I acknowledge the traditional owners the
land on which we meet the
Wurundjeri and Bunurung people and recognize their continue
connection to the land and waterways I
pay my respect to their Elders past
presence emerging and extend this to all
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
people on 13th February Monash
experienced its second worst storm event
in our history with many our healthy and
beautiful trees
on our streets parks and reserves
destroyed and damage caused to hoMonash and
business more than a thousand calls for
assistance were locked to our Monash SES
unit and many more came to our Monash
team we are so fortunate to have an
incredible team of SES uh Volunteers in
Monash who are there for our community when
disaster strikes likewise we have an
incredible Monash
team who have worked tirelessly to clean up in
the aftermath of the storm this will
take some time the damage and
destructions were significant as our
team have moved through
Monash the piles of mulch have from damaged
trees has grown at our has grown at our
recycling and waste center from this
week we are inviting our community to
come and take some of those three mulch
for their
gardens we will also be spreading um in
our parks and reserves you can visit our
websites on monash.vic.gov.au for more
informations it was a delight this month
to celebrate the Luna New Year Glen
Waverley with Premier Jacinta Allen in
attendance our Clayton Festival held on
recent Sunday was also a highlight with
a huge crowd in
attendance and we are all looking
forward to the live ? on 16th of
March it promises to be another
fantastic
event now let's get on to the um let's
get on to the agenda tonight um we have
a received apology from um councilor
De Silva
and
Stuart JaMonash okay are there any disclosure of
a conflict of
interest
moving on to confirmation of a minute
councilor there's a recommendation
before us that the minutes of a
meeting held on 30th of January
2024 be taken as rep and confirmed do we
have move up councelor Zographos and
second it by councilor
Little all those now put that in vote all
those in
favour all those
against that's carried
councilors is there any petitions that
you would like to
table
hey is there any other councilors for if
not
um I would like to table a petition sent
by the Victoria Pride Lobby regarding Dr
storytime
time is there any second letter to
accept these petitions received by
Council and that the petitions is
forwarded to the relevant officers for
actions
no yeah that means we will that means
that left so we will
not move that we'll move on to that
one Council has received 14 questions
for tonight's
meeting we will start the
questions the first questions was
submitted by Dominic Murphy regarding
srla East update Dominic are you here to
ask a
question if not I will ask a question
for you will the council advise why the
state government through the Suburban
Railway Loop project is giving the
council considerable funds to use at
their Discretions thank you for the question
thank you for the questions
Dominic I assume this is related to the
proposed sales of council land both now
and in the future to the Suburban
Railway Loop Authority the srla is not
given Council money it is acquiring or
buying the land that Council owns for
its project that land has a value that
Council and its rate payers must be
compensated for Council can then decide
how that money is spent to benefit the
community second question is also asked
by Dominic Murphy regarding the srl
East update I will ask the question
given that Dominic's not here since the
establishments of a low cost housing is
such a high priority for the council can
it advise why the funds being directed
from the Suburban Railway Loop project
are not being targeted to this area
thank thank you for the questions
Dominic Council has consistently
advocate for an increased Provisions in
socials and affordable housing for our
community in support of this Council
adopted an affordable housing strategy
in September
2023 there is a report in tonight's
agenda at item
7.1.5 to commence planning scheme
amendment
process as a local government Authority
it is not the role of a council to fund
constructs purchase or Supply affordable
or social housing this role rest rests
with the state government and housing
providers Council has however identified
land that it may make available for
social or affordable housing such as a
site at 65 Power Avenue
Chadstone the next questions we have a
tender for Pinewood Reserve Cricket Netball
Redevelopment um question submits is
Peter Pales are you here to ask your
question Peter please come
forward
sorry that's not that one testing okay
planning ownership has now been removed
from the council with the Allen labour
government legislating itself powers to
compulsory sorry to stop you um the
questions that been here in front me is
the tender for the Pinewood Reserve Cricket
Netball Redevelopment it's not here ah
apology for
that do you want to read it for me
then
so this is the Monash draft proposal
yeah
this a high change
question I started reading before all
right so the Monash draft participation
plan from last meeting was regarding the
lower participation rates of girls in
cricket considering how much money
Monash spend on Cricket infrastructure
councilor Patterson said when council is
paying for the infrastructure and
infrastructure is only getting used by
one certain section of the community it
is a council problem and you were
correct when you said we can't continue
to invest in sports that are so heavily
gendered and not you know try and
address this if we're going to continue
to upgrade the infrastructure this
should be considered across all sports
as Monash pays for in infrastructure for
many sports why is the Monash Council what
is the Monash Council doing to increase the
petition parent rates of boys in netball we
can continue to invest in sports so
heavily gendered can we what are the
plans to increase these participation
rates that we heavily in invest in
infrastructure thank you for the
questions Peter Council support a range
of support spotting codes through the
provisions and maintenance of spotting
infrastructure there are almost 10,000
participants that regularly play netball
across two major venues in Monash which
are both almost exclusively
maintained by the sporting bodies
compared to around 3,000 registered
cricketers playing around exclusively on
Council maintained ovals and facilities in
Victoria participations in netball by
men and boys is almost double that of
women and girls in cricket as such this
is not seen as a greater priority to
address than the increase in female
participation in cricket which is one of
the most highly subsized spotting
cods in Monash the boys are 2% to 98%
that's not a small
percentage thank you so we've got the
next questions also submitted by you
Peter regarding srl East
update this is this the one that says
all the items or is this the
7.16
7.1.6 okay 7.16 on Page 6 says higher
change areas along the main arterial
roads are being supported what is the
full extent of higher change areas and
what will that you be doing to
those thank you for your question Peter
this comments refers to the draft preing
Visions for the Monash surburban railway link
precinct the higher change area of the
draft Visions are Princes Highway
Wellington Road and Blackburn Road these
higher change areas are consistent with
the current Council planning policy for
this areas higher change area will meet
the needs of students and key workers
providing housing choice within mix use
neighborhoods including apartments and
town houses there is some information in
the srla precinct Vision attached to the
report uh we assume that more detailed
information will be available from the
srla as precinct planning
progresses
okay the next question is propose a sell
of council land um submit is Maria ?
