It’s not too late to register a site to help beautify Maroondah during Clean Up Australia Day on Sunday 6 March.
Councillor Alex Makin said various sites had already been identified around Maroondah, including the Council coordinated site at Mullum Mullum Creek.
“This year Council will be working at the Mullum Mullum Creek in Ringwood, and we will gladly welcome extra pairs of hands on the day,” Cr Makin said.
“If you’re willing to help, you can meet Council representatives at the end of Acacia Court, Ringwood between 9.30am and 11.30am,” Cr Makin said.
“Helpers are asked to be safe when participating by wearing sturdy footwear, gloves, sunscreen and a hat, and by bringing refreshments and a bucket,” Cr Makin said.
“The Maroondah community has always been very supportive of Clean Up Australia Day, with more than 110 people collecting more than one tonne of rubbish from across seven sites during last years event,” Cr Makin said.
“We value the many volunteers who keep coming back to help clean up our parks, reserves and roadsides. It would be wonderful to see some new faces at this year’s event, to show that the Maroondah community care about reducing our impact on the environment,” Cr Makin said.
For further information or to register your involvement at Council’s Clean Up site call Council on 9298 4369 or visit www.maroondah.vic.gov.au
Other community sites organised for the day are at Ringwood Lake, Dandenong Creek, Anderson’s Creek and Tarralla Creek. To find out more or register to help at these sites call Clean Up Australia on 1800 282 329 or visit www.cleanupaustraliaday.org.au
On the 26th of January I attended the Maroondah Australia Day Celebrations at Ringwood Lake. The celebrations, which coincide with a citizenship ceremony and the awarding of Maroondah’s Citizen, Young Citizen and Event of the Year, were held at Ringwood Lake and provided an opportunity to welcome new citizens, as well as acknowledge the many people who undertake service to the community.
Maroondah celebrates Australia Day with community festivities at Ringwood Lake, which also include a citizenship ceremony and the nomination of Maroondah’s Citizen of the Year, Young Citizen of the Year and Event of the Year.
The Australia Day celebrations is one of Maroondah’s largest community events at Ringwood Lake and includes entertainment, music and food. The event also provides an opportunity to congratulate people who have dedicated their time to volunteering within the community through recognising the contributions of volunteers and community events.
I would like to congratulate the many nominees for the Awards and to thank them for their dedication to the Maroondah community.
Australia Day in Maroondah is again shaping as a fun-filled affair with a range of activities on offer for the entire family.
The action gets under way at 9.30am at Ringwood Lake Soundshell with a flag raising ceremony to mark the national day.
Councillor Alex Makin suggested residents to head on down and enjoy a free community barbecue and children’s activities including craft workshops, animal farm, jumping castle and face painting.
“There will also be live entertainment on offer with a performance by the Ringwood Folk Band,” Cr Makin said.
Cr Makin said the day also provided an opportunity to recognise some of our community’s most valued citizens.
“Australia Day is an opportunity for all of us to take pride in our citizenship and reflect on the meaning and importance of being Australian,” Cr Makin said.
“It will be a pleasure to recognise the contributions of Maroondah residents to the community during Council’s annual Australia Day awards,” Cr Makin said.
“The annual Australia Day awards will be presented to Maroondah’s Citizen of the Year, Young Citizen of the Year, and Community Event of the Year,” Cr Makin said.
Cr Makin said the day was about coming together as a nation to celebrate what’s great about Australia and being Australian.
“It’s the day to reflect on what we have achieved and what we can be proud of in Australia. It’s the day for us to recommit to making Australia an even better place for the future,” Cr Makin said.
“Each year Maroondah’s Australia Day celebrations draws a big crowd at Ringwood Lake. Council is again looking forward to welcoming the local community to celebrate what it is that makes them proud to be Australian,” Cr Makin said.
Event details:
9.30am: Flag raising ceremony
9.30am – 10.30am: Maroondah Australia Day Awards presentation and citizenship ceremony.
9.30am – 12.30pm: Family activities
11am – 12.30pm: Ringwood Folk Band perform
Getting there:
Via public transport: 10 minute walk from Ringwood Station or via bus route 670 which travels along Maroondah Highway. For further public transport information visit www.metlinkmelbourne.com.au or call 131 638.
Limited parking is available at Ringwood Lake, enter via Mt Dandenong Road. Melways 49 K8.
