News
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Macedon calls for reserve upgrades
Macedon sporting clubs have called for upgrades to Tony Clarke Reserve to keep pace with surging participation. User groups have united in a bid to improve facilities including clubroom upgrades, female-friendly changerooms to support club growth, and an overarching plan for the reserve’s future. Macedon Football Netball Club president Ron Rutledge said the precinct was…
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Building a work of art
Castlemaine’s industrial past has been brought quietly back to life, with Shades of Gray owner Peter unveiling the painstaking restoration of a second workshop space in the heart of town. What could easily have become another demolition site or block of flats has instead been transformed into a richly detailed 1940s-1950s workshop restored almost entirely…
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Intersection safety improvements questioned
Residents in Batters Lane at Kyneton have questioned the efficacy of intersection safety improvements on their road after a two-car collision sent four people to hospital last Tuesday morning. Emergency services were called to the scene at the intersection of Batters Lane and Pipers Creek Road about 9.20am. Police allege a 77-year-old man from Hoppers…
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Heritage questioned in cross tree clearing
A dispute has emerged between the Victorian National Parks Association and Parks Victoria over woodland clearing works at Mount Macedon, with differing interpretations of the heritage basis for the project. The controversy centres on vulnerable snow gum removal near the Mount Macedon Memorial Cross, which Parks Victoria says was undertaken to restore views associated with…
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More than just a free shower
A collaborative effort between Mount Alexander Shire Council, Dhelkaya Health, The Salvation Army Castlemaine and other agencies has enabled the Salvos to host a mobile shower truck in Castlemaine. The custom-built mobile shower trailers bring dignity directly to communities, but offer more than just a free shower — they provide a full wrap-around service of…
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Local designers edged out
Two local skatepark designers have questioned Macedon Ranges Shire Council’s decision to award the redevelopment contract for Kyneton Skatepark to a large Melbourne-based firm. Kyneton designer Darren White of Baseplate and Woodend designer Wade Trevean of EastbyWest – the team behind the successful Lancefield and Romsey skateparks – said they were bitterly disappointed their quote…
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An artist, a rockstar and the Archibald
Castlemaine artist Ned Middleton is a bit of a music buff, and while Tim Rogers’ band the Hard-Ons isn’t really his cup of tea, Ned was happy to have the chance to paint the legendary rock star for an entry into the Archibald Prize. After two sittings, a lot of research and guidance from his…
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Clarkefield future in focus
A 2300-home development will change the face of Clarkefield if approved and now the Victorian Government has opened consultation. The move follows Macedon Ranges Shire Council’s calls for broad community awareness and input after the plans were referred to the state’s Development Facilitation Program. Draft Macedon Ranges Planning Scheme Amendment – C164macr proposes a new…
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Lancefield development ‘sterilised’
A group of Lancefield landowners are hopeful a lengthy planning battle restricting development may soon come to an end. Macedon Ranges Shire mayor, Cr Kate Kendall, has sought Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny’s urgent assistance to remove Development Plan Overlay Schedule 24 (DPO24) that has created almost the opposite outcome of its intent. Cr Kendall told…
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Park powered down after theft
Copper wire thieves who targeted Lancefield Park Recreation Reserve last week disrupted the facility’s power supply and cut off broader town telecommunications. Committee of management secretary Bill Balcam said the discovery of about 100 metres of stolen power cable was made at the reserve early last Monday morning. “They came in and ripped out the…
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Head-on crash on Calder
A 20-year-old Mildura man is facing serious criminal charges after leading police on a chase that ended in a crash on the Calder Freeway at Kyneton last Friday night. The man evaded police for a traffic offence before driving down the wrong side of the freeway – heading south in the north-bound lanes – when…
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Tour a sustainable home
Composting toilets, electric vehicles and air-tight homes: what does it mean to live sustainably and why are more people making the change? If you ask Clare Claydon or Kerryn Burgess why they transformed their homes for sustainable living, they’ll tell you it was to improve their environmental impact, and that the long-term savings are also…