cities is Maria here to ask question or
no she's not I will ask
for I will ask for M or you want to ask
on behalf of
Maria okay I will ask for Maria
yeah so the question is selling Council
land which is actually the people's land
to the co uh Corporation Suburban
Railway Loop Authority should not be
discussed as a confidential matter with
no public presence we the people have
not contracted with you to be removed
from the chambers if we have show us the
valid contract where we agree to do this
with the people are ultimately the owner
of the land can Monash city council
cooperations ABN 23118 071
7457 please produce the bill of the cell
between Council and the crown for this
piece of land as Australians we have a
legal common laws entitlement to verify
the ownership of the land you wish to
sell um on our behalf felling to produce
the legal and construction bills of
sales you are being put on official
notice that you do not have
jurisdictions to decide what is being
sold to srl on our behalf thank you for
your questions Maria the report at item
7.1.3 of tonight's Council public agenda
details the land to be sold to the
srla this is where the sale of the land
will be discussed with the members of
the public presence to hear any debate
in answer to your further question
questions if Council does not own the
land it cannot be sold land ownership is
established through the holding of the
title the owner's name title can be
publicly searched via uh title office if
you choose to do so the report in the
confidential business related to
council's valuations of the land and if
released publicly uh May
ume Prejudice of a negotiation with the
S
the next questions also submitted by
Maria um in regarding propos sale of
council land so I'll ask a question for
Maria as
well all this item related to plan
Melbourne as outlined and um dictated by
the Victorian corporate labor G
governments for their grand visions of
20 minute neighborhoods and their
commitment to the United Nations were
economic Forum 17 sustainable
development goals the labor Minister for
transport and infrastructure has been
given overriding and um procedence Power
to deliver this objective in all matters
um srl which directly affect the
constituents in Council concerned and
actively fighting back against this um
un
unprecedented Dorial uh governance by
the minister Danny Pearson who
has relegated Council to puppet status
uring they have no Authority in all srl
matters our councilors and the mayor and
the CEO not concerned that they are
obviously being set up to take the for
for yet another fail project in this end
elections year for
councilors thank you for your questions
Maria the high Hier key of the three
tier system government in Australia is
such that the roles and responsibilities
are allocated to different level of
government broadly based on National
States and local issues in this case
responsibility for the planning and
delivery of public transport including
Suburban Railway Loop is a state
government responsibility with the
planning and ultimately delivered the
project being undertaken by the Suburban
Railway Loop Authority Council have no
authority over state or State uh Federal
governments but they regularly consult
with us on projects Council would
dispute any suggestions it is being set
up in this process accountability for
delivering and planning of this project
sits with the state governments I can
see no link between council elections
that will be held later this years and
state government public transport
project that is not scheduled for
completions until at least uh 20 35 that
was my question not Maria's but
anyway okay the next
questions is uh regarding Talbert
Village uh Tom Dio um is the questions
theer
put back good
evening team and may um here's my
questions uh does the council intend to
Zone the land to residential or well as
commercial if so can the council agree
to a commercial retail Hospital sites
rather an industrial or Warehouse
development Tom we have combined all
your question together so you can ask
the remaining the other
two
um number two
uh what cons consultation has been
undertaken by the council with the local
community and how have their input
influence the
plans and you've got one more questions
I a few more how will the council ensure
that this development meets the needs of
the priorities of the local
community
uh the last the next one is how does the
development contribute to the council's
goals for housing
affordability
sorry um is that all right yeah all
right the criteria does the council use
of element uh approve a development for
proposal um Environmental audit
including soil contamination groundwater
landfill and gas test indicate that the
site does not cause any concern for
residential
dwellings what reason would the council
have not to approve steing Globes
development
plans thank you Tom um I will combine
the answer for your questions and thank
you for your questions Council does not
have a current request to resign the
land referred to as the former tber Cory
Council cannot comment on what a future
zones or land use on the site may be as
we would consider any proposal as they
are submitted and subject to the
relevant planning
process there have however been two
perod resoning
requests the first was abandoned by
Council after it was not supported by
any independent panel and the second was
considered at the 29 uh on the 29 August
2023 council meeting however request did
not proceed the first amendment was sub
uh subject to consultations and the land
owner has engaged with the community
over a number of years development
proposal are assessed against the
planning and environment act
1987 the Monash planning scheme are
relevant Council policy and state
obligations there are no current
proposal to develop
all res um the land therefore council is
not able to answer uh the questions that
you've asked uh regarding the uh
development meet the needs of priority
of local
community um and as a former land field
and Quarry the land is subject to an
environment audit overlay which contains
extensive and ongoing requirements to
manage the land in a way that could make
it possible for residential Development
Council in considering the most recent
Amendment request decide that it would
not perceive with the amendment
requests right thank
you is that it
yeah the next questions that has the
community amenity local law review uh
question submits AJ Jud are you here to
ask your questions
AJ if not I will ask the question for
you
AJ at its meeting on 25th July 2023
Council stated the community amenity
local law is currently under review and
will be subject to an extensive public
consultation exercise expected to
commence towards the end of this year
being
2023 so when will public consultations
commence thank you for your questions AJ
Council has been reviewing its current
local law for some months and anticipate
that consultation on it should commence
in the next couple of
months next questions um is submitted by
Dominic Murphy regarding pathway
development in scotchman's Creek even
Dominic is not here will ask a question
for Dominic can the council advise why
why they thought it was value for money
in scotchman's [ __ ] between Stanley
Avenue and demonish freeway to have
additional pathway installed which
removed extra vegetations cost
$30,000 and which is universally
disliked by the local residents as it
serves no functional
purpose thank you for the questions
Dominic this location is the site of our
upcoming Bushland vegetations program
which include Community planning events
that continues to increase the uh
biodiversity and vegetations within the
Scotchman Creek um Corridor the recently
installed path connection provide a
safer more use friendly path connections
and will enable the inform the tracks
Jens to the creek to be uh re wide and
rate the path will also provide all with
access into the reserve for maintenance
teams to perform necessary maintenance
works next questions um also submitted
by Dominic Murphy regarding paint
markings on grass I will ask a question
for
Dominic given the paint markings on the
grass between Stanley Avenue and Monash
freeway will the council advise what
other the plans in process and the cost
for this project thank you for your
question Dominic um the pain marking Lo
located on the grass between Stanley
Avenue and Monash freeway um delineate the
area to be moed as part of the Bushland
Reserve vegetation program the total
cost of the project is
$114,000 the following questions also
submitted by Dominic Murphy regarding
additional plans for the scotchman's
creek the question is will the council
advise local residents of any additional
plans for the Scotchman Creek thank you
for your questions Dominic Council has
received state government funding to
upgrade and existing sessions of the
Scotchman Creek trial between Co
cresence and waro Road chasten this will
go out to public consultations in the
near future state government funding has
also been received
to review and upgrade the trail line
marking and signage between Blackburn
Road and Bly Road Glen vely both project
are expected to be complete by June
2025 Council also plans to upgrade and
weight finding signage along SC uh
Scotchman Creek Trail between waro Road
and VY Road within the next few months
Council officers have previously advised
the local resident of the planned par
work via letter drops and install
signage which occur in late December
2023 the next questions um are submitted
by Peter clides would you like to ask
the question
Peter
Pon planning ownership has now been
removed from Council with the Allen
labor government um legislating itself
powers to compulsorily acquire
properties at the price the governments
determines this will almost certainly
ensure highrise buildings contract be
signed off which will destroy the sub uh
suburbs landscape potential Parks land
Etc with the property owners having
little or no benefit like increased land
values
Etc not to mentions the impact on
traffic parking amenities Etc what is
the council doing to maintain the right
to their constituents what is the
council doing to fight for its power as
per Local Government Act you have Swan
your um Alliance
too um thank you for your question Peter
your question contain a number of points
which we will address um in turn
planning power have not been removed
from
Council the Suburban Railway loot
Authority has been provided with the
ability to prepare planning scheme
amendment in the uh Suburban Railway L
declare areas should the um Suburban
railroad loop Authority proposed to
acquire the land and land Acquisitions
and compensation act ensure that the
properties owner are fully and fairly
compensated for the market value of uh
their land the the Suburban the srla is
currently Consulting the draft pring
Visions for each of the states station
area the draft Vision indicated
potential locations for increased
density and Building
height council is considering a report
tonight on the proposed draft prec
visioned at item
7.1.6 now the questions that we last
questions that we have um is submitted
by Maria Poli City uh regarding LGA
representative costs um I'll ask for
Maria eight councilors to Cambra for 3
Days in July at the cost of
24,000 um to discuss with LGA
representative how to build a Community
Trust is
lovable why is Council not attending
virtually to save rayer dollars
residents are over the wasteful spending
of councilors being used to further
their own political career under the um
G of the networking to help their
citizens if Council wants to build
Community Trust why not spend the money
on sitting down and having some Town
Hall sessions open to
Residents they will tell you what has
enrolled their trust what mode of
Transport will be used by councilor for
travel to and from the conferences the
conference can we see the carbon
footprint and offset calculations for
their
trip is it not a conflict of interest
for councilor attending this to be
voting on whether they
