The Local October 9, 2023

Front cover: The Hepburn Swiss Italian Festa is up and running again. Read all about it on page 9.

Image: Lliam Amor

2023 2023

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The Local is a fortnightly community publication covering the Central Highlands of Victoria.

The next edition is out on Monday, October 23, 2023. or online on Sunday, October 22 at www.tlnews.com.au

Space bookings: Wednesday, October 18

Copy deadline: Thursday, October 19

Editorial deadline: Thursday, October 19

General manager: Kyle Barnes on 0416 104 283 or kyle@tlnews.com.au

Editor: Donna Kelly on 0418 576 513 or news@tlnews.com.au

Editorial assistant: Eve Lamb on 0493 632 843 or editorial@tlnews.com.au

Sub-editors: Nick Bunning, Lindsay Smith & Chester the Cat

Writers: Eve Lamb, Kevin Childs, Tony Sawrey, Jeff Glorfeld, Simone Kaplan & Donna Kelly

Photographers: Kyle Barnes & Eve Lamb

Graphic designer: Dianne Caithness

Contributors: Glen Heyne (gardening), Darren Lowe (music), Sarah Lang & Jen Clarke (recipes), Clive Hartley (wine) & Bill Wootton (poetry)

Accounts | Julie Hanson Delivery | Tony Sawrey

Creswick concert

The referendum will be held on Saturday 14 October 2023. Voting is compulsory even if you are 70 years of age or older.

If you can’t make it to a polling place on voting day, you may be eligible to vote early.

For more information go to www.aec.gov.au or call the AEC on 13 23 26

Appropriate COVID-19 safety measures will be in place at all polling places.

Voting is compulsory for Australian citizens aged 18 years and older. If you don’t vote, you may be prosecuted. Voting more than once is a criminal offence.

2023 Referendum, Saturday 14 October

aec.gov.au | 13 23 26

Creswick Woollen Mills is set to be the backdrop for a unique medley of musical styles, ranging from classical chamber music and opera arias to jazz improvisations and atmospheric soundscapes, as a selection of the region’s most esteemed musicians converge for the Musical Threads: Performers for Patients Concert.

With an aim to support the Creswick Health Upgrade Appeal, this concert speaks volumes for the town’s commitment to community health and wellbeing.

On Sunday, October 15, from 2.30pm to 4.30pm, listeners will embark on a transformative sonic journey, with pieces like a Mozart opera aria and a Schubert lied, jazz rhythms, and evocative cello loops, all underpinning Central Highlands Rural Health's commitment to see better Creswick Hospital and Aged Care facilities.

Artists include violinist Susan Pierotti, Creswick's versatile tenor Tim Drylie, harpsichordist Andrew Welsh, musical duo Judy Turner and Neil Adam, father-son jazz duet Adrian Deakin and Arlo SchwarzDeakin and cellist Conrad Hamill, pictured.

Bob Orr, chair of the Creswick Health Upgrade Appeal Committee, said: “Musical Threads weaves together Creswick's rich heritage, musical genius, and an undying spirit of community solidarity.”

Bookings: www.trybooking.com/CLRWK.

For more detail: www.facebook.com/CHRHorgAU or get in touch at communications@chrh.org.au

Are you aged 70 years or older? You must still vote in the 2023 Referendum

National human rights award for Tony Clark

Creswick’s Tony Clark has received the inaugural Kimberley Kitching Human Rights Award at the recent ALP National Conference in Brisbane, using the opportunity to advocate strongly for a cause so dear to his heart.

A passionate advocate for inclusivity of people with disability, the CreswickClunes Labor branch member received the award from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

The citation on the award states: “For demonstrating an outstanding commitment to the advancement of human rights in Australia or globally.”

Deemed legally blind since the age of 20, Tony was accompanied at the national conference podium by his guide dog Timmy and, in perfect timing, worked in a quick quip to assist the PM in ushering him to the lectern to accept the award.

“Take my elbow, Albo,” Clark tactfully advised, before going on to deliver an impassioned speech to the 500 or so decision-makers in the room.

A member of the Victorian Labor Party since 2008, Tony has spent much of his adult life challenging organisations, business and the Labor Party itself to be more inclusive and more accessible for people with disability.

“I took the view that I was going to use my blindness as a great strength,” he told delegates at the national conference that he attended with his partner Melanie Bellingham, who is also a member of the local party branch.

“Those strengths are around tenacity, determination, thinking laterally, thinking outside that square, and persistence in the face of challenge.”

These are all things Clark knows about first-hand.

“I was diagnosed with a degenerative eye condition when I was 19 and declared legally blind at 20. Tough thing for a young man of 19,” he said.

“I remember one of my greatest fears was ‘who the hell’s going to want to marry a blind guy?’ And I did have a moment. It was with the Commonwealth Employment Service, the old CES. I’d just finished telling them I was looking for work. I had an honours degree in science in immunology.

“The response was ‘most people like you weave baskets’. I kid you not. And I have to be honest, people might not say it in those words anymore, but that’s still there. That’s absolutely still there.

“Attitude is the big thing and we all have some responsibility to think about how we can change,” said Clark who, besides his honours degree in science, also has a Masters in communication, is a qualified company director, and chairs a board.

“I can tell you first hand of the passive discrimination and barriers that are out there that prevent good quality people getting jobs. We have higher unemployment. Higher poverty. These things have not moved for decades.”

Driven by his strong desire to see these things change, Clark has stood for Parliament three times including for the federal seat of Deakin in 2016 when he ran with the catchy slogan “No Sight, Great Vision”.

Believing that leaders should reflect the people they seek to represent, he ran for the seat hoping to be a voice for the one in five Australians living with a disability.

“When I got to 38, I thought: You know what? I don’t respect people who sit on the side and throw mud. I believe you’ve got to get in there... and government is what changes our community.

“It sets regulation, it sets job policies, it sets legislation. Everything comes from government and that’s where change can be made.”

Although Tony didn’t win the seat of Deakin, the campaign trail nevertheless provided an opportunity for him to generously engage with the voters, the media, the ALP and the parliament to get a fairer deal for people experiencing disability.

His decades of advocacy have resulted in the founding and formalisation of Labor Enabled Victoria, where, alongside Annie Payne, he has successfully argued the need for a Disability Action Plan for the party - a national first.

He continues to advocate across the broader community to achieve greater access for people with disability to education, employment, economic opportunity, and healthcare.

Giving the example of the ALP’s quota system for gender equity, he is particularly keen to see quotas similarly introduced to ensure fair representation for people with disability in Parliament at state and national level.

“Twenty percent of people in Australia – one in five – experience some kind of disability. Yet we’ve only had eleven people with a disability in Federal Parliament since Federation. Since 1901. It’s appalling,” he said.

“We are spending billions on billions of dollars supporting people with a disability and yet we are not taking advantage and grasping the value that they bring with their lived experience,” he told the recent national conference.

“I think the biggest barrier we face is perception and giving people an opportunity for a job.”

