AFTER months of delays Kingston councillors have finally approved a motion to “reject in the strongest possible terms all forms of extremism”, and consider programs benefiting local refugees and migrants. The proposal was first raised by Cr Hadi Saab in October last year. The rationale for last year’s motion read that it was raised after “extremist groups staged coordinated displays of hate and division across several Australian cities which also included the use of Nazi symbolism and rhetoric under the misleading banner of a March for Australia.” The matter was ultimately deferred, and put back on the agenda at council’s…
Author: Brodie Cowburn
KINGSTON Council will write to the Department of Transport and Planning and the state’s planning minister to urge against proceeding with the planned redevelopment of the Kingswood Golf Course in Dingley Village. After years of deliberations the state government approved a development plan for the Kingswood site in late 2025, clearing the way for developer Satterley to build 941 lots on the land. Kingston Council faced criticism shortly afterwards for lodging an appeal with the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal four days after the required deadline (“Council misses crucial Kingswood deadline” The News, 14/1/2026). Since the state government’s approval some…
DUNKLEY MP Jodie Belyea says that the federal government’s proposed gambling reform will honour the legacy of her predecessor Peta Murphy. In June 2023 an anti-gambling inquiry chaired by Dunkley MP Peta Murphy released its final report, making 31 recommendations on gambling reform. Proposed changes included a ban on online gambling advertising, stronger consumer protections for licensed online gambling, a crackdown on illegal gambling websites, and a legislated duty of care. Murphy died roughly six months after the report was released. After years of delays, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese unveiled the federal government’s plans for gambling reform this April. His…
LOCAL Masters League football clubs will play with an important cause at heart this weekend. The Pat Cronin Foundation Round is set to take place across the AFL Masters Vic Metro Football League. The round is named in memory of coward punch victim Pat Cronin, who was killed in April of 2016. Clubs taking part in the Pat Cronin Foundation Round this weekend include the Frankston, Peninsula Raiders, Mordialloc, and Carrum Cowboys Football Clubs. Carrum Cowboys player Peter Treseder helped link the league with the Pat Cronin Foundation; he said “the Cowboys have been supporting the Pat Cronin Foundation since…
A FRANKSTON Council proposal to implement a 300 percent differential rate on untenanted commercial properties in Frankston’s CBD has been abandoned. The proposal to set the rate at 300 percent of the general rate was raised late last year and sent out for community consultation. In response to 230 submissions, Frankston councillors rejected the proposal at their public meeting last week (“Rate hike for vacant retail spaces proposed” The Times, 16/5/2026). Former mayor Kris Bolam spearheaded the proposal after council successfully implemented a 300 percent differential rate on empty lots in the Frankston CBD in its 2025/2026 budget. He ended…