HUNDREDS of students at the Chisholm TAFE campus in Frankston have received parking fines from Frankston Council while attending their classes.
The Chisholm Student Union was formed earlier this year to call for changes to parking arrangements outside the Building C facility. CSU founder Quinney Brownfield estimates that “between February 2024 and May 2025, 1,177 fines totalling to $140,063 were issued for ‘Stopped without a permit’ in the singular parking lot outside of Chisholm Frankston’s Building C, almost the same amount as what the entire City of Greater Geelong issued in 2023 for the same offence.”
“At Chisholm Frankston’s Building C, located next to the Peninsula Aquatic Recreation Centre, parking has been an issue since its opening in February 2024. Students require a permit to park at Chisholm, which most students have to specifically apply for and know they have. However, due to the predatory nature of the signage outside of Chisholm’s Building C, many students and staff have lost a collective amount of over $100,000 to Frankston City,” he said. “Parking on Quality Street directly outside of the building is restricted to ‘PARC’ permit holders, despite being in front of the entrance to Chisholm and nowhere near PARC.
“The issue exemplifies once you discover that the majority of students attending Frankston Chisholm are not from the area and do not know what ‘PARC’ is, most assuming that it is a subsidiary of Chisholm as they know they have specifically applied for a parking permit at Chisholm.”
Brownfield says the issue was raised with Frankston Council six months ago. In September a petition with 80 signatures – 43 students, 10 staff, and 27 community members – was handed to council.
Frankston Council’s interim CEO Cam Arullanantham said that council is “aware” of the students’ concerns.
“Quality Street is a key location for both foot and vehicle traffic, given the close proximity to Frankston Railway Station, Peninsula Aquatic and Recreation Centre (PARC) and the Chisholm TAFE Frankston Campus,” he said. “Earlier this year, council received communication from the Chisholm TAFE Frankston Student Union requesting that the parking spaces in front of Building C be made consistent with the rest of the precinct. Council officers recently met with the Students Union to hear their concerns, of which parking issues near Building C were raised. As part of this work, council completed parking surveys in the area, with the data collected from the surveys now being analysed and verified.
“Once complete, council will share the findings with key stakeholders, including the Chisholm TAFE Students Union, and outline any potential parking changes. Depending on the outcome of those discussions, council expects that any necessary changes could be implemented before the end of the year.”
Arullanantham confirmed that in 2025 council had issued 666 infringements – currently worth $122 each – on Quality Street for offenders being stopped in a permit zone.
First published in the Frankston Times – 25 November 2025