Established in 1924 as the
proudly serving Brimbank and the North West
3 SEPTEMBER, 2024
Youth fest kicks off Throughout September, a variety of events and activities have been organised across the state, giving young Victorians a chance to express their ideas and views and act on issues that affect their lives. Victoria’s Youth Fest is a month-long celebration, highlighting the contributions and achievements of young people in their communities. Brimbank mayor Ranka Rasic said the festival is packed full of events for all young people to enjoy. “We celebrate and bring together the diverse and wonderful young people in our community during Youth Fest,” she said. “I strongly encourage Brimbank’s young people to check out the schedule of free events that are running throughout September. There’s lots of great things happening, and there is sure to be something for everyone.” One event set to roll through Brimbank this month is the skateboard art workshop for those aged 12 to 25. It will be held on Monday, September 30, from 9.30am to noon, at Delahey Community Centre, and Hunt Club Community and Arts Centre, from 1.30pm to 4pm. A full list of events is available: brimbankyouth.com/youth-fest-2024 Skateboard decorating organisers Nathnael Amare and Lukas Kasper. (Supplied)
Fed up council pulls plug By Gerald Lynch Brimbank council is set to terminate its Municipal Maintenance Agreement (MMA) with the Department of Transport (DTP) after DTP opted to not increase its financial contribution to the maintenance of state roads in Brimbank. Brimbank council heard back from state government regarding its wishes for a more even split of road maintenance funding at the end of June, but the result is bad news for ratepayers. Council’s total annual spend to deliver the MMA is about $475,000 excluding GST. The DTP contributes $109,090, leaving a net cost to
council of about $355,000. Councillor Virginia Tachos said the MMA is no longer serving a purpose for residents. “Given that the state government is not providing increased contributions towards council maintenance of state roads within Brimbank, this creates further financial burden on our ratepayers to maintain state owned assets,” she said. “They’re [state government] covering less than a quarter of the costs of the road maintenance … meaning our resources have to be taken away from our roads and infrastructure.” Council entered into the MMA with DTP in 2014, whereby council took over specified maintenance responsibility such as grass
mowing, edge trimming, weed control, and other associated works for those parts of the urban arterial road network for which DTP is the responsible road authority. The MMA covers urban arterial roads north of Ballarat Road, while those south of Ballarat Road continue to be maintained by DTP’s contractor, Ventia. Council will now provide six months’ notice of its decision to hand back responsibility for these services, in accordance with the termination clause set out in the MMA. It will also publish DTP’s contact details on its website to direct all state road maintenance enquiries directly to the state government. Western Metropolitan MP Trung Luu went
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in to bat for council during question time in state Parliament back in May. “This council cannot possibly afford to cover more than three-quarters of the cost under the municipality maintenance agreement any longer,” he said. “The serviceability of these road assets is essential to assure connectivity and safety for Victorians, especially for those in my electorate who use the roads daily.” A state government spokesperson said “We work with councils across Victoria to ensure the maintenance of state-government owned roads meets our standards. “We’ll continue to work with the Brimbank City Council and the local community to make sure these roads remain safe.”
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