Two significant exhibitions are sailing into Queenscliff this month and are set to provide a major drawcard for maritime enthusiasts. 

A perfectly scaled model of the Queen Mary II is among the highlights of the fourth annual Model Boat Exhibition. 

The event, from September 25 to October 1, will feature upwards of 100 craft, highlighting a rich tradition of miniature boat building skills. 

“We approached the Victorian model maker clubs and the response has been positive, said Darren Albutt, who together with renowned boat building father Gil have initiated the exhibition. 

“There should be around boats including the Queen May 2, which is 3.6 metres [in length]. There will be all sorts of models from yachts, Navy ships and couta boats,” he said. 

A water tank will also be set up to display radio-controlled craft.
 
The popular fundraiser is returning to the Queenscliffe Maratime Museum after a haiatus of several years. 
“Dad put together the previous three model boat exhibitions in the 90’s and he thought one was well overdue,” Mr Albutt said.

Meantime the Museum has secured the Victorian rights to host the Australian National Maritime Museum’s (ANMM) acclaimed ‘War at Sea’ travelling exhibition.

It includes a stunning pictorial display detailing the history of the Australian Navy during World War I. 
The exhibition features many rare artefacts from the collections of the ANMM, National Film and Sound Archives and the Australian War Memorial.
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War at Sea will be officially opened by Commander Terry Makins, Shrine of Remembrance Governor and President of the Naval Commemoration Committee of Victoria President, on Sunday September 11 at 2pm. It will run until Friday November 30.

Some of the Bellarine's brightest young artists will showcase their talents during this month's Headstart Youth Art Exhibition. 

Queenscliff Neighbourhood House is playing host to the event  which seeks to give loal youth, aged 14 to 20, a platform to "express their creativity, ideas, talents and imagination." 

Youth coordinator Aaron Ford said upwards of 14 pieces had been submitted for the show, including paintings, photography and other genre. 

"Hopefully it is something we will do every year and hopefully we will get more schools involved  as it grows," he said. 

"The theme is home and that can be whatever the artist interprets it as, It can be abstract, it can be literal or it could be where you think your home is." 

Point Lonsdale's Beth Hodge has created a chair in the shape of a seated man, wearing a dress. 

"I've twisted the word home, the chair man is a transgender woman. I want to show in some homes this is normal way of life.  

Harley Olsen has submitted an embellished portrait of his sister's face. 
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"I did that to show I can take a part of my family, my home,  anywhere with me," he said.

Bellarine Community Health has unveiled significantly scaled back redevelopment plans for its Point Lonsdale facilities.
 
The new proposal scraps much of the contentious aspects of an original masterplan  including more than 60 townhouses – and, according to CEO John Fendyk, shows the organisation has listened to the community and has heard its concerns about over-development of the site. 

“The community told us that they weren’t ready for a major development and they wanted to keep the existing medical centre.

"We’ve listened to that feedback and have now developed a proposal that we believe is in line with the community’s wishes but also meets the organisation’s needs to renovate an ageing Community Health Centre complex,” Mr Fendyk said.

The initial proposal included 66 double-storey units, more than 200 undergound car parks, a swimming pool and café. 

Its price tag was put at more than $7 million.   

“When we put the draft Masterplan out for public consultation we had a longer term vision in mind, but the community asked us to separate the projects, so that’s what we’ve done. 

“We are not progressing the idea of the Independent living units, pool, café etcetera at this stage. Our focus is on building an updated and modern Community Health Centre that can meet the future needs of the community.”

A planning application for the development has been submitted to Council. It includes clinical office, medical reception, community health and dental spaces.  

A new two storey wing accommodate Community Nursing and other administration staff.

“Community feedback has been incorporated into these plans and we believe there is a balance between updating the existing buildings as well as new features to accommodate both service delivery and comfort for consumers.

 “The cost of the redevelopment will be met with $3 million of committed funding from the Commonwealth and a similar contribution from Bellarine Community Health’s capital works fund,” Mr Fendyk said.

If approved, the renovation will be staged over several months to minimise interruptions to existing services. It is unclear when work might start. 

■ A community information session will be held at the Community Health Centre  from 5:00pm to 6:30pm on Thursday 11 August. Plans will also be on public display in the foyer.
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FOOTBALL - Queenscliff could be heading into the BFL finals as genuine premiership chance after a season even coach Johnno Casey wasn’t expecting. 

The Coutas will put last weekend's shock 100 point loss to reigning premiers Geelong Amateurs behind them to focus on this weekend's last home and away clash with Ocean Grove.
  
The team is holding down second spot - three games clear of third placed Anglesea. 

“The year’s probably gone a lot better than we thought,” said Casey, who co-coaches the team with good-friend Andrew Hodgson. “We did think if we could get everybody on the park then we’d be very competitive but we’ve been able to string a lot of good wins together. 

“We had a bit of a lull a month or so ago when we dropped that game against Modewarre but everybody has responded pretty well. 

“I think we’re a huge chance – the way that we play, the way that we run, our ball movement is as good as anyone’s in the league, I think we can really take it [the premiership].”

Quenscliff’s chances were dealt a blow with leading ball-getter Jayden Durran suffering a broken jaw in last month's clash with Drysdale. Spearhead Daniel “Frenchy” DeGois  limped from the field in the same game.   

“Frenchy is a little bit sore, his calf is a bit sore, we’ve just got to see how he goes getting through training. Our main aim is to get everyone fit before finals,” Casey said. 

