LETTERS
Letters - 300 words maximum and including full name, address and contact number - can be sent to The News, PO Box 588, Hastings 3915 or emailed to: team@mpnews.com.au
Information lacking In December 2017, I wrote to the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council asking a number of questions related to tourism and concerning among other things tourism-related income and expenditure. In response, council sent three website links, including one to the 2016-2017 annual report. There was nothing there other than a statement that said “… contributing 11 percent (directly and indirectly) to the region’s gross regional product and employment (see page 2)”. It appears council doesn’t know exactly what income it receives, let alone what it spends on preparing for the annual influx and then mopping up after (some) tourists. The questions asked are due to concern, shared by many, about the sheer density of people on the southern part of the peninsula over summer. Council should be able to clearly demonstrate a tangible benefit when its policies support towns such as Rye and Sorrento to have huge population increases that; makes it impossible to comfortably walk along a footpath; creates constant traffic and parking chaos; means listening to the incessant drone of jet skis; results in vandalised facilities; and causes us to be appalled at the third world volumes of rubbish left on our foreshores and beaches. Perhaps along with a (mass) tourism management plan, the CEO could look at adjusting the shire financial reporting system so that councillors can be better informed about tourism costs and benefits. Such action would lead to better decisions about handling large volumes of people at peak times. Mechelle Cheers, Rye
Gimme shelter Picture this: A very hot afternoon (Thursday 8 February) and 25 people are waiting for a bus in blazing sunshine. No shade at Bay D outside Frankston station. Two boys are squeezed into a tiny portion of shade at the back of the tiny bus shelter. The shelter’s tiny roof cannot provide shade. An elderly lady has her hands on top of her head -
perhaps she had not anticipated such a hostile environment. One lady crosses the road to shelter under the shop awnings. She returns five minutes before the bus is due. Unfortunately the bus is 10 minutes late. This situation is serious. A shelter that shelters is urgently needed at Bay D. Still no reply to my hand delivered letter to Frankston MP Paul Edbrooke or Transport Minister Jacinta Allen but Public Transport Victoria has advised me to contact VicRoads. It is a slow and arduous journey to find out who is accountable. Hopefully, persistence will pay off. Brenda Rowlands, Mt Eliza.
Bravery recognised The story about the violent storm that swept Victoria in your “100 years ago” segment (The News 13/2/18) was of great interest and is very well known to me and my family, as my father Rupert Walter was vey much involved. The fishing boat that capsized contained three men, two of those men survived as they were rescued by people on the shore. Two men, one being my father, swam out in raging seas and each brought a man safely to shore. My father then swam out again but was unable to save the third man as he had drowned. My father was recognised for his bravery by the Royal Humane Society of Australia. His certificate for bravery which proudly hangs in our home states what he did and who he saved. My father was only 16 years of age when he made this rescue. I hope you may find this additional information to your story of some interest. Beverly Savige (nee Walter ), McCrae
Communication break I sympathise with Nonie Harvey who runs a hairdressing business in Mornington and has been left without a phone since trying to install the NBN. The same thing happened to me. I requested the NBN early December 2017, and immediately had my phone disconnected. I was
Community BBQ & 4th Birthday Celebration Saturday 17th March
10AM - 2PM 10 POUND RD, HASTINGS
Come along and join us at the Willum Warrain Gathering Place for a fun family day and a deadly feed We’re celebrate our 4th Birthday…HIP HIP HOORAY!!!
awaiting a call from hospital for specialised heart repair surgery, which was fairly urgent. Fortunately Christmas came and the surgeons went on holiday. I made an exhaustive number of calls to NBN - China, or India, or the Philippines or wherever they are (on my mobile) - and had a great many “conversations” with various people who could not properly speak or understand English and didn’t really care. The same with Telstra. Finally I was connected in early January, but with a different phone number. I need my old number so I rang on the merry go round again and, yes, got disconnected for two more weeks. Finally I got it all connected, but installed absolutely unsatisfactorily, which I had to rectify at my own expense. I laughed like mad when they asked did I want NBN and Telstra internet services connected. Brian A Mitchelson, Mornington
Farcial survey Well, what a farce the [Rosebud] pool “survey” is. It’s déjà vu. Here we are seeing the pro 50 metre poolers firing the bullets for pro 50m Mornington Peninsula Shire councillors. Take yourselves back to the 25m pool debacle on the foreshore, where we had pro 25m - I emphasise again, pro 25m poolers -firing the bullets for several of the shire councillors. I saw one of those survey tables set up in Rosebud adorned with shire logos and who should be there peddling why we should have a 50m pool? None other than self-confessed 50m pool supporter, Cr Frank Martin. How biased can you get? How many more pro 50m supporters are manning or womaning the booths? Setting up a stall outside a supermarket does not reflect the true intentions of the ratepayers of the shire. That is still not a true indication of the ratepayers’ wishes. There are still campers and tourists in the shire and I object to some blow-in from Brunswick deciding what size pool I will get in Rosebud. These people were the same sorts of temporary
residents that filled out the surveys and petitions for a pool on the foreshore. I do hope that the money they saved while there was a lock on the council liquor cabinet is not funding this bogus survey. Once again, a properly conducted poll is required and that will show that the majority of ratepayers far outnumber the handful of ratepayers that want a pool. What will happen if the majority says no pool at all? If you’re interested, I don’t mind a pool, just not a 50m pool. John Cain, McCrae
Horse cruelty The racing industry is calling it “the weekend to forget”, but it’s important that horseracing’s ever-growing bloodbath be remembered. Two weekends ago, five jockeys suffered serious injuries in a fall in Hobart, with at least one horse apparently being killed. Falls in Toowoomba and at the Sunshine Coast led to more injuries. It is clear that enough, for this vile industry, is far more than enough. An average of over two horses a week die on Australian racetracks, usually with little fanfare. Horses are raced too young and too hard and their bones are not up to the immense impact and stress. They routinely suffer from injuries, lameness, and exhaustion. Horses are whipped and forced to run at break neck speeds. And to keep them running when they should be resting and recuperating, they may be given painkillers, muscle relaxants, and anti-inflammatory drugs. All this often leads to broken legs and death. For those horses who manage to survive, few will be retired to grassy pastures. Most owners are unwilling to bear the costs of horses who aren’t making them money. Unwanted horses typically are shipped to slaughter. Humans have the choice to be involved, but for the horses raced beyond breaking point and then discarded like used betting slips, there is no choice, only pain and untimely death. Desmond Bellamy, special projects coordinator, PETA Australia
Mornington Peninsula Writers Festival
Guest speakers include: Andrew Rule Father Bob Maguire Garry Disher MARCH Nicky Johnson Peninsula Community Theatre Paul Kennedy and more... Tickets $10 (under 16s free) Purchase at www.mpwritersfest.org or at the door
10
2018
FREE BBQ & KIDS ACTIVITIES ~ all members and their families are welcome ~
Proudly supported by: www.willumwarrain.com.au
www.facebook.com/WillumWarrain
Willum Warrain acknowledges that our Gathering Place is located on the land of Bunurong/ Boon Wurrung peoples and we pay our respect to their Elders past and present. We also recognise that the Bunurong Land Council is the Registered Aboriginal Party for the Mornington Peninsula.
Phone: 5979 1391
FRANKSTON
Southern Peninsula News 27 February 2018
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