Ringwood Station fails to meet disability compliance standards and is perceived to be unsafe due to the poor station design, including narrow and steep ramps. The community has continually called for the full redevelopment of Ringwood Station into a safe, accessible and integrated interchange that will meet the needs of Ringwood as a vibrant urban centre.
While public transport is a State Government responsibility, Council must advocate on behalf of its community and it is clear that Maroondah is seeking a commitment for the redevelopment of Ringwood Station.
Council has been circulating a petition for the past month which has now attracted over 2000 signatures with approximately 1000 visitations through social media tools, including Facebook and Youtube. This evening Council officially launched the Missing Piece campaign with a direct call to action for all political parities to commit to the station upgrade.
Alex with Margaret launching Maroondah's Missing Piece campaign calling for the upgrade of Ringwood Station into an accessible, safe and integrated transport interchange
Ringwood Station is the Missing Piece in a vision for Ringwood, since a lack of commitment diminishes the residential, commercial and community investment that is taking place. Margaret Stevens, a renowned accessibility advocate who spent a week at Eastland collecting signatures for the petition, joined me in launching the campaign and calling on all political parties to commit to Ringwood’s future.
Council’s video highlighting the condition of Ringwood Station was displayed throughout the launch reinforcing the accessibility difficulties that exist.
The speech provided during the launch is available within this post:
In the spirit of Reconciliation, we acknowledge that we are meeting on land for which the Wurundjeri people have been custodians for many centuries, and on land which the Indigenous Australians have performed age old ceremonies.
We, Maroondah City Council, accept, respect and have shared with the Wurundjeri people in their customs of welcome.
The Wurundjeri people support the coming together of all people, respecting their individuality to focus on a unified and cohesive nation.
As you have gathered here this evening, you will have seen the video playing overhead showing the difficulty people in our community, and particularly those with a disability, have accessing Ringwood Station and the 50 year old ramps leading to the station platforms.
This video has been an important element of an advocacy campaign Council has been running over the past six weeks.
The campaign is seeking a funding commitment from all state political parties in the lead up to the State election for the upgrade of Ringwood Station within the next term of government.
The campaign has been running for six weeks with significant support and media coverage from Maroondah’s two local papers, editorial has appeared each week for the past 6 weeks.
Community support has been extremely strong, and to date we have over 2000 signatures to the petition, from individuals and community groups.
One of these individuals is here with us tonight, and I would like to acknowledge Margaret Stevens for her dedication to the cause in securing over 600 signatures from the Maroondah community and beyond during a week at Eastland. In addition, several members of the community, including Dawn Oliffe spent time at Ringwood Station securing signatures for the petition.
Margaret is one of many voices demanding action for Ringwood Station. I have spoken with many people during the course of this campaign and the message from the community is clear, Maroondah residents are tired of waiting, they want a safe, integrated, accessible and vibrant Ringwood Station, and they want it in the term of the next government.
Tonight, Council is launching “The Missing Piece – Ringwood Station” in the lead up to this evening’s Eastern Transport Coalition Forum.
Alex with Margaret launching Maroondah's Missing Piece campaign calling for the upgrade of Ringwood Station into an accessible, safe and integrated transport interchange.
Significant investment and development continues in Ringwood, with support from the State Government and private enterprise, however the commitment to fund the redevelopment of Ringwood Station remains the missing piece of the vision for the Ringwood Central Activities District.
As you can see within the Ringwood Central Activities District jigsaw, we have EastLink providing an important road transport corridor from Mitcham to Frankston, an area responsible for 40 percent of Victoria’s manufacturing output and over 1.3 million people living in the area and providing more than 350,000 jobs.
The sporting, recreational and leisure facilities that either currently exist (Maroondah Federation Estate/Maroondah Art Gallery, tennis, croquet, football and cricket), are under construction (Soccer), or awaiting funding (proposed Maroondah Aquatic and Leisure) in the Jubilee Park precinct are within walking distance from Ringwood Station and the Central Activities District.
New businesses and services are moving to Ringwood, bringing increased employment and spending, as evidenced by the Connect East building perched over EastLink.
Ringwood Lake Park is an icon of Ringwood, providing enormous leisure and recreational pleasure all year round for people of all ages and abilities.
The $39million bus interchange is poised to change the face of Maroondah Highway, however, it does not provide an interface with the existing Ringwood Station.
