Name change heads south

By CASEY NEILL

What’s in a name? Near-constant community debate, when it comes to Keysborough South.
At the Monday 25 July Greater Dandenong Council meeting, Keysborough resident John Chapman asked the council to survey his neighbours south of the Dandenong Bypass about a formal name change.
Corporate services director Mick Jaensch said the council surveyed all Keysborough residents about the proposal in 2009.
“We had 415 submissions against the proposal and 212 submissions in favour,” he said.
He said renaming the portion was problematic on several fronts.
“It is unlikely that the remaining section of the existing Keysborough … would be sufficiently large enough in its own right to constitute a suburb,” Mr Jaensch said.
Councillor Matthew Kirwan said Keysborough’s new estates had 10,000 residents “unlike the much smaller population when this was last considered”.
“Splitting it in two would still leave two suburbs much bigger than recently-created suburbs like Waterways and Botanic Ridge,” he said.
“Calling it Keysborough South would recognise the history of the name by keeping the word Keysborough in it but also recognising this as a distinct community within our municipality.
“I have received many requests over the last four years for the name Keysborough South to be considered – it is about time we go ahead and consider it again.”