Webb Dock Survey

The operator of Victoria International Container Terminal (the new container part of Webb Dock) would dearly love input from BCNA members on their views of the community engagement in the design and construction of the facility.

It can be accessed here.

The deadline for responding is midnight on Friday 3rd February (that's THIS Friday).

Reminder - Waterfront Place Survey

Just reminding everyone that you are invited to have your say on the City of Port Phillip's (CoPP) design guidelines and public realm concept design for the Waterfront Place Precinct.

The survey closes this Friday (17 Jan).

Waterfront Place and good design of the public realm is important for everyone.  More details about the survey are here.

What's On - Community Gardens, Walking, Tennis. Swimming, and Film Making

You may be interested that there are number of community gardens in Port Melbourne.  For more details of them and how you may participate go to www.portphillip.vic.gov.au/gardens.htm.

Inner South Community Health (ISCH) runs the following walking groups which some residents may find interesting / worthwhile / fun / etc.  More details can be found on this page.

As part of Melbourne Tennis Week, there will be free come and try cardio tennis sessions at JL Murphy Reserve on Tuesday 7 February. More details can be found here.

The Port Melbourne Icebergs meet at 8:30am on Saturdays - we have now put a link to their Facebook page in the Links to Useful Websites section on the right hand side of our home page.

ISCH also have a free short film making course starting soon. Learn how to make a film by working in small teams to bring a story to life. All films produced will be used to promote the various work that ISCH's Social Health and Inclusion Programme (SHIP) does. It runs on Fridays for 11 weeks beginning 10th February at the Port Melbourne Trugo Club. For more information or to book your place, contact Sally Rossiter on 9525 1300 or email ship@ischs.org.au.

Council Plan - Workshops

The City of Port Phillip (CoPP) are holding evening workshops in February across four key topics which are important elements of their new Council Plan 2017-2027. They are seeking a representative cross-section of our community in these workshops.

There will be some pre reading involved for participants prior to the workshop which CoPP will provide by email. CoPP will provide a $50 voucher to offset expenses, like transport costs and care arrangements, to enable people to participate. A light meal will also be provided. An online forum will also be hosted for anyone who can’t attend.

The following key topics will be discussed:
Water:  Tuesday 7 February, 6-9pm
Diversity and inclusion: Thursday 9 February, 6-9pm
Waste management:  Tuesday 14 February, 6-9pm
Transport and parking:  Thursday 16 February, 6-9pm

Register your interest by Sunday 29 January 2017 at www.portphillip.vic.gov.au/councilplan2017.htm. Spaces are limited. They will contact you towards the end of January to confirm your participation in the workshops and will endeavour to offer you a place for your preferred topic.

Workshop participants will also be invited to attend a Findings Forum on Thursday 23 February, 6-9pm to discuss the outcomes and recommendations from all the workshops.

Community Grants

The City of Port Phillip (CoPP) Community Grants program aims to work together with funded groups and organisations to meet identified community needs, support local networks, promote and encourage participation in community life, facilitate innovation and promote access, inclusion and acceptance of diversity.

The 2017-18 Community Grants Applications Forms and Guidelines are now available for preview. For more information go to www.portphillip.vic.gov.au/community_grants.htm.

Blessing of the Waters - Sunday 8 Jan, Princes Pier

Sorry for the late notice but it's only just come to my attention that this is on THIS WEEKEND.

The Blessing of the Waters Greek Orthodox ceremony takes place on Sunday the 8th of January 2017 commencing at 1pm and will be followed by music, dancing and activities for children until late afternoon. Also, food and drink will be available at the Pier together with a variety of other stalls.

The Blessing of the Waters at Port Melbourne is a combined celebration for all Parishes in Melbourne celebrated by His Grace Bishop Ezekiel of Dervis together with all the Clergy of Melbourne.

The promise of a year's good fortune enticed scores of young Greek Orthodox men to try their luck in the annual Blessing of the Waters Ceremony. The ritual commemorates Christ's baptism in the River Jordan, termed the Epiphany by St. John Chryssostom (from the Greek word for 'manifestation', 'epifaniea'). The ceremony of Theofania, following Epiphany Day, culminated in Bishop Ezekiel of Dervis tossing the wooden cross into the bay. Epiphany, the 12th day after Christmas, celebrates the visit of the three kings or wise men to the Christ Child, signifying the extension of salvation to the Gentiles.

Survey on Outdoor Exercise

The Social Health and Inclusion Port (SHIP) project (part of the Inner South Community Health Service, ischs.org.au) are looking into offering a series of short outdoor community exercise classes at a beginner level for people to try in early 2017. Let them know what you would like to see available in Port Melbourne by completing their short survey. Depending on community interest, classes will run between February and April 2017.

Westgate Park Health Walk

I've been alerted to this by the SHIP project.

Victoria Walks are this month featuring a walk around Westgate Park. Located just off Todd Road, this walk provides the some stunning scenery, including waterways, abundant bird life and different indigenous plants.  Details here.

Waterfront Place Precinct Update

The City of Port Phillip (CoPP) is preparing design guidelines and a public realm concept design for the Waterfront Place Precinct. This project is a key action identified by the community as part of the Port Melbourne Waterfront Urban Design Framework. It is timely as the Waterfront Place Precinct and Station Pier are currently undergoing change with a number of development applications and proposed modifications to traffic access in Beach Street, adjoining the precinct. The design guidelines will ultimately form the basis of a future planning scheme amendment.

In August and November 2016, key stakeholders representing residents, business and land owners, the Port of Melbourne and TT Lines took part in workshops to explore key challenges, priorities and opportunities in the Waterfront Place Precinct. As a result of the workshops, draft project parameters were formed by these stakeholder participants.

You are invited to have your say and complete the survey so we can understand whether the draft project parameters achieve community objectives. The survey will close on Friday 27 January, 2017. A Background Issues Paper has been developed to help inform the community engagement process. You will have an opportunity to provide further feedback through community consultation in 2017.

Beach Street Queuing Lane Update

In June 2016, the City of Port Phillip (CoPP) endorsed the refined design of the Beach Street Queuing Lane. A public tender for construction of the Beach Street Queuing Lane was released with a request to deliver works prior to the start of cruise shipping season in October 2016. The tender process revealed it was not feasible to complete the construction within these timeframes.

The CoPP has now awarded a tender for the delivery of works. Construction will commence in May 2017 and is scheduled for completion by July 2017.

The scope of works include:

• Creating a Station Pier lane along Beach Street from Bay Street to the roundabout that will hold queuing traffic at cruise ship times
• Utilising the existing pavement space on the foreshore side of Beach Street by altering most of the angle parking to become parallel parking, to make room for the Station Pier lane
• Adding a lane to the roundabout to create a lane that goes straight through to Station Pier and a one right turn lane, effectively removing congestion from the roundabout
• Creating an on-road bike lane in both directions on Beach Street