Tony said receiving the inaugural Kimberley Kitching Award was “very humbling - it’s just wow”.

In Creswick, he is currently advocating for a new scout hall.

“The current scout hall is in a flood zone and has been flooded several times. We want a new hall that’s fully accessible and can be used for the First Creswick Scout Group and many other community groups as well.

“We want it to be built at a site near the train station and we’ve applied for $500,000 through the federal regional grant fund. We’re also seeking $400,000 through the state and working with our local member Martha Haylett.”

Words & image: Eve Lamb

Mention the word “clogging” and many will immediately visualise heavy Dutch clogs and maybe pitch in a mental windmill and a few tulips as well. Wrong.

Turns out clogging is all about rhythm and not about wearing wooden clogs at all, as The Local discovered after catching up with experienced clogging instructors Cheryl Holland and Nev Flegg, pictured.

Cheryl, from Sulky just out of Creswick, and Creswickian Nev started the Creswick Cloggers just over two months ago. While they’d been quietly confident of a reasonable turnout, even they admit they’ve been surprised at the enthusiastic uptake among locals who are keen to clog.

The weekly sessions happen Tuesdays 6.30-8.30pm at the Creswick Scout Hall and have been pretty well packed each time.

At this point Nev and Cheryl are considering starting a new beginners’ class either before Christmas or early in the New Year depending on demand, and they’ve already registered the Creswick Cloggers to perform at next year’s CresFest.

“We’ve now got 22 cloggers – 14 beginners who have turned up and eight excloggers,” Nev says.

Besides teaching clogging at Creswick, Nev teaches the niche dance form in Footscray and also teaches line dancing as well, while Cheryl also runs weekly clogging classes in Cheltenham.

“Soon as you say clogging, people think wooden Dutch shoes,” Nev says. “We’ve actually got (moveable metallic) plates on our shoes and clogging taps rattle as opposed to tap dancer plates. Tap dancers have a solid piece of alloy bolted to their shoes.”

By way of demonstration, Cheryl and Nev pull on their nifty white dancing shoes, which look fairly flexible, and turn up the soles to display the metallic moveable plates attached beneath.

The plates mean the clogging steps they perform will make an infectious percussive sound that everyone within earshot will hear and find hard to resist.

Keen to clog in Creswick

Coincidentally, both Cheryl and Nev took up clogging in 1988 while living in entirely different parts of Australia. Even more coincidentally, they both started teaching the dance form in 1992. Clogging has taken them both all over Australia and overseas to perform, often to high acclaim.

The new Creswick Cloggers group is affiliated with the Australian Clogging Association and they are just back from participating in the annual National Clogging Convention in Gosford, New South Wales.

Beginners start out simply by learning to bend and straighten their legs in time with the music – “learning the down beat”, Cheryl says. They go on to master eight basic movements. “And the steps are cued so you don’t have to remember a whole routine. You just remember the steps.”

Cheryl and Nev say that while clogging used to be done pretty much entirely to country music, these days you can expect plenty of current contemporary pop in the mix. “The actual word – ‘clogging’ means ‘time’ in Welsh so it’s actually a time dance,” Cheryl says.

Cheryl and Nev both say it is the friendship, fun and travel which drew them to clogging. Nev - whose prior clogging fun traverses Seattle, San Francisco, Santiago, Los Angeles and Chicago, to name just a bit of where it’s taken him - says it’s tops for stress relief as well. Time out from life’s little, or not-so-little worries.

The national association website informs that clogging - or “Appalachian Mountain Folk Dance” - is actually an American folk dance with origins in the Southern Appalachian Mountains of the US.

While it has strong ties to the step dances of the British Isles brought to the region by white settlers, clogging is also influenced by the traditional dance of Native Americans, and the traditional solo dances of African Americans.

In Creswick, Cheryl and Nev say anyone interested can roll up and check out the class in action on a Tuesday evening, or email creswickcloggers@gmail.com to find out how to pull on a pair of clogging shoes and join in.

Words & images: Eve Lamb

How to make your answer matter

Voting in a referendum is different from an election.

1. You need to complete one ballot paper.

2. The ballot paper will show a question about a proposed change to the Constitution.

3. To vote, write either ‘Yes’ OR ‘No’ inside the box on your ballot paper.

All Australian citizens aged 18 and over must vote.

Don’t worry if you make a mistake. Ask for another ballot paper, and start again.

Learn more at aec.gov.au or call 13 23 26

Sample ballot paper

Classic ‘win-win’: the inside story of WomenCAN

Former corporate lawyer, Mikaela Stafrace, (pronounced Staffarachi) is clearly passionate as she discusses her role as founder and CEO of WomenCAN Australia.

The highly motivated change-maker will be guest speaker at the upcoming U3A annual meeting taking place in the Daylesford Town Hall on October 16.

There Mikaela will share insights into why this not-for-profit, that helps disadvantaged women secure and retain good paid work, came into being, the work it’s doing now, and the difference it’s making.

Training and peer support are key aspects of what WomenCAN Australia does to help disadvantaged women secure good ongoing work.

It teams up with training institutions and employers to give free training and guaranteed jobs to women and girls who need them, but might otherwise miss out.

In the process, Mikaela says, it saves scarce taxpayers’ funds as the cost of its activities is “significantly less than Centrelink payments while the benefit is significantly more than that provided by Centrelink”.

In fact Mikaela says the numbers are currently being professionally crunched to work out just how much WomenCAN is saving the taxpayer.

Mikaela says women whom they particularly aim to help include refugees or asylum seekers who may need to retrain after fleeing oppressive and dangerous regimes. Sometimes simply learning to drive and gaining a licence is a key enabler for such women.

Other groups that may be assisted include women aged over 45, women who have fled domestic violence and those whose working lives have been disrupted by chronic illness.

In the four years since it started this organisation has changed lives and our wider society for the better.

“It’s now around 800 that we’ve helped and that includes 333 women who are now fully employed and 479 that have trained or are training towards securing work,” Mikaela says.

“A big sector of our cohort are women who have escaped domestic violence and are now getting back on their feet and coming into the healing process. We have some women who are exiting the justice system.

“We only focus on five areas of high labour demand, providing peer support in five vocational areas, because we know there’s work there.

“That’s in aged care and child care, in transport, horticulture and commercial cookery, trades and one for next year will be cyber security. There’s a big need for data analysts and the like. Not the techies and the computer engineers, but data analysts.”

WomenCAN Australia has a head office in South Melbourne but in the four years since it started it’s helped women in both metro areas and regional areas including the Castlemaine and Kyneton areas.

“I’d like to speak about the story of WomenCAN in terms of our journey and how we began and what we’ve achieved,” Mikaela says ahead of her upcoming Daylesford talk.

“We’d rather that there was no inequality and that every woman had as much chance as the next person but that unfortunately is just not the case.

“None of us know each other’s stories and it can be incredible what a difference one offer of employment or one act of kindness can make.”

