Author: Brodie Cowburn

SEVEN teenagers have been charged over a spate of alleged home invasions, car thefts, and affrays across Parkdale, Cheltenham, and Rosebud. Police allege the offending occurred between 5 June and 23 July. The arrests followed an alleged attack on a 15-year-old girl inside a Cheltenham shopping centre. The incident allegedly occurred at around 3.15pm on 23 July after a verbal altercation between a group of teenagers and two girls. One girl ran and the other was allegedly assaulted, police say. The victim was taken to hospital for observation. Police say all parties were known to each other. On 29 July,…

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ENVIRONMENTAL warrior Warwick Exton passed away last week, aged 100. Exton was a passionate advocate for preserving Frankston’s waterways and green spaces. His efforts saw him named the Frankston citizen of the year in January. He passed away in the early hours of 25 July. Exton was born in St Kilda, and spent a lot of time visiting his grandparents on Gould Street in Frankston as a child. He was a flight lieutenant in the RAAF during World War II. In his later years he turned his focus towards environmental protection – he volunteered at Frankston Sweetwater Creek Reserve and…

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WORKS on the Frankston Hospital redevelopment are ramping up. Concrete is being poured at the work site, and a third crane tower has been called in to get things moving. Construction has now been underway for around a year. The project is expected to cost around $1.1 billion. A new 12-storey clinical services tower will be built, with main works scheduled to be complete in 2025. The finished project will feature the new tower, a new main entrance, 130 more beds, 15 new operating theaters, and spaces for mental health, oncology, and women’s and children’s services. The state government says…

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MPNFL DIVISION ONE RED Hill picked up a thrilling upset win over Frankston YCW on Saturday. The Hillmen hosted the second-placed Stonecats at Red Hill Recreation Reserve. They desperately needed a win to remain in finals contention. The Stonecats were in control throughout most of the day. After a dominant third term Frankston YCW looked on track to win, leading by six goals at the final break of play. A six-goals-to-zero final term sealed the Stonecats’ fate. The Hillmen bravely surged home, and ended up getting the win by a point. Red Hill claimed the narrowest of come-from-behind victories 9.7…

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COUNCILS could be stripped of their planning powers in the near future, Premier Daniel Andrews says. The comments were made after the release of IBAC’s report on corruption allegations made against Casey Council. IBAC found that two Casey councillors, Sam Aziz and Geoff Ablett, received payment and in-kind support to support the interests of developer John Woodman. Among the 34 recommendations included in the IBAC report was the removal of planning powers from local councils. The report read “IBAC recommends that the minister for planning develops and introduces to Parliament amendments to the Planning and Environment Act 1987 (Vic) to…

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