News
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Plan to reclaim old station aired
The old Riddells Creek Fire Station could become home to local groups like the Men’s Shed and Lions Club if the Victorian Government backs a new plan for its revival. Macedon Ranges Shire Council has recognised the site as a potential haven for ‘homeless’ community-strengthening clubs as the town’s population is soon to double. “When…
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Ranges backs away from Live4Life
Live4Life has been celebrated for breaking ground in youth mental health but now its Macedon Ranges founders will turn away from the model by December. An external evaluation of Life4Life in the Macedon Ranges has revealed significant challenges affecting the program’s viability and effectiveness in recent years. Increasing costs, low engagement and delivery inconsistencies are…
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Recreating a lost giant
On a frosty morning in Castlemaine, in a large tin shed at Lot 19, a small team of humans gather together. Clad in dusty op-shop clothes, hands and tools working feverishly on hard plastic, bone and steel. All jacked up on lattes, their monkey brains are busy with problems to solve. They are here to…
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Paving the way forward
Older Women in Cohousing is a stone’s throw from reaching its target of $1.4 million to support the Middle Women’s Housing Fund, paving the way for the construction of a sustainable, low-impact cohousing village on their five-acre property in Castlemaine. Wanting to reflect the diversity and financial status of all women, WINC is ensuring that…
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Reforestation takes seed
Mount Macedon is undergoing a landmark reforestation project to restore native forests to former pine plantation sites. The project received $1.13 million funding through Victoria’s BushBank program. “The Mount Macedon Plantation Restoration Project is a huge win for our region,” Macedon MP Mary-Anne Thomas said. “It’s helping to stop the decline of our native plants…
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Fire-prone Macedon set to become a powerhouse
A private company that purchased five hectares of land in Macedon will submit plans next month to build an energy storage facility in a designated bushfire-prone area. South Energy is developing a project titled Macedon BESS (Battery Energy Storage Systems) to install 128 20-foot containers with lithium ion batteries at Lot 2, Black Forest Drive,…
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Next week: changes to the healthcare system
Medicare services are set to change from next Saturday, November 1, and provide patients with improved access to bulk-billed GP services. The launch of the new Bulk Billing Practice Incentive Program provides an additional quarterly 12.5 per cent incentive for practices that bulk bill all eligible services, with the payment split 50/50 between the GP…
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Demolition day arrives for skatepark
It’s been 11 years in the making and now works on a new Romsey Skatepark are finally under way. Lancefield Romsey Lions Club has been a key driver of project and celebrated the milestone last week as demolition works began. Long-serving Lions member Ged McLaughlin said the community began campaigning for a new skatepark in…
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Tiny Homes: The movement gaining rapid momentum
Bentley Building Group Tiny Homes is a family owned and operated building company run by Scott and Prue Bentley and based in Ballarat. In 2023, Bentley Building Group entered the world of building Tiny Homes with excitement. It had been a dream of Scott’s for a few years. Taking over a factory for this very…
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Mass murderer relocated to Castlemaine
Notorious Hoddle Street killer Julian Knight, 57, has been moved from maximum-security incarceration into the medium-security Loddon Prison in Castlemaine. On August 9, 1987, the then 19-year-old Knight fired a semi-automatic rifle on Hoddle Street, Clifton Hill, killing seven people and injuring 19. The former Australian Army officer-cadet pleaded guilty and was sentenced in 1988…
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Hall of Fame honour
“Wow!” was the first word that came to mind when Lancefield local and Edgar’s Mission founder, Pam Ahern, learned she had been inducted into the Garryowen Hall of Fame, announced at this year’s Royal Melbourne Show. The Hall of Fame, established in 2009, recognises riders, horses and individuals who have displayed outstanding commitment to the…
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Deer control to begin
The impact of increasing feral deer populations has put control of numbers in the spotlight. Parks Victoria will, this week, begin its night deer control program in Macedon Regional Park with licensed and professional shooting contractors. Deer are an introduced species and Parks Victoria recognises they “pose significant risks to native biodiversity, water quality, public…