A Bellarine favourite, Flying Brick Cider House, has let rip with Midweek Magic, a delicious two-course luncheon complete with a beverage of choice and an enchanting bang for buck.

Monday through Friday, patrons have the option to enjoy two courses (entre and main or main and dessert) accompanied by a glass of premium award-winning Yes said the Seal wine for just $35 per person.

Yes said the Seal went straight into Hallidays Australian Wine Companion as a five-star rated winery in 2015, its first year of release.

The glass of wine can be swapped for a pot of tap cider or beer, barista coffee, loose leaf LOVE tea or soft drink so everyone is covered.

Group bookings are welcome Midweek Magic is ideal for those who like getting together with friends for a long, leisurely luncheon catch without breaking the budget.

Head chef Greg Mendiola has curated an evolving array of delicious new (and a few classic) culinary items, especially for those people who love to get out and about for a midweek dining experience and enjoy local produce.

The Midweek Magic menu will change weekly, but will always be bewitching.

Check out the current Midweek Magic Menu via flyingbrickciderco.com.au/blogs/news/midweek-magic-1

The full a la carte Flying Brick menu is also available at regular pricing.

Bookings via flyingbrickciderco.com.au or call 5250 6577.

The post Midweek magic at Flying Brick appeared first on Ocean Grove Voice.

In these times of environmental and financial challenges, not letting anything go to waste has become highly important.

Whether its food waste, green waste, or building materials, Council has initiatives in place that ensure that these resources can be converted into useful products.

The circular economy ethos is on full display in a couple of great local projects, that I want to focus on.

The City is taking about 35,000 tonnes of garden waste from kerbside green bins each year, and converting it into Australian standard compost at a processing facility in Anakie.

This ensures the green waste doesnt end up in landfill, and we create a high-quality product that can benefit public spaces and private backyards.

To expose more green thumbs to the compost and to help promote our wonderful community gardens we held a Free Autumn Compost Giveaway last Saturday.

Community gardens in Ocean Grove and Barwon Heads, as well as Ocean Groves Surfside Primary School, were among the sites offering the compost for the community for free.

The compost is of exceptional quality, and it was inspiring to learn so many residents embraced this opportunity to support sustainability and local food production.

The City-made compost is also available for purchase at the following local outlets:

Wallingtons Water Rural Garden, 370 Grubb Rd, Wallington

South Point Garden Supplies, 15 Boneyards Ave, Torquay

Elcho Garden Supplies, 180 Elcho Rd, Lara

Did you know there are more than 80,000 olive trees within 60km of Geelong? And this is not counting residential and small hobby groves.

Large trees produce between 10 and 50 kilograms of olives.

However, with businesses needing at least 1000 kilograms to press oil, many residents have been unable to find a commercial use for their olives.

Using a Council Environmental Sustainability Grant, the volunteer-run Barwon Oil Barons community group stepped into find a clever and creative solution.

On Sunday 28 May, community members can take their olives to drop-off locations.

The fruit will be weighed and transported to Mt Moriac Olives, where it will be aggregated.

Geelong Region Olives will then organise processing, and participants can later collect their oil.

This is a great sustainability initiative that is making the most of the resources we have in our community.

You can find more information and book a drop-off time here:

Ocean Grove: eventbrite.com.au/e/627880827457

Belmont: eventbrite.com.au/e/632178612247

Norlane: eventbrite.com.au/e/632180076627

From the south to the north, Council has many exciting projects happening a...

Its a great time of year to go birdwatching with some seasonal altitudinal movements of birds.

I mentioned in the last edition of the Voice that flame robins have not been seen as commonly around the Bellarine this time of year. I was driving along Maddens Lane in Marcus Hill and in one of the farm paddocks there were at least 15 flame robins.

In the winter months flame robins form flocks and may move to lower and more open areas, including gardens. Some Tasmanian flame robins have been seen to fly to the mainland to escape the cold.

Regarding birds that move around, I drove around Point Henry on my way to work, and besides seeing good numbers of black-winged stilts there was a flock of red-necked avocets. These beautiful waders have a reddish-brown head and neck, a white eye-ring and a long, upturned, black bill.

These birds are highly nomadic and in the non-breeding season they can be seen in small flocks. There were around 20 black-winged stilts in the same pond at Point Henry as the avocets, including at least five juveniles.

Its always nice to check out Point Henry as usually there are a few raptors there, and I wasnt disappointed with a pair of nankeen kestrels and a brown falcon seen.