attend how the councilor selected thank
you for your questions Maria the 2024
National General Assembly is held each
year and facilitated by the Australian
local government
associations ALG GA it a significant
event attended by local government
leaders from across Australia the 2023
NGA
attracted um 1,100 attendees and include
local state and federal um par
parliamentarians and policy makers it
also include 260 notice of motion
submitted by Council which allows the
alga to strengthen its advocacy on
behalf of council and their
residents this year's conference will
focus on the critical importance of
trust in government but also provides a
unique opportunity to engage directly
with the federal governments to develop
national policy to influence the future
directions of council and local
communities the conference will provide
councilors with the development
opportunities and a space to advocate
for Monash on a national
stage attendance at the NGS was
determined by nominations as the event
is in Cambra councilor will travel by
air there is no options to attend
remotely it is not conflict of interest
as the decisions on the matter does not
engage with the councilor's personal
interest they are attending in their
role as a
councilor okay
moving on um the officers report item
7.1.1 town planning schedule do we have
a
mover Council little do we have a
seconder councelor casarias is there any
discussions if not I will now put that
to the vote all those in
favor all those against
that's
carry item 7.1.2 59 Brendan Park Drive
Willis Hill do we have a
mover councelor little do we have
seconder councelor
SOS is there any
discussions if not I will now put that
to the vote all those in
favor all those against
that's
carry item
7.1.3 179 ien on road Oakley East
constructions of a three-story building
containing 12 dwellings um alterations
creations of Access Road in transport
zones do we have a
mover Council little do we have a second
uh Council
patteron is there any
discussions if not I will now put that
to the vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carry
7.1.4 Amendment
c167 mely structural plan adoptions do
we have a
move Council little do we have a
second
councelor
Fergus is there any
discussions councel
little so this report concerns the mount
Waverly activity center and a structure
plan which has been in the making for
best part of two years now um we've gone
out of our way to produce a plan that
creates a structure over the mount W the
activity center be in the in the absence
of any plan whatsoever anybody could do
anything we could get somebody in there
who designs the build a 20 story
building which would not be in keeping
with a village atmosphere and a
relatively low uh building Heights
throughout Mount Wy the structure plan I
think is been conservative um it didn't
get past the minister planning in the
first instance and came back and has now
been reviewed by an independent panel
what we've come back with and we will go
to the minister with now I think is
sufficient modification to the exist the
previous plan but hopefully the minister
for planning will now approve this and
it will become part of our uh planning
structures um we want to keep the mount
wavy in its current form it's a
relatively lowrise area uh there will be
some taller buildings if the structure
plan goes ahead but there's still by uh
by even Victorian standards that they're
quite modest um I commend the officers
for putting this report to us and going
through the whole process of um
reviewing the panel reports and and
placing ourselves in a position which I
think is is very correct and appropriate
for for the mountway of the activity
center I commend this to
council thank you Council little are
there any other
discussions Council Lake
thanks mayor I'll be supporting the
report but I just wanted to note that uh
one of the parts that I uh don't agree
with and would prefer to see differently
uh is in relation to the land at 275 to
283 Stevenson's Road where the the
independent panel has recommended a
maximum height of eight stories rather
than the proposal that's before us
tonight from offices which is to
maintain council's position that the
maximum height should be five
stories I I think having had the benefit
of an assessment by an independent panel
that's been assisted with uh expert
evidence and submissions being placed
before it uh unless we have strong
grounds to do otherwise I think we
should support uh the recommendations of
the independent panel and I think it's
particularly important in circumstances
where uh because of the housing
challenges that we face not only here in
Monash but consistently across the
Metropolitan and Regional area uh in
Victoria um it means there's an
increasing importance into the future uh
as to the housing task that activity
centers will fulfill and in my view um
now is not the time to be sticking to
positions that we formed two or 3 years
ago and in advance of uh the the changes
that have become far more or the the
pressures that have become far more
accute and more readily understood
around housing in the last couple of
years uh and particularly uh given the
the benefit that we have now of the the
findings of the independent panel so I
think we're making a mistake in not
accepting this recomend mendation it's a
key recommendation um so I note that I
don't support this approach but
otherwise I do support the structure
plan and as I say I'll be supporting its
adoption tonight thank
you thank you council is there any other
discussions councelor councilor
sfos thank you very
much um I think councilor little said
two years I think it's more like six or
seven than we started this process um
that we're now going to move to the next
stage um and I think that overall this
is a very good plan um there hasn't been
a plan like this probably since 1950s or
maybe even earlier in the mount wavy
area so this work is very important um I
got to say I'll start with the the
headline um I also agree with what's
just been said that wasn't my view
probably two years ago um but I think
that there is a very significant um
matter at hand in this country and that
is the supply of Housing and um when we
were looking at five stories um
certainly had some discussions with the
community about two years ago um that
sounded reasonable particularly when
Mount wavy does not have the builtup
form as Glenn wavy does for example or
oakle for example um but having read the
panel report which is completely
separate to us as our planning
department it mentions very clearly that
the main concern of
shadowing um will not be an issue at
eight stories or 29 M so that's for me
the game changer now we're not going to
pass eight stories tonight because
that's not what officers are
recommending in the report having said
that I do think it's a line ball call
that they they've come to with putting
that aside there were 21 submissions of
which 15 of those wanted some sort of
changes or were objecting to the whole
plan um but we are now in a uh at a time
when we've gone through a very detailed
process where we've considered
particularly the submissions from the
two uh supermarkets ww worths and IJ
riches who were you know very
sophisticated in their uh advocacy and
not only to us but to the panel I'm very
I was sympathetic to ig's position of
having a cap on the floor space for
supermarkets or retail floor space but
I'm again convinced by our officers and
also the independent panel that there is
no need for a cap it won't be in any way
um a hindrance to the current
providers um and the question that
really has to be asked here is what
constitutes your village feel in the
21st century and the consensus seems to
be that five or eight stories at the
highest level but also all the other
changes that are being proposed will not
take away that very unique um character
that mount wavely will have for many
years to come so um I look forward to
the planning Minister's decision um I
stress that I've considered this in um a
lot of uh I guess care careful um
consideration and uh I look forward to
working with the community for years to
come thank
you thanks councilor zos is there any
other discussions councel councelor
JaMonash thank you mayor uh I too agree
with Council Lake and Council Z graphus
that I think eight stories would be a
better ambition for this Council I think
when we pass these structure plans as
Council gra said I think it's been 70
years since we passed the last one um we
we're providing
a a mirror into what we want to see in
the future and I hand on heart can't
stand here and say that I think it 20 or
30 years time five stories will be
significant on that IG site um certainly
on the interfaces around where the
residential residential zones are I
think it's three three stories there
that's that's certainly or four stories
I think it was that's certainly um
appropriate but in that Center bit there
where it's it's effectively locked by um
well a road um and car parks around it
it seems the most logical spot to be
putting high story high-rise development
right next to well on a top top of a
supermarket and certainly not that far
away from war or Safeway Safeway as my
grandma used to call it in the mount W
the days uh and also Mount wavely
station which is right there as well so
I think that um eight stories is a hell
of a lot excuse my language but lot lot
better outcome for our community moving
forward um I also think it's worth
pointing out too that a structure plan
doesn't mean that it's it's a green
light to developers to go and build that
they still have to come to us with an
application permanent application to
build that and we can still well this
Council can still choose to to refuse
that so even if it was to eight stories
and someone came with an application of
eight stories it would be subject to
community consultation and to go through
the chamber before that was approved
anyway um it was my understanding that
there wasn't a majority in support of
the eight stories but there's three of
us that have spoken in favor of changing
it so if another three do I will be
happy to move an amendment but as
Council Lake and Council grapher said
I'm happy to pass it in its current form
as
well thank you councilor JaMonash is there
any other discussions councilors
coun man my contribution be short um I
don't think it's right to move an
amendment now at the at the dying hour
um I think too much work's gone into
this body of work and I commend the
officers for that work the only thing I
wanted to say is that when it coMonash to
housing and what type of housing we will
be living in in the future I think the
market is best place to determine what
works and what doesn't work um today's
five stories could very well be eight
tomorrow so we don't know exactly but
what we do know is that there is popul
ation growth there is high demand for
housing particularly in um in in areas
that are as close to the CBD as possible
U for for all the benefits that come
with that so whilst 8 today it may not
be palatable um I have no doubt in the
future eight will be and in fact we
could be seeing you know High RS of 10
to 12 um should the market demand that
and should circumstances require it
thank
you thank you councel um kasaris is
there any other discussions Council
yeah Brian got
the as the proposing uh councelor I have
right of reply um so I'm going to
respond to the three uh councilors who
said they thought eight stories eight
story buildings on the IG site now is
the thing is the state is quite
isolated so what our officers have
recommended is some consistency in
Heights across the that wave the
activity center so on periphery it'll be
around four stories so along Stevenson
Road will be be four
levels five on an isolated site like the
IG one does seem appropriate and it
seems appropriate to me and I think it
seems appropriate to the people of Mount
wavely um um that's all I'm going to say
on it um I'm very comfortable with what
our Council our officers are
recommending here um and I think it will
