New VPTA website
Our web address is the same, but our website now looks very different! Further enhancements, including a translation service, will be made over the coming weeks. ‘Latest News’ is a feature of our Home Page and this will be updated at intervals, along with corresponding photos. The content of our website pages has been designed to provide information about the VPTA and our services. Further adjustments to content will continue to be made as we roll out our work plan, visitation program and other important initiatives.
Housing Week 2015: 6th – 12th September
Housing Week was re-instated this year by Minister Foley and was a low-key affair. The VPTA was invited to attend a BBQ at Park Towers with local tenants, Departmental staff and the Minister. This provided an opportunity to have a chat with the Minister and his Housing Advisor, and to set up a meeting with him soon on to discuss a range of matters including the pressing need for more public housing.
Ministerial Announcements
During Housing Week, the Minister of Housing, Martin Foley, made a number of announcements, including:
East West Houses To Help Homeless Start Over
Twenty houses that were compulsorily acquired for the Melbourne East West Link project will be managed by a partnership between the Salvation Army and the Collingwood Football Club Foundation’s Magpie Nest housing project to provide shelter for homeless persons.
Markham Avenue Estate Planning Gets Underway
The ageing and semi-abandoned Markham Avenue Estate in Ashburton is to be completely demolished in preparation for redevelopment. The planning includes replacing the fifty-six existing public housing dwellings with sixty new ones, alongside 180 private dwellings.
Building Norlane Community Is Helping To Build Lives
The Geelong Work and Learning Centre initiative (which supports local residents by providing pathways to education, training and employment), in partnership with the Public Tenant Employment Program has assisted local residents to find work on the Norlane project, which will see the completion of the final twenty-one public housing dwellings later this year. The Norlane project includes a total of one hundred and sixty public and the same number of private homes, most of which are already completed and occupied.
Frances Penington and Molly Hadfield Awards
These Awards recognise public and community housing tenants who have contributed to their neighbourhood by working as volunteers with a community group, agency or charity or have otherwise supported people in their area.
For more information on how to nominate someone for these awards visit www.dhs.vic.gov.au/about-the-department/plans,-programs-and-projects/projects-and-initiatives/housing-and-accommodation/frances-penington-and-molly-hadfield-awards-2015
Victoria in Bloom Competition
Entries are now open for the annual Victoria in Bloom competition. The competition is an annual celebration of the gardening efforts of a large number of public and community housing residents who create decorative, productive and sustainable gardens around their homes and communities. Entries close on 2 October, 2015. For more information visit www.dhs.vic.gov.au or email: vicbloom@dhhs.vic.gov.au
Reminder:
VPTA Annual General Meeting – 11am, Tuesday 29th September
VPTA office, 11 High Street Close, Northcote.
Please register your attendance by contacting the VPTA.