Tuesday, 16 June 2026

 Renee HEATH (Eastern Victoria) (21:40): (2576) Clare Fitzmaurice, the Liberal candidate in Monbulk, recently met with the Village Township Group Ferntree Gully, who raised several concerns around the shopping precinct in the area. This incredible group of community members are dedicated to the area and they want to see it thrive. They want to see businesses succeed, they want to see the area being welcoming and appealing for people to live in and to visit and they want the area to be socially cohesive. On their behalf Clare recently wrote to the Minister for Transport Infrastructure detailing the group’s concerns about the state of disrepair of VicTrack land in the vicinity of the shopping strip, and they eagerly await the minister’s reply.

However, this is not the only issue that they are up against. Despite this government standing up and lecturing Victorians about how wonderful it is to do business in this state, the evidence on the ground tells a very different story. Small businesses in the area are struggling to keep their doors open and many have shut. Approximately 50 per cent of the shops in the main street are vacant, and Clare spoke to more shop owners who were planning to shut up shop soon because it is just so hard to keep a business running. Graffiti covers any spare wall or flat surface, significantly reducing amenity and adding to the feeling that the area is unsafe. The rate of crime in the area is an issue. Shop staff are often scared to walk to their cars in the dark, stealing from shops is frequent and kids on e-bikes are deterring customers.

The very high concentration of rooming houses in the area results in regular instances of antisocial behaviour that are a problem for retailers and customers alike. There was previously state government funding for some support workers to support these people living in these houses, but it was cut in the recent past and problems have escalated as a result. The community are not against rooming houses, but their concentration and a lack of support for these community members and their integration is a key issue. The group recently met with Knox City Council, and they have invited the local Labor MP to come and discuss issues. My adjournment is directed to the Minister for Police tonight. The action that I seek is for the minister to outline to the Village Township Group Ferntree Gully what is being done, if anything at all, to make their community safer.