get past the minister of planning
without too many
issues thank you Council
little I will now put that
to vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carry
item 7.1.5 Amendment C 174 one
affordable housing strategies do we have
a move
up councilor Fergus do we have a second
uh Council little is there any
discussions if it not um I will now put
that to a vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carry item
7.1.6 srl e update preing planning draft
Visions Clayton lway disc conations and
Clayton Hall access ramp do we have a
move councelor
Patterson we seconder Council little is
there any
discussions
if not I will put
that do you want to speak Council
little state government has given the
srl I Authority
um yeah they overall
planning authority over a 1.6 kilm
radius from each of the stations on on
the srl spur re so cheltonham
Clayton
Monash Glen
wavely uh up to bwood and the Box
Hill what they have done in this report
or what what our response in this report
is to is their Vision documents so this
is the first time the srla has really
grasped what Authority they have been
given in this overall planning
Authority and they've tried to come to
terms with it and they've produced
papers which give Visions for each of
these 1.6 km radius areas around yeah
okay we are now responding to those
those visions and I think and I do
commend our officers because I think
we've gone through the Visions quite
thoroughly and I think our responses are
very very appropriate indeed but I just
want to make um I just want to highlight
two or three very very pertinent points
that our officers are making in this
report first and foremost Glenn
wavely they have said and I I'll
actually you read this out because I
think it's it's it's it's very poent the
full potential of the srl will not be
realized unless the future contains
lowering the Glen wavely
Station it makes no sense to have a
Suburban rail Loop Station which is
underground and then above the ground 80
M away is the Glen wavely up above
ground station makes no sense at all if
you lower the Glen wavely Station then
what you would do is you would create a
massive
space to the east of the two stations
that space would be worth bomb I mean it
would be a fix basically the property of
their srl a they would get the benefit
of that that enormous amount of money
that that would represent but it could
then be used as a proper bus
terminal uh it would lower the
congestion that they are about to create
by closing common Pride uh it just makes
absolute perfect
sense in
Clayton they've advocating very strongly
that we do the work West westall Road
Extension because otherwise we are going
to have massive traffic congestion
around
Clayton exacerbated by the existence of
the the
station
um so I do commend this report to
council I I think the responses that
we're making are very appropriate I
commend it to
council thanks councilor little is there
any other discussions
councilors if not I will now put that to
vote all those in
favor all those against
that's
carried item
7.1.7 uh Award of tender for consultancy
services architectures and other design
service for the Glen Civic Precinct
project do we have a mover
Council L um I'll second that is there
any discussions
councilors if not I will now put that to
vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carried
7.1.2
um item 7.1.0 proposed sale of council
land to Suburban raway loot Authority
part of 22 to 32 of Sullivan Road and
part of the Railway parade North Glen
vely do we have a
mover councelor little do we have a
seconder councelor
casarias is there any
discussions councel graos May I've got a
question um to the relevant
director um and it's just quite simply
if the Suburban rail project doesn't
proceed
um do the land sales continue and is
there any mechanism in our negotiation
or in our contracts of sale that we
compel the project to be completed
rather than not completed does that make
sense thank
you through you may once the land is
sold it is is sold so it's own by The
Authority or whoever they choose to sell
it to thereafter there are no conditions
or stipulations or requirements with
regards to nor can there be with regards
to them having to construct um as a part
of the terms or conditions of
sale thank you I'll just make some brief
comments that's
a and I'm grateful for that and so I
note that this is a huge report and it's
complex and it includes many Parcels of
small land as well as the larger ones
and um you know definitely has a bit to
go but as Council little said in the
report a few items back uh the srl
authority operates like its own sort of
large local Council that it has planning
power it has power to compel councils to
sell land it has power to take over land
it has power to compuls require private
land from citizens um and it doesn't
really care what councils think um there
are other councils that have had similar
concerns to us um I know I've said this
before so I won't Babble on too much but
um you know we need to make it clear to
our community that um we don't agree
with everything that's going on um
Clayton particularly because I grew up
around there is going to be you know
terrible for people that live around
there until the um project is completed
and we know that there are many other
challenges this state is facing where I
still don't believe that this project
will be completed in its current form
now as a local councilor in Monash I want
new stations in Clayton and at Monash
University that can be delivered in a
different way whether it's Ral rail or
trackless tram or whatever you want to
call it having said that um we know that
this Council has a position to use these
funds for a particular project you know
I accept that that's the plan I didn't
support it but that's what this position
is and so um at least that's some sort
of
justification but also we need to be
mindful of what happens if the project
doesn't um actually get completed that's
the Suburban Rail Project and then how
will this land be used in the future by
our residents thank
you thank you Council zos councilor
Fergus uh thank you mayor I uh support
most of what's in this report and I
thank officers for the work that they're
doing um with the srla and with the
community particularly um in my ward in
Clayton where um it is really causing a
lot of disruption but hopefully in the
medium term it will be a net benefit to
the community um however I won't be
voting for the report this evening
primarily because um of Point s which
I'm sure will be supported by the
majority but I'm not in support of the
bogong car park project um primarily
because I don't think councils should be
building and extending um off street car
parking in 2024 I think the cost benefit
is way out of proportion and in an
environment where we're going to be
having to reduce vehicle trips by
private vehicle not increase them um I
think it makes little sense but apart
from that I support um the bulk of this
report um however for that reason I'll
be voting
against thank you councilor Fergus is
there any other discussions
councilors councilor
Lake thanks mayor I just want to clarify
one thing that has largely been
clarified by councelor Fergus but it was
just in relation to one of the comments
that councelor zagra has made uh where
he referenced that uh it's council's
position that the land sales that the
revenue that Council will receive for
the land that's being acquired by the
state government through the Suburban
roll Loop um project has already been
decided or we' I think Council as a
graice was referring to the decision we
made a few months ago uh in relation to
the Glen wavy Library uh and that that
that Civic project I just want to um
make clear though that what we're being
asked to consider tonight is
a separate parcel of land so this is not
one of the the two Parcels of land that
will be uh contributing to the library
and the uh Community Center project U
but rather as Council Fergus has
identified and as identified a reason
for his opposition to this report um
this will go to the the cost that
Council has already incurred or
committed to incur uh through the
construction of the bogon car park
that's currently under construction the
extension of of that car park um I I
support the recommendation from officers
tonight that the uh proceeds uh from
this particular parcel um should go to
the bogong car park construction cost um
the bogon car park is is effectively
going to double in size it's going to be
uh the prime parking for Glen wavely in
a few years time when it is finished and
it it opens um and the bogon car park
has up up until it temporarily closed a
few months ago it's performed a very
significant role in providing parking to
the center and that's only going to be
more so uh once the extension is is
completed so it's a significant cost uh
and it's appropriate that the proceeds
that Council receive from uh this land
acquisition which hasn't otherwise been
allocated or E marked um to fund any
other project in Mones uh that it be
directed to offset those costs that
we've um separately uh committed uh to
and have have started to incur
thanks thank you
Council I will now put that to vote Al
do in
favor all those
against that's
carried item 7.2.1 to Oakley golf course
future planning consultation findings do
we have a
mover can cancel mlki and seconded by
councelor
zos is there any discussions councilor
um
karius apology
councilor there's no there's no order of
who can speak
first to speak first then go
ahead you've only been me four tiMonash
um uh thank you through you me I'll be
very brief sorry to interrupt you
Council cus but um I'm pleased to see um
this consultation report come back and
I'm even more pleased to see the
recommendation I think and it's great to
see some people that are very keen um
have very keen interest Beyond just uh
residents perhaps and keing golfers in
the gallery and hopefully watching at
home uh
it's I think this consultation process
has been very much education u in some
parts for me but I think for a lot of
others as well but um can I firstly
thank the community uh the stakeholders
and um director Hopkins team active Mon
and others that conducted the
consultation because um I attended one
of those the community day down at the
course and just engaged with um those
people that came wanted to find out more
information Express their View and and
submit that view whether shap Mish or
with officers present and it was created
uh S I conducted very respectfully um
with the willingness to understand more
about what the proposal was what the
options were and and out of that came a
lot of good information about how if the
coures be to be retained how we'd move
forward and one of the learnings I think
has been for um perhaps not just myself
but others has been um how the course
and surrounds and the amenity generally
needs investment and hasn't really had
the benefit of that for a long long time
too long to be
honest I'd go a little bit further and
say but perhaps we should be a little
bit red cheeked and embarrassed about
how Little's gone into that place over
extended period of time but the good
thing here is that I would sincerely
hope that this report adopt the
recommendation adopted has presented by
Council I think it's a great opportunity
for us to um invest more in the course
and get that mity uh improved and not
only for current golfers but future
golfers future community members um you
don't have to be a golfer to enjoy the
amenity of the golf course the path goes
all the way through there's plenty of
people walk along there peacefully
safely and it's a great venue um I know
my boys and I have played there many
many tiMonash and we've enjoyed it every
single time the only sad thing about the
oak of course in recent tiMonash has been
the horrendous Damage Done by the storm
which you touched on earlier may but um
that's been remediated improved and
hopefully um we can see um some great
Improvement uh moving forward if this is
adopted in current form um but I will
