100 years ago
27 September 1923
High School Estate
The attention of readers is drawn to the sale of the High School Estate advertised in our auction sale column. The estate adjoins the High School and is right opposite the land bequeathed by the late John Hemmings to the public of Dandenong for Park purposes and has a large frontage to the Princes’ Highway. The estate will be subdivided into about 40 lots, having frontages of 50 to 54 feet by depths of 150 feet, making magnificent building blocks in a most favoured locality in Dandenong, having all the conveniences of electric light and water supply available, and will be sold on the remarkably easy terms of £5 deposit and £1 per lot per week.
50 years ago
26 September 1973
City of Berwick born on Monday
It will be a historic day for 22,000 residents and a projected population within the next decade of 70,000. The new city will be proclaimed by the Governor of Victoria Sir Rohan Delacombe at 2pm in the main street of Berwick. Celebrations involving 2000 people will commence from 12.45pm on Monday, when the Princes Highway through “beautiful Berwick” is closed to traffic. While specially-bottled Harkaway champagne is popping and the Southern Command Brass band entertains, dignitaries will arrive on the scene in horse-drawn vehicles, on horseback and even on penny farthing cycles.
20 years ago
22 September 2003
Syringes success
More than 79,200 used syringes were collected from safe disposal units in Greater Dandenong public toilets in the past financial year. This is despite all public toilets being locked after 9pm. Syringes are collected from 53 locations across the city by contractor SteriCorp. Ratepayers contribute about $90,000 a year towards the program. Since January about 4000 syringes have been collected from the public toilets of Springvale’s Burden Park alone. Greater Dandenong Councillor and Springvale Drug Action Committee member Clare O’Neil said “the variances illustrated the transient nature of the city’s drug problem. For example in March no syringes were collected from Burden Park toilets whereas in July 900 were collected,” she said. Police put the fluctuations down to drug availability.
5 years ago
24 September 2018
Homeless crisis
A void of affordable rental properties has driven Greater Dandenong into the top tiers of homelessness rates in Victoria. The state seat of Dandenong – with 1158 people experiencing homelessness – ranks second behind the Melbourne electorate – according to analysis by Council of Homeless Persons (CHP). Adjoining seats of Keysborough, Mulgrave, and Clarinda are among the ‘top’ 20. Chief executive Katre Colvin said “political leadership” was required to fix homelessness across the suburbs which was clearly “not just a city problem”.
Compiled by Dandenong & District Historical Society
