Clear guidelines on development in Bass Coast will help us balance growth and protection of what we most value, writes Mayor Brett Tessari
 Jobseekers are being punished for being unemployed, writes Cr Michael Whelan, and the rest of us need to speak up on their behalf.
 By Cr Brett Tessari
THE new senior campus of Wonthaggi Secondary College will be up and running by 2020. And if everything goes our way, we could also see a new university campus. The idea is a central hub set up for anyone who wants to do any course Australia wide. Any university can come and utilise the facilities. Anyone who’s enrolled in a university can use the facilities. They can use it remotely, they can come and do one course, and the universities might send down people to lecture on certain occasions.  After 10 years, the sand has stabilised and vegetation has returned behind the rock wall at Jam Jerrup. The story is very different at either end of the wall. By Cr Geoff Ellis
AROUND a decade ago, the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) turned the Jam Jerrup foreshore into a science experiment. The aim was to determine if a rock wall would hold back the forces of nature better than groynes or mangroves.  Former mayor Pamela Rothfield pays tribute to retiring CEO Paul Buckley and winces at the memory of her first combative exchanges with him.
 Farewelling our much loved mobile library is a wrench, writes Cr Geoff Ellis, but there has to be a better way to deliver library services to our small communities.
 It's up to councillors to set the direction of the council and the CEO to follow, writes Cr Les Larke
 We need more women in positions of power everywhere, writes Cr Michael Whelan, starting with our own council.
 Cr Bruce Kent salutes our volunteers, from the men and women who turn out to help at an accident scene on a winter night to those who run our hall committees and manage our foreshores.
 The murder of a young woman at Cowes prompted an outpouring of grief and a determination to tackle family violence in our community, writes Cr Pamela Rothfield.
 Want to know what Bass Coast could be like in 20 years? Look at the Mornington Peninsula, writes Cr Julian Brown.
 As our own mountains of plastic and cardboard grow, Cr Geoff Ellis finds plenty to admire in the South Korean approach to recycling almost everything.
 With our new high school and a hospital upgrade ticked off, Cr Clare Le Serve believes our next objective should be a rail service to Lang Lang.
 Ten years ago, Wonthaggi was down on its luck, writes Cr Brett Tessari. But suddenly a lot of people are proud to call this place home.
 It’s almost $100 million and it’s our money … but try talking about the Bass Coast budget and watch the eyes glaze over, writes Mayor Pamela Rothfield.
 Cartoon: Natasha Williams-Novak The environmental, social and planning impacts of a car ferry must be assessed, writes Cr Michael Whelan.
 Strategic thinking is needed to retain Phillip Island as a special place rather than a dormitory suburb of Melbourne, argues Cr Michael Whelan.
 By Brett Tessari
IN MY other life I’m a Wonthaggi real estate agent. Lately people have been asking about all the SOLD properties on display in our office windows. Shouldn’t we replace them with houses that are actually for sale?  A year on from a torrid election campaign, Bass Coast Mayor Pamela Rothfield reflects on how skewed one’s impression can be looking in from the outside.
 By Cr Clare Le Serve
IN THE aftermath of the Yarra and Darebin councils’ rebranding of Australia Day, I listened to a highly paid federal MP talking across the airwaves. ‘Councils should stick to roads, rates and rubbish’ he declared. I smiled as I set the cruise control the morning after our historic Grantville council meeting.  Driving along Settlement Road you could easily imagine yourself in Pakenham, writes Michael Whelan. He argues that state planning policies are killing the character of Phillip Island.
 Amid the insults, abuse and threats, Cr Geoff Ellis gives thanks for the voices of reason.
 We have more information than ever, but how do we cut through it to pinpoint what is important, asks Julian Brown.
 Police officers often step into the worst moments of someone’s life, writes Bruce Kent. At least they know that in an emergency council staff are there to help pick up the pieces.
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A view from the chamberA regular series in which our councillors expand on the issues that matter to them. Archives
April 2019
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