Mount Alexander Shire Council
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Ward structures under review
Mount Alexander Shire Council and Hepburn Shire Council are among 39 Victorian local councils undergoing electoral structure reviews throughout 2023-24. The Local Government Act 2020 introduced several changes, including that all metropolitan, interface and regional city councils must now have single-councillor ward electoral structures. Macedon Ranges Shire Council will not have its electoral structure reviewed…
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Housing crisis deepens
We all ask ourselves what’s going on when we see tarps erected in public places, or people sleeping in their cars. Those who work daily with people experiencing housing stress and homelessness understand that open or rough sleeping in Mount Alexander Shire is the visible tip of the iceberg of the current systemic housing crisis.…
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Exhibition claims national honour
The good news continues for the newly installed Boorp Boorp Boondyil exhibition at the historic Castlemaine Market Building, with the announcement that exhibition celebrating local Indigenous culture has won a national award. Boorp Boorp Boondyil, which means ‘passing knowledge on to our children’, was selected as the winner in the Indigenous Recognition category of the…
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Working towards net zero
The Mt Alexander Net Zero Working Group has been busy behind the scenes highlighting the efforts of local businesses in working towards 100 per cent renewable energy. Following the success of their first short film featuring The Mill Castlemaine, the group successfully applied for a Mount Alexander Shire Council grant to assist with the production…
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Community to gather and reflect
Mount Alexander Shire Council will be recognising Sorry Day and National Reconciliation Week with a number of events open to the community. This will begin with a Sorry Day Commemoration to be held at Castlemaine Secondary College in Lawson Parade this Friday May 26 at 10.30am. The morning will include a Welcome to Country and…
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Depot gets green light
Lisa Dennis A contractor’s depot will be built on farming land at Muckleford after gaining approval at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. The VCAT decision has overturned a refusal by Mount Alexander Shire Council to grant a permit to applicant Slingo Earthmoving Castlemaine. The application for land at 315 Butchers Road, Muckleford, was knocked…
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Bridge back on agenda
Jade Jungwirth The highly controversial Froomes Road Bridge is once again on the agenda of tonight’s Mount Alexander Shire Council meeting. At the beginning of 2020 the council resolved to award the contract for the bridge’s replacement, but after receiving negative feedback from residents and a petition with 1300 signatures, the council temporarily suspended awarding…
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A little bit of Christmas magic
Jade Jungwirth A group of local women has spent endless hours making hand-crafted Christmas wreaths to place around the townships of Castlemaine and Maldon. Seventy-three-year-old Lana Osterfield organised the wreath-making efforts, using vines pruned from her ornamental grapevine, with eight other retired crafters. “The council had approached a group of craft people to make decorations…
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Christmas shop controversy
Jade Jungwirth A number of Maldon shop owners have expressed outrage at a new red arrow pointing to ‘Santa and the Christmas Shop’ (Vanilla Spice). Traders approached members of Maldon Inc (Maldon’s business association) to discuss their anger and confusion regarding a new addition to the Maldon wayfinder sign that is promoting the Maldon Christmas…
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Council denies permit
Jade Jungwirth Mount Alexander Shire councillors aired mixed views on the refusal of a double-storey development and two-lot subdivision opposite picturesque bushland at Castlemaine. The Parker Street application attracted 11 objections from across nine properties as well as council officer recommendation for refusal. Council officer reservation was largely due to the design, appearance and layout…
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Upgrade for notorious road
Lisa Dennis Walmer’s notorious Fogartys Gap Road is one of 47 roads across the state to be upgraded thanks to an injection of funds from the federal government’s Black Spot Program. Bendigo MP and Victorian Black Spot Consultative Panel chair, Lisa Chesters, visited Walmer on Friday to announce an allocation of $18.4 million to substantially…
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Improving access and inclusion
Do you want to help improve access and inclusion for people with a disability in the Mount Alexander Shire? Express your interest in becoming a member of the new Disability Action Plan Working Group with Mount Alexander Shire Council. The group will provide input, advice and feedback on the development of council’s new Disability Action…