The AGM is at 10.30am with Mikaela’s guest speech set to start at 11am. Members of the public are welcome, but to help determine whether the venue is the town hall or the senior citizens building, those planning to attend should first email their RSVP to Hepburn U3A at info@u3ahepburnshire.com

Words: Eve Lamb | Image: Contributed

Foster Care is about creating a safe space for children in our community. And we don’t need superheroes, just everyday people who care.

FOSTER CARE

NOW AVAILABLE 60-DAY PRESCRIPTIONS

Medicines just got cheaper for a range of ongoing health conditions. Now selected PBS medicines can be prescribed for 60-days to give you twice the medication for the cost of a single prescription, saving you money and time.

A retreat for people living with dementia and their carers

Treehouse4Two is a free three-day retreat for people recently diagnosed with dementia and their carers in the Macedon Ranges and Hepburn shires.

We focus on wellbeing and self-care, providing a supportive peer environment where participants receive tailored support from specialist trained staff. Carers learn how to navigate the challenges of supporting someone living with dementia and how to access other community resources, including respite.

Hepburn's Swiss Italian Festa returns

Hepburn's Swiss Italian Festa is back after a three-year hiatus.

From Friday, October 27 to Sunday, October 29, the region will come alive with a vibrant celebration of heritage, culture and lifestyle - with the theme Viva La Festa 23!

Coordinator Emma Ireland said she had been involved with the community festival in 2019 but with Covid, it had ground to a halt.

"I was all ready to go and then Covid happened. I was really looking forward to bringing it back to its heyday, it used to have a crowd of 20,000, and then all these years later I had time to help with community events, and that was Words in Winter and then the Swiss Italian Festa.

"I pulled in all the people I spoke to way back then and said 'do you want this festival?' and they all did, it is such an important cultural event. And I have two kids, one who doesn't know anything about the festa and the other who has done the parade and was part of the performace at the amphitheatre and remembers the fireworks.

"And I thought about all the newcomers to the town and the kids who have grown up with such a significant festival. It used to be the biggest we had. I saw it in its shadow form and thought it might disappear and I wanted to get involved and have those stories told again."

Emma said she had a lot of support from schools, teachers and the community with significant funding from Hepburn Shire Council and plenty of help from the Daylesford Community Opportunity Shop, Carol White at Lavandula, Liam Thornycroft at Beppe Restaurant and Daylesford Rotary, to mention a few.

"For those who haven't experienced the festa, please come down and be part of the parade on Saturday and the family day at the amphitheatre, and then Sunday which is our lantern parade and fireworks. It is nice to gather again, it's been a long time."

Daylesford Primary School vice-principal Trudi Blick said she had been involved in the festa for at least 20 years, as the Italian teacher at the school. "It's a really important festival and provides a valuable forum for students to showcase their Italian learning, offer a real purpose for that learning, and to be involved in the community.

"All the community and schools get together for the parade in particular, and they can perform and showcase their learning. It is a really valuable festival for our town and for us to celebrate our Swiss Italian history."

Link: www.swissitalianfesta.com

Words & file image: Donna Kelly

El Niño

The pundits were right, El Niño is back, along with her increased risk of drought, heatwaves, bushfires and coral bleaching.

Recent past events have resulted in warmer than average temperatures across most of the south of the country and in eastern Australia, where nine of the 10 driest winter/spring periods on record were during El Niño years.

And most of the major droughts, including in 1982, 1994, 2002, 2006 and 2015, coincided with El Niños.

Because of reduced rainfall and those temperatures, the risk of a significant fire danger season is much higher after an El Niño year, according to the BOM. Previous examples of this occurred during the summers of 2002-03 and 2006-7. So it’s only reasonable to expect 2024 will be no different.

El Niño has a profound influence on our climate - lower rainfall and higher daytime heat - boosting the chance of risky bushfire seasons.

This one is expected to last until late summer or early autumn. At a press conference to announce the likelihood of El Niño, the Bureau of Meteorology’s Dr Karl Braganza said it would be up to individuals and communities, particularly in the nation’s south-east, to prepare for a summer of fire and heat hazards, but he added that the landscape was not as dry as it had been leading into the catastrophic fires of 2019 and 2020.

Days are hotter on average during El Niño years, especially in southern Australia, due to decreased cloud. In Australia’s south, high-pressure systems move around more during an El Niño, which actually reduces the chances of prolonged warm periods even though overall average temperatures remain high.

But the decrease in insulating cloud cover during El Niño can mean colder nights, increasing the risk of frost damage to crops and gardens already weakened by lessened rainfall.

Drought proof your garden

Start with the ground up as it all begins with a healthy, happy root system. After all they are the plant's engine room and not just to keep the plants upright but ingenious pumping systems distributing moisture and nourishment throughout the whole plant.

Drought proofing your garden starts with the soil. So improve its structure by adding plenty of organic matter in the form of compost and aged manures, and working it in to the topsoil by forking or digging it over to improve air and water penetration.

Make sure every drop reaches the plants by watering directly onto the soil around their root systems - and the most efficient is by slow, inexpensive and evaporatio-free trickle hose.

You can hide the hose under a good, thick layer of compost or gravel. Every single drop goes directly to the plants and there’s no wastage. We now have our whole garden covered by a network of inbuilt dripper, plastic hose. Reduce moisture loss from the soil (evaporation), by adding a thick, insulating layer of mulch.

Watering the foliage may cool the plants down briefly after a hot day but it could also encourage fungal problems to develop. Besides, water droplets on some soft leaves may cause burn spots if the heat of the sun is amplified, resulting in the leaves being scorched or burned.

Any of your likely to be heat-affected, pot-grown plants that might suffer from a spell of sunstroke should be moved to a cooler, shady spot at the first sight of wilting.

To sum it up, water the roots, not the leaves. Got a gardening query? Email glenzgarden@gmail.com

Sculptures in the Garden

World-renowned garden designer and former Denver resident Paul Bangay, right, is the special guest of Sculptures in the Garden in the burgeoning art hub of Mudgee, New South Wales. And Kyneton sculptor Anne Anderson is among those exhibiting, with her work Treaty, pictured below.

This year's exhibition, set in Rosby Vineyard’s gardens, will run until October 22 and showcase more than 300 large-scale sculptures and garden art, crafted by 130 of Australia's leading and emerging artists.

Sculptures in the Garden combines a large-scale outdoor sculpture exhibition, a public program of artist workshops and talks, artist tours, live music, special guests, a themed local children’s exhibition, garden walks, and local food and wine.

It is a not-for-profit event, with proceeds going to local charity partners and the acquisition of sculptures for the Mudgee community's public arts initiative. Since its inception 13 years ago event organisers have worked closely with Guide Dogs NSW/ ACT raising significant funds for the charity.

Mr Bangay opened the exhibition on October 7.

“I think of sculpture as enhancing the work of landscape designers. The correct placement of a sculpture in a garden brings life to the space. Its form, colour and materiality attract the eye and add interest to key places in the garden. I personally use sculpture to lead the eye around a garden.

