Star News Group

Cracks form in history

�The hotel�s heritage listing and ambiance makes it an icon of the local area.� The Berwick Inn�s website says it all. But others aren�t so sure the business is committing to the �heritage charm� th

Change in the wind

FARMERS shouldn�t ignore the effects of climate change or buy into the �doom and gloom�. That�s the message from a farming workshop, hosted by the Cardinia Shire Council and the Department of Primary

Racecourse sale is odds-on to win

THE sale of the Pakenham racecourse site last week is set to provide a win-win situation for the wider Pakenham community. Gerard Collins Real Estate director Derrick Brown, who helped clinch the sal

Club grows a ROC hard future

DUMMY spits will be a familiar sight at the ROC Netball Club over the coming months as a remarkable eight mothers-to-be prepare to deliver the club a bright future. The club�s talent pool is about to

Green for rescue

BEACONHILLS Golf Club will be brought back from the brink of bankruptcy, and the land protected from residential zoning, following the council�s move to buy the premises. Cardinia Shire Councillors c

They think he can!

A TEENAGE hip hop dancer from Hampton Park will be showing off his moves to thousands of spectators later this year. Brandon Harrison, 14, went through an intensive auditioning process in front of S

Bet on having a Ball

MEDIA personality Danny Frawley and Collingwood star Luke Ball visited Cranbourne on Wednesday, to open the new TAB Agency at Springhill Shopping Centre. The new Springhill TAB is part of a multi-mil

Call for memorial

A CASEY councillor has called for an ANZAC War Memorial to be built in the River Gum Ward. At a general purpose meeting last week, Cr Lynette Keleher asked the council officers to prepare a report on

Tightening the belt

IMAGINE living off just $2 a day. That�s the reality for 1.4 billion people around the world living in extreme poverty, and it�s the challenge Cranbourne teenager Kevin Tangga took on. The Cranbourn

PM's key answers

MENTAL health, carbon tax, education and troops in Afghanistan. These were some of the hot topics when Prime Minister Julia Gillard and 13 ministers attended a community cabinet in Berwick last week.

All in the family

UPPER Ferntree Gully Fire Brigade volunteer Tracey Jenner found a second family when she signed up with the CFA almost four years ago. The 26-year-old had just moved to Australia from England in July

Cracks form in history

Change in the wind

Racecourse sale is odds-on to win

THE sale of the Pakenham racecourse site last week is set to provide a win-win situation for the wider Pakenham community. Gerard Collins Real Estate director Derrick Brown, who helped clinch the sal

Club grows a ROC hard future

Green for rescue

They think he can!

A TEENAGE hip hop dancer from Hampton Park will be showing off his moves to thousands of spectators later this year. Brandon Harrison, 14, went through an intensive auditioning process in front of S

Bet on having a Ball

MEDIA personality Danny Frawley and Collingwood star Luke Ball visited Cranbourne on Wednesday, to open the new TAB Agency at Springhill Shopping Centre. The new Springhill TAB is part of a multi-mil

Call for memorial

A CASEY councillor has called for an ANZAC War Memorial to be built in the River Gum Ward. At a general purpose meeting last week, Cr Lynette Keleher asked the council officers to prepare a report on

Tightening the belt

PM's key answers

MENTAL health, carbon tax, education and troops in Afghanistan. These were some of the hot topics when Prime Minister Julia Gillard and 13 ministers attended a community cabinet in Berwick last week.

Drugs challenge

THE City if Casey has recorded one of the highest numbers of ambulance call-outs for drug and alcohol overdoses in the state. Figures released by the Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre last week h

Five Survive

FIVE young people were lucky to survive after a horror crash in Narre Warren South. About 2am on Sunday, emergency services were called to Pound Road where a commodore believed to have been driven by

Bad for business

CRANBOURNE�S High Street is at risk of becoming a �ghost town� if something is not done about traffic and pedestrian safety concerns, says Casey councillor Kevin Bradford. With some businesses strugg

Up to the challenge

A TEAM of cyclists will take on a challenge of a lifetime when they fly to Cambodia next week. Dandenong-worker Jared Foster will be among 15 Victorians, with and without disability, who will cycle

High rate of booze emergencies

DRUG and alcohol ambulance call-outs are on the rise in Greater Dandenong, with the city ranked 5th in the state. New research by the Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre has revealed ambulances we

Peak time gridlock a major problem

MORE trains mean more cars are at a standstill through the municipality according to a Greater Dandenong Councillor. Councillor Roz Blades highlighted the level crossing at Heatherton Road Noble Park

Culture craze

YOGHURT is the answer for one Dandenong manufacturer looking to succeed. While manufacturers continue to lay-off staff around the state, Chobani Australia (also known as Bead Foods) is expanding its

Flash clean-up effort

TECOMA�S Flash Car Care site was looking a little neater last week following last month�s community call for a tidy-up. On 24 April the Mail spoke to traders, police, and Lyster Ward councillor Saman

Face-to-face with PM

PRIME Minister Julia Gillard stopped in at The Basin Community House ahead of her Berwick Community Cabinet last Wednesday. The Mail was offered an exclusive � although brief � chat with the PM and a

A shed of their own

MONBULK men looking to get involved in the community need to look no further � the Monbulk Men�s Shed is now here. It was officially opened last Saturday on Main Road next to the Monbulk Primary Scho

A power of work

RESTORATION works on Mount Evelyn�s Owl Land have finally been completed. The three-year Owl Land Project was a collaborating of the Mount Evelyn Environment Protection and Progress Association (MEEP

Red tape fire risk

NEW fire siren guidelines could see high-risk areas in the Dandenongs stay without access to the crucial bushfire warning tool. The Mail last week reported that Fires Services Commissioner Craig Laps

