WEDNESDAY, MAY 13, 2026
launched BANYULE JOINS PUSH Battery at Clifton Hill AGAINST FOURTH BINS
● Cr Alison Champion, Mayor
■ The City of Banyule has joined the We have joined a state-wide campaign against the State Government’s mandate to provide a separate glass recycling bin for home waste services. Banyule is one of 34 councils supporting the ‘Let’s be clear on glass’ campaign urging the government to reconsider the directive. “Yet another bin for households to manage and pay for is totally unnecessary,” said Banyule Mayor Cr Alison Champion. “Victorians have embraced the new Container Deposit Scheme and we believe it should be expanded to accept wine and spirit bottles, rather than adding another costly service for residents to manage,” said Cr Champion. “Glass is one of the few materials that is infinitely recyclable; it just doesn’t make sense to have a Container Deposit Scheme that excludes everyday glass bottles.” “We support efforts to increase recycling, and the expense of rolling out this service and the ongoing costs of delivering a service just for glass are not justified, especially when the Victorian Government just rolled out a new Container Deposit Scheme,” said Cr Champion.
DAREBIN COUNCIL LOSES Melbourne MACCAS VCAT HEARING
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■ A Tribunal hearing about a planning permit for a McDonalds restaurant at 323 High St, Northcote, has been lost by Darebin Council. The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal decision sets aside the Council’s earlier refusal of the application and has directed that the planning permit be amended and reissued. The applicant was Ratio Consultants Pty Ltd. Property owner is Lloyd Martin Pty Ltd. No car parking is currently provided on the site in accordance with the original planning permit. The Council said that 110 objections were received against the application, including three petitions. The site is currently occupied by a single storey commercial building that xtends to the south to include 319 High St. During the process, Darebin Council raised concerns about the potential impact of the proposal on the character, amenity and operation of the Northcote Activity Centre.
● McDonald’s. Photo: 7News.
● From left: Yarra Bend Ward’s Cr Sarah McKenize; Energy and Resources Minister Lily D’Ambrosio; David Anstee, Chair, Yarra Energy Foundation; Preston MLA Nathan Lambert.
■ Energy and Resources Minister Lily D’Ambrosio launched Yarra Energy Foundation’s neighbourhood battery outside the Collingwood Leisure Centre in Clifton Hill. The project includes two wheelchair accessible electric vehicle charging bays. This project was funded with a $750,000 grant from the State Government through the Neighbourhood Battery Initiative. This is the first dedicated front-ofmeter neighbourhood battery designed to harmonise with public EV charging in inner-Melbourne. This project is trialling how batteries and EVs can better work together, alleviating pressure on the grid from EV charging by incentivising use when solar production is highest – often when emissions and energy prices are lowest. “We’ve seen EV charging add enormous demand to our grid, which is why new innovative solutions need to be tried to alleviate the pressure and prevent unnecessary network upgrades only to handle peaks,” said YEF CEO, Dean Kline. The project has delivered a publicly accessible dual-60kW EV charger and two-bays, designed in consultation with the City of Yarra’s Disability Advisory Committee and a community reference group of local residents. The EV chargers have a lower-thanaverage height and wider parking spaces to improve accessibility for wheelchair users, with parking signage designed in consultation with local residents to match local use preferences. “Public EV charging infrastructure should be accessible for everyone, and especially in suburbs where many people can’t charge at home – public infrastructure like this can be critical to switching to an EV,” said Mr Kline.
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