By Laura Michell
Whittlesea will miss out on Pick My Project funding as all 30 of the municipality’s submissions failed to attract enough votes.
The $30 million initiative was launched by the state government earlier this year to give communities a say in the projects and programs they wanted funded in their local areas.
Residents and local groups were asked to submit their ideas, with the community then given the chance to vote for their top three projects.
The government funded 18 projects in the northern metro region, which covers Whittlesea, Hume, Banyule, Darebin and Nillumbik, totalling $2.95 million.
Submissions from Whittlesea groups included a high ropes course in Epping North, bike shelters in Whittlesea and upgrades to the cricket nets at Laurimar Recreation Reserve.
The municipality’s most popular project was a laundry van for homeless people living in and around Thomastown. The project attracted 175 votes but that was not enough.
Thomastown MP Bronwyn Halfpenny said she was “bitterly disappointed” that no projects in her electorate were successful.
“All the proposals that I have seen were extremely well thought out … but voters have spoken and those with the greatest number of votes succeeded,” she said.
“I ask anyone who was not successful to contact me to discuss other options in future.”
Yan Yean MP Danielle Green said Mernda, Doreen and South Morang residents would benefit from the successful proposal to create a mountain bike trail at Plenty Gorge Park.
Four projects across Hume were successful.
Campbellfield’s Second Chance Animal Rescue will receive funding to build a not-for-profit animal hospital, while Gladstone Park Secondary College will receive money to build an agricultural centre.
LifeHouse Church’s proposal for a multi-sensory room in Westmeadows and Sunbury SES’ bid for a new training room were also successful.
