Tuesday, 28 April, 2026
Phone: (03) 5945 0666 Trades & Classifieds: 1300 666 808
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Council 24-hour strike
Lock-out uproar
Agnes’s park unveiled
Thunder strikes in Derby
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SPORT
Full of Anzac spirit Mehmet Balikel was the embodiment of Anzac Day during the annual march and service in Dandenong on Saturday 25 April. Mehmet, who is Turkish born, wore service medals and waved both Australian and Turkish flags as he paraded to the Pillars of Freedom. The day commemorates ANZAC troops landing at Gallipoli, Turkey in 1915 - including a dawn memorial service that’s held at the same very landing place for all fallen soldiers. FOR MORE ANZAC DAY COVERAGE, TURN TO PAGES 10-13
(Rob Carew: 547018)
Traders in limbo Traders at Dandenong Market’s Bazaar say they are exploring legal options after receiving notices-to-vacate ahead of revitalisation works. According to a letter sent to traders by the Dandenong Market Management (DMPL), traders will officially be served with the three-month Notice to Vacate from 1 May as works are scheduled to commence early August. An Expression of Interest (EOI) process will begin from June and offers will be issued to trad-
ers to apply for stalls in August. Stallholders say there are no guarantees or any confirmation that long-serving traders will be prioritised in the EOI process, leaving the majority of them in limbo. A Dandenong Market spokesperson said the notice issued to traders was “part of the standard process to inform them that access to their stall may be affected during the planned works”. “The Market’s planning remains focused on
staging the works carefully to minimise disruption wherever possible.” Rositza Pavlova has been at the market for almost 30 years. Now she’s thinking how and where she will relocate her fabric stocks, as well as the self-storage and moving costs. “We are not prepared for such drastic measures. “All of these things are ridiculous. That’s a death sentence for our businesses.”
The DMPL is a separate commercial entity from Council with its own board of directors, with a council spokesperson saying: “Stallholder arrangements are for the DMPL to manage”. Meanwhile, Greater Dandenong councillor Rhonda Garad has been barred from attending the market’s next board meeting after publicly raising the traders’ concerns. MORE ON THE STORY, TURN TO 3
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