News
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Riddells Creek to double in size
Macedon Ranges Shire Council has questioned the Victorian Government’s approval of an Amess Road development, to double the size of Riddells Creek, with little change. The proposal will develop 131.8 hectares to create about 1360 homes for 3808 new residents, but both local residents and the council were united on wanting better outcomes. “This decision…
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Awards to celebrate business
Mount Alexander Shire Council is proud to launch the 2025 Mount Alexander Business Awards with nominations opening today! The awards spotlight innovation, resilience and impact across our local economy. In alignment with council’s Economic Development Strategy, the awards feature refreshed categories that reflect six foundational goals, each designed to shape a thriving, inclusive and sustainable…
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Underground dance-off electric!
Hot Moves No Pressure is an invite-only, underground-style dance battle, where each performer can invite one guest only, making it the hottest ticket in town! The energy at Boomtown Winery last Saturday night for the Castlemaine dance-off was electric! (In fact, the moves were so hot that the power blew halfway through the performances…) A…
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Drainage problems stall street works
Romsey’s Stawell Street upgrade planned for completion in June has hit a snag and is now expected to continue into September. Works began on May 12 for reconstruction of the 130m sealed road section between Main Street and Pohlman Street, footpath kerb and channel, raised safety platform, Pohlman/Stawell Street intersection upgrades, and drainage improvements. Macedon…
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Wildlife concern over tree clearing
Macedon and Mount Macedon Landcare has flagged concern over mechanical mulching of native forest at Mount Macedon in place of a planned burn. MMML president Kate Lawrence said the five-hectare site was home to native wildlife and the move “made no sense”. “It is just devastating to walk around this area that was a native…
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Gisborne “outer suburb” fear
Gisborne residents have raised the alarm over urbanisation risk in plans to increase the approved 768-lot Ross Watt Road development by 93 homes. Developer ID_Land seeks to add an 8.998ha residential village with 220 units, manager’s residence and village amenities in the north-west of the site. A ‘trade-off’ would be a reduction in the standard…
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Cold case breakthrough in Castlemaine woman’s death
Homicide Squad detectives have charged a man in relation to the death of Castlemaine woman and mother of two, Samantha Mizzi, in St Kilda 31 years ago. Colin George McKane, 67, was arrested in Ararat early Thursday. He has been charged with murder and two counts of rape and appeared at Melbourne Magistrates Court late…
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Wildlife road-strikes: A growing crisis in Victoria
Kerrie Allen, Mount Alexander Wildlife Watch If you’ve recently spoken about wildlife road-strikes, you’re not alone. The issue has become so widespread and distressing that a Parliamentary Inquiry is currently under way in Victoria. The reasons are obvious — rapid urban development and a booming human population have collided head-on with native wildlife habitats. In…
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Ambulance response times revealed
Paramedics in the Macedon Ranges attended 777 critical incidents with lights and sirens during the past three months and the average response time was 16 minutes and 44 seconds. Ambulance Victoria released data last week and revealed the mean response times for all Code 1 incidents. The Macedon Ranges was slower than the state-wide average…
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Councils hamstrung, wildlife inquiry reveals
New technologies and ideas have emerged to reduce wildlife road-strike, but councils are hamstrung by limited finances and autonomy, Macedon Ranges Shire Council says. “Residents want councils to act more quickly with more resources to do a whole range of things: put in electronic responsive signage, underpasses, overpasses and narrow roads,” chief executive officer Bernie…
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Inquiry hears of burn out
Wildlife carers across the region are burning out amid increasing case loads and cost pressures, the Victorian Parliament’s inquiry into wildlife road-strike has heard. Local wildlife carers called for increased funding opportunities and reimbursement programs for wildlife rescuers, driver education, and funding for a range of road-strike prevention opportunities. “There are so many pressures with…
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Don’t risk your life on the rail network
Victorians are being urged to be safe around trains and at level crossings, with more than 250 near hits with pedestrians and vehicles recorded on the V/Line network in the past 12 months. There were 194 near hits with pedestrians over the past year, up more than 55 per cent on last year. Of the…