Residential housing development is showing consistent growth within the Central Activities District with private building developers showing their support for the vision of Ringwood. The new 10 story co-operative housing development will soon be home to over 100 people early next year.
Eastland and the Ringwood Market site are expected to see construction and expansion of retail, community and business floorspace, changing the face of Ringwood significantly.
The Lake to Creek project will see pedestrian and cycling links between the Mullum Mullum Creek and Ringwood Lake, adding another vital layer to the accessibility of our city.
It is time to add the missing piece to the Ringwood Central Activities District jigsaw, a new Ringwood Station.
It is time for each state political party to not only acknowledge the need for an upgrade to Ringwood Station, but to actually stand up and commit to fund this important piece of public transport infrastructure that remains the missing piece of the vision for the State Government’s own Ringwood Central Activities District.
Eastern Volunteers is a community based not-for-profit organisation that provides volunteer assisted transport and volunteer recruitment across the Cities of Maroondah and Whitehorse and the Shire of Yarra Ranges.
Alex with Terry Macdonald, Chairman of Eastern Volunteers and Cr. Natalie Thomas, at the Eastern Volunteers Multicultural Spring Festival.
Throughout today Eastern Volunteers held a Multicultural Spring Festival at Ringwood Lake, bringing together the diverse communities within Maroondah. The festival included food, arts, rides, crafts and performers providing a range of activities throughout the day.
Alex opening the Eastern Volunteers Multicultural Spring Festival as the Mayor of Maroondah.
As the Mayor of Maroondah I had the pleasure of opening the festival and congratulating Eastern Volunteers on organising Maroondah’s first large-scale multicultural festival. After opening the event I served as the Master of Ceremonies, introducing each performance and discussing the aims and role of Eastern Volunteers.
These sessions included discussions with volunteers on their involvement with Eastern Volunteers and the benefits they receive from volunteering. While volunteering provides benefits to the wider community, it can also deliver new skills, enhance employment prospects and expand networks for the volunteer. The Eastern Volunteers Multicultural Spring Festival is an example of an event that utilised a wide variety of skills and teamwork to deliver Maroondah’s largest multicultural event.
Alex with volunteers and staff of Eastern Volunteers at the Eastern Volunteers Multicultural Spring Festival
The Eastern Volunteers Multicultural Spring Festival featured a wide variety of entertainment, including a roving performer, as well as a Chinese Lion Dance, Bollywood Dancers, the Police Rock Band, African Drumming from Rhythm of Life, the Karen Young Dancers, Reggae from Uprising Rebels, Scottish Highland Dancers and Japanese Drummers. In addition, Ultimate Martial Arts from Heathmont and Abandon Sane, local rock band also performed on the main stage. Vasili, from Vasili’s Garden on Channel 31 and 3AW, was also in attendance and provided a demonstration on making garden pots from recycled newspapers.
Alex with Vasili, from Vasili's Garden on Channel 31 and 3AW, at the Eastern Volunteers Multicultural Spring Festival
Approximately 5000 people attended the festival and it was great to see the community embrace the festival and actively participate in the activities that were present throughout the day. Many volunteers and staff at Eastern Volunteers worked extensively on the Festival through organising the group’s largest event in its history. The Festival was only possible due to this work and the commitment of sponsors who saw the benefits of partnering with Eastern Volunteers.
Alex with sponsors (Power Balance, Ringwood Honda and Bendigo Bank) who contributed to the Eastern Volunteers Multicultural Spring Festival.
The Maroondah Hospital Fun Run is an annual event that raises funds for Maroondah Hospital and the services it provides. The event takes place around Ringwood Lake and it is fantastic to see several hundred participants being part of the event.
Maroondah Hospital, located in Ringwood East, in a major health provider within the municipality and serves the Maroondah region and beyond. The hospital holds a number of events throughout the year to engage the community and to augment its funding levels.
The Creek to Lake Project will connect the Mullum Creek shared path to Ringwood Lake, providing a connection between Ringwood’s major recreational reserve and the walking and cycling paths connecting Ringwood and the Mullum Trail.
The Creek to Lake Trail incorporates streetscaping works to Larissa Avenue, including water sensitive urban design and a continuation of the shared path. The Creek to Lake Trail will reinforce Ringwood Lake’s focus as a destination for local residents and includes improved lighting at the Lake to enhance its amenity.