Tourism told to step up

HILLS tourism operators need to capitalise on a new fitness track being built alongside the popular 1000 Steps. That was the word from Dandenong Ranges Tourist Information Centre manager Michael Axel

Rail link contracts

THE Regional Rail Link is chugging along with the announcement of a $570 million construction contract by Gellibrand MP Nicola Roxon and Victorian Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder. The $570 mi

Armed PSO�s on station

PROTECTIVE Service Officers (PSOs) have arrived in Footscray. Footscray train station will now be that bit safer at night after a second squad of 18 PSOs was deployed across Footscray, Flinders St an

Curfews stay

YARRAVILLE�S truck curfews are staying put. That�s the message from the State Government, which confirmed last week it would not remove the truck curfews to make way for more freight travelling to th

The great outdoors

ST MICHAEL'S grade-five students thoroughly enjoyed their challenging but fun, outdoor education camp recently. Their camp was held at the Briar's Park in Mt Martha and included a range of activities

Just a dollar a day

TRADERS in Rossiter Road, Kooweerup, are calling on the community to spend a dollar a day in their end of town to support local businesses struggling to stay afloat. They say that Station Street has

Cross-country run to America

JAKE Templar is tearing up the dirt tracks around Pakenham Upper following his selection in an Australia school cross-country team that will compete in America later this year. Jake, 13, placed highly

Feeling a little blue

THERE'S more than a touch of the Avatars about this one, but �John Carter� has gone the full-on space opera. Based on a science fiction story written by Edgar Rice Burroughs in 1912, the story sees ex

Aged care fire

POLICE believe a fire which came within metres of sleeping residents at the Ron Andrews Nursing Home on Saturday night was deliberately lit. The blaze at the Pakenham Aged Care facility was one of thr

Simmering sibling desire

YOUNG Pakenham sprinter Karlee Bailey doesn't have to go far to find the motivation to push herself that little bit harder, to run that little bit faster. Neither does her big brother Jason, or little

Fresh Waters spring winners

THE Cardinia Waters Bowls Club has made it two out of two pennant flags in their first year of competition. The midweek mixed side made it to the final with an easy 84 shot to 48 win over Cranbourne a

Out of the doldrumsinto the fire

KOOWEERUP Football Club fans are hoping their side's two big name off-season recruits can lead its promising young brigade out of the Ellinbank and District Football League (EDFL) doldrums. New coach

WGCA District and Sub-District review � semi-finals

NAR NAR GOON-MARYKNOLL and Clyde fulfilled unspoken obligations as ladder leaders to advance into the grand final, while Merinda Park was brought back to life by Jess Mathers and a shock loss to Lang

No timely abdication for King

THE Betfair Stony Creek Cup has made its way to Officer after Second King beat home a small but strong field in the time-honoured Gippsland event. The cup will be added to owner Sam Pelly's trophy cab

Family gathers to celebrate- Bunyip's Gladys Middleton celebrates her 105th birthday today (Wednesday 14 March) This photo was taken on her 104th birthday celebration last year. 61392

GLADYS Middleton celebrates the impressive milestone of her 105th birthday today, (Wednesday 14 March). Mrs Middleton has lived at Hillview Bunyip Aged Care for almost six years and had six children,

Novel's love on the land

HER husband may jokingly refer to her genre as 'sex in the bush' but readers Australia-wide know there is much more to Margareta Osborn's novels. The Victorian author signed copies of her debut novel,

Riot of colour

ST Patrick's Primary School students proudly unveiled a beautiful mural they helped create for their school gym earlier this month. The Pakenham school was one of four target schools in Cardinia Shire

Officer split looms

THE Officer and Beaconsfield townships have no �natural connection� to the hills � but the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) has recommended Officer be split between the Ranges and Central wards. L

It's not trivial

PAKENHAM'S Nicole Williams wasn't sure what she was in for when she signed up to the Windermere Adventure Challenge. But since she decided to take part, her family members required Windermere's servic

Fair ingredients for a winner

Tara-Jayne Delaney's Year 12 work will be on display in the Top Designs exhibition at Melbourne Museum. 78391 Picture: Stewart Chambers ST MARGARET'S School graduate Tara-Jayne Delaney has managed

Isabella's wish granted

A TRIP to the Gold Coast was a welcome gift for a young Bunyip family. The Cardinia-Casey branch of the Make-A-Wish Foundation gave four-year-old Isabella a special theme park holiday for a week with

Spruce up Scouts

EMERALD Scouts have won a five year battle to get their hall upgraded in time for its anniversary next year. The State Government has provided $75,000 towards crucial repairs and Scout committee chai

Books open up

OFFICER Primary School has the chance to win books and colourful reading mats for their classrooms thanks to Carpet Court's Storybook Challenge. There are also some individual prizes to be won. Grad

Dogs drag pet cat away - Val and her husband Michael want their pet Oliver back, after he was taken by two dogs. 78309 Picture: Donna Oates

AN UNPROVOKED dog attack on a beloved pet cat has left its Cockatoo owners distraught and concerned for its welfare. Val Butler said Oliver was attacked by what she believed were two off-leash bull ma

Bulls hold firm

WITH the long weekend cow numbers fell to 97 head at VLE Pakenham. All the usual buyers attended the market which included mostly heavy-weight-beef cows. There was also a good run of young Charolais

That's not my name

IT may be the third letter of the alphabet, but it's the not the third letter of our fair town. A letter C has been spotted in the spelling of Pakenham (note: no C before K) for the second time in two

Pedal-powered charity boost

THERE'LL be some sore bums after a 600 kilometre bike ride through Ballarat next weekend � but it's all in the name of charity. The Ride to Conference event starts on Sunday 18 March and Rotary clubs