I also spotted a female nankeen kestrel sitting on the roof of Bunnings in Leopold. The females have a rufous crown, whereas males have a grey crown.

Kestrels can also be nomadic and have been known to move north in the winter months.

I received an email from Andrea, who is the former organiser of the Friends of the Bellarine Hooded Plovers. Andrea went to the Bellarine Basin for the Murrk Ngubitj Yarram Yaluk open day.

This area in Wallington is being transformed into around 30 hectares of environmental and public open space. Andrea told me that one of the wedge-tailed eagle pairs that live around the Bellarine Peninsula have constructed two nests at the basin, in pine trees which fortunately have not all been removed.

Hopefully the eagles will remain in that habitat despite all the rehabilitation work that is being undertaken.

I received an email from Carole who spotted a raptor in a paddock near Lake Lorne which was correctly identified as a juvenile swamp harrier. Juvenile birds are hard to identify at times.

Adult swamp harriers are lighter brown in plumage and have yellow eyes, whereas this bord was dark brown in plumage with dark brown eyes.

Another photo of the bird that Carole took revealed the characteristic white rump. Carole was also amazed at the amount of bird species that she viewed, especially water birds at Lake Lorne, so its well worth a visit.

Carole remarked that she thought that the noise of gunfire may have sent a lot of birds to the non-game reserve wetlands.

Voice editor Justin has been houseboating at Renmark in the Riverlands on the mighty Murray River, where he spotted a variety of birds, including great egrets,...

Peugeots GT Sport Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV) hatchback has become the fourth model to join the French carmakers 308 compact range. It joins the GT hatch, GT Premium hatch and GT Premium wagon petrol variants.

First sold here in 2008, the 308 has never seriously challenged comparable models from Japan or South Korea for sales, but those loyal to the French brand have always loved it for its style, comfort and handling.

The new 308 PHEV is Peugeots third plug-in petrol-electric hybrid, joining the 3008 GT Sport SUV and 508 Fastback GT with two more set to arrive later this year the 2008 small SUV and 508 Sportwagon.

Also coming later in 2023 will be Peugeots first fully electric vehicles, the e-Partner small van and e-2008 compact SUV.

STYLING

We love the looks of the latest 308 starting at the front where a large, intricate grille flanked by LED Matrix headlights and claw-shaped daytime running lights.

The 308 is the first Peugeot model to feature the latest iteration of the iconic Peugeot lion badge sitting in the centre of the grille as well as on the front side panels, boot lid and in the centre of the eye-catching black alloy 18-inch wheels.

The rear has also been given a serious makeover with tri-segment tail lights on either side and the lion-claw in the centre of each.

The battery charging socket is at the rear of the passenger side.

POWERTRAIN

308 GT Sport PHEV combines a 1.6-litre 132 kW/250Nm 1.6-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine with an 81kW electric motor for combined power and torque outputs of 165kW and 360Nm.

It is integrated with an e-EAT8 transmission, which for this application has the traditional torque converter replaced with a wet, multi-disc clutch.

As with the other 308 variants the GT Sport PHEV is front-wheel-drive.

The 12.4kWh Li-ion battery with 100kW of battery power and 3.7 kW onboard charger provides a WLTP test range of 60km in electric-only driving. Fuel tank capacity is 40 litres.

Three driving modes are available: Electric, Hybrid and Sport.

The 308 GT Sport PHEV comes as standard with a mode two charging cable, supplied with the vehicle at time of delivery. The on-board charger unit restricts the accepted charger to a capacity of 3.7kW.

Using a domestic power socket with a 2.3kW single-phase 10A charger, the battery will be charged in around 5.5 hours. With a home charging station such as a Wallbox this will reduce to about 3.5 hours.

SAFETY

Theres a comprehensive list of safety features across the entire 308 range. Highlights include autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, active cruise control with Stop & Go function, forward collision warning, long-range blind spot detection, rear cross traffic alert, lane departure warning with unmarked road edge detection, advanced driver inattention alert, speed limiter function, tyre pressure warning an...

Book club

Leopold/Wallington CAE book club meets second Tuesday each month 7.30pm to 9.30pm. Very friendly group. New members welcome.

Shirley 0488, 055 969

Chess clubs

For chess fun simply come along and see yourself, play some chess, meet some members, with no obligation to join. We welcome players of all abilities. Ocean Grove, Tuesdays at 1.30pm at 101 The Terrace, Ocean Grove; Portarlington, Mondays at 9.30am, Parks Hall, 87 Newcombe Street, Portarlington; and St Leonards, Thursdays at 9.30am, unit 2 1375-1377 Murradoc Road, (on Blanche Street), St Leonards.