pay particular attention to those that
engaged meaningfully respectfully and
and not only engaged in a positive way
but also gave some great ideas and great
feedback of what possibly could be
achieved not only to the course but in
its use in the groups and how that can
be better harnessed so um not just by
people online from states away that
support golf but we'll probably never
ever see Oakley or the course or even
Monash but or even Victoria perhaps but
um those dedicated um devotes of of the
golf course I hope we'll be pleased
after this result thank you man that
wasn't very short sorry
sorry thank you K thank you you
councelor U mlki and councelor
zos thank you I went
second I seconded it um thank you very
much and thank you to councelor
McCluskey for those very um inspiring
words the consultation findings are
decisive um I've never seen anything so
decisive and that's Testament to those
people that councilor mcclusky spoke of
and I'll name some in a few moments um
what we saw in this uh process is that
the community really came together when
it needed to um I believe we should
never have created this uncertainty
which is why I voted in September not to
proceed down this path however I am very
happy with the outcome that this report
is recommending to leave um the Oakley
golf course as it is as a golf course
for the next 10 years um and I learned a
lot about derley golf course I haven't
been a user of it um in my my time on on
Council I have to admit but I did um you
know visit it a number of tiMonash and I
was very happy to do that because I
learned a lot about its history um I met
many people who had started off playing
at the Oakley golf course in the 70s and
the 80s who then went on to other golf
courses um around Monash or around
Melbourne and I think it has a huge
future um it has the potential to
actually be breeding ground for golfers
for years to come because it has an all
access attitude it's cost effective it's
open to all genders it's open to um
young people to disabled people it's
open to basically anyone that wants to
have a go and it's got some very good
coaches that are involved as well um so
that brings me to um thank a number of
people and I start with um the person
who worked probably harder than anyone
that's Sandy JaMonashon who's in the
gallery tonight um who's been involved
with oy Golf Course for a very long time
and was Absol absolutely energetic in um
uniting the stakeholders to come
together um and also another few special
mentions to people like Fiona Meed um
from reach and balom uh Terry Ranken
president of the Oakley veterans Golf
Club who have sent some Representatives
tonight um and I was really motivated to
go out there and engage with these
people because they were so um committed
to save what they saw as a huge
Community Asset for people of monation
for this Council um you know there was
some justification to say that because
the Oak Golf Course makes a financial
loss that therefore needs to be either
closed down or changed into a park but
when I look through our budget may I see
so many other services whether it's
libraries or whether it's the um uh math
the old Gallery of Art and other
services that have made the losses for
years upon years and huge losses more
than what the Oly Golf Course course has
made because we're not a business we are
a public Council that is there to offer
a service to our residents and our rate
payers and I hope that that continues to
be done at the oakle golf course for
many years to come thank
you thank you Council
zos Council casares thank you mayor
mayor as a passionate advocate for the M
golf course I welcome the findings of
this report and thank everyone for their
contribution May for many years for many
sorry the golf course has not just a
place to play around of golf it is a
sanctuary a source of joy and a vital
Lifeline to social connection and
fulfillment I would like to emphasize
the immense importance of the oak Oakley
golf course for retirees and of course
for the broader Community for many
retirees maintaining an active and
healthy lifestyle becoMonash Paramount the
golf course provides the perfect setting
to engage in physical activity enjoy the
outdoors and nurture their
well-being whether it's a leisurely
stroll along the fairways a friendly
game of golf with friends the golf
course offers a sanctuary where the
community can stay active vibrant and
engaged moreover the golf course serves
as a cherished meeting place where
friendships are cultivated and memories
are shared for many the golf course is
not just a recreational facility it is a
second home a place where people come
together to laugh reminisce and support
one another the bonds forged represent
the essence of community and belonging
in a world where social isolation and
loneliness can offer can often
overshadow the golden years the golf
core stands as a beacon of connection
and companionship enriching lives in IM
immeasurable
ways furthermore let us not forget the
profound impact of golf of the golf
course the golf course has on Special
Needs golfers within our
community our ndis participants from
reach and beyond for these individuals
the golf course is not not only a place
of recreation but also a source of
empowerment inclusion and dignity
through adaptive programs and
specialized facilities our Golf Course
provides special needs golfers with the
opportunity to pursue their passion for
the game is supportive and welcoming
environment the sense of accomplishment
and pride they derive from mastering new
skills and overcoming challenges is
truly inspiring and exemp exemplifies
the transformative power of our of our
Golf Course to uplift and Empower all
members of our community in addition to
its social and recreational benefits our
golf our public golf course plays a
vital role in promoting accessibility
and Equity within our community unlike
private G clubs that car exclusively to
select few our Golf Course welcoMonash
individuals of all backgrounds abilities
and walks of life may the preservation
of our local golf course is not merely a
matter of maintaining a recreational
facility it is a Reformation that
commitment to the well-being happiness
and dignity of all members of our
community especially retirees and
special needs golfers me in the seconds
that are left I just I wanted to share
that with the gallery and my colleagues
because I fear that this will be not
this will not be an isolated incident
that that can I have I'll move 30
seconds my my fear is that um in years
to come sorry have we
voted okay
thank you Council Z look mayor I I I
share this tonight because I fear in
years to come that there will be a
council that will forget what this is
all about as councilor of GRA was quite
um perfectly put it we run many social
services many plat social platforms
where we make no money in fact we lose
money our Pauls are a clim example of
that but we don't shut them down we
don't shut our Liv liaries down because
they are connecting points for our
community golf this golf course has done
that for decades and should should be
allowed to to continue in the future I
won't be around on Council forever in a
day um that's that's that's a given um
but um as long as I'm on Council um I
will do everything I can in the Fierce
and most competitive way to ensure that
um the course is not tampered with um
and not um taken away from the community
thank
you
thank you c councelor um
casarias are there any other discussions
councelor
JaMonash uh thank you mayor can I begin by
saying I was a little bit disappointed
with the approach of some um of those
during the consultation period I think
there were some certainly some comments
on social media which I thought were out
of line um that's what happened when
people are passionate and I accept that
and and the role of a councilor is to do
that but I think some of those comments
went um a little bit far there was
certainly as I stood in his chamber I
think it was September last year when we
launched his consultation session there
had already been some miscommunication
um spread throughout the community of
what council was trying to achieve and
people were running around saying that
Council was trying to close the course
um it was certainly one of the options
um but it was never um a proposal from
Council our objective was to consult
with the community on what they wanted
and I think there was at least three
councilors perhaps even four councils
around this table that stood here in
September and said hand on heart we just
want to consult the community and see
what they think um and I think the
results speak for themselves not
surprisingly 98% of people that don't
live in Monash wanted to keep it as a golf
course but I suppose the thing for me
which I found most encouraging here was
there was 77% of Mones residents that
wanted to keep it as a golf course now
we know that people that live outside
Monash are also a consideration um but
certainly the people that live within
Monash are of a larger consideration to
myself um I also stood in the chamber in
September and said that if the community
consultation came back back strongly in
fav which it has that this Council needs
to be prepared to commit financially to
improve the quality of that golf course
I think I mentioned councelor Patterson
myself um early in this term had
discussed briefly maybe putting an
outside deck where the where the pro
shop is and having some kitchen
facilities where they might be able to
cook for example people have breakfast
or lunch looking over the course so so
bring the community into the course and
and have people more interested in golf
um I've also had some preliminary
discussions with golf Australia and also
um Mark Allen one of the professional
golfers in Australia about um what could
be uh what could appear on that site or
what we could do with that site moving
forward to enhance Golf and to improve
the course uh and to bring people
through and and to train them up uh on
their Pathway to becoming pros and those
conversations initially have been um
quite positive and I think this for me
as a councilor um is the key for this
there's no point in us going out for
consultation rolling up the community
getting them all um passionate and and
in some respect angry and then passing
it and going we'll keep it as a golf
course and walk away and nothing changes
I think that that is a wasted
opportunity uh I think what we need to
do as Council now is at least have those
discussions with people that are in the
know and people that have um come up
with good ideas throughout the
consultation period and start putting
the wheels in motion to improve the
quality of golf and the quality of the
golf course there and perhaps replace
some of those trees that that you
mentioned earlier in council mclusky did
that have been destroyed around that
course because it is a lovely course
it's a course that I've played on my
wife as well um she she has a nice
handicap but I don't have one at all cuz
I'm that that much of a hack um but
that's what's good about the course you
can walk around it with your kids and
have a good time so great consultation
feedback and I think we've got a Way
Forward I hope we've got a way forward
but I think the key now is that we
deliver both financially and also from a
management point of view to deliver a
better facility for our community moving
forward thank you councelor JaMonash
councelor
Fergus um thank you mayor I agree with a
number of things that councelor JaMonash
said and first and foremost um is is my
my disappointment in the way that this
consultation was engaged with uh by many
people particularly many people outside
of Monash I think that was really
disappointing and um confronting for
people who were trying to engage with
the consultation um particularly local
people who might have had a different
view um we also saw uh golf Australia
and um people who are professionally
connected to golf getting involved which
is fine uh but I think it does point to
