www.thestar.com.au TUESDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2016 - $1.40
Island hospital dilemma
Inverloch beach party
By Tayla Kershaw FIGHTING for a hospital or a medical hub has divided the Phillip Island community.
Swimmers celebrate: beachgoers were delighted when they kept cool at Inverloch’s surf beach over the sweltering Christmas period. They were also impressed to see the beach patrol tower is now placed in a new position so life savers can patrol the beach this summer. Catching the perfect day last Friday, December 23 were visitors from Warragul, from left, Rory Hollier, Hamish Dastey, Ryan Hollier and Bella Lowe. See story on page 3.
While some have backed the medical hub – fearing they will not see a hospital redeveloped for some time – others believe the community should push for a hospital now as the Island’s population continues to grow. Securing adequate health facilities has been a priority for the Phillip Island community since the closure of Warley Hospital in 2008. Permanent residency figures on Phillip Island – and in San Remo and Cape Woolamai – have reached 10,000. However, on sunny weekends, numbers spike at 20,000. A $6.5 million medical hub is scheduled to go ahead but Phillip Island resident Greg Price said it was appalling Phillip Island was without a proper hospital. “We hope one day the State Government will wake up and see the population spike in these postcodes,” he said.
Continued on page 4.
RESCUE LIFE SAVERS Surf clubs raise hand for dollars Later Star
By Tayla Kershaw
SURF lifesavers are always there to rescue beach-goers and now need rescuing in the form of funding of their own.
Clubs across South Gippsland are calling for funding to help patrol the region’s beaches, which attract tourists by their thousands and underpin the region’s tourism industry. It costs clubs up to $20,000 each to patrol beaches each year, and they need more funding for ongoing maintenance and equipment. Venus Bay Surf Life Saving Club president Craig Watson said clubs often turned to members for funding. The club has been promised $150,000 by South
Gippsland Shire Council to help expand the clubhouse and build public toilets, but ongoing government support was needed. “We apply for funding, but government grants are often hard to come by,” Mr Watson said. “The shops in Venus Bay and Tarwin make most of their money during three months of the year when the holidaymakers are down, so it’s difficult to lean on them and ask for sponsorship. Wonthaggi is next door but it has two clubs to look after already. It’s a tough market and it’s always difficult. “We are always asking our members to dip into their pockets and it’s a lot of pressure on them. We are a family oriented surf club and we can’t keep asking them to donate.”
Mr Watson said running the club costs at least $100,000 a year, in addition to any funding for capital works or improvements. “Our membership fees are eaten up almost entirely by insurance obligations,” he said. “This leaves us in the difficult position of supplementing the required $100,000 with fundraising and grants. Our teams work tirelessly to attract money via these avenues, but the ideal is that we secure an ongoing annuity for $30,000 from one of the levels of government. That would benefit all life saving clubs in providing safer beach environments.” Inverloch Surf Life Saving Club treasurer Rob O’Neil said paying the bills was a challenge. Continued on page 4.
THE Star will be out one day later next week, Wednesday morning, January 4, due to the New Year’s Day holiday on Monday, January 2. The office will be open as usual this Thursday and Friday, December 29 and 30 and will reopen for the New Year on Tuesday, January 3, 2017.