100 years ago
21 August 1924
Masonic Temple
On Saturday, August 16, three hundred members of the craft attended at the Masonic Temple recently erected on property purchased near the railway station, and having frontages to both Robinson and Mason streets, Dandenong. The erection of the building and the furnishings necessary for the interior, entailed an expenditure of almost 5,000 pounds. Bro. Norman Taylor was the builder and Bro. Geo. Snell the architect. A spacious hall is provided on the ground floor, the lodge room being on the second storey. The unveiling of a suitably inscribed foundation stone was performed by Right Worshipful Bro. Brice. The Dedication, Installation, Investiture of Officers, and a banquet, which concluded the function, were thoroughly enjoyed by the brethren and the visitors.
50 years ago
20 August 1974
Clash over name change
Doveton Ward councillor Syd Pargeter is annoyed at a move by the Place Names Committee to have a small area of Doveton renamed Hallam. The area bounded by the Eumemmerring Creek to the North and West, the Princes Highway to the South and the Freeway to the East has 245 houses. The Place Names Committee, chaired by Mrs Glen Watkinson, door knocked all houses in the area. There were 234 replies: 138 were for Hallam, 25 for Rangeview, 42 for Hallam West, 24 for Eumemmerring, 3 for Doveton East and 2 for Doveton. Councillor Pargeter said the committee’s argument that they used Hallam facilities only was “ridiculous”. “Apparently, they don’t swim in the Doveton pool and don’t play soccer at the Doveton soccer ground.” Councillor Pargeter said he was proud of the name Doveton and the people of Doveton. However, the final decision rests not with council, but with the Place Names Committee of the Department of Crown Lands and Survey.
20 years ago
August 2004
Market food van fears
Mobile food van traders are the latest to air frustrations over uncertainty surrounding the planned $15 million redevelopment of the Dandenong Market. Fixed stallholders have already slammed Greater Dandenong Council over what they say has been a lack of consultation relating to their future. Now, about 10 take-away food van traders are demanding answers about where their future lies. Under the redevelopment plans, the council wants to increase the number and variety of the actual store fronts. The council’s CEO, Carl Wulf, said the council was not in a position to make long-term lease commitments as the final space allocations for the redevelopment were yet to be decided. Doveton resident Joan Barker has written to the council complaining about the market’s unhealthy offerings. “The fast food provided from the half-dozen or so vans are terribly unhealthy junk food …. It’s like being back in the 1960s,” she said. Ms Barker has called for the introduction of “healthy” alternatives, like freshly squeezed fruit juice and corn on the cob. “There’s no healthy alternatives for parents to offer their children. It is a nightmare for diabetics.”
5 years ago
20 August 2019
Public speak out against ‘gag’
Residents have stirred against “anti-democratic” moves against on-line petitions, councillor question-time and direct resident participation at council meetings. Of about 48 submitters, more than 20 presented their views to Greater Dandenong councillors at a public forum. One of them was Jim Houlahan who said: “For you people to have balanced positions, you need to be listening. I get no sense out of these model rules that you’re trying to enhance local democracy by listening.” After the forum, it’s believed that the council proponents may soften, but not eliminate the changes – such as limiting councillor question time to a slightly more generous 11 minutes. The councillor question time is widely seen as a move to target Cr Matthew Kirwan, who is renowned for lengthy interrogations of council officers during meetings.
Compiled by Dandenong & District Historical Society
