Geelong Council Reviewing Plans for Drysdale boundary changes

The Geelong Advertiser today (25 July 2012) in an article entitled: "Line in sand drawn on boundaries", by Peter Begg, reports that:

"City Hall plans for a possible realignment of the boundaries between Drysdale, Clifton Springs and Curlewis are headed back to the drawing board after residents' concerns.

Ward councillor Rod Macdonald said concerns were raised at a public meeting two weeks ago about an area that would have switched from Drysdale to Clifton Springs...

In the area in question, part of Drysdale north of Wyndham St between Jetty Rd and Barrands Land, was to have become Clifton Springs. but residents wanted to remain part of Drysdale...

The State Registrar of Geographic Names called on the council to proceed with a boundary realignment between Drysdale and Clifton Springs, west of the Geelong-Portarlington Road.

The council has told the State Registrar that any changes to boundaries should account for significant urban growth in the localities and advised that a realignment should include a review of the boundaries between
Curlewis, Clifton Springs and Drysdale...

The council has emphasised throughout the process that no decisions will be made on the proposed realignment until investigations and thorough community engagement have been completed."

The complete articles is available in today's print edition on page 17.

New Drysdale Tip Fees

Geelong Council has put the Drysdale Tip fees up again.

The new fees are posted on their Drysdale Resource Recovery Centre page.

A car boot load now costs $17, single axle trailer (waterline) $34 and heaped $44; a tandem trailer (waterline) $44 and heaped $88.

Trailer charges are based on $44 per cubic metre.

Geelong Council Finalises Princess Street Drysdale special charge scheme for footpaths

In Tuesday's agenda for the City of Greater Geelong council meeting there is an agenda item for the finalisation of the Princess Street, Drysdale special charge for footpath and kerb and channel in Princess Street, Drysdale between Eversley Street and Newcombe Street.

Below is an extract from the Agenda:

Princess Street, Drysdale - SRC 325 - Finalisation of Scheme

Portfolio: Infrastructure - Cr Richards
Source: City Services - Engineering Services
General Manager: Gary Van Driel

Index Reference: Special Rates and Charges; Princess Street, Drysdale

Summary

• This report relates to the finalisation of a Special Charge Scheme for construction of footpath and kerb and channel in Princess Street, Drysdale between Eversley Street and Newcombe Street.

• Council declared the charge for this scheme on 10 August 2010.

• The scheme involves 8 property owners and the works were a combination of both footpath and kerb and channel. Council undertook pavement works and drainage.

• The cost to be distributed to owners which matches the estimated cost was $38,461 and owners costs vary between $2,977 and $10,464. Council constructed additional pavement and drainage works as part of the project at a cost of $90,808. • The scheme has been prepared in accordance with the Special Rates and Charges provisions of the Local Government Act along with Council's Special Rates and Charges Policy.

• The report seeks a resolution by Council to confirm the special charge for the works to finalise the Princess Street, Drysdale Special Charge Scheme. The process is shown in Attachment 7-1 – Process Chart.

Recommendation

That Council having declared a special charge on 10 August 2010 for the purposes of defraying the expenses in relation to the construction of footpath, kerb and channel and road widening in Princess Street Drysdale, west side between Eversley Street and Newcombe Street, Drysdale (Appendix 7-2 – Plan) in accordance with Section 163 of the Local Government Act 1989 (the Act) resolves that:

1) the special charge as declared be confirmed in accordance with actual costs incurred on the project as required by Section 166 of the Act as shown in Schedule A – Appendix 7-1;

2) the General Manager of Corporate Services is authorised to levy and recover the special charges by sending notices to the persons who are liable to pay in accordance with Section 166 of the Act and the Regulations; and;

3) in accordance with Section 172, the rate of interest which is payable on the special charges which have not been paid by the specified date is set at Council's overdraft rate, reviewed every three months (provided that it shall not exceed the rate fixed by the Governor in Council by Order for the purposes of Section 172 2A in which case the rate of interest shall be the maximum fate fixed by the Governor in Council by Order for the purposes of the Section). The interest is to be calculated from the date the special charge is due, with a six months interest free period, providing those persons who choose to pay by instalments adhere to their repayment plan.

The complete report is available from the Geelong Council Agenda - 10 July 2012 - in pdf format (1374kb). (This document requires the use of Adobe Acrobat Reader).

Drysdale Clifton Springs Press Articles, June 5 - July 5, 2012

Thieves target cards, by Andrea Hamblin. Geelong Advertiser, July 5, 2012. "Cars in Drysdale and Clifton Springs have been targeted by vandals. Residents on Barrands Lane and Mirrabooka Drive reported having their tyres slashed on Friday night, while overnight Monday theives stole hub caps from cars on nearby Central Rd... Senior ConstableJohn Shields of Drysdale Police, said it was likely victims across the Bellarine Peninsula were yet to report similar incidents to police... anyone with information should call Drysdale Police on 5253 1763 or Bellarine Police on 5256 2698..." [From, the print edition]

Forum on future of Bellarine. Geelong Advertiser, July 4th, 2012. "A blueprint for the future development of the Bellarine Peninsula will move a step closer to completion this week. A forum on Friday at the Clifton Springs Golf Club, hosted by the Committee for Bellarine, is the second phase in the drafting of the Bellarine 2050 Masterplan. The plan will detail a wide range of complex social, industrial and administrative challenges associated with the effects of future growth. Committee executive director Tom O'Connor said forecasts of a population explosion on the Bellarine has added urgency to the drafting of a master plan..."

