FEBRUARY 17, 2015 \ MELTON.STARWEEKLY.COM.AU
NEWS + SPORT + PROPERTY GUIDE
A blooming good day out
(Damjan Janevski)
A family fun day for the growing Diggers Rest community will be held later this month to coincide with the launch of a home display village at Bloomdale. Bloomdale, one of Victoria’s newest estates, is a planned community in the township of Diggers Rest developed by Investa Land. About 40 families are already living in the new estate and hundreds more are expected to join them. Investa Land’s Victorian general manager, Paul O’Brien, said the opening was a great family day out and an opportunity for new residents to connect with the wider Diggers Rest community. Mr O’Brien said the event would help link the communities, both new and old. “There’s also plenty for the kids to do,” he said. That will include a jumping castle and playground. Diggers Rest Primary School will also jump on board to support the event and will run a sausage sizzle and face-painting fundraiser. Principal Rachelle Hedger says all money raised on the day will go to establishing classroom gardens to provide an outdoor learning opportunity for students. The community day is on Saturday, February 28, from noon-3pm. SOPHIE, COOPER AND DARCY
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Council chases $5m debt
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telecommunications, electricity and water sectors. The Department of Justice’s Sheriffs Office, the Public Transport Ombudsman, the Victorian Ombudsman, Legal Aid, Centrelink, the Salvation Army’s Social Housing Services advisers, and financial counsellors from Melton and Brimbank will also be represented. Good Shepherd financial inclusion manager Sally Edwards said authorities would be offering free information and advice to families struggling with repayments. “Unpaid bills can mount up and cause significant financial stress,” Ms Edwards said. The ‘Bring your bills’ session is at the Melton community hall, 232 High Street, Melton, from 10am to 2pm on Friday.
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many in our community commuting to their places of work,” Mr Marshall said. “Sometimes it’s a situation of changed circumstances due to ill health of one of the income earners in the family, mortgage pressure, high rents, and the cost of education and childcare. General living costs can all get on top of many in our community.” With this in mind, financial counsellors and legal practitioners will be at Melton this Friday as part of a Good Shepherd Australia-New Zealand ‘Bring your bills day’ to advise residents how to get on top of their bills and fines. People will be able to speak to staff from Melton council’s rates department and representatives of financial services and the
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Unpaid fines and overdue rates have led to Melton council pursuing a combined debt of $5 million. There are about 9500 total infringements and the council wants residents to cough up what they owe. Most unpaid fines, amounting to $4.2 million, were amassed in the 2013-14 financial year alone. Council’s finance manager, Shan Thurairajah, encouraged residents who have outstanding debts to immediately discuss their situation with the council. “Council encourages residents who have not yet paid their rates to do so at the earliest
convenience to avoid any action,” Mr Thurairajah said. “If [you] are having financial difficulty, contact the council to discuss the possibility of entering payment arrangements or discuss financial hardship policy. “Unpaid rates will incur interest, charged at the prescribed rate, and should it continue further, [cases] can be brought before the magistrates court.” Djerriwarrh Health Services chief executive Bruce Marshall said it was important for people to budget correctly and “live within their means”. “Some of the reasons people do struggle with their finances is increasingly high energy costs and the high cost of fuel, particularly with
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