the fact that um people in support of
retaining the golf course had
significant um
institutional uh support um from a range
of of avenues now that's fine as I say
that's appropriate and I think we need
to take that um into consideration when
we're deciding what to do I would hope
that uh if Council accepts the
recommendation of officers tonight that
those bodies and the people who
participated so actively in this
consultation come to the party and work
with Council to improve and make this
facility sustainable because as
councilor JaMonash accurately said um there
is absolutely no point passing this
recommendation if we don't then seek to
improve the facility and make sure it's
sustainable into the future there are
some people um s's already been
mentioned tonight and and others who are
doing great things um at the course um
and making the most most of what is I
entirely agree and an excellent
Community Asset however my issue is that
um the the asset is not being used to
its full potential and most of the
people I spoke to who are in support of
retaining it as a golf course uh have
agreed with that position it is not
being used to its full potential however
I don't think this Council uh has
actually the the will to invest what is
necessary to make this work into the
future I hope um that it does but I'm
not convinced about that based on
previous discussions because the price
tag and the time involved is quite Hefty
um I will say uh that I don't think the
consultation is definitive I think when
you have large organized groups it's
very difficult to to get contributions
from people who live in the community
and I don't think we've seen that many
um of those unless they're already
engaged in golf but there is clearly a
level of support which warrants a
discussion about what we can do to
continue um with with golf at the
facility I I disagree with some of the
comments that have been made um you know
a suggestion that there was any
consideration of taking away uh the cost
from the community um that land is going
to remain there and for public use we
made that very clear simply a matter of
how that land um should best be used and
I think those sort of comments um add uh
add fuel uh to to the fire that um took
place over the course of this
consultation and made the debate and
conversation quite unpleasant uh for
many
people uh I hope that we can see a good
outcome uh at at the site um I'm not
convinced that it's as easy as as some
people have said and I think comparisons
to liaries and rec centers are not apt
given the size of the land coun
Fus apologies May the clock is not on
the screen so I apology for that are you
you finish or you need to extend your
time I don't I don't further time there
thank you thank
you is there any other um
discussions Council
little uh I fully support this report
however I am going to respond to council
JaMonash comments about um I think about M
making great improvements to this very
small golf golf course and I want to be
I want to bring a little sobriety to
this discussion council is facing one of
the most difficult Financial situations
it has been in since I've been on
Council and that's quite a long time we
have a 2. 75% rate cap we have costs
going up in different areas anywhere
between five seven building costs going
up by
9% um we are having some very very
serious discussions around our tables
when it coMonash to the budget and what we
can keep and what we can't keep so to
raise the expectations of the O holic
that we are suddenly going to find
millions of dollars to make great
improvements to this golf course I'm
sorry I don't think that's a realistic
expectation and I'm sorry to have to say
that but that's the reality of the
situation so I commend councel JaMonash
perhaps he can knock on the door of his
of our colleagues in Oakley particular
um Steven Demopolis who who's now
actually the minister for sport among a
number of other things um Perhaps
Perhaps the state government can be
encouraged to come in here and do
something really amazing for the TIC
golf course I would love to see that but
to raise the expectations that council
is suddenly going to come up with
millions of dollars I'm sorry I have to
bring a note of reality to this
situation thank you councilor little
councel
Pon thanks very much mayor um I'm really
glad to see the results of this
community consultation I supported this
going out to community consultation
because I sincerely hoped that the
public would rally around this course I
first went to oakle golf course when I
was mayor in
2016 and had the opportunity to have a
look around the course and the rooms and
um was really disheartened by the state
of the the rooms in particular and um
was really concerned about a level of
investment there and I saw this
community consultation as an opportunity
to get the community to Rally behind it
and for councilors to see that there is
a there is a passion and there is a
purpose towards investing in this site
to to keep it up to a standard so that
it can continue to be utilized uh for
golf but also as a as a community space
and is as a place where people um can
connect and recreate and learn how to
play golf and you know meet with their
friends and and get out and about so um
I'm really glad to see the response I'm
really grateful for a number of people
who I know put in a lot of time um in
you know engaging with people in the
community um and was I agree with what
council little has said there's not you
know there's not a lot of money floating
around but I think there's nothing that
can't be achieved with a bit of Will and
you know a willingness to look outside
the box I guess you know not
everything needs to be solved with
throwing a whole heap of money at it
although that's often the easiest option
but you know when you don't have the
money you have to use your yeah you have
to work together and you know figure out
a way to do things a little bit
differently so um but it is good to see
this back on the agenda here at Council
and I hope that we won't forget that the
community really wants us to invest in
this space so we can retain it thanks
thank you councelor
patteron I will now let put that to
vote councelor
zus I am really pleased to see the
results of this consultation I think
that it's provides strong uh Community
evidences strong Community Support to
retain the golf course as a golf course
to um to recognize the value that this
public land is as a golf course all the
various Community groups that use this
um I think that the results of the
consultation very much bear that out but
as some councilors many councilors
tonight have noted uh the state of the
current facilities at that Golf Course
are an
embarrassment it's not being used to its
full potential as a golf course right
now and these sorts of situations can
become um self uh an inevitability um
because if you don't invest in the golf
course the figures show you that um it's
not being utilized as much as perhaps
you would like to but that can often be
because it the the investment isn't
going into this golf course as perhaps
it should as perhaps is warranted for um
the public asset of this
nature look I think Council every day
makes decisions between different
projects of one sort of the other um yes
we are going into a very tough period in
our budget that's for sure um but we are
always making decisions between what
money will go to which project here at
Council um I don't necessarily sub
subscribe to the view of council little
that there is no money for this project
uh council is making a series of
decisions uh right now um that go
towards putting in um substantial
Council funds into a project in Glen
Waverly uh Council has publicly uh said
that this project um will cost around
$130 million so that's Council money
that we're proposing to put to this and
I do think that uh questions should be
raised about whether that's appropriate
whether some of that money could go to
facilities such as this so um I support
tonight's report I am pleased that we as
a council will retain these facilities
as a golf course um but I do think that
if we as a council are to do this we
can't leave the facilities in the state
that they are I think we need to look
carefully at whether we should invest uh
more in this golf course I think the
answer to that is yes and we should look
at how we can look to fund that and work
with the community groups um work to
bring to life some of these ideas that
we have um that have come about through
this consultation because I think we can
and should do better
here thank you councilor
Samia councelor
MOSI I think everyone has St yeah we can
have L might be minutes promise thanks
it's true M just briefly um just toay
any FS around all the comments are right
around you know budget constraints but
um it's probably a bit of context should
be provided um the figure that's been
referred to and the time period is like
$1 million to get the course up to
magnificent let's call it that over the
course of 10 years um no one's saying
right now this report doesn't call for
that action now we're not saying that's
what we're going to do so no one you
under any illusion that's going to
happen rubber stamped here by whether
this is carried or otherwise but um it's
important to note that you know this is
all increment Al there's little things
that we could do you know pretty quickly
that'll make a pretty um substantial um
and significant change the amenity
Improvement to the amenity you know even
little things like the bridge between
the ninth after you finished the ninth
instead of walking out the road and
walking back into the first again um
there's a bridge that goes across the
creek that bridge has been out of
commission for some time now little
things like that will no doubt please
golfers um and please any users of the
course um that would normally have any
course of events would have been
replaced fixed done by now so little
things like that and like as councilor
JaMonash referred to the deck around you
know the clubhouse and stuff all those
little things you know this is Council
shouldn't be trembling in their seats
over $11 million spend in the next 5
minutes that's not what we're talking
about so little improvements incremental
but they'll be good if this gets passed
thanks
May thank you councilor
mclusky I will now put that to
vote all those in
favor all those against
um councelor JaMonash has called divisions
all those in favor councelor uh casares
councel Lake councel mclaskey councel
Patterson councel JaMonash councel La
councel little councel Samia councel
sfos
and and for all those
against councilor
Fergus that's
carrye
item 7.2.2 award uniform tender for
active mon cf22
4004 do we have a
mover councelor Patterson do we have
secondar coun mlki is there any
discussions if if not I will put that to
vote all those in
favor all those against
that's
carried item
7.2.3 20 2324 Monash quick response
grant program recipients February do we
have a
mover Council little do we have
secondary council patteron is there any
discussions if not I will now put that
to the vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carried
7.2.4 commw age reform single assessment
system tender do we have a
mover councilor Patterson do we have a
seconder council little is there any
discussions Council
pson uh thanks very much mayor
um this is uh just one part of a sort of
long long issue where the federal
government has made significant changes
um to Home and Community Care um and in
Age Care over many years probably what
seven or eight years I think it's been
going on um it was somewhat delayed for
a bit and this this next phase has kind
of come on us quite quickly and we
weren't really expecting it but
um the the the current stage that
they're
at sorry
um the current stage that they're at uh
is looking for organizations to Tender
for the assessment um of uh Age Care
um and yeah Council has made a decision
not to Tender um because this is really
something that we can't tender just for
