Chelsea – Mordialloc
Features inside
PUBLISHED WEEKLY
FOOD & ENTERTAINMENT
PAGES 17–18 CLASSIFIEDS
PAGES 20–21 SPORTS DESK
PAGES 22–23
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Wednesday 4 December 2013
MPNEWS (1300 676 397) or email: team@mpnews.com.au www.mpnews.com.au
Final strike MENTONE Tenpin Bowl will close this month after 50 years. The bowling alley will be demolished to make way for apartments. General manager Warren Stewart said it will be a sad day for the community. Full story Page 9. Picture: Gary Sissons
Pokies get the all clear By Neil Walker THE odds of Edithvale-Chelsea RSL hitting the jackpot in its quest for more gaming machines have shortened significantly after Kingston councillors voted not to oppose the application, despite a council report finding the extra machines would be “detrimental” to the community. The RSL is now on target to get the
additional 15 poker machines it applied for in September, which would give the Chelsea venue a total of 80 gaming devices. Kingston council held a special meeting on Monday evening to discuss the issue, with a narrow majority of councillors voting not to make a submission on the matter to the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor
Regulation, which will now rule on the RSL’s application. Council officers had completed a social and economic impact assessment that concluded “the anticipated impacts of the RSL’s application for 15 additional EGMs will be detrimental to the local and broader Kingston community”. However, a majority of councilors
decided to disregard the advice. Cr Ron Brownlees argued council should not make a submission to the VCGLR since problem gambling is a social issue. “I wonder how far we should extend our role as the social police, although I understand some of the negative impacts with some people affected more than others,” he said.
PENINSULA FIREPLACE CENTRE
The RSL relied heavily on revenue generated by gaming machines and this funding not only kept the club financially viable but also enabled it to support a range of community services, Cr Brownlees said. He noted that several RSL subbranches had recently been forced to close due to financial stress. Continued Page 8
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