By Rowan Forster
More than $700,000 will be pumped into Cardinia Shire through the State Government’s first ever community group raffle, but the process has come under fire from regional townships.
Six local initiatives have emerged victorious in the highly-competitive Pick My Project draw, including the Officer Recreation Reserve’s social hub, a state-of-the-art apiary and a Sikh community kitchen.
However, towns such as Gembrook, Emerald and Kooweerup were not spared a single dollar.
The Pick My Project system has been rubbished for dumping tiny, tight-knit communities in the same field as the heaving City of Casey and City of Frankston municipalities, which share a population of 430,000.
As the winning projects were judged by how many votes they received – ratepayers claim the “popularity contest” was heavily stacked against Gembrook, which accommodates just 2300 residents.
Jacqueline Child, who advocated for Gembrook Primary School’s oval revitalisation, said she was extremely disappointed that rural communities had been snubbed.
“We’re disappointed the Hills community missed out on funding for vital community projects because we’re classified as metropolitan,” she said.
“If we were classified as regional, it might have been a different outcome for us.
“The odds were stacked against us.
“There’s no fighting those larger base numbers in Cranbourne and Frankston.”
The Southern Metro region, encompassing Cardinia, Casey, Frankston, Greater Dandenong, Kingston and the Mornington Peninsula, received the biggest state-wide funding allocation, with $3.64 million for 31 projects.
Residents in Lang Lang told a similar story, failing to secure any funding as part of the program.
Scott Hamilton, involved in a proposed expansion of the community’s scout hall and the beautification of a water tower, held the same concerns.
“Unfortunately Lang Lang was in the same area with project in the City of Casey, Greater Dandenong, Kingston and Frankston,” he said.
“As our population base is very small, both our projects, as well as other Kooweerup projects, were unsuccessful.
“Hopefully next time the judging criteria may be more favourable to smaller communities.”
Minister for Suburban Development Lily D’Ambrosio said Pick My Project had a huge response.
“Communities have really backed the projects that mean the most to them,” she said.
“It’s the very first time that this has ever been done, giving power to local communities to decide on the projects that are right for them.”
Some of the notable projects to miss out on funding in Cardinia included the restoration of Nar Nar Goon murals, a bike and walking path for Toomuc Valley and the revitalisation of Emerald Bakehouse.