Council crossing the boundary, by Joanna Carson. Bellarine Times, July 3 2012. "There is everything in a name, if the reaction to a proposed boundary realignment in Drysdale and Clifton Springs is any indication. Around 120 people braved a cold winter's night to attend a meeting with local councillor Rod McDonald, who was given the strong message that residents were passionate about remaining in Drysdale. "There does not appear to be any justification for such a drastic move. It just needs a few minor dog legs to fix the problems that are there," resident Peter van Wyk said. "We are mainly upset about the way they (the council) has gone about it. There does not appear to be any justification for such a drastic move. It just needs a few minor dog legs to fix the problems that are there."..."

Sex criminal housed metres from kinder, by Andrea Hamblin. Geelong Advertiser, July 2nd, 2012. "A VIOLENT sex offender was transferred to live in a home just metres from a playground and kindergarten in Clifton Springs. The 27-year-old lived on Country Club Drive from June 3 after completing a jail sentence at Port Phillip prison. It is believed the Department of Human Services moved him nearly three weeks later. The move came after shocked neighbours found out about the man's criminal past. The Geelong Advertiser has confirmed the incident and the man's sex offender status with multiple sources, including Victoria Police, government agencies and local health services..."

Airlift in Drysdale, by Alex Oates. Geelong Advertiser 22 June 2012. "An elderly woman was airlifted to hospital with head injuries last night after an accident in Drysdale..."

Local riders stride into Olympic contention, by Joanna Carson. Bellarine Times, June 21 2012. "... Drysdale-based dressage trainer/coach Mary Hanna also won her selection in the dressage team after recent strong performances in Europe. Aboard her top mount Sancette, who was imported from the United States in 2010, Mrs Hanna has received high scores in recent competition from top international judges. The current Victorian Dressage Team coach, her best Olympic result was in 1996 when she placed 24 out of 42 competitors at the Atlanta Olympic games, riding Mosaic II. She also competed at the Sydney and Athens games, but not in Beijing. Mrs Hanna – who will be competing at her fourth Olympics – and husband Rob run well-regarded warmblood stud Statene Park near Drysdale. Mrs Hanna experienced double tragedy in the 1980s when the original Statene Park at Mt Macedon was destroyed in the Ash Wednesday bushfires, luckily all the horses were saved. Then-husband Gert Donvig, a champion dressage rider from Denmark, was killed in a car crash a few years later. The establishment was eventually moved to a larger landholding on the Bellarine by the Hannas. Rob Hanna, a former top eventer, also has a key Olympic role. He is the current chef d' equip of the Australian eventing team, a position he held when Australia won silver in Beijing. Mrs Hanna's daughter Gitte Donvig, who helps run Statene Park, is also a national level dressage rider..."

Drysdale boundary shift up for discussion, by Ali Deane. Bellarine Times, June 22 2012. "A plan by the City of Greater Geelong to shift the town boundaries of Drysdale, Clifton Springs and Curlewis is gaining momentum after a motion to commence investigations and consultation was carried at the May council meeting. The Registrar of Geographic Names requested that council proceed with boundary realignment between Drysdale and Clifton Springs, west of Geelong-Portarlington Road in the interests of public safety in February; however, it has created discussion as to whether it is actually necessary. Councils are responsible for allocating geographic locality boundaries and, according to councillor Rod Macdonald, the process happens from time to time, as towns grow and housing increases, such as at Mt Duneed and Armstrong Creek earlier in the year..."

Draining for a drier Drysdale, by Ali Deane. Bellarine Times, June 12, 2012. "Amid widespread flooding across the state last week, a new drainage project to commence in August is set to alleviate problems in Drysdale. It is due to be completed by Christmas and will fix periodic flooding that occurs in the Collins Street-Clifton Springs Road area during periods of extreme rainfall..."

Model plan, by Ali Deane. Bellarine Times, June 12, 2012. "The plan for a total overhaul of the Drysdale town centre aims to centralise services and avoid community fragmentation. As the region faces a growth in population and boom in development, the latest plan prepared by the City of Greater Geelong aims to provide an important foundation for the future development of Drysdale. The Drysdale Urban Design Framework began with an Enquiry by Design process earlier in the year that incorporated the views of the state government, Council, key agencies and members of the Drysdale community..."

Seachange leads to champion cheese, By Gail Thomas. Stock and Land, 9 June, 2012. "Despite being city-born, pharmacists Corrine and Peter Blacket always had culinary interests and a fascination with rural pursuits. So in 1990, they decided to pack up their Melbourne base for a seachange. Buying a couple of acres at Drysdale, they had plenty of room and invested in some Cashmere goats, which quickly became pets. "As they grew old and died, they were replaced with milking goats, first a Toggenburg doe, then some Saanen doe kids then some more mature Saanen milkers," Mrs Blacket said..."

Drysdale design draft up for comment, by Ali Deane. Bellarine Times, June 5 2012. "The City of Greater Geelong (COGG) is seeking input from the community on the Urban Design Framework draft masterplan (UDF) that details the proposed Drysdale town centre expansion..."

Residents invited to have their say on Drysdale Urban Design framework. City of Greater Geelong, Media Release, Tuesday, 5 June 2012. "Bellarine Peninsula residents are being invited to have their say on a draft Urban Design Framework (UDF) for the Drysdale Town Centre. Cheetham Ward Councillor Rod Macdonald said the framework was an important foundation for the future development of Drysdale. "The G21 Regional Growth Plan Background Report indicates the Drysdale-Clifton Springs area will see a population growth of approximately 14,000 more people over the next 20-30 years." ..."