents in 2018, slightly less than in 2017, when it was 3060.

Neighbouring municipalities of Macedon recorded 1665 criminal incidents in 2018, while there was 11,815 crimes in Whittlesea last year.

Blues for country music festival

The North Central Review

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March 26, 2019

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THE City of Whittlesea will cease their yearly $70,000 contribution to Whittlesea Country Music Festival after voting to introduce a competitive community events program to support outdoor community cultural events.

Council’s current provision of grants to community event organisers does not comply with council’s grants policy, which requires that grants are transparent, equitable, inclusive and efficient.

Councillors voted in favour of the program that will open up the playing field to other event organisers.

A budget of $30,000 will be allocated to small neighbourhood gatherings and $56,000 to events that attract between 1500 to 4000 people.

Applications for funding will be assessed through an open, competitive annual funding round.

Cr Sam Alessi said that introducing the program was a transparent process.

“Everybody should have an equal chance – people shouldn’t get funds because they’re friends of friends,” he said.

Cr Ricky Kirkham pushed for the $70,000 contribution to continue saying he couldn’t believe his colleagues wanted to cease their support.

Cr Norm Kelly said the festival placed Whittlesea on the map.

“The numbers [attendance] are as strong as they’ve ever been – it’s a shame that other councillors are using the excuse of a budget constraint,” he said.

Cr Tom Joseph supported the program advocating for a chance for other groups to apply for the grant.

“Just because a community group has always received money every year doesn’t mean it has to continue this way,” he said.

Whittlesea Country Music Festival vice-president David Watson said although the volunteer committee was extremely disappointed with the decision, there was still hope of co-operating with council in the future.

“We’ve had further meetings with council – we’ve been running through suggestions,” Mr Watson said.

“We’d be happy if they could fund us for a further two years until we’re self-sufficient.

“We had no notice – a week after a really successful festival, we found out about the cut.”

Mr Watson added he would like to see more support at the northern end of the council.

“All their money is spent in Thomastown and Lalor, this is the only big event council fund up here,” he said.

“We’ve had a 19 year journey with the festival – hopefully we can work something out moving forward – Plan B is to run a public campaign.”

Motorsport axed at Granite Park

News

The North Central Review

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March 26, 2019

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GRANITE Park in Seymour will no longer be used for motorsport after Mitchell Shire Council unanimously voted to develop a management plan for the park.

The council had been considering the future of the park for some time and ultimately decided the decrease in motorsport use, proximity to Bushland Park and bushfire overlay made the site inappropriate for motorsport.

Granite Park had previously been part of the Australian Army’s Seymour Camp and became council land in 1970.

Seymour residents built a speedway track on the site in 1970, followed by a motorcycle track in 1973.

The speedway closed in 1997 and leased to Extreme Driving until 2011, while the motorcycle track was last used in 2016.

The Seymour Motorcycle Club leased the motorcycle track since the club built it in 1973 but moved to the State Motorcycle Complex in Broadford after non-compliance issues were identified at the track.

The development plan will be similar to what has been used for Monument Hill in Kilmore and will consider environmental, heritage, bushfire and risk assessments and consider options for future use and management.

It’s estimated that the development of the management plan will cost council $20,000.

At last week’s council meeting, Cr Rhonda Sanderson said the change had been a long time coming.

“It’s great to see council finally make a decision on this,” she said.

Cr Annie Goble said she was really looking forward to reading the management plan’s assessement of the possible use of the land.

Broadford scores new board

Sport

The North Central Review

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March 26, 2019

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BROADFORD Netball Club has unveiled a brand new electronic scoreboard, in time for the upcoming junior netball season.

The scoreboard was funded a $2888 grant from the Federal Government’s Stronger Communities Program and matched by in-kind donations and money raised by the club.

It will assist the club on match days, freeing up volunteers and providing another source of sponsorship during breaks in games.

Broadford Netball Club NetSetGo co-ordinator Natalie Fletcher said it would increase the playing and match day experience of players, parents and spectators.

“It provides a professional image for our club and moves us into the 21st century with scoreboard displays,” she said.

“It’s an easy to use electronic scoreboard so we don’t have to worry about the old manual scoreboard with the wind flicking over the numbers and someone having to hold them so it’ll minimise the problems we had with the old scoreboard.

“We would like to sincerely thank Rob Mitchell for providing us with this grant and the opportunity to purchase this scoreboard and give back to the community.

”Member for McEwen Rob Mitchell met with the club on Wednesday to see the new scoreboard in action.Mr Mitchell said it wass important to get grants for community groups.

“You look at Broadford Netball Club, it’s run by volunteers for our community and it’s a really great and positive area for our kids to be involved in from our juniors right through,” he said.

“The scoreboard going to be a lot easier for people to see, it frees up people’s time, it looks more professional and it’s a good asset to have.

“Given the way it can support the sponsors and other messages on it, I think it’s a real good multipurpose tool that will help the club move forward.

“The strength of our communities is the strength of our football netball clubs and this will only serve to make Broadford Netball Club stronger.”

Sexual assault in Cragieburn

The North Central Review

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March 26, 2019

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Craigieburn Police are investigating a sexual assault at a shopping centre on Main Street, Craigieburn.

Investigators have been told a woman, 31, was shopping when a man approached her and touched her inappropriately at 1.30pm on March 16.

Police want to speak to the man pictured following an alleged sexual assault a Craigieburn shopping centre.

The man then left the shopping centre.He is described as Caucasian in appearance, in his 50s, with grey hair.

He was wearing reading glasses, a cream top, brown pants and dark runners.

Investigators have released an image and CCTV footage of a man police believe may be able to assist with their enquiries.

Police urge anyone who recognises the man or who witnessed the incident to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.