Piers Festival - Sunday 3 April, 12 noon to 7pm

There will be a new festival experience for the 5th Piers Festival on Sunday 3 April 2016 at Princes Pier, Port Melbourne. Held during Victoria’s Term 1 school holidays, the day will be headlined by legendary singer/songwriter Archie Roach alongside new global musical collaborations, kids’ activities, forums, exhibitions and a gourmet paradise from Victoria’s exceptional artists and cultural communities. Highlights include:

• Main Stage will feature one of Australia’s finest celtic rock bands Claymore, Italian Greek aficionados Magna Grecia, Orkeztra Glasso Bashalde’s wide spanning repertoire from Romanian gypsy to Klezmer, Arabic, Macedonian and other Balkan melodies, powerful mana from Polynesian dance group Nuholani, Melbourne’s favourite 60s Asian/Western garage pop explosion Empat Lima, sensational high energy collaborators Amaru Tribe & The Lalibelas ft. Oscar Jiminez and Nhatty Man, headlined by Australia’s iconic and profound Indigenous voice and musician Archie Roach.
• The Landing will bring together a collection of some of Victoria’s most active cultural associations representing their communities and culture through exhibitions, activities and performances
• What Happened at the Pier is curated by Lella Carridi and will feature live poetry readings, forums and musical responses inside The Gatehouse on Princes Pier alongside an exhibition of artefacts and moving image illustrating the narratives from the artists and Memory Keepers who arrived to Melbourne from Princes Pier
• Cultural games, roving activities and performers
• Food stalls and food trucks from local providers

The Piers Festival celebrates and reflects on the collective historical and contemporary migration stories at its site, Princes Pier, the significant entry point where almost half of Australia’s post World War II refugees arrived. The Festival brings to life the pivotal role Princes Pier played from 1915 to 1969 in Victoria’s growth and as a gateway to the diversity of cultures that enrich our community.

Have your say on speed limits on local streets

The City of Port Phillip (CoPP) is surveying residents about local speed limits.  In particular it is looking at implementing 40km/hr limits on more local streets.

The survey closes on 24 March and can be accessed here.

London Hotel redevelopment

The City of Port Phillip has advertised an application to re-develop the London Hotel site at 92 Beach Street and 2-4 Princes Street.  The proposal is for an eight storey mixed use building comprising a restaurant on the ground floor and 32 dwellings above.

BCNA has lodged an Objection on the grounds that:
1) the planned building will lead to overshadowing of the bay trail the bike and pedestrian paths on the foreshore in mid-Winter;
2) the proposed waiver of a loading bay at the site;
3) a reduction in car parking for the building’s residents; and
4) argues that some parking should be provided for restaurant patrons.

The BCNA objection is based on research by BCNA member Jill Maddox.

Fishermans Bend Update

Our Secretary Bill Fisher has provided the following report from the forum meeting held on 29th February.

Minister Wynne has accepted 34 of the 40 recommendations from the first report of the Ministerial Advisory Committee for Fishermans Bend. The remaining six recommendations have been adopted in part and may be fully adopted after further work.

Minister Wynne made the announcement at a well-attended meeting in Port Melbourne on Monday 29th February 2016. BCNA considers this is a good response to the first report of the advisory committee.

A refreshed Vision Statement for Fishermans Bend is expected to be released in April for community discussion.

Little Free Library

We've received the following from Inner South Community Health:

Do you want your very own FREE Little Free Library?

Join a growing movement and put a little free library in your front yard or your local park!

The Port Phillip Men’s Shed Association, Vibrant Villages initiative and SHIP are running some woodworking sessions at Station Pier on every Sunday over March (except Easter Sunday) between 2pm-4pm as part of the ARTcontained project.

Come along and build your own library for FREE – then share your favourite books with your neighbours!

No experience necessary!

For more information  or to get involved please call Danielle McCaffrey 9525 1300 or 0459 988 353