Re. New impetus for bike trail plan (Weekly April 3)
The Napthine government is excited to announce an overpass to complete the next stage of the Federation Trail. There’s only one problem: the bridge doesn’t complete it and, along with the current plan, makes a mess of the project.
Under the government plan for the trail we will see major parts of the extension kept on roads throughout Spotswood, defeating the very purpose of the trail — to provide a superior and safer commute for cyclists in the western suburbs and separate cycle traffic from major roads.
Luke Donnellan MP, shadow minister for roads, road safety and the TAC
Wake up and enjoy the ride
Finally! Now if we can just get Maribyrnong Council out of its bike-funding slumber and stop it relying so heavily on the state government to do their job, us westies can enjoy a bike network like those on the other side of the river.
John Glastonbury
Re. Chooks need a place in the pecking order (Weekly, March 27)
We have no chickens anywhere near our place but still get rats and mice. Chickens are not the cause. I thought Maribyrnong Council was ahead of the pack with green policies, but with most of us having small (and shrinking) yards, these regulations make it impossible for most of us to reduce our food costs by keeping chickens.
Curly
It is silly — mice and rats were invading and infesting my yard long before I kept chooks. I have kept chooks for 10 years and lived in Maribyrnong for 20 years. It seems odd that they would bring the law prohibiting chicken houses within 15 metres of a dwelling in 2005 — about the same time people started to be more sustainable. None of this makes sense.
Chooky
Maribyrnong Council’s rules basically make it impossible for any suburban dwelling to own chickens. We’d all need to have small hobby farms to fit their requirements.
The council needs to open its eyes and ears and listen to what the people want . . . not just the odd whiny neighbour scared of rats. I have the occasional rats and there are no chickens in sight. There’s a plague of rats in Melbourne, but I don’t suppose the council is interested in that.
Save the chooks
Great work, Angela Chiew (a Maidstone resident who is seeking answers from the council which has ordered her to remove her chickens). Hold your ground.
Shelley
Hope you get to keep your chooks. I have lived in many different suburbs around Melbourne and I must say the Maribyrnong Council really is the worst in terms of ridiculous, inflexible rules and regulations.
It also has the most expensive dog registration in all of Melbourne and, from my experience, paying for vet bills for a dog that has had its foot cut by broken glass, the least well-maintained parks.
Good luck!
Footscray