monish we would have to Tender for the
entire Southeast which goes across like
11 different councils and it's really
not in our capacity with a very small um
staff uh group here who are only trained
in certain types of Assessments for um
Age Care um it's really not in our
current capabilities or capabilities
that we could uh quickly um develop to
uh to Tender and um and action these
kinds of Assessments um and it's a shame
that we're sort of we're we're not able
because of the way the federal
government has structured things um to
to have the capacity to continue to
assess um people in our local community
and that you know down the track that
will change once the the tender is
awarded and there's a new assessor um in
place um but there is really very little
we can do given we don't have the the
capacity to to do such a a broad or or
dat tender on um age care assessment so
um just wanted to say it's with a you
know sort of heavy heart I think we all
go forward um you know with with these
Federal reforms
that um you know are kind of happening
to us yeah
thanks thank you councelor pison is
there any other
discussions
councel councelor little C who coMonash
first
CC uh thank you mayor I think there's
just a uh some other matters that are
worth noting so the unfortunate
consequence of this decision is that
there will be 10 uh staff uh employed by
Council who will become redundant
probably some time after the end of this
calendar year uh that's not a decision
that
Council uh makes lightly and I think if
there was a way that we could feasibly
continue to provide the service that we
currently provide around the the
assessment service um as we've provided
for several years I think we would or
we'd at least seek to do so through
putting in a tender
um the the fact though is is that it's
not feasible for Council anymore as the
report lays out and as councelor
Patterson has touched upon uh
to be a a future provider of of this
service um given the Commonwealth
reforms and I think it's worth noting
that the Commonwealth reforms are on the
right track this is about providing
comprehensive um
all-in-one um Assessment Services and
flowing from their age care services um
to those that need to access those
Services rather than having to go off in
a peac mill way to different places and
and for there to be delivery on a larger
and more efficient scale so I think so
the reforms are on the right track but
one of the conse quences is is that um
current micr providers like us um don't
really have a a a a role to play at
least on the assessment side uh into the
future um we only provide um one of the
the three services that are now going to
be uh coordinated together under the new
assessment service model um we also are
going to be part of a much larger
region so whereas at the moment we focus
on Monash and our population is one of
31 Metropolitan councils in Victoria uh
the new region that we would have to
cover on a whole region-wide scale if we
wanted to continue uh we would be
operating across an area with a
population of almost 3 million people
it's just not it's it's no longer in the
orbit of what local councils can can
cover so um whilst I think it's a sad
decision tonight whenever we make a
decision that has a consequence that
impacts on staff that we employ um it's
a decision that we we don't really have
any other choice to make and I think
importantly there's nothing that flows
from this we we employ about 40 other
staff that provide direct Age Care
Services on a day-to-day basis to Monash
Residents U there's nothing in terms of
that care and that service provision
that's affected by the decision we're
making tonight thank
you thank you Council
Lake Council little on
no okay are there any other
discussions councilor
Fus um thank you mayor look I um I'm not
going to offer an opinion on the reforms
themselves other than uh to comment on
how they impact on
councils uh we know that the quality of
service provision in Age Care by
councils is generally really high and
it's unsurprising it's a public service
uh people uh receive better remuneration
um we're more likely to retain our staff
we're more likely to have permanent
staff there are a range of um benefits
from these Services being provided
publicly no money is being taken out uh
for a profit however councils have been
progressively shut out out of these
spaces um through these reform processes
various large scale social service
reform um similar things have happened
with the national disability insurance
scheme for example and my age care will
continue to move in this direction um
councel Lake mentioned um other services
which we continue to provide for now um
into the future I anticipate they will
become harder for Council to offer as
well um I'm a big supporter of uh of
Public Service provision I think these
Services uh should all be public uh
however as as a councilor um in a rate
capped environment with competing
priorities and extremely unrealistic
expectations um in terms of council's
being able to meet uh the The Benchmark
for
um for cost in particular um and scale
of the services required in the reform
form um I just don't see any way that it
can happen as Council Lake mentions the
requirement is to be delivering to a
very very large region Council only
delivers services to people in Monash for a
very good reason um within Monash I should
say um and our uh award and our
Enterprise bargaining agreements with
our staff ensure the staff are well paid
um and and well supported um and that is
something that we should be really proud
of that is not necessarily the case in
the age care sector more broadly which I
think is a concerning Trend um so um I
support this report um I have a lot of
concerns about um where some of these
large Social Service reforms are heading
and the attention which is being paid um
on cost efficiency as opposed to service
quality um and in pushing Services out
um from the public sector to the private
and charitable sector is but there's not
a lot we can do about that I think
officers have made a good recommendation
in this
instance thank you councilor Fergus is
there any other
discussions if not I will now put that
to vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carried item 7.3.1 consultancy
engagement report do we have a
mover councel little do we have a
second councilor JaMonash is there any
discussions if not I will now put that
to a vote all those in
favor all those against that's
carried item
7.3.2 2023 24 financial management and
capital works progress report second
quarter um 31st December 2023 do we have
a mover councelor casarias do we have a
second I'll second
that is there any discussions councelor
uh casares I thought I better nominate
all first so I can get WR reply if I
need one hey I've only been May four
tiMonash you think I would know um mayor we
um we're about to Embark or we've
embarked on what is really the most um
the largest Capital Works program I
suspect in the history of our city we
we've
um we've done that um on the back of
some you know some challenging
restrictions and challenges before us
but we've always been able to Champion
our way through and and deliver um the
outcoMonash that our community um expect
and deserve now I've as I've stated
before I've had the the luxury and and
the Good Fortune of being on cast for
some 21 years and this will be my 21
first budget that I'll be sitting
amongst our officers and our colleagues
to work through the priorities um and
how we distribute the funds that we
collect from our community and other
levels of government can I just say that
I um I took humd to some of the
commentary that was um made moments ago
about the um the cricket um sorry the
golf course and I want to use um if you
allow me the grace of time to use this
opportunity just to to allay allay some
fears for 21 years and this year will be
no different whether we were in a rate
capping environment or no rate capping
we always heard that things are tough
things were tight we needed to increase
rates by 6% 5% 7% and and the narrative
went on and on and on and on and on
every occasion for 21 years and this
year will be no different we
resisted the The Urge that other
councils did some Years Ago by increases
rates by 10 12 and some in some case 18%
and on the back of that rate base on the
back of that re Revenue that we collect
we have delivered outcoMonash to the the
residents of Monash that are the Envy of
local government I can point to them
Clayton Oakley electoral Reserve Mark
and the story goes on and on and on and
we're about to deliver in the next 18
months a Pavilion in the order of about
$400 million with the help of course of
other streams of um
funding our golfers at the Oakley golf
course are not asking for a Taj Mahal
they're not asking for the world somehow
because they rallied behind the
consultation process and pricked our
ears to make sure we we did we made the
right decision tonight it was a signal
for them to tell us give us a Taj Mahal
councelor mlas put it eloquently there
are little things we can do and I'm
looking forward to working with him and
Council Patterson and councilor R anyone
El who wants to work with us during this
budget process to get the basics the
basics that don't cost 11 $11 million
Council patter do they no that's not
what they're asking for so let's not
pretend that it's St and Gloom and and
the sky is caving in and we can't do
anything where there is a will there is
a way thank
you thank you council
casarias is there any other
discussions if not I will
now
you don't need it now just to say uh
thank you to their accounting team and
to yany in particular for putting
together again a very comprehensive very
comprehendable uh financial report these
are these are not easy reports to put
together that we have a huge number of
data inputs to bring them into a
Consolidated format like this where
within a few pages we can get an idea of
where Mish stands and where we stand is
good right we we are slightly positive
against budget um our capital
expenditure program is going going
pretty much
to program um and this is a a positive
Monashsage this is a very very well managed
Council in terms of its finances and
once again we see a report that reflects
that thank you councelor little
councelor JaMonash thank you mayor I think
councilor little just admitted we've got
money to
spend thank you Council JaMonash um is that
any other
discussions if not I will now put that
to vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carry item
7.3.3
202000 65 provision of finance and
contract management system variations do
we have a
mover Council little do we have a second
out councelor mcasi is there any
discussions if not I will now put that
to the vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carry
7.4.1 environmental advisory report of
the activities do we have a mover
councelor little do we have a second
councel Patterson's is there any
discussions so a
little um I am I'm the one Council we we
live yes um I am the councilor that's on
the environmental activity group and
um yes last year was a very positive
year we the group is made up of a wide
range range of citizens who have a
passion for sustainability and the
environment and they bring together in
this group that meets was has be meeting
every month um a lot of different ideas
of how we can improve things uh we
review decisions made by Council in the
sustainability environmental space um we
look to make improvements where we can U
we can provide advice to council it's
not a decision-making Group by any
stretch but it does bring together some
like minds and coMonash up with some
fertile ideas um I I commend the
report is there any other
discussions if not I will now put that
to the vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carried item 7.4.2 tender for Pinewood
reserve for Crick net Development
Council recommendation report do we have
a mov Council casar is seconded by
council
moski is there any
discussions if not I will now put that