This evening I attended a demonstration of lighting effects at Ringwood Lake, which will improve the amenity of the Lake and enhance several features, including the bridge and several trees within the park. The lighting upgrades will enhance Ringwood Lake and strengthen its role as a major recreational reserve within Ringwood and Maroondah.
Common Equity Housing Limited (CEHL) are the managers of the affordable housing development at 4-10 Larissa Avenue in Ringwood. The organisation has held a series of public meetings with prospective members of the 80 unit development and tonight’s session discussed the vision for Ringwood as a Central Activities District.
The presentation covered the plans for the transformation of Ringwood into a vibrant and accessible urban centre and also highlighted the pedestrian and cycling improvements, such as footpaths within Ringwood and the new Creek to Lake trail, which will connect Ringwood Lake with the Mullum Creek trail.
As part of the presentation I discussed the importance of public transport in providing an alternative to car dependence and to deliver sustainable forms of transport. In particular, I highlighted the need for ongoing advocacy to secure a State Government commitment for the redevelopment of Ringwood Station into a safe, accessible and integrated transport interchange.
While the State Government will shortly begin works to create a new station forecourt and bus interchange, there is a need to redevelop the station itself, given that the ramps fail disability compliance standards and the platforms lack modern passenger amenities.
Maroondah Council will be undertaking a community based advocacy campaign calling on all political parties to commit to the creation of safe, integrated and accessible transport interchange for Ringwood. It was encouraging to this vision shared by the participants at the meeting and I look forward to them joining us in Ringwood.
JUDGES in the annual Maroondah City Council’s Photo Competition had their work cut out for them this year with more than 70 photographers entering 121 photographs.
The winners were announced by Maroondah Mayor Alex Makin at a special ceremony on Thursday night at Maroondah Federation Estate.
“It was always going to be difficult judging what is a variety of subjects and a high standard of works,” Cr Makin said. “This year the entries featured everything from some of Maroondah best known landmarks to our native flora and fauna.”
First place in the open section (18 years and older) was awarded to Roger Frost, for his piece Under the Gum Trees, which captured the contrasting scenes of the Mullum Mullum Valley and the EastLink tunnels. Mr Frost won a $300 gift voucher courtesy of Croydon Camera House.
Second place went to Ciaran Magee for her piece Quiet Autumn, which shows a tranquil moment outside Ringwood Library. She won three Hoyts Eastland La Premiere double passes.
The intermediate section (13 to 17 years) was won by Stephanie Lillis, for Reflections in the Lake, a striking piece showing the beauty of Ringwood Lake at night. She was awarded a $200 gift voucher courtesy of Croydon Camera House.
Second place was awarded to Stephanie Lamb, for Friends and fun, which shows a group of friends enjoying each other’s company. She won four movie passes and a La Premiere double pass courtesy of Hoyts Eastland.
The junior section (12 and under) was won by Courtney Blythe, for Don’t Think I Should be Sitting Here. She won a $100 gift voucher courtesy of Croydon Camera House.
Mia Sango won four Hoyts Eastland movie passes for her second placed entry, Little Brother Drawing.
The Mayoral Encouragement Award was awarded to Marryl Vaughan for Shimmering Reeds. She won a $200 Eastland shopping voucher.
Cr Makin said he chose the photograph because of its creativity and use of colour.
“I thought it was a wonderful piece, it had so many artistic elements and captured the reflection and the contrasting colours of the sky and the lake perfectly.”
Cr Makin said the competition had really highlighted the photographic skills of the community.
“We have received some superb shots from all ages in the community,” Cr Makin said. “I encourage everyone to visit the exhibition and see the creative works of our residents on display. While they you there don’t forget to visit the J.A. Turner room to see selected works from the Maroondah City Council Art Collection. On display are pieces from acclaimed artists Larry Jenkins, Gayle Maddigan, Kate James, Konrad Winkler and Jill Orr.”
The Maroondah City Council Photographic Exhibition is open until July 24 at the Maroondah Art Gallery, Maroondah Federation Estate, Greenwood Avenue, Ringwood. Opening hours: Monday to Friday 10am – 4pm and Saturday 12pm – 4pm. Details: 9298 4545.
The event is sponsored by Croydon Camera House, Hoyts Cinemas Eastland, Maroondah Journal and Eastland Shopping Centre.
