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Jockey Daniel Moor gives the thumbs up aft fter t guiding No Eff ffort f to victory in yesterday’s bet365 Traralgon Cup. FULL STORY - SPORT
WHY THE WAIT?
TEACHER’S TALES OF THE OUTBACK PAGE 9
MP’s frustration over Valley’s stalled developments
By KATE WITHERS
THE state government must act now to help stimulate the Latrobe Valley economy and assist with the delivery of vital projects, Member for Morwell Russell Northe has declared. Mr Northe warned major developments that had fallen by the wayside were “absolutely critical�, now more than ever, as the Valley grapples with the fallout of COVID-19. “There’s been losses of jobs to our industries with Hazelwood and Carter
Holt Harvey saw mill and, for me, we’ve got opportunities to commence development in the community and they’re just being lost,� he said. “Unfortunately we are a region with high unemployment and that’s been been case for a number of years, but coming out of COVID every opportunity should be realised. “There’s an easy solution to some of these projects, we just need to get these essential services to site and it’s disappointing the government is not looking at those.�
The Morwell East Industrial Precinct gained approval in 2010 and was designed to be a hub for large manufacturing industries on a 43hectare lot on the outskirts of Morwell. The Lake Narracan Precinct, a major housing development on 604 hectares of land, gained approval in 2015. Mr Northe said both privatelyfunded projects were shovel-ready but had reached a standstill due to a lack of finances for the installation of infrastructure such as water mains, roads and sewerage.
“I’ve been in contact with numerous developers, builders, contractors and investors in the local area who are frustrated over many, many years in getting projects off the ground in our community,� he said. “There are several large-scale projects that are set to transform our area and boost viability, provide valuable jobs and infrastructure that have sat idle for multiple years on account of essential services connection costs. Continued on page 9
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