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Letters to the editor

Letters to the editor

I’d like to voice my disappointment at City of Melbourne.

It regards a public barbecue located near Queensbridge Square, which one can only assume is there to be used by residents and visitors to the area.

On numerous occasions during 2012, I had wanted to hold a barbecue at the spot with my friends, only to find it wasn’t working. This happened one too many times and, back in December, I attempted to contact the council to bring the faulty barbecue to its attention.

I received a reply from the council stating: “Sorry for the inconvenience, we have passed on your comments to the engineering service team to look into the issue.”

So, I left it at that, on the assumption that the council would abide by its word and have the matter sorted. Over two months later however, I’ve discovered that nothing but an “out of order” sign has been left at the site.

Is this the council’s idea of looking into the issue? I know it may only be a barbecue ... but it’s far more than that. This is an issue of City of Melbourne’s disregard for its residents and visitors – on two fronts.

Firstly, its inability to maintain public facilities adequately and, secondly, to listen and to act on residents’ and the public’s feedback. The council’s handling of this small matter, unfortunately sends a message about its broader attitude to providing adequate amenities for people to enjoy our fine city.

I think the Southbank promenade has great potential to be a fantastic place for people to socialise, have a barbecue, a picnic, bring their dog, bring their children, relax on the lawn, listen to buskers, watch street performers ... and not just drink and gorge themselves at the restaurants/bars in the area.

Julian Sheriff

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