Ralph 0431-458 100 (Ocean Grove), Rob 5259 2290 (Portarlington), Lyn 5292 2162 (St Leonards)

Carpet bowls

Leopold Hall 805-809 Bellarine Highway, Leopold on Wednesday and Friday from 1pm to 3.15pm. Admission: $4, includes afternoon tea.

0400 500 402

Ballroom dance

Leopold Hall, 805-809 Bellarine Hwy, Saturday May 20, 7.30pm-11.30pm. Admission $10 includes supper. Music by Charles.

0400 500 402

Scottish country dancing classes

GOG Scottish Country Dance classes 7.30pm Tuesdays at Leopold Hill Hall, $5. No partner needed, just comfy casual clothing and flat shoes.

Jane 0481-126 022, or Barbara 0419-511

Ocean Grove Senior Citizens

101 The Terrace, Ocean Grove

Weekly

Tuesday: indoor bowls, snooker and chess 1pm

Wednesday: beginner art painting class at 9.30am, bingo 1.30pm and chord club jam session for musicians 4pm

Thursday: social afternoons, cards 500 and snooker 1pm

Friday: sketching art class 9.30am, indoor bowls 1pm

Fortnightly

CWA 1st and 3rd Thursday 7.30pm

Monthly

Book group 1st Friday 1pm

Inhouse movies 3rd Wednesday 1.30pm

Ocean Grove Stamp Club 4th Wednesday 10am

5255 2996

Cards

Ocean Grove Seniors play card game 500 every Thursday at 1.15pm. If you are new to the game a quick lesson will get you in play. The core group of six players adjust to any number and you will enjoy the friendship of like-minded players. Cost: $20 annually and coffee included. At 102 The Terrace, Ocean Grove.

Lyn, 5256 2540

TOWN club

The Springs TOWN Club (Take Off Weight Naturally) meets Mondays, 9-10.30am at the Community Hub, 23 Eversley Street, Drysdale. Weigh-in, group therapy and regular relaxation sessions. Cost: $5 per session, $54 annual fee.

Janice Bell, 0403 221 737, or bellsbythebeach@bigpond.com.au

Drysdale Day VIEW

Supporting The Smith Family for fun and friendship while supporting disadvantaged

Students. Meetings at Portarlington Golf Club for lunch on the fourth Friday of each month.

Margaret 0431-636 090

Ocean Grove Evening VIEW

Meets on the fourth Wednesday of the month at 6.30pm. Email...

1 year ago

May 20 June 2 2022

Barwon Heads Fire Brigade is warning residents to be careful after gas cylinders ignited at two

separate households resulting in injury and property damage.

One resident suffered injuries as a result of a gas cylinder igniting while another household suffered damage to its back decking.

3 years ago

May 20 June 2 2020

Police may be called on to investigate whether damage to a tree on council land in Ocean Grove was a criminal act.

The bracelet honey myrtle tree, in Aldebaran Road, was damaged to the point where a council arborist had to remove it because it was a safety

hazard.

5 years ago

May 23 June 5 2018

Ocean Grove is now ready to light up the night for Parkinsons.

The fifth Light of Day Winter Gigs will be held at Driftwood Cafe, Maggies Bar, Olive Pit Deli and Piping Hot Chicken Shop & Burger Grill.

7 years ago

May 25 June 7 2016

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews received a celebrity welcome as he visited Ocean Grove Primary (OGPS) today, promoting the State

Governments $4-million grant for the school.

Excited students clamoured to high-five the Premier as he approached the schools gates.

The post From the Archives appeared first on Ocean Grove Voice.

After early morning showers the skies cleared for Midweek this Tuesday and with finals looming, teams were out to make the most of their chances.

Section 1 still has two rounds to play after this week and while the final four is all but set, positions are far from settled with only two points between first and third.

Geelong Lawn pushed into second, overtaking Surfcoast Bellbrae, with a tough win over Moriac.

The first two sets were split with Fiona Blood and Charlotte Wilson winning 6-4 for the home team, before Bridget Laird and Karen Best put Lawn ahead by a game, winning 6-3.

Lawn then took the lead winning the third and fourth sets 6-4 and 7-5, before the teams split the final two sets giving Lawn the win four sets to two by only three games.

