Wednesday, 14 March, 2018
Pakenham
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/PakenhamBerwickGazette
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Firefighter treated for smoke inhalation A firefighter required medical treatment, and two occupants were sent to hospital following a house fire in Berwick. Six crews from Frankston, Berwick and Hallam fire brigades were called to the Maryn Close, address at 3.30am on 9 March. Firefighters worked tirelessly to bring the house fire, which was fully evolved on arrival, under control by 3.47am. A man in his 20s and a woman in her 40s were taken to Casey Hospital for observation, while a firefighter was treated by paramedics for smoke inhalation. A CFA spokesperson confirmed the firefighter was “ok”. The fire is being treated as suspicious.
Firefighters turn out to a house fire in the early hours of Friday 9 March. 178643 Picture: GARY SISSONS
Boarding refused By Kyra Gillespie Cardinia Shire Council has unanimously rejected the application for a 41-bedroom, maleonly boarding house at 1-3 Savage Street, Pakenham. In a packed Town Planning meeting on Monday 5 March, councillors expressed concerns about the proposed development, which has garnered over 100 objections from the wider community since the application was lodged in July last year. While each councillor cited their own reasons for objection, key areas of concern included the lack of car parking, poor internal amenity and inconsistency with the surrounding neighbourhood character. While the maximum number of residents at any one time has been reduced from 41 to 30,
the council was not convinced that this was a sufficient reduction. “I’m in support of social housing, but in this case we are looking at one kitchen and three main bathrooms between 41 men,” Cr Jodie Owen said. “Even if it is reduced to 30 residents, I believe it is an over-development of the site. “There’s also currently only one staff member between all these people, which brings into question the functionality of this facility for the residents; there’s no support staff there to help them find stable accommodation and employment, and no one there to help them have a positive linkage back to the community.” Citing her former work with the Department of Justice, Cr Owen said the safety and well-being of the men who would be residing in the proposed site could be compromised.
“I did a program finding affordable housing and employment for people who had unfortunately found themselves on the wrong side of the law. “I worked full-time and had six clients. “So to think there could be 30 in there and only one staff member is not a healthy environment for these men. “It’s totally unfair for residents nearby and for those who may find themselves in this facility.” In a similar vein, Cr Ray Brown said it would be showing “negligence” on the part of council if the application were to be passed in its current state. “We would be condemning them to a life of being locked in their room because there’s nowhere else they can go to be alone,” Cr Brown said.
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“A life of fighting for the food they put their name on in the fridge, fighting to be able to use the toilet, and fighting to use a single television. “These men need help, not just a roof over their head.” While they have taken the concerns of residents into consideration, Cr Jeff Springfield was quick to point out that the council did not support “prejudice and discrimination.” “Many of the sentiments that I have read in objections I do not support, such as one that reads: ‘There’s going to be 41 single men living in one house. Think about what happens to men when they see young girls - their religion allows them to have young girls’, and another that says ‘people only end up in a situation like that if they have issues,’ he said. Continued page 4
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