“We have become increasingly aware of the need for art in the garden and, in particular, good Australian-created sculpture. Some years ago we looked to Europe for our source of ornamentation in the garden. Now we are commissioning or acquiring the work of our many talented Australian artists. For me this trend has developed as we become more confident in our homegrown sense of Australian garden design.

“The inclusion of a well-placed sculpture can bring life to a garden by leading your eye to key areas of the landscape - it should extend your view in the garden, making the garden look larger than it actually is.”

Link: www.sculpturesinthegarden.com.au

Words: Donna Kelly | Images: Contributed

A patch of green: Hellebores in the shade at Wombat Hill Botanic Gardens

Getting more women into golf at Hepburn

The Hepburn Springs Golf Club is running a series of activities to encourage more women to play golf at the club.

Spokesperson Sue Howard said Back in the Swing was a relaxed and social way to get back into golf in a supportive environment with friendly and helpful club members.

"You’ll play five to nine holes with experienced players giving tips on golf etiquette and rules – with some fun activities and prizes thrown in.

"The cost is $15 per session which will be held on Sundays from 3-5pm, from October 15 until November 26. Book by text to Bev on 0437 122 756.

"We promise a fun couple of hours for golfers of all levels."

Meanwhile, the Girls Getaway Women’s Golf Promotion includes a discount on 18 holes of golf and cart hire ($30 each) for groups of six or more women.

"The Girls Getaway is aimed at groups of golfers looking for a new place to come and stay and enjoy a game at the wonderful Hepburn Springs golf course.

"Games can be booked online at the Hepburn Springs Golf Club website at www.hepburngolf.com Book using the Girls Getaway promo code to receive the discount."

Support for the activities has been provided through the Victorian State Government’s Change Our Game Community Activation grants program.

daylesford bowling club EXPRESSION OF INTEREST KITCHEN – BISTRO LEASE

Our club is seeking expressions of interest from any individual, team, or current business looking to expand, to take over this thriving business.

A.G.M.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2023

10.30am U3A Hepburn Shire AGM

Our club has been a part of Daylesford since 1899, and we pride ourselves on good old-fashioned service with a smile and welcome, great food, and a lovely location and atmosphere.

Whilst we acknowledge our history, we embrace the future and are excited by the opportunities ahead. This is an exciting opportunity for someone to join us.

Generous terms will be negotiable, and you will be working in partnership with a most supportive and experienced Management and Board. We are open minded to any genuine approach with respect to our food offer.

11am Guest Speaker

Mikaela Stafrace

Founder and CEO of WomenCAN Australia

Morning Tea to follow Daylesford Town Hall RSVP to

Church wearing the Heart on its walls

A word-art installation of the Uluru Statement from the Heart is all around the walls of St George’s, Trentham. Put up by locals, it was dedicated by Bishop Matt Brain, the Anglican Bishop of Bendigo, on September 24.

“Jesus calls us to open our hearts to receive from and share with everyone,” he said. “I am delighted to bless this local initiative, which places the Uluru Statement in a space set aside for reflection and inspiration.

“The Statement from the Heart is a generous invitation from this land’s ancient peoples for more recent newcomers to walk with us in a movement of the Australian people for a better future. I pray that our hearts are open to respond.”

The Reverend Dr Charles Sherlock AM is the locum minister at St George’s.

“This referendum is very significant for our nation,” he said. “God calls us to live on the basis of truth. Yet much debate seems unaware of where the Voice proposal comes from – the Statement from the Heart.

“A parishioner came up with the idea of placing the Statement around the walls of St George’s, so that anyone can come in and engage with it in a safe space.”

Measuring the space available, planning how to fit the words in, then printing, cutting and pasting them up took some thinking. Finding a font large enough to make the word readable on A4 sheets saw Binner Gothic at 256 point do the trick.

“The practicalities were not only fun they made us look at the Statement closely. It is challenging and deeply thoughtful, and also a beautiful piece of English. That a large group managed to get it together on one page is amazing.

“We look forward to locals taking the opportunity to visit St George’s to engage with the Statement. We're not telling people how to vote, but want everyone to be informed of what is being asked of us in the vote.”

During the day in St George’s, the Statement is read aloud by a variety of recorded Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voices.

St George’s is at 58 High Street, Trentham. It is open daily, except from 3pm Saturday to 10.30am Sunday.

Words & image: Contributed

A FAIR SHARE FOR REGIONAL NEWS

Local independent newspapers still connect more than 80% of the country, but currently the commonwealth government invests close to 0% of its advertising budget here. The federal government could help secure the future of regional news with zero extra cost by simply allocating a fairer share of government advertising to local and regional news services.

One page per week of important government information in regional newspapers would be a great start. This shouldn’t be controversial. It’s a simple and fair solution for the future of regional news.

Council

HAVE YOUR SAY

Council-owned and controlled property - We are developing policies that will govern how we manage Council-owned and controlled property. Feedback on the draft Leases and Licences Policy is open until Friday 27 October.

Early years survey - Are you a parent or carer of a child under 6? Please help us learn more about what services you use and what services you need in our Early Years survey. The survey closes on 20 October 2023.

Transport survey - Complete a survey and tell us how you use transport within the Shire. Your feedback will help to inform our Integrated Transport Strategy. Survey closes on Sunday 22 October.

ARE YOU FIRE READY?

As we move into warmer weather it’s an important time to start preparing for the upcoming fire season. For information on how to prepare your property for the fire danger period visit www.cfa.vic.gov.au

FREE GREEN WASTE NOVEMBER

Don’t forget that throughout November you can dispose of green waste for free at our transfer stations in Creswick, Daylesford and Trentham.

COMMUNITY GRANTS

Round one of our Community Grants will open on 9 October for local groups to apply for up to $5,000 in funding. Rounds two and three will open in 2024 and will feature some updated categories with new eligibility criteria.

Find out more and apply at www.hepburn.vic.gov.au/grants

COMMUNITY AWARDS

Have you nominated someone for our Community Awards? It’s straightforward and a great way to recognise people who go above and beyond for our community.

We are looking for:

• Citizen of the Year

• Young Citizen of the Year

• Event of the Year

Find out more at www.hepburn.vic.gov.au/community-awards Nominations close Friday 20 October 2023 at 5pm.

JOIN OUR TEAM

Are you looking for a career move or a job closer to home? We are recruiting new staff across a number of roles. Along with great teammates, we offer attractive and flexible working arrangements. Stay up-to-date with the latest job opportunities and apply at www.hepburn.vic.gov.au/jobs

Agents also servicing Castlemaine | Macedon Ranges | Sunbury | Toorak | South Yarra | Prahran | Windsor | Albert Park | Port Melbourne

( JAMES BOLTON ) +61 479 068 838 james@boundrealestate.com.au

( RHYS NUTTALL ) +61 438 383 221 rhys@boundrealestate.com.au

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EAT | DRINK | ENJOY

Just briefly...

A Daylesford woman is an instant multimillionaire after winning last Thursday’s entire Powerball draw of $60 million.

