Melbourne Metro Rail Project funding 'fast-tracked'

The proposed Melbourne Metro Rail Project is being fast-tracked, with the Victorian Government bringing forward $40 million in planning money.

A further $260 million will also be allocated in the May state budget, while a new authority will be established to oversee planning works.

With major construction expected to start in 2018, Premier Daniel Andrews said it was estimated the project would be operational by 2026.

"If we can do better on those timelines of course we will," Mr Andrews said.

"The sooner you start the sooner you'll finish.

"We should be much further advanced on this project because it ought not to have sat in mothballs for the last four years."

The metro project includes five new underground stations at Arden, Parkville, CBD North, CBD South and Domain, connected by nine kilometres of underground rail tunnels.

The previous coalition government favoured an alternative project, known as Melbourne Rail, which was to run along a different route and have a station at Montague-Fishermen's Bend.

It was also critical of Labor's plans to run the tunnel underneath busy Swanston Street, claiming it would create significant disruption.

Former premier Denis Napthine even compared the disruption to Swanston Street to the Berlin Wall.

Mr Andrews said the exact impact to Swanston Street was still unknown.

"Swanston Street is one route, there's talk about alternative routes," he said.

"I'm not a transport engineer.

"I think the best thing to do is to give the resources needed to the experts to get on and do this properly."

'A system like New York, London': Public Transport Victoria

Mr Andrews said metro rail would give Melbourne a world-class public transport system.

"This is effectively a second city loop," he said.

"It's a train system where no timetable is needed."

It is expected the project will allow 20,000 more passengers to travel on the city's rail network during peak hour.

The total cost of the project has been estimated between $9-11 billion.

The head of Public Transport Victoria, Ian Dobbs, said the early release of the funds meant vital preliminary work could begin.

"It allows us to get on with the job of delivering what I think will become an iconic project in terms of this city," Mr Dobbs said.

"Melbourne will develop a railway, a metro style system that will be similar to Paris, London and New York."

Mr Andrews said he was hopeful the Commonwealth would help fund the project, despite Prime Minister Tony Abbott saying he would not fund metropolitan rail.

"We are prepared to invest a third, we think the private sector will be a willing partner and they may be able to commit up to a third," he said.

"That leaves one third and we're not going to give up on a federal government doing the right thing, partnering with us to deliver what I think is one of the most significant infrastructure projects our city and state has ever seen.

"This remains Infrastructure Australia's number one infrastructure project for our state."

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-16/victorian-government-fast-tracks-funding-for-melbourne-metro/6116042

Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Deal

Visiting Melbourne for one of the many conventions or exhibitions? 

This great value deal has you covered with complimentary WiFi and bottle of water .

Experience the excitement of Melbourne when staying in your very own serviced boutique apartment in the CBD with trams and public transport within easy reach.

Book this Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Deal at Metro Apartments on Bank Place

View Metro Apartments on Bank Place, Melbourne

About Metro Apartments on Bank Place

Metro Apartments on Bank Place boasts 45 well-appointed guest rooms, 36 of which are fully contained, 1-bedroom apartments; other categories include 4 studios and 5 queen rooms. The apartments contain a queen size bed with ensuite bathroom and separate living/dining/kitchen area. 

The kitchen comes equipped with hotplates, convection microwave oven, fridge, dishwasher, cutlery, crockery, cookware utensils, and toaster. There is also a combination washer/dryer, a flat screen LCD television, and remote control, reverse cycle air conditioning. Maximum occupancy per apartment is 3 guests (charges apply for extra bedding).

Harlem Globetrotters - The 2015 Australian Tour

• Sydney game: Thursday 18 June 2015
• Melbourne game: Saturday 20 June 2015
• Perth game: Sat 27 June 2015

Following on from the hugely successful 2013 tour of New Australia, the world famous Harlem Globetrotters are back by popular demand for a seven-city tour in June 2015.

The Harlem Globetrotters features some of the greatest athletes and entertainers on the planet, and they are bringing their unrivalled family experience to New Zealand and Australia as part of the Harlem Globetrotters 2015 “Washington Generals’ Revenge” World Tour.  

The Globetrotters will face a great challenge this year, as the infamous Washington Generals are more determined than ever to match the franchise’s historic last victory over the Globetrotters in 1971.  It has been five years since the Globetrotters and Generals have faced off, as the Generals have been searching far and wide for the best players to retool their roster and have been preparing for one thing: victory over the Globetrotters.

We know there will be another positive response to the tour. They are great athletes and great ambassadors to sport for the whole family and word has got around about how entertaining they are. We are going to some new venues which will also be a buzz too,” said Suzanne Cannell, Tour Organiser from On The Road Events.

Sydney will put on its own glitz and glamour for the Globetrotters team with the game being held in the centre of the city at the Qantas Credit Union Arena on Thursday 18th June, followed by Melbourne on the 20th of June and Perth on the 27th of June.