“We’ve probably got a handful of guys that have played four, five or six games in the seniors that are playing in the reserves at the moment, so that’s really good for our depth.” 

FOOTBALL/NETBALL DIARY:
Queenscliff v Ocean Grove - Saturday August 6. 
Finals - Sat/Sun August 13/14. Venues tbc

Councillor Peter Russell has stepped in to prevent history repeating over sea level rise...
A community reference group will be established to help drive solutions for sea level rise, amid fresh warnings that much of our municipality is at risk of inundation. 

Queenscliffe Councillor Peter Russell has successfully lobbied for the formation of the group, following the recent release of the Our Coast Project, to prevent a repeat of the community angst that surfaced over the issue some nine years ago. 

The detailed scientific assessment paints a worrying picture for Fisherman’s Flat in particular as well as low lying areas around the Bellarine Highway and Murray Road. 

Cr Russell said the report’s contents – including interactive mapping showing the scale of the problem - could alarm many residents and reignite tensions unless they are given a direct say in the decision making process. 

“We have to have good representation from community, that’s the key. You can’t have only political players making these decisions, you’ve got to also have people who are talking from a community point of view and are representative of the community. 

“That could include community groups or people who are directly affected,” he said. “I mean those on Fisherman’s Flat are highly affected so they have to have some form of representation and there’s quite a few hundred people in Lonsdale who also have to be given a voice and then, and unfortunately we don’t have it at the moment, but if 3225, on the other side of Fellows Road, comes into play they have to be included as well. 

“At the moment they’re not a part of our municipality, so it’s a half sandwich,” he said. 

Cr Russell was a key player in the formation of the Save 600 group in 2008 – created to provide a voice for residents of low-lying properties previously identified as being susceptible to flooding and sea surges. 

The formation of a community reference group will prevent the same angst from re-occurring, he said. 

“The only way the Council can show that it is listening to residents I believe is to have a good strong reference committee, where they are open and full with the community about the whole thing, it’s the only way. 

“They have the plans and they have the science, now hey need to bring in the community to review that science and the plans and then to help start developing the mitigation plan and start asking what can we do. 

“State government has also got a role to play. They can’t fund this report and have people say we need this and we need that and then turn around and say no we haven’t got any money. They have to start to provide the resources,” he said. 

The Our Coast Project took around three years to complete and is designed as a guide for councils and authorities in dealing with future planning and mitigation decisions.

Queenscliffe, Geelong and the Bellarine Peninsula are among the four areas studied. 

“The new community reference group in my view can also form strong alliances because there are other communities along the coast that are under threat – Lakes Entrance, Barwon Heads and Port Fairy,” Cr Russell said. 

“It will listen and talk to them to find out what they are doing because we don’t have all the knowledge but we can learn from each other.”

The Council is yet to reveal full details of the community reference group. 
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The Our Coast Project includes a series of maps showing the potential impact of sea level rise scenarios and severe weather: 


Local interactive modelling can be viewed at: 
FISHERMAN'S FLAT - http://tinyurl.com/Inundation-video 
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Countless hours on the road, of performing, costume changes and sowing of sequins… welcome to Liz Reid’s world!

The Queenscliff mother of four will this month give an insight into her life-long passion for the sport of Calisthenics, with the screening of the Australian documentary Graceful Girls. 

The movie will feature on the opening night of the Bellarine Lighthouse Films Winter Program of Fine Art Films.  (Friday 5th- Sunday 7th July). 

It follows the path of one of Australia’s oldest clubs, Melbourne’s Regency Calisthenics Dance School, as it prepares for the sport’s pinnacle solo event – the century old Graceful Girl competition. 

Liz and daughters Callista and Min are members of the club and all appear in the movie. 

“I have been a bit nervous about the screening,” she admits. “This has been such a big part of my life and my kids’ lives and it’s funny having it exposed to everybody to be criticised or enjoyed. 

“I’m hoping everybody will just enjoy it.  he story is good, it’s a bit like watching Dance Mums but it’s not as cringe worthy. It’s an Australian story and it showcases a sport and it is a really skilled sport and the girls and the coaches are just so talented.”

Since its 2015 release Graceful Girls has received widespread acclaim including Best Documentary Award at last year’s Melbourne Film Festival. 

It gives a stunningly honest perspective of the uniquely Australian dance sport and the characters that are involved. 

“I just like the sport because you don’t have to be brilliant at it, it’s so inclusive, it brings all the components together of dance and gymnastics and ballet and team work and individual growth, it just works “ says Liz.
 
Since the documentary was filmed Min has moved on to focus on ballet at the Victorian College of the Arts, Callista is herself preparing to compete for the Most Graceful Girl title. 

Both will be at the Queenscliff screening, bringing with them a number of competition costumes. 
Five fine art films feature in this year's Festival line up. They include: 

■ Friday 5 August @ 7pm | OPENING NIGHT FILM SCREENING + Q&A | Graceful Girls
■ Saturday 6 August @ 1.30pm | The Belier Family
■ Saturday 6 August @ 3.45pm | Like Father Like Son
■ Saturday 6 August @ 7.30pm | Wild Tales
■ Sunday 7August @ 11.00am | The Look of Silence

The full festival program, film synopsis and trailers can be viewed at: www.bellarinelighthousefilms.com.au
Weekend pass tickets cost  $70 (includes opening night). Single sessions from $15.