The recently retired woman realised she had won after checking online when her husband accidentally hung up on officials calling to break the news. The woman said she would help a lot of charities - especially those working with disadvantaged children.

The Klemantyne Ensemble will play at Christ Church, Daylesford on Saturday, October 28, with a highly romantic program from the 1800s, consisting of repertoire for strings and harp.

Guest artist and soloist is Elisabetta Ghebbioni, who has taught at the conservatoriums of Matera, Lecce, Piacenza, Vicenza, Castelfranco Veneto and Bologna. Bookings: www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1040691

2023 marks the 10th annual Aussie Bird Count, one of Australia’s greatest citizen science initiatives that encourages people of all ages to step outside to their favourite spot and spend just 20 minutes observing and counting the birds.

To take part, choose a spot, count the birds and take note of their species and the numbers then share your data on the Aussie Bird Count app or the web form. The Aussie Bird Count runs from October 16 to 22. Link: www.aussiebirdcount.org.au

Fred Smith is performing at the Glenlyon Hall on Friday, November 10.

Fred will be playing a show to launch his new CD Look and will be accompanied by Holly Downes on double bass and Carl Pannuzzo on piano and percussion. Tickets: www.trybooking.com/events/1088883/sessions/4036818/sections/2025814/ tickets Beer, wine, soft drinks and snacks will be available for purchase.

Agriculture Victoria is encouraging home gardeners to boost their harvest and protect the state’s horticulture industry against Queensland fruit fly by netting their fruit trees.

State Fruit Fly coordinator Cathy Mansfield said that insect netting was the best way to ensure fruit fly doesn’t attack Victorian home gardeners' fruit and vegetables. "Now is the time to prepare your netting for the upcoming season. It’s important to check and mend any holes in the netting with string, fishing line or polyester thread. Another option is to clamp holes with bulldog clips."

Travelling on Victoria’s regional train network just got simpler and more convenient with access to real time information on V/Line train arrivals now available on phones and other personal devices.

Real time data on V/Line train services is now available on Google, Apple Maps and AnyTrips apps. Until now, real time data for V/Line train services has only been available at stations on platform display boards.

Daylesford Primary School is a finalist in the 2023 Victorian Education Excellence Awards in the Outstanding Provision for High-Ability Students. "Accessing professional learning and support from the high-ability toolkit and the High-Ability Practice Leader role, the school is creating opportunity and access for high-ability learners in inquiry-based extension programs that are inspiring children of high-ability to experience learning in new ways." Award winners will be announced on Friday, October 27.

Central Highlands Water and Hepburn Shire Council have joined forces this week to launch a new Choose Tap drinking fountain at the Hammon Park Trailhead in Creswick.

This new amenity, combined with CHW’s ‘Choose Tap’ program, will continue to encourage the local community to choose tap water over bottled water, for health, cost and sustainability benefits.

Hepburn Shire Council is updating policies that will govern how it manages Council-owned and controlled property, including leases, licences, and the disposal and acquisition of land and buildings.

The council owns more than 80 properties and manages a further 50 reserves as Committee of Management. Feedback is now open for public comment until Friday, October 27.

Got some news to share? Email news@tlnews.com.au

LGBTIQA+ ageing well

A free workshop is being offered to LGBTIQA+ people to help them plan for older age.

Facilitated by Justice Connect in partnership with local LGBTIQA+ support groups, the workshop will help people clarify what matters most as they age and help them communicate their wishes and decisions to the people around them.

“Talking about ageing and end of life plans is not easy,” says Belinda Brain, pictured, from Sunbury and Cobaw Community Health’s Country LGBTIQA+ Inclusion Program.

“But planning now means you can live the life you want as you age. These are important discussions to have so we got together with the Silver Rainbow Social Club Castlemaine and GLOBE Victoria to provide a safe and supportive space for the rainbow community to do just that.”

The workshop, which takes place later this month in Kyneton, references the guide, Preparing for your future: A conversation guide for the LGBTI+ community, designed to encourage older people to engage with the process of future planning.

Justice Connect will lead participants through the conversation guide, answer questions and facilitate the discussion of ideas.

RSVPs are essential and lunch will be provided. The workshop takes place on Friday, October 20 from 11am to 1.30pm in Kyneton.

Register: www.surveymonkey.com/r/your-future-kyneton

Details: 5421 1666 or email admin@scchc.org.au

Celebrating art

Paintings. Well, on July 1 when art entries were invited, paintings began to flow in, soon afterwards however there was a hiatus. For someone new to this job that was a matter of concern despite the perpetual comments: Don’t worry they’ll all pile in on the last few days. So true – they did.

This is being written on D-day, October 2. A week ago, there were 84 paintings…right now the 150th one I dreamed about last night has rolled in and tumbling over it are more. Not just quantity but uniqueness and quality. Such a relief. Thank you artists.

While that is happening, entries for various forms of sculpture arrived. And, I mean various forms, from Overwrought to Humoroos.

Sometime in between, talented quilters Tina Whittaker and Chris Calheiros opened up and categorised more than 50 outstanding quilts.

Then there was the visit to Newstead to meet Trevor, Helen, and their bonsai trees in their flourishing garden. Many years ago, they replaced an empty paddock with plants including bonsai trees.

In early November, some bonsais will find a spot on the smaller stage in the Daylesford Town Hall with some locally produced pottery and sculpture - not far from the Bendigo Bank Bar, perhaps more appropriately named Cheers for Forty Years.

We needed a judge of course. Well, we have two, Kim Percy and Morgan Williams, who are very used to judging and commenting on art in many forms at Radius Gallery.

This is Daylesford Rotary's Art Show. Already we are delighted to involve Rotary members and friends. The Art Show committee members are Hepburn Council former CEO Victor S, Citizen of the Year 2022 Danny M, Victorian Quilters vice-president Denise L, artist, book author and donor of the major raffle prize, above, Brian N and his partner artist Roberta D, our scribe, Koos H, and me.

We are pleased also to involved members of the newly established Art Co-operative. They will be seen during the Art Show, welcoming you at the door, ensuring we have lots of delicious food and refreshing drinks at the not- to-be-missed Bendigo Bank Daylesford District opening and awards night.

That night and the four days afterwards will be filled with activity including scones, jam and cream, with fresh coffee, while you consider buying a painting, sculpture or quilt.

That does sound like a lot of helpers/volunteers - but we do need more for the opening (awards) night. We would love to involve more members of the community who are sure to find the experience fun and enjoyable.

Link: www.daylesfordartshow.com.au/openingnight

Words: Committee coordinator Jenny Hopkins | Image: Contributed

Wine notes with Clive Hartley

Party wine

Aglianico and I go back a long way. In my 20s I was asked to ‘bring a bottle’ to parties and this was my ‘go-to’ wine. I took a double magnum. Well, no one said it couldn’t be a big bottle. I still remember the wine, it was D’Angelo Aglianico del Vulture from Basilicata in Southern Italy.

