100 years ago
3 July 1924
Improvement Society
Correspondence from Education Department, intimating that the question of providing additional accommodation, at Dandenong State School, was being attended to – Received
From Education Department – re proposed State School at Dandenong West, stating that a report was being prepared by the inspector.
50 years ago
4 July 1974
Myers Open Nov 1
Dandenong’s commercial giant – the Myer Emporium – will open for business on Friday, November 1. This was announced yesterday by the manager of the $25m complex. Announcement of the opening date, exclusively released to the Journal, comes after months of speculation as to when the Myer colossus would begin operation. The manager told the Journal yesterday the store would be the most modern yet built by the company and would be the seventh in the Myer Southern Stores Division. It would be the company’s first free-standing department store in Victoria, “The four-levels selling space, covering 200,000 sq. ft., will carry all the usual retail store departments and services and will have four adjacent levels of under-cover car-parking space which will enable shoppers to walk directly through into the store.”
20 years ago
5 July 2004
Councillor blasts budget blow-out
Greater Dandenong councillor John Kelly has described a $60,000 blow-out in the councillors ‘half million’ dollar budget as “extraordinary.” The variance has been put down to unbudgeted councillor training and civic centre functions. The community and councillor ball hosted by previous mayor Kevin Walsh returned a $9,000 loss to ratepayers. A council-funded concert to farewell the Dandenong Town Hall also cost about $12,000, while several thousand was spent on a council weekend at prestigious Lindenderry, Red Hill. The business unit overseen by former Greater Dandenong chief executive Warwick Heine also showed an “unfavourable” variance of $188,740. Cr Brown said that he “expected it to be much higher next month with the CEO’s redundancy factored in”.
5 years ago
9 July 2019
Little India traders fearing ‘wipe out’
Little India traders say the iconic strip may be “wiped off” under a proposed large-scale redevelopment of the Dandenong retail precinct. The State Government announced that a 1.9-hectare site, including the unique Foster Street retail strip, is being put out to market by State Government agency Development Victoria. The area borders Thomas Street, Cheltenham Road, Halpin Way and Dandenong railway station would become a mixed use precinct. It is part of the Revitalising Central Dandenong – an urban renewal project that is 10 years into a 20-year plan. Dandenong MP Gabrielle Williams said Revitalising Central Dandenong enabled the city to continue to grow and meet the needs of the community. “We will work with local business and the community every step of the way as we deliver the next phase of this exciting project.”
Greater Dandenong councillor Mathew Kirwan said the announcement was “broadly positive” for the “stalled” project.
Compiled by Dandenong & District Historical Society
