Established in 1981 as the
proudly serving Sunbury and Macedon Ranges
2 SEPTEMBER, 2025
....SEE SPORT
12790528-JD33-25
Kangaroo great Anthony Stevens writes exclusively for Star Weekly
Creatives unite at hub The Creative Ranges Foundation is celebrating the opening of its new Creative Ranges Hub, the new go-to spot for musicians, artists, designers and more. The foundation is also gearing up for its biggest event of the year, the Spring Youth Festival, which plans to take over Woodend’s High Street on Saturday, October 4, for young creatives to showcase their talents. Story: Page 5
Kelly Miller, Creative Ranges Foundation chief executive officer Shaun Evans and Emi Cheeseman. (Damjan Janevski) 495382_03
Plan funds found By Georgia Tacey After missing out at budget time, Macedon Ranges councillors have now agreed to fund a master plan for the Riddells Creek Recreation Reserve. Unanimously supported at the August 27 council meeting, funding originally leftover from the Community Funding Scheme will now be used to deliver the master plan. This motion was initally brought to council at the July 23 meeting, when Cr Cassy Borthwick successfully moved an alternative motion when moving the Community Funding Scheme allocations.
12784631-EB29-25
Cr Borthwick added the recommendation that the unspent budget of $37,779.27 be allocated to either completing a master plan for the Riddells Creek Recreation Reserve or a priority missing link footpath. Council officers recommended the full leftover amount to be allocated to the master plan, saying it would offer better value for the community. While multiple councillors weren’t happy with how this decision came about, all were happy to support the master plan. Cr Kate Kendall said “I think we should stick to a standard budget process and in the future any money that’s left over from
grants or money taken from reserves should be directed into funding inline item on the budget without specification.” Cr Borthwick said she was thrilled by the outcome. “Given that the Riddells Creek community accounted for 25 per cent of the budget submissions with regards to the budget and it was overlooked, this is an extraordinary win for the Riddells Creek community,” she said. The master plan confirmation comes at a timely moment for Riddells Creek, with the Amess Road Precinct Structure Plan announced by the state government
on August 26 set to double the town’s population. That plan also includes upgrades to the Riddells Creek Recreation Reserve. Resident and member of the Riddells Creek Planning Group Aaron Goldsworthy said the master plan is more important now than ever for the town. “We see that project as one critical aspect,” he said. “We’re going to have this population growth, we need to get on and be planning for things like the recreation reserve.” Once prepared, the master plan will go out for community engagement and feedback.