Aglianico is a red grape grown in southern Italy. Del Vulture is a region perched on the side of an extinct volcano (Mount Vulture) in a remote part of Basilicata. However, aglianico’s most famous region of production is in Campania, in an area called Taurasi. There are similar growing conditions to del Vulture as the soils are volcanic and it is highish in altitude. The grape has some similarities to nebbiolo due to its tannic profile and is known as the thinking person’s Barolo. The 2015 Terredora Fatica Contadina Taurasi is a lovely example. Rich, full-bodied but smooth and well balanced. No fruit here, all earth, mushrooms, leather and black olives. It is in the traditional camp and couldn’t be mistaken for anything other than an ‘old world’ wine. Generally, the wines are built to age with lashings of tannin and natural acidity. Some other trusted producers of aglianico in Italy are Elena Fucci (Basilicata) Feudi di San Gregorio, Cantine Antonio Caggiano or Mastroberardino all from Campania. There are suspicions of the grape coming from Greece, a common assumption with southern Italian grapes. However, DNA testing puts it as originating in Spain.

Chalmers were the first to introduce it into Australia in 2001. Chalmers keep their style in the Italian fashion with maturation in a chestnut botte (an Italian term for a large barrel). It seems to go well in the Heathcote region and Chalmers have four different clones planted which they sell to other vineyards. Another recommended aglianico comes from After Five Co from the Barossa Valley. My notes on their 2018 sounds like a new world version of the grape: “Fruitcake, raisins, vibrant black fruits, cola and licorice aromas - dry, full bodied with dry mouth puckering tannins.” Sutton Grange in Bendigo make a good example and claim to have some of the oldest vines in Australia grown on granite soils. Staying in Victoria, Fighting Gully Road have a good reputation for their aglianico which is sourced from vines grown in the Alpine Valley. Take it to a party and enjoy. Clive Hartley is an award-winning wine writer, educator and consultant. Want to learn more about wine? Try his Australian Wine Guide (7th ed) from Paradise Books in Daylesford or www.australianwineguide.com.au

Fundraiser recital

Internationally renowned pianist Leslie Howard, during a rare visit to Australia, gave an outstanding recital on September 17, as a fundraiser for Central Highlands Rural Health.

London-based Howard has recorded the complete piano works of Franz Liszt and is recognised as a leading scholar of the music of that composer. The capacity audience enjoyed a spectacular performance of Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin and Liszt.

The Mozart sonata K331, with the well-known Rondo Alla Turca, was performed with refinement and clarity. Continuing scholarship allows the contemporary listener to get closer to Mozart's original score, with Howard performing the updates in his exciting reading.

The rarely performed Beethoven Fantasie Op.77 successfully projected Beethoven's dramatic intentions, with the improvised character shining through. The sense of purpose and direction were always evident.

The performance of Chopin's Barcarolle, from its simple, joyful opening to the colourful dramatic development remained true to the lyrical and poetic character demanded of this composer's music, assisted by deft pedalling and well-controlled chord voicing.

The recital included Liszt's Der Todesengel (Death's Angel), a relatively recent discovery. The emotional intensity within the piece was clearly heard as the narrative was slowly revealed in this short but powerfully dramatic piece.

The recital was completed with Liszt's two Ballades. The fireworks of these two bravura works were comfortably realised as Howard revelled in the music with which he is so closely associated.

GUILDFORD FAMILY HOTEL

Let’s support our community and shop local!

“Locals supporting Locals”

Restaurants, Bakers, Butchers, Cafe’s, Local vineyards, Distillers, Brewers and of course each other.

Remember we offer free delivery, T&Cs apply. Delivery times are Monday to Saturday between 10am and 4pm.

We accept credit cards over the phone or we have an on-board eftpos machine. You will need to be at home for the delivery with proof of age if asked by the driver. Give the Foxxy team a call on 5348 3577. Keep safe, everyone.

THE REGION’S BEST KEPT SECRET

Friday Night Raffle

Raffles drawn at 7.30pm

OPENING HOURS

Wed/Thurs/Fri - 3pm till late - Dinner from 5.30pm Sat - 12pm till late - Lunch from 12pm - Dinner from 5.30pm Sun - Lunch only from 12pm

35 Fryers Street, Guildford Victoria

Bookings Essential - 03 5473 4021

- Bronislaw Sozanski BA DipEd ATCL VMTA

Budburst Festival returns to Macedon Ranges

There could hardly be a better way to welcome the quickening pulse of the season.

All who are partial to a good wine will be keen to note that the famed Macedon Ranges Budburst Festival is back and happening over November 17 to 19.

The quintessential Macedon Ranges wine-tasting experience, Budburst is a once-a-year chance to step behind the vines and meet the knowledgeable winemakers.

Over a glass of something good, and amidst a backdrop of lush vineyard rows, volcanic rock and ancient plateaus, festival-goers soak up a unique sense of how the region’s family-owned and small-batch makers shape mainland Australia’s coolest wine region.

Across the weekend more than 25 of the Macedon Ranges region’s winemakers across 18 Budburst sites, will open their wineries and cellar doors offering tastings, curated food menus with local produce, art shows, sculptor walks and live music.

And this year the vineyards on the western (Daylesford) side of the Calder Freeway will also be offering a special wine bus loop – in the same way that those on the eastern (Kyneton) side do.

Among the Daylesford side’s wineries participating is Musk’s Passing Clouds Winery, owned and run by Cameron and Marion Leith, pictured.

In recent days Marion chatted to The Local about preparations for the festival and explained that previously the wineries from this end of the region had participated by showcasing their wines at a central hub at Trentham’s Cosmopolitan Hotel.

But Budburst really is all about getting out into the beautiful vineyards themselves – experiencing the terroir where it all happens.

“This time we have created a special bus loop for the Daylesford end as well,” Marion says. “We have teamed up with Attwoods at Glenlyon and Zig Zag Road winery, and with Wombat Forest Winery and also Shadowfax Wines to offer a bus loop. To have a bus loop is a new thing for us and I think it’s a great way of bringing the wineries together.

“People can really make a weekend of it and stay for the weekend, so they could do the wineries on the Kyneton side on one day and then the wineries on the Daylesford side on the other day.”

Festival goers can jump aboard any of the festival buses and visit up to five wineries on four different dedicated bus routes – including the new Daylesford Drive loop. There’s also the Lancefield Loop, the Kyneton Cruise or the Woodend Wander bus loop options.

Alternatively, wine appreciators may travel independently around the region’s winding country roads and scenic ranges to visit participating wineries and vineyards.

“The festival is really championing cool-climate wine,” Marion says.

“And some of the wineries will be offering music and food and there will also be some special umbrella events on the Friday as well. We (at Passing Clouds) will be offering an exclusive tasting list highlighting our coolclimate wines.

WHOLE RUMP $99.ºº

One of the most versatile cuts, the rump is full of flavour. As the name suggests, it is from the backside of the cow so it is a hard-working muscle. Whilst not as tender as Scotch or Sirloin, it makes up for it with bangs of flavour. Average weight 3.5-4kg.

