THE Patterson River precinct needs an urgent injection of funding, Kingston Council says.
Council has put out a statement calling on the state government to fund works, saying that the Patterson River and Mordialloc Creek areas have “significant issues that require attention”.
“The Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning have identified [the issues] as requiring $60 million over four years to address,” council says.
Kingston councillor Cameron Howe has outlined some of the problems affecting the precinct. He said “Patterson River is home to the state’s busiest boat ramp, with pedestrian and maritime maintenance issues unaddressed for too many years, including steep street to trail access points, unstable walkways cordoned off and malfunctioning lighting through to ageing boat ramps.”
Kingston mayor Steve Staikos has welcomed funding for a master plan at Patterson River, but has urged the state government to spend money on the precinct now rather than later. “We are concerned that the state government wants all future funding bids to be guided by the masterplan, which means that immediate and urgent actions would need to wait until the process is completed despite current funds not nearly meeting the current maintenance needs of the precinct,” he said.
Cr Howe agreed with the mayor. “The masterplan, when funded, will upgrade this critical gateway to the bay, but adequate maintenance funding from the state is imperative now, especially with user falls and incidents at some of the street to trail access points and growing boating user complaints,” he said.
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 20 April 2022