Buy Sydney tickets: http://www.qantascreditunionarena.com.au/Events/Events%20Detail/Harlem_Globetrotters.aspx

Buy Melbourne & Perth tickets: www.ticketmaster.com.au/The-Harlem-Globetrotters-tickets/artist/806223


Review:

Absolutely amazing!!!

State Netball Hockey Centre

 - Parkville

 - Fri 18 Oct 2013

Posted 21/12/2013

by SamTez 

This Fan's Reviews

This show was so great! My girlfriend has wanted to see these guys since she was 9 and it was such an awesome experience to be able to fulfill that dream and take her to such an amazingly talented show! We loved it!!!

Cosentino | The Grand Illusionist Tour Australia

Cosentino | The Grand Illusionist Tour Australia

Australia's world-renowned entertainer, Cosentino the Grand Illusionist, will be taking his spectacular new live show 'TWISTED REALITY' across the country in April - May 2015.

Join Cosentino as he performs never before seen death-defying escapes that will thrill your senses, mind boggling stage illusions and cutting-edge street magic that twists your view of reality.

Cosentino's trademark blend of dance and magic with a touch of hilarious audience participation will take you on a journey that will captivate fans, new and old, until the very last mind-bending moment.

"I've been working on my new live show 'TWISTED REALITY' for over a year. It's going to have even bigger stunts, crazier escapes and the best magic I've produced so far. I'm really proud of what we have created and I can't wait to hit the road and perform it live for my fans across the country", said Cosentino.

Tour Dates:

Thu 23 Apr Jupiters Hotel & Casino Gold Coast, QLD

Fri 10 to Sun 12 Apr The Palms at Crown, VIC

Sat 18 to Sun 19 Apr The Star Event Centre, NSW 

Fri 1 to Sat 2 May Regal Theatre, WA

Melbourne General Cemetery Tours Bring Life to the Graveyard

Melbourne General Cemetery

It's twilight in the graveyard. Large bats circle lazily overhead.

In the gloom, folks gather around the tomb of actor Frederick Baker, whose ghost (legend has it) haunts a theatre not far from where his remains lie. The last rays of light disappear behind the headstones, as the visitors recall his final moments.

Baker, known as Federici, died while playing the Devil.

The people here are not mourners, ghost hunters, vandals or fans of Baker. Rather, they're tourists, participating in one of the Melbourne General Cemetery's popular night tours.

There's a spine-tingling sense of daring walking in a graveyard at night, even in the herd safety of a tour group with flashlights. In the velvety darkness, death's mystery seems to brush against them.

The spicy scent of a peppercorn tree wafts through the still night air, as multiple feet crunch across the fallen peppercorn sprigs. (Such trees were traditionally planted in graveyards as a sign of religious fervour.) Pencil pines are also among the monuments, a soaring tree favoured in the belief they elevated the souls of the dead to heaven.

"If you ask people what is the most frightening thing to do, they say, 'Walking in a cemetery at night.' There's a real mystique about it," says Melbourne's cemeteries trust historical and cultural director, Celestina Sagazio, explaining the tours' popularity. "I think it's that fascination with the spirit world, the fear of death, and confronting that fear. It's that courage aspect: You've got the courage to do it."

As the historic grounds host fewer funerals and some graves fall into decay, the Melbourne General Cemetery is reinventing itself as tourist spot and picnic park. The most popular night tour is on Halloween, when visitors in ghoulish costumes troop between the graves. But the Friday the 13th, Midsummer and Full Moon tours always sell out, often turning dozens away.

Sagazio, who believes graveyards are for the living as much as the dead, recently announced plans to cater for a range of social functions, including pre-death wakes (for people who want to be at their own wakes), philosophical lectures and weddings (a sure way to reinforce the message, " 'Til death do us part").

That said, the night tours began several years back "almost as a bit of a dare," Sagazio says. Someone suggested the idea, half joking, but Sagazio decided to give it a try. "Some people thought it was unusual, even ghoulish. But it's got to be respectful." The tours took off.

"It's demystifying death, because we have this great fear of death and cemeteries. By visiting them, our fear diminishes. Exposure decreases fear," says Sagazio during an interview at one of the trust's newer cemeteries, Springvale Botanical, which has a restaurant with a French chef, regular jazz bands, theatre and children's playgrounds.

With fear and taboo surrounding death, cemetery management the world over faces a problem: How to maintain historically important monuments when no one wants to walk through the front gate?

"We are trying to come up with a tourism strategy, because it (the Melbourne General Cemetery) is coming to the end of its natural life," Sagazio says. "We think we are ready for some of these more adventurous cultural activities, but respectful.

"Some people want a spooky experience, let's be honest about that, but a lot of people are interested in the history."

A consummate tour guide, she spices the night tours with quirky historical facts, tidbits about grave monuments, hints of scandal and juicy stories of the departed (and at least five jokes). But there also are poignant moments, stories of long-forgotten city heroes who perished tragically or beloved stars who died too young.

View the Melbourne General Cemetery Tours Website