HOW TO COOK IT?

Richard Cornish gives us 5 great things to do with Rump. Bangs of flavour. Great value for you and your family.

WEEKLY SPECIALS

Head into our store or jump onto our website for more great weekly specials.

“The Macedon Ranges Vignerons’ Association, which we are part of, really wants to get people to the vineyards. It’s really nice for people to see the vineyards and experience where the wines come from. It’s a great weekend for locals to come out and support their local businesses and wineries.”

www.macedonrangeswineandfoodfest.com.au

Words: Eve Lamb | Image: Contributed

Gigs with Darren Lowe

Bridge Hotel, Castlemaine

Jenny Don’t & The SpursWednesday, October 11

Jenny Don't & The Spurs, from Portland, Oregon, caused a minor sensation here late last year when they spent weeks going up and down the east coast playing tiny gigs and driving crowds wild. This time they're here in Australia for three weeks, after which they play New Zealand and parts of SouthEast Asia. Their latest album was recorded in Castlemaine on last year's trip.

While they're here in Victoria, they're playing Out on the Weekend, where the band will play with a fabulous collection of country and Americana artists.

This band plays country & western (with an emphasis on Western) meets garage rock - what was called cowpunk back in the 80s. They have their roots in the Portland punk and garage scenes. Original drummer Sam Henty (recently deceased sadly) was a member of original Portland punk band The Wipers (one of Kurt Cobain's favourites) and bass player Kelly Halliburton was in the Pierced Arrows with Fred & Toody Cole from Dead Moon. A fun, hard rockin’ party band.

Odessa at Leavers Hotel, Creswick

Stella Savy - Saturday, October 14

Valley Road and Mandy Connell - Friday, October 27

Big Blues weekend featuring Louis King, Georgia Rodgers, Malcolm Beveridge, Elly Mack and Candice Alisha - October 28/29

Isabella Manfredi - Friday, November 3

Theatre Royal, Castlemaine

History of House Groove Terminator and Soweto Gospel Choir - Friday, October 20

Voodoo Boogie - The Detonators, Collards, Greens and Gravy and Rod Paine & the Fulltime Lovers - Saturday, October 21

Caitlin Harnett & The Pony Boys All Night Long tour - Thursday, November 2

Dog Trumpet - Friday, November 3

Learning to Fly - a Celebration of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Saturday, November 4

VICTORIA'S BEST COUNTRY PUB.

Since 1887, the Pig & Whistle Hotel has nestled on a quiet corner in Trentham East, a living remain of the town’s early history.

Truly a hidden gem, you’ll be transported back in time, with our newly-opened beer garden boasting uninterrupted views of Mount Macedon.

The Pig serves up a modern-Australian menu with honest hearty pub classics (we do a bloody good parma), along with seasonal global dishes. We take great care in delivering food of the highest quality, sourced from sustainable local produce, coupled with our praised friendly service.

The hotel is truly a local pub but a destination for all.

Kyle’s Rant

The TV show The Block may be coming to the Daylesford township, or at least it was coming to town until a few objectors climbed onboard the “Leave our pretty town alone” train and stopped it in its tracks.

Or that was what it looked like from the outside and it was strange that the TV show that normally keeps to itself, in terms of outside media unless they are looking for attention, started communiques to media outlets pertaining to its struggle in getting permits from the Hepburn Shire Council.

It seems the trouble is over the scale of the builds, the heated pools and maybe a bit of tall poppy syndrome. I personally sit in the pro-development camp, after realising a long time ago that there is not much you can do about it - the way our society is set up with the rules bending to the elite and rigid for the rest of us.

Like The Block I have done a few renovations in my lifetime, buying my first house in my 20s, and just before moving in, getting a job with a demolition crew in the old George Walkers building (kind of like the Myer of New Zealand).

My whole purpose of getting the job was to figure out how a wall was constructed in the days before Google, so I would be able to renovate my new purchase. I also needed to remove a wall in the house as it was a rough, gang-ridden neighbourhood and you had to unlock the back door and walk across the porch to access the toilet.

I was on a four-week swing, meaning I would spend four weeks at sea with the next four weeks off when I was on the offshore tugboats. Which meant leaving my girlfriend at the time home alone, so the wall had to go.

I also asked Dad how to remove a wall and he turned up with his chainsaw, and yes, cutting into a 1960’s laundry wall which abutted the toilet with a chainsaw and no protective gear is not recommended. Think asbestos poisoning.

But I had no idea and removed the wall rendering the toilet accessible from inside the house, this meant I had a taste of the renovation bug and still had Dad’s chainsaw. So, I kept removing walls and renovating. Looking back I’m surprised the joint didn’t come down like a house of cards.

I have done a few small renovations since but even though I measure twice and cut once I am not one for getting things level so leave things to the professionals.

But back to The Block, I haven’t watched the show for years and decided to tune in last Monday. Because maybe it is coming to town or maybe it isn’t, either way I figured I should get in sync but after 35 minutes I decided it was a load of emotional waffle. I kid you not, I was screaming at the TV set “for the love of God, just build something”.

But, I wasn’t entirely caught up with things at The Block and it had been an emotional weekend (go the Pies), so on the Tuesday night I once again sat there ready to be entertained and was once again disappointed.

As two of the bickering, back-biting teams went to Scotty’s house in Gisborne to have dinner and talk about their emotions (strike me pink) I just thought go and build something.

It’s like watching a teenager’s party when some young drunken idiot cracks onto someone else’s squeeze and fisticuffs and emotions erupt.

So, for me, if The Block comes to Daylesford, it could be good to shine a spotlight on our area, but in terms of entertainment it is tantamount to Days of our Lives, with long lingering looks, a lot of emotions and not much actual building taking place. Block rant over…

Local Lines

Grand Final haiku 2023

Down comes Hill clutching pieces of sky and the ball

fathers bow to sons the black and white prevails time starts again

Two father Peters hug their sons at the G Daylight is righted twin wins for the coach a silver cup for his team and a baby girl

Sticking together

Side by bottom they upheld the Magpies name

- Bill Wootton

Local Lines features poetry by locals about local and any other matters. Please submit poems to Bill Wootton at cottlesbreedge@gmail.com

Bill has been a Magpies man since 1970, raised against his will as a Tiger cub. He has seen them draw twice at the business end and lose more often so rare wins must be celebrated, even when felled by a lurgey.

Pick me, pick me!

G’day! I’m Flynn and I’m just one-year-old. I am a handsome and very friendly black and tan Doberman.

I am an easy-going, happy chappy with a beautiful temperament. I’m still very young so I am playful and I need ongoing training for my bright mind. I am eager to learn and I want to please. I am house trained, dog and cat friendly. I would love to find my new best human buddy, or buddies, in life. You can make a time to come and meet me at the Mount Alexander Animal Welfare shelter in Castlemaine on 5472 5277. Microchip No 991003001938750.

Link: www.maaw.org.au

(Pick me, pick me is run in memory of Rosie & Curly - we picked them.) And proudly supported by Daylesford's

Just sayin’...

