A FORMER mayor of Frankston will oversee Liberal candidate for Dunkley Chris Crewther’s campaign to succeed departing MP Bruce Billson ahead of the 2 July federal election. Cr Darrel Taylor is Mr Crewther’s election campaign manager tasked with giving the Liberals’ candidate a good run at seeing off the challenge of Labor candidate Peta Murphy to hold the seat of Dunkley. When contacted by The Times Cr Taylor confirmed he had been approached to be Mr Crewther’s election minder a few weeks after the Liberals decided on its candidate to contest Dunkley. The councillor is the treasurer of the Frankston…
Author: Neil Walker
POKIES venues have been big winners from decisions made by the state’s gambling regulator over the past few years and applications for extra electronic gaming machines are being effectively “rubber stamped” for approval despite numerous objections according to research on gaming in Victoria. A report by Monash University academics Dr Charles Livingstone and Louise Francis released last year found 94 per cent of pokies applications by pubs and clubs were approved by the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation between July 2007 and June 2014. Decisions by the VCGLR came under scrutiny last month when the regulator gave the…
A WEED killer used by Kingston Council has been linked to Parkinson’s disease, infertility and cancers. Council workers spray Roundup Biactive to control weeds and there is mounting evidence that one of its ingredients, glyphosate, may be toxic to humans. European Union countries are reviewing the use of the chemical in weed killers and may vote to ban its sale later this month. Councillors backed a notice of motion by Cr David Eden at council’s latest public council meeting to review Kingston Council’s use of Roundup Biactive, especially around schools, playgrounds and kindergartens. “As a council, we can either ignore…
A COMMUNITY group that became embroiled in a political stoush and legal threats over funding from ratepayers has again applied for a grant from Kingston Council. Kingston Residents Association, a group of residents who work with all levels of government “to make Melbourne’s City of Kingston a better place to live”, has applied for $2000 through council’s newly established Quick Response Grants program. The KRA wants the grant to pay to print and mail out newsletters “to keep the community informed by having regular consultation to develop partnerships for the highest community benefit”. A council officer assessment of the KRA…
PLANS to redevelop the Mentone Hotel will go before Kingston Council this month in the next stage of the conversion of the iconic venue into townhouses with an adjoining apartment complex amid concerns about the height of the apartment building and a lack of pub space. A planning application for a four-storey development housing 56 apartments and 12 townhouses will be considered by Kingston councillors at a public council meeting on 18 May. Developer Paul Huggins of Momentum Developments bought the Beach Rd hotel, known locally as The Edgy, for an undisclosed sum believed to be in excess of $9…