to the vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carried 7.4.3 record of committee
meetings do we have a move councelor
mclusky seconded by councilor zos is
there any
discussions
if not I will now put that to the vote
all those in
favor all those against that's
carried
7.4.4 Australian local government
Association National General Assembly
20124 do we have a mover councelor zos
do we have um
seconder councelor malaski is there any
discussions councel Z
graos thank you very much
um I do want to say that I do find a lot
of value with this particular event and
I know there was a question earlier from
the gallery regarding whether it it does
have value for the rate payers um and
having been I think it's six tiMonash maybe
it could be seven out of the 11 years
that I've been here um I've always found
that the meetings that I've had with
decision makers particularly Federal MPS
and ministers um particularly those that
relate to local government um have been
fruitful um yes you're not there 24
hours you will socialize after hours
with other councils across the country
but um the the conference itself um has
back-to-back programs and then of course
you've got Parliament House and for
those of us that have been there the MPS
and ministers they um are aware of the
conference and they plan their diaries
for that week to meet with as many count
as possible and um so I don't in any
way agree with the criticism that this
is some sort of junk it um I agree that
um you know some years we've had three
or four others years we've had like we
have tonight eight councilors to go and
depends on people's availability um but
I think that the people of Monash once a
year um will get a lot of value from
those that are able to attend this
conference and I'm very happy to justify
my own attendance at this conference
this year thank
you thank you councelor
zfas is there any other discussions
councilors if not I will now put that to
vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carried moving on the notice of motion
uh we have one notice motion for tonight
mon Friends u VES submitted by
councilors uh
Fergus and do we have a mov councelor
Fergus do we have seconda councel
Patterson is there any
discussions councilor
Fergus um thank you mayor I want to
acknowledge uh Heather Sperling and
Jillian Lang office bearers of uh the fr
friends um I believe uh Heather was
going to attend this evening I can't see
if she's there but if she is hello
Heather um they uh members of the
friends approached me um as the council
liaison to the group uh with this idea
um the mon friends of FASA have been
great uh advocates for the community and
for council's uh partnership with the
subdistrict of m and we have a
friendship agreement which we have
reaffirmed over my time as liais on and
uh the request this time is modest uh a
proposal has come um from local people
um in the subd district um in t-o lest
um from students and teachers um
supported uh by council's partnership
they've proposed uh to hold a Monash Cup
Soccer Tournament later this year
between Youth of the seven major
villages of the subdistrict which I
think is a marvelous idea and speaks to
their awareness and engagement with the
Friendship agreement I've suggested that
we provide $500 um and uh councelor
JaMonash has made a point about where that
coMonash from I'm perfectly happy if he
wishes to amend that um to remove
reference to our discussionary fund um
but that money would be for the purpose
of supporting that tournament and to be
paid directly to the friends um with the
hope that we can contribute to a cup a
physical cup for the monish cup as well
uh I also want to note that I'm
proposing that we write um to local
soccer clubs um in Monash on behalf of the
friends uh highlighting their call for
donations of good quality Surplus and
secondhand jerseys boots balls and other
equipment uh for use by children in the
subdistrict um this this would
potentially be used um as part of the
cup of course but also so much more
broadly than that part of the friends
work in donating quality Goods uh to
people in the subd district um I think
this is a very modest request the
friends don't request things of council
very much it happens from time to time
and given our friendship agreement um
and our agreement to work with the
friends and the subdistrict I think uh
that we should be uh supporting this
request um and I commend this report to
council
thank you councilor Fergus is there any
other
discussions if not I will now put that
to vote all those in
favor all those
against that's
carried are there any urgent business
items
councilors if not we
now um move on to
next on agenda there's no item for
considerations of report written by
Council uh so now we're moving on to
personal explanations are there any
personal explanations
councilors councilor
zos thank you speaker uh thank you mayor
um I do want to just mention sorry I I
was watching pin earlier today um the
there was some discussion I'll just wait
till the
feedback
is decreased thank you um there was some
discussion in a previous item regarding
the sale of land to the Suburban rail
Loop Authority and there was a comment
made about my comment that
um uh I was referring to land sales from
this Council to the suburan rail
Authority um it was my intention to talk
about the uh total Parcels that this
Council will sell subur ra Authority not
just the ones that um relate to the
reimbursement of bong um and the cart
Park project there so um I know
councilor Lake tried to correct me if I
was not clear then I apologize and I
just wanted to clarify what I was trying
to say in my comments on that item thank
you thank you councelor zos are there
any other personal explinations
councilors if not
um we'll move on to um Council reports
are there any Council
reports Council
little it's been my privilege over the
last three weeks to uh speak at a number
of community events um including the
Chinese Association of monish the
Chinese New Year uh usma that's the
United Sri Lankan Muslim Association
they were having a cultural event the
wavely hockey for the uh new rised pitch
opening and councelor samaji was there
as well um and councelor Thea if you
around um the da Society of Victoria
were having their annual show and the
baen pal and the Sonic Lodge were having
award ter me now the only reason I
mentioned this is because in every
single case these groups have one common
element and that is their leadership
every single one of those is led by a
bunch of volun ters who give un huge
amounts of their time to make these
these organizations the Waverly hogy the
usar um the Chinese Association mly
seniors um those leadership teams are
absolutely or inspiring um they give
selfless
selflessly um they do use our facilities
which is where we contribute so just one
last so my admiration to these groups
because they make L we've got over 200
Community groups and and they're all run
by volunteers they do an amazing job our
contribution is through a community
community grants program we give around
$2 and5
million and the applications for that
close I believe this week for the
2425
year it's this week so if there anybody
out there who knows a community group
that needs hold high or financial
assistance and it's within Monash and it
meets our criteria make sure you get
your applications
in thank you Council little
um
poopus Council JaMonash thank you mayor I
just wanted to very quickly um
congratulate the director of community
services I'll probably a title wrong but
um I haven't had a chance to to catch up
with the director tonight yet but uh
attended the Clayton Festival on the
weekend and in my many years of going to
the Clayton Festival that was by far the
best Festival I've ever been to um I
think there's been some feedback taken
on board of previous years and in
particular it was fantastic to see so
many tables and chairs that there were
actually empty ones um which has never
happened before and I think that's
resulted in certainly for my family um
staying around for a lot longer we there
for about three and a half hours and I
think um most other people were there
for a long time as well because they
could sit down and rest and then get up
and go again um whereas previously I
think everyone's just sort of spun
around and and left
um the attendance was absolutely foren
never seen so many people Clayton
Festival was absolutely packed um but
despite that unlike in previous years as
well it was easier to get food um it was
easy to to access the facilities um so
big hats off to your team I think
they've done a fantastic job was the
best CL vessel I've been to and uh
hopefully it'll continue like that thank
you thank you councelor JaMonash
C thank you mayor um and I will also
make some comments about the CL Festival
in a moment but you mentioned this
earlier in your opening remarks about
the storm of two weeks ago which I think
was you know very difficult day for this
city um and I think I just want to make
some very brief comments um first of all
I never work in uh the area I usually am
in the CBD but I happened to be working
in nding Hill on that day um and the
building that I was in was shaking it
was literally shaking and then I looked
out the window and the trees were going
like this and these are trees that that
never like they you know thick trees and
I just couldn't believe it I was so
astounded that I didn't actually wasn't
able to film it because I was just
shocked of what was happening um and
then when I drove through Fenty gy Road
from nting Hill to get to Oakley at
about 5:00 that's when it hit me that it
was like I was in some sort of movie set
or disaster Zone and effectively I was
because every second tree was ripped out
and then I stopped the and I got out and
tried to help a few people that were
already there for a few hours um making
the roads clear so I just want to say to
everyone involved whether it's this
council's staff that hit the ground
straight away and the SCS and the fire
um Services particularly but also
everyone that was uh impacted um and
patiently waited until you know the
services could get to them uh thank you
and I hope that never happens again um
and the clad Festival absolutely I was
there for a few hours with councelor
JaMonash and yourself mayor and councelor
mcclusky and I think that's it and it
was a fantastic um event so well done to
everyone and so um in addition similarly
The Glenn Wy Festival which is a
partnership between this Council and the
organizing committee um the Chinese New
Year Festival which was I think the
Sunday before um and that was also well
attended so um in closing I want to
mention also nanach which is the mural
at the ainson street car park that you
launched along with um Steve Demopolis
the member for Oakley because that was a
partnership between the state government
and this Council in terms of that new
mural that showcases indigenous artwork
and um has a future forward story as
well talking about the generations that
will come uh in the future so that was
also a pretty historic day and I think
that mural already um is making an
impression in Oakley thank
you thank you councilor zos are there
any other um Council
reports if now move on to um
confidential business councilor we have
one item for considerations in
confidential business Deputy Mayor now
ask you to move into confidential
business mayor I move that Council
having reviewed and considered the
certificate in relation to the matter
listed for business and being satisfied
that it is appropriate and necessary to
consider this matter at a close meeting
resolves to close the meeting to the
public in accordance with section
66-2 of the Local Government Act 2020
for the reasons specified in the
certificate I'll second that I'll now
put that to the vote all those in
favor all those against that's carried
thank you for your participations
attendance tonight um could I please ask
the members of the public leave the
chamber as we move um into um
confidential business
good night thank
you
06 good
night