By Donna Kelly

I received some mail late last week. Snail mail. A padded envelope. Small. I opened it and inside was a blank piece of A4 paper. Nothing written on it, just a USB stick taped on. Hmmm, I thought. That's going to be interesting. And it would have been. But when I opened the document it was marked "confidential" so, of course, I quickly shut it down.

It was a leaked report by the Local Government Inspectorate. Yep, the one on Hepburn Shire Council and dealings with The Rex. And a few other things. The one that the Inspectorate refuses to release but never says why. As in the email I received last week after asking again why the report had not been released.

"Good morning Donna, Again, thank you for your enquiry. Unfortunately, as I mentioned in my previous email two weeks ago, we are unable to share any information at this time." They are nothing if not polite.

I also talked to Hepburn Shire Council to see if they had asked again for the report to be released - just to clear up a few things. That would be nice, after all this time. CEO Bradley Thomas said the council had been in regular contact with the Local Government Inspectorate regarding the release of the report and "we have been calling for the release for some time - we can’t speculate on the reasons for the delay, but encourage you to contact the LGI directly".

Now, I don't know if I can share this document. I feel like it is in the public interest for ratepayers to know what happened with the purchase of The Rex. After all, councils don't have money, it is our money. And there is the truth defence.

But The Local is not a big newspaper with lots of lawyers and money to back it up. Actually things got a little tight over the past few years. So if I publish it, or excerpts because it is pretty long, and I/The Local get sued, it would probably be the end of your free read. Even if I/The Local eventually won, because the court costs would kill us off. Which is really unfair because the report is probably the best story I have ever had the chance to publish. I reckon it would be a real page-turner. But I will ask people who are smarter than me about that, so watch this space.

But in the meantime, I don't get why the Local Government Inspectorate is being so cagey. Surely they carried out a report for a reason and if they found something right, or wrong, they would publish that and enforce more regulation if necessary to stop it happening again. I think we all pretty much agree, in hindsight, and maybe in foresight, buying The Rex was not the best idea.

The Local Government Inspectorate has as its motto or charter that it is "Encouraging higher standards of integrity, accountability and transparency in local government". But where are all of those in the Inspectorate? No one has been held accountable, there is a lack of transparency and until the report is published we don't know how the integrity went down.

I think the current Hepburn Shire Council and its ratepayers, or shall we call them shareholders, deserve more than this. If the council was a company and it ran a business like this, the shareholders would be up in arms and there would be all sorts of people involved in the integrity, accountability and transparency of those making the business decisions.

The whole Rex debacle was a huge waste of money and has caused financial ripples across the shire and is not over yet. Bleakley Street units anyone? But if the report is never released isn't that just another huge waste of money? Again, our money. (Oh, full disclosure, I may have taken a little peek.) Just sayin'...

Here is the crossword solution for Edition 289. How did you go?

All words in the crossword appear somewhere in the same edition of The Local.

No matter if you are moving to our region for the first time, moving to the big smoke or just moving down the road - we will take care of you and your prized possessions like it’s our own home we are moving.

Artists of the Central Highlands

Long-established artist and observing Jew, Daylesford’s Bill Meyer can name a multitude of diverse career highlights. They range from a painting commission for the Werdiger family, and their patronage over many years to having works included in the Hirsh collection and incorporated in multiple public collections. Further highlights include a touring exhibition of prints and drawings called Gapscape which, in the 80s, was shown in 26 state, regional and national galleries nationwide. Today, while now in his 80s, this gifted local remains busy with digital arts and music.

Eve: How would you describe your style, Bill?

Bill: Art writers have described my work variously as related to German Expressionism, to lyrical abstract expressionism, to heavy metal girders rather than petit-point...I prefer to think of my visual work as landscape-in-metaphor.

Eve: How did you come to art?

Bill: There was never any real alternative. I attended night classes in life drawing for several years until graduating from university when I was accepted as a full-time day student at the National Gallery Art School, which, by the time I graduated with a fine arts degree in painting and printmaking, had transformed into the VCA and nowadays is part of Melbourne University. Graduate studies in London followed and I spent the next decade in the Northern Hemisphere. Exhibitions lead to further development and encouragement from visiting artists to The Royal College and also curators and directors of the Institute of Contemporary Art where I exhibited, brashly, several times.

Eve: Where do you do most of your work?

Bill: I have lived and worked in Melbourne... also in London during the 70s. There have been multiple stays as a guest artist in Israel at the studios in Mishkenot Sha’ananim, Jerusalem, several years in America, again Australia as artist-in-residence at several university-attached art colleges and regional city galleries and rural accommodations for artistin-schools projects. Now, for the past four decades I am mostly living and creating from my studio on the family property in the beautiful bushland of Hepburn Shire.

Eve: Which artists have influenced you?

Bill: The artist most valued by me would be Rembrandt for his philo-semitic intensity, his draftsmanship and composition, his use of light and shade, dramatically, aesthetically, and his tenaciousness towards creativity even under the worst of adverse times. My list of admired and influencing artists include the New York Greenbergian artists of the fifties through the seventies, including Morris Louis, Helen Frankenthaler, Rothko, Barnett Newman...also artists such as Modigliani, although I am not a figurative artist, I admire the poetry of his figuration, same for Klimt and the Viennese secessionists.

Landscape influences include Turner, Caspar David Friedrich, and Hobbema. In Australian influences I include Arthur Boyd, Fred Williams and my mentor with whom I learned so much about the philosophy and beauty of being an artist, Roger Kemp.

Victor Majzner, an artist friend to this day, has been part of both that world involving galleries, professional practice and education, and also the more spiritually focused aspects of the Jewish art world. There are others...

Eve: Which particular factors influence your work?

Bill: Money was always an issue but somehow I have survived with the help of democratic governments, friends, family and patrons albeit that they complained often and frequently at length. Networking and working on projects with other artists has been personally and creatively a great thing. In the past several decades, being located in the Central Highlands has given me a sense of much-needed personal, spiritual and working space. The forests around Daylesford have contributed content and metaphor to my work.

Eve: What is your media of choice?

Bill: Printmaking as in fine art editions, initially as a conventionally analogue printmaker and more recently using digital technology.

with Eve Lamb

I also paint on canvas with either acrylic or oil, I draw, and have constructed multimedia installations with sound, light paper and natural organic materials. Recently, over the past decade, I have returned to musical composition, recording the finished works in digital formats.

Eve: What would you rate as the biggest challenge?

Bill: In some ways the challenges to professional artists today are similar to challenges to artists since the rise of mercantile civilisation from the Renaissance onwards. Money, creative headspace and time, quiet creative time. The speed of life today however is destroying the creative headspace required for the truly competent and caring professional.

Eve: And for you, the greatest rewards?

Bill: The greatest rewards are that well-known ‘frisson’, that delicious shivering when, in your soul, you know that something good has happened; a creation which has meaning. This is so rare but is an affirmation I am in the correct type of service and the right place.