Bellbrae started well against fourth placed Highton with Marg Leigh and Colleen Battye winning a tight battle 7-5 and Miyo Fallshaw and Lyn Dillon pushing through for a 6-4 win.

Angela Sherlock and Kerry Browne started a Highton comeback with a 6-2 win backed by Jodie Connell and Raelene Pearce coming through 7-5, giving them a two-game buffer going into the final two sets.

Bellbrae had won the two previous encounters 4-2, however, Highton had other ideas when Sherlock and Pearce put them in front, winning 6-3 in the fifth, and Connell teamed with Annette Morgan to push Battye and Alison Lugg before eventually going down 7-5, but giving Highton the win by three games.

Ocean Grove upset ladder leaders Surfcoast Torquay at Torquay in gusty conditions.

The Grove got out of the blocks well with Susan Bissett combining with Judi Broad to win the first set 6-3, while Kate Lockhart and Mel Keating followed suit taking the second 6-3.

Simone Hobbs and Bronwyn Mitsfud proved too consistent in the third for Torquay winning 6-1, but Broad and Lockhart kept the Grove in front taking the fourth 6-3.

Lockhart sealed the win with Bissett 6-4 in the fifth with Lockhart winning her three sets while Torquays Mitsfud and Liz Scott kept the margin in check taking the last 6-3.

The win has Ocean Grove with a statistical chance of still making the four, however, with remaining matches against Geelong Lawn and Highton, it will take a massive effort.

Torquay, with a 4-2 loss, had its lead cut to only one point ahead of Geelong Lawn, so its final position will be dependent on how it plays against Moriac and Highton in the final two rounds.

The post Teams jostle for finals positions appeared first on Ocean Grove Voice.

Land-based anglers have been getting stuck into some great fishing especially around the Geelong waterfront with pinkie snapper, flathead, salmon and snotty trevalla.

Casting soft plastics around the structure has been holding lots of fish with the standout lures being turtleback worms, 3-4 inch flick bait style lures and paddle tails.

Trellys Geelongs newest crew member Stefan Uzur has been getting stuck amongst plenty of pinkies fishing the late arvo with soft plastics landing fish to 50cm and unfortunately missing a few much bigger.

Cunningham Pier has been his main spot where he is finding the fish.

Moving to the outer harbour seems to have an abundance of nice eating size flathead with anglers picking them up with both bait and soft plastics.

The spoil grounds have been a productive location to target them as well as on the edge of the mussel farms.

Calamari have been very hot and cold this past week. By that you could be fishing for hours not finding a single squid but when you do they have been holding together in big numbers and some quality size ones amongst them, too.

King George whiting have been yet again this week a hot species to target this week and again with great reports of numbers and size fish available. Anglers fishing the faster water and bigger tides are finding better success with squid working an absolute treat. Quality burley, such as Gotcha Whiting pellets have been helping anglers land more fish.

The west coast has had some very average weather this past week making it hard to get offshore and chase the tuna but some anglers managing to find breaks in weather are getting amongst some great action.

Apollo Bay has been a popular location and in particular Blanket Bay with the school tuna holding in great numbers and eating a whole variety of lures from skirts to divers and topwater lures.

Gone Fishing Charters is still getting amongst some fish down at Portland and also plenty of albacore too which is cool to see. Still some barrels being caught but as mentioned the weather has made it tricky to get out.

The post Pier proves good for pinkies appeared first on Ocean Grove Voice.

The Barwon Heads, Geelong West and Highton libraries will remain open, and Chilwell Library will continue as a staffed library, as confirmed after a meeting with Geelong Regional Libraries CEO Vanessa Schernickau and City of Greater Geelong Acting CEO Kaarina Phyland.

The libraries were in danger of closing after a shortfall in funding.

However, the libraries will operate on reduced hours and will close altogether on Sundays.

The Acting CEO of the City of Greater Geelong informed the CEO of Geelong Regional Libraries that Biyal-a Armstrong Creek Library will not open before 1 July 2024, and therefore this requested operating funding ($356,000) will not be required until the following financial year.

Geelong Regional Libraries will not receive the $762,000 that was requested to operate the newly opened Boronggook Drysdale Library. Every time a new library is opened in Greater Geelong, Geelong Regional Libraries works with CoGG to agree on the hours of operation and staffing levels. The agreed-upon funding required to run these libraries has always been provided in previous council budgets.

