NEWS DESK
Pool site chosen beside the park Stephen Taylor steve@mpnews.com.au
Ram-ing it home: The Rex Australis sculpture on Peninsula Link is heading back to the McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park in Langwarrin. Picture: Gary Sissons
Rex makes gallery new home REX Australis – the giant ram’s head which has graced Peninsula Link near the Skye Rd exit for the past four years – is settling in at its new home: McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park, Langwarrin. The cast-iron sculpture by Dean Colls is 14 metres long, seven metres high and six metres deep. It will feature near another sculptured favourite: the Tree of Life, by artist Phil Price, which was replaced at the Cranbourne Rd exit by Reflective Lullaby – colloquially known as the Giant Gnome, by Gregor Kregar. Fittingly, the intersections at which the
sculptures attracted motorists’ attention are the exits for the gallery and park. The sculptures are the result of a partnership between the gallery and Southern Way, which was formed to manage the selection and installation of 14 artworks along Peninsula Link, which opened in January 2013. Gallery staffers are tight-lipped over what is replacing Rex but it’s sure to be as eye-catching, curator Simon Lawrie said. The gallery is at 390 McClelland Drive, Langwarrin. Stephen Taylor
LAND near the Mornington Peninsula Shire offices in Besgrove St has surfaced as the preferred option for an aquatic centre at Rosebud. The cost of the aquatic centre is estimated at $28.4 million-$30.7 million, depending on it having a 25-metre or 50-metre inside or outside pool. The council last week voted to spend $20,000 on a business plan for the site which is expected to be completed before its December meeting. A report to council’s 8 August meeting warned that the centre was likely to lose 800,000 to $1.075m a year, although these “may potentially be reduced” by $200,000 if a 600 square metre gym was added to the complex. The cost of including a gym was not included in the report. An extra $2m might be needed for traffic lights at the intersection of Boneo Rd and Besgrove St. In the years the shire has spent debating about where - or even if - to build an aquatic centre, Frankston Council built its award-winning Peninsula Aquatic Recreation Centre (PARC), opened in September 2014. The mayor Cr Bev Colomb last week said deciding on the Besgrove St site would “assist in speeding up the development of a facility in Rosebud … and enable council-owned land in Wannaeue Place to be available for other development options”. “Besgrove St is a strongly suitable location for the proposed pool, featuring relatively flat land, ample space for car parking, relatively straightforward planning controls, and existing public use zoning,” she said.
The siting of an indoor-outdoor aquatic centre has been a drawn-out process: In 1999 the shire commissioned a feasibility study for an indoor centre and, in 2000, adopted a recommendation to deliver a phased aquatic centre program for Hastings, Rosebud and Mornington. The Pelican Park Recreation Centre, Hastings opened in 2003 and has continued to operate at a loss ever since. Council spent about $5.1 million on existing buildings and land for an aquatic centre in Wannaeue Place, Rosebud, in September 2012 after it became clear the state government would not approve a site on Rosebud foreshore for what was then known as the Southern Peninsula Aquatic Centre, or SPA. The report by David Hampton, team leader – buildings and open space project management, to councillors last week estimated it would cost $10.3m for a basement car park if the aquatic centre was built in Wannaeue Place. Basically, the report conclusively says Wannaeue Place is unsuitable for an aquatic centre. However, continuing public support for a new pool was shown at the March 2017 council meeting when supporters asked a slew of questions as to why one had not already been built. Long time pool campaigner Betty Preston said she was “very pleased” with the decision to investigate the Besgrove St site. “However, the recommendations still have to be voted on and community consultation has to take place”, she said. “Still, considering how fast council has acted, particularly over the past few months, it is very encouraging. The community support through petitions, press and the local radio station, has been overwhelming.” Continued Page 11
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Mornington News 15 August 2017
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