THE CITY
Cr Loi Truong
► Lightwood Ward space for pedestrians, improved street lighting, new seating, public art and more trees. The other big Springvale project is the Springvale Community Precinct at the site of the old Council offices at 397–405 Springvale Road.
Springvale is undergoing a major transformation, and the central shopping district will experience some obvious changes over the coming months. The first stage of the Springvale Boulevard Project will see Springvale Road start to transform into a signature boulevard, and will reinforce the activity centre as one of Melbourne’s leading cultural destinations. The streetscape design was developed following extensive consultation with locals and will feature more footpath
► Red Gum Ward Taking a stand on gambling harm: Over $3 billion has been lost to pokies in Greater Dandenong since they were introduced by the State Government over 20 years ago. This is equivalent to $60,000 per Greater Dandenong household, and the impacts include family violence, crime, unemployment and homelessness. Because of this I am glad my fellow councillors joined me in supporting a strong advocacy campaign leading up to the State Election in November this year. We are calling for: ► Changes
to the design of pokies to make them less deceptive and addictive
► $1
maximum bets and a maximum loss limit of $120 per hour
► A
reduction in the amount of pokies allowed in Greater Dandenong
► A
more effective role for councils and local communities in deciding gambling applications.
Recently the Springvale and District Historical Society temporarily relocated to 11 Morwell Parade, Springvale, in anticipation of the building works starting later this year. Designs for the new library and community hub have been completed and work is due to start on the new building later this year. The project is expected to be completed during 2020. I am looking forward to seeing this project completed, but in the meantime you can see the designs and concepts for the project on Council’s website. Visit greaterdandenong.com/ springvaleprecinct to see images and read more.
In Noble Park works are continuing on the removal of the level crossings at Heatherton, Chandler and Corrigan roads. You can see the above ground train lines really starting to take shape. Some overnight closures of the roads around all three crossings last month helped crews carry out important works without traffic slowing them down, but as things progress I ask that you all be patient with the road work crews. This project is expected to be completed this year and will make a huge impact on traffic through Noble Park. Visit levelcrossings.vic.gov.au/crossings for more information. If you have anything you would like to discuss with me I am happy to listen. You can contact me via email at loi.truong@cgd.vic.gov.au or phone me on 0466 004 618.
Cr Matthew Kirwan I hope you can join me in attending a gambling reform forum on 21 February at the Dandenong Civic Centre from 6pm–7.30pm. Maternal and Child Health resourcing challenges: In Greater Dandenong responding to the demand for our maternal and child health services (MCH) is extremely challenging. Our city has high levels of cultural diversity and social disadvantage. In recent times we have also experienced surges in demand for families experiencing family violence and mental health issues. While the Victorian Government has injected a significant amount of additional funding in the past 12 months we are still finding that funding does not always meet demand. As a result of this I have kicked off an advocacy campaign for more Maternal and Child Health funding that has more flexibility to respond to the complex and different needs of families across our city.
Improving pedestrian safety in Menzies Avenue, Dandenong North: Pedestrian safety is one of my key concerns, so when members of the former Lyndale Community Reference Group told me they were worried about crossing Menzies Avenue between the reserve and the shops I made it a priority. It took a while, but I have had great feedback about the raised pedestrian crossing installed there. If you have any ideas or concerns please contact me anytime via email matthew. kirwan@cgd.vic.gov.au or phone 0403 072 295.
www.greaterdandenong.com
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