CoGG is responsible for the design, planning, development and building of libraries. CoGG owns the buildings, Geelong Regional Libraries delivers all library services.

Therefore, there is still a budget shortfall of $762,000 in Councils 2023/24 draft budget that will result in the following significant service reductions at Geelong Regional Libraries, such as:

There will be no libraries in Greater Geelong open Saturday afternoons except Geelong Library (Belmont, Boronggook Drysdale, Corio, Lara, Leopold, Ocean Grove and Waurn Ponds libraries closing earlier on Saturday)

There will be no libraries in Greater Geelong open on Sunday except Geelong Library (Boronggook Drysdale, Corio and Waurn Ponds libraries will all close Sunday)

A reduction in services at Kim barne thaliyu/Geelong Heritage Centre

Existing staff vacancies may not be filled

The above reductions are not sufficient to meet the shortfall, Geelong Regional Libraries will now work to review and assess where savings can be made.

These changes will take effect from 1 July 2023 and will only affect libraries in Greater Geelong. No library services in other local government areas serviced by Geelong Regional Libraries will be impacted.

Geelong Regional Libraries CEO Vanessa Schernickau said We exist to provide much loved library services to our communities and we have prioritised keeping all libraries open. However, the budget shortfall that remains is still significant and your experience at your local library in the City of Greater Geelong will look different.

The post Libraries to remain open appeared first on Ocean Grove Voice.

Fremantle ruckman Sean Darcy looms as a major stumbling block in Geelongs quest to get back onto the winners list.

The in-form big man tore Sydney to shreds last week along with Luke Jackson booting three goals and Cats coach Chris Scott knows what sort of an influence they can have on a game.

So much of AFL footy at the moment is timing in terms of when you play teams and its logical to think that there was going to be a period where they need to feel each other out and work on their cohesion and connection and almost half way through the season they appear to be getting that so thats bad luck to us, he said.

Theyre a big challenge. Darcy in particular is spending a lot of time in the ruck, hes a big ruckman and Ive got a high regard for him so its a big job for, not only for Jonathon Ceglar, but all our taller guys.

Geelong travels to Perth to take on the Dockers tomorrow.

Freo has won two in a row in impressive style while Geelong stumbled to a resurgent Richmond last Friday night.

Injury-riddled Dockers star Nat Fyfe has had two encouraging performances as a sub under his belt and Scott said he is planning for him to play a full game.

We are planning for him to be in the 22, he said.

Hes a little bit harder to plan for than maybe he has been in the past because theyve earmarked him as a forward through the pre-season and I know firsthand what a quality player he can be in that part of the ground but I wouldnt be surprised to see him spend decent stints in the midfield as well.

Patrick Dangerfield wont play, but isnt far off.

[Hes] going really well, Scott said.

He moved really well at training today. Were obviously going to hold him back, weve been really clear about that. Not sure exactly where it is except to say that we always thought it would be pre-bye somewhere.

Not this week, but after this week weve only got two weeks pre-bye, so its still looking somewhere in that time frame.

The post Freo goliath in Geelongs way appeared first on Ocean Grove Voice.

Lance and Cecile met at a choir group in Croyden 15 years ago, and since their love blossomed Lance has been the strength for his wife Cecile, who is blind.

But when Lance noticed weakness in his arms while trimming hedges three years ago and was subsequently diagnosed with Motor Neuron Disease (MND) he and Cecile knew they would face many challenges.

Their story is one of many captured in the new documentary, Live the Life You Please, and one of three that features Geelong residents.

Ever since I was diagnosed, which was in March 2020, almost immediately, save for a few tears in between, Cecile and I wanted to be as positive as possible in the situation that we were placed in, Lance said.

It wasnt our choosing, the way life comes true for us. But it doesnt matter if were in a bad situation, we try to make it as light-hearted as possible.

We always have a laugh, always confer with each other, always try to maximise our efforts in making the situation as easy as possible.

Highly relevant in a time when most of us will experience palliative care before we die, Live the Life You Please explores the important issues that surround the end of our lives; how we deal with the challenges of dying slowly, bereavement and, most importantly, the importance of communicating what we want the end of our lives to look like.

The films director Mike Hill said normalising and stimulating discussions about how we wish to make that final journey was one of the main intentions of Live the Life You Please.

Theres a recent study that shows that 88 per cent of Australians think that its really important to talk about what they want towards the end of their life, but 50 per cent of us never have that conversation, Mr Hill said.

