Manningham residents, businesses and community groups were well represented at the joint Inquiry and Advisory Committee (IAC) Directions Hearing on the North East Link (NEL) Environment Effects Statement (EES) today.

Manningham Mayor, Cr Paula Piccinini congratulated the community for showing their support by attending the Directions Hearing.

“People are passionate about protecting Manningham – they’re worried about the social, environmental and economic impacts the North East Link will have on our community,” she said.

“Manningham will be the most impacted municipality with seven years of construction, homes lost, 1,200 jobs gone and our industrial business precinct erased. The needs of our community and surrounding environment must be considered, before, during and after construction.

“It was good that people had the opportunity to ask questions about the Public Hearings and find out what they can expect when presenting on their concerns.”

The next step in the process is individuals who provided an EES submission will have the opportunity to talk about the impacts to them at the Public Hearings. The hearings will be held from 25 July 2019 at The Veneto Club, Bulleen for approximately seven weeks.

Council’s legal representatives, Harwood Andrews will present on Council’s EES submission, providing detailed information and robust data to highlight the specific impacts to Manningham.  

To ensure the best outcomes, Council officers have collaborated with neighbouring municipalities to represent communities along the interfacing boundaries of local government areas. Work has been undertaken together on projects impacting Bulleen Park, Koonung Creek and the Yarra River corridors.

“While we have been working with neighbouring Councils and share common concerns, we do have some significantly differing views relating to Manningham’s open space.

“Where appropriate we will continue to work with other Councils. Most importantly, we will keep fighting for the best possible outcome for our community,” she said.