Mayor’s Column: Cr Ross Ebbels from the Borough of Queenscliffe, July 16

IT’S BEEN great to see the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse getting a lick of paint lately thanks to works being carried out by the Victorian Ports Authority.
All three lighthouses in the Borough are literally beacons to the town and keep thousands of seafarers safe every single year. In regards to Council’s planned upgrades to the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse Reserve and surrounds, we are currently still waiting on a Aboriginal Cultural Heritage review for the site to be completed by Wadawurrung. This can be quite a lengthy process due to the scope of the area and its obvious historical significance – which includes landmarks such as Buckley’s Cave – as well as delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic. I’ll keep you up to date with any new information as it comes to hand.
If you can cast your mind back to January of this year (doesn’t it seem like a lifetime ago?), you may recall that I spoke with the mayor of Towong Shire and asked if there was any way our Queenscliffe community could assist with their bushfire recovery efforts. Towns in those alpine areas of Victoria have had a particularly rough time of it this year, with the devastating bushfires and followed up barely a month later by the continuing coronavirus pandemic. Hence my delight to see a photo the other week of some smiling young faces of Towong locals rugged up in some winter woollies knitted by the Monday Craft Group at Queenscliffe Neighbourhood House. The ladies at QNH started knitting and crocheting months back in preparation for the cooler weather and just recently sent up a load of beanies and scarves to grateful residents.
Reconstruction works on Hesse Street South have now been underway for the past fortnight or so, including undergrounding of power lines, resurfaced car parks and more. This is an important project for a frequently used part of town – please make sure you follow any signage when passing through. You may have also noticed another few new Monterey cypress trees planted in the area near the old high school bus lane as part of our Avenue of Honour revitalisation. We look forward to these trees maturing over the next few years.
Please remember to stay safe and follow the latest instructions from the Department of Health and Human Services regarding COVID-19. We’ve done so well to keep the Borough COVID-free up until now, and the best way to stay up to date with the current restrictions, guidelines and news on the coronavirus is to visit the Department of Health & Human Services’ dedicated COVID-19 webpage at dhhs.vic.gov.au/coronavirus. Watching regular press conferences from the Premier and Chief Health Officer can also be informative, and most are broadcast live on television – if not, you’ll be able to find it across the internet.
See you around the Borough,
Cr Ross Ebbels
Mayor, Borough of Queenscliffe