Its really evident that theres a need to make it easier to have this conversation and thats why we made the film; to help create a safe way into discussing this topic that we often either put out of mind or find hard to discuss.

I think the film is really extraordinary, Im very proud of it. And its surprisingly upbeat and joyful and you get that from someone like Lance, whos living with the serious condition of MND but still really living his best life given these circumstances.

A special Q&A showing of Life the Life You Please is at Geelong Village Cinemas at 6pm on Tuesday, May 23.

The post New doco looks at living and dying well appeared first on Ocean Grove Voice.

Geelong hunters have been left ropeable by the state governments decision to close Lake Connewarre to duck shooters 11 days earlier than planned.

Lake Connewarre, Reedy Lake and Hospital Swamp will be off limits to duck hunters from Friday May 19 for the release of the orange bellied parrots. The shooting season was initially scheduled to end on May 30.

Geelong Field and Game conservation officer Trent Leen said that closing Lake Conneware during the duck shooting season was a complete overreach of power.

The pest mitigation works that we do has a much greater impact on ensuring the survival of the orange bellied parrots than anything else would, he said.

The parrots already had a successful release last year when we had a full legislative duck season, so theres no reason to delay it and theres no reason to do anything.

Mr Leen said the orange bellied parrots release could have gone ahead without restricting the shooting season as in previous years, and that hunters helped protect the parrots from pests.

We can not only hunt game in the state game reserves during the season, but we can also hunt pests like rabbits and foxes, he said.

Theyre (government) actually hindering the removal of some of those pest animals so its certainly not a logical decision.

Mr Leen said Greater Geelong residents were the losers out of all of this and that hunters generated close to $7 million and 119 full-time jobs for the area.

Now with the restricted season at the start and the end, all those dollars are just going to go elsewhere now, he said.

Geelong Duck Rescue chair and wildlife rescuer Natalie Kopas said the early end to the season was great news and that rescuers would still be out there patrolling the wetlands.

We wish it would have happened earlier because the parrots have been around there for a little while, but still better late than never, she said.

Well still have teams checking those wetlands to ensure that nobody there claims they didnt know about the closures.

I hope this is the very last time duck shooting happens in Geelong and the rest of the state.

The post Season closes early at Lake Connewarre appeared first on Ocean Grove Voice.

A second battle to save Barwon Heads Library from permanent closure has begun, just five years after people power won the day.

The library was slated for closure, along with libraries at Highton and Chilwell, in 2018, but a public backlash resulted in council reversing its decision, allowing it to stay in operation.

However, Geelong Regional Library Corporation (GRLC) said it could close Barwon Heads, Geelong West and Highton libraries by September this year after the City of Greater Geelong (CoGG) suggested it find $1.118 million in response to its draft budget.

GRLC said it asked for a two percent increase to funding in councils draft budget, and while that has been met, it does not include funds to operate two new libraries Boronggook Drysdale Library (opened April 2023) and Biyal-a Armstrong Creek Library (opening 2024) leaving a gap in GRLC funding of $1.118 million in 2023-24.

In order to find the extra $1.118 million, GRLC said it may close Barwon Heads, Geelong West and Highton libraries, transition Chilwell Library to an

unstaffed model and Corio and Boronggook Drysdale libraries would close on Sundays, while eight local libraries would close earlier on Saturdays.

Friends of Barwon Heads Librarys Karen Firth said the group was optimistic that their library would stay open.

Its completely different this time, she said.

It hasnt come out of a service model review, this is a funding issue so its completely different.

I dont see the library closing, but the money needs to arrive and I think it will.

I think the two CEOs need to sort it out and work it out and I think they will.

Ms Firth said a study revealed for every dollar spent on the library, it gets $4.30 back and was money well spent.

She said the library, which is open for 16 hours per week, had 11,000 visits per year.

The councillors dont want to close it, Geelong Regional Libraries dont want to close it, but here we are, she said.

We got brand new bookshelves literally last week the irony of it.

Ms Firth urged people to sign the petition to save the library at change.org/p/save-the-barwon-heads-community-library.

Ms Firth said she didnt want the library to fall out of GRLCs hands and into the hands of council, which was a solution being mooted. She said the relationship between the library and GRLC was positive.

GRLC chief executive Vanessa Schernickau said closing the libraries is the last thing we want to do.

But with the COGG draft budget as it stands we have been left with no choice, she said.

A funding shortfall of this size cannot be found by reducing programs or events, or small modifications to our operating models.

CoGG said it did not support the closure of any library and that GRL...