KILLARNEY district residents have asked the state government to reinstate the local community as the committee of management for the town’s recreation reserve and nearby beach.
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Prompted by Moyne Shire mayor Jim Doukas’ imminent motion to allow racehorse training on Killarney Beach, 35 residents from Killarney, Crossley, Tower Hill and Koroit have made a formal request to the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) asking “to take back the role of committee of management for the Killarney Recreation Reserve”.
According to a statement on behalf of the 35 residents, the aim is “to ensure the beaches are safe, to protect the environmental and cultural sites within the reserve, and to ensure that the original purpose of the reserve is upheld”.
“The community has lost confidence in the Moyne Shire’s ability to provide safety and stability in its management of the reserve,” the statement said.
A group of local community members were the community of management for the recreation reserve and beach from 1961 before handing the role over to DELWP’s previous incarnation the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) in 2009 “due to the ever increasing complexity of administration and governance requirements”. The DSE in turn gave control to Moyne Shire later that year.
The residents’ statement said they had believed Moyne Shire’s April vote to prohibit racehorse training on Killarney Beach to have been “the final decision (and) the community were relieved that the issue had finally been resolved”.
It cited the shire’s community consultation process which received 42 submissions against racehorses training on Killarney Beach and nine in favour.
“The community has grown weary of the lack of stability and consistency of Moyne Shire Council and are at a loss to understand what has influenced Mayor Doukas to change his mind, yet again,” the statement said.