Session may give Athlone answers

by Emma Ballingall A drop-in session will be held at Athlone for community members to gain information about The Ice Meltdown Project’s proposal to utilise the former school site.

Baw Baw Shire planning and economic development director Matthew Cripps said the drop-in session would offer the chance to view the information and ask questions relating to the application “prior to further consideration of the planning permit”.

“A date for this drop in session has not yet been set, however, we will release more information in due course,” said Mr Cripps.

“As it stands, the applicant has provided all of the relevant information that has been sought to assist in the further consideration of the application,” he said. “The application is set to be readvertised, and all parties who have lodged a submission in relation to the matter will be directly notified.”

It follows a petition signed by 401 people calling on Baw Baw Shire to refuse a permit allowing the former school site to be used by TIMP for addiction recovery programs. It was tabled at a council meeting on September 13.

Petitioners said the Athlone community “do not want this application to proceed due to ongoing concerns relating to the predations of the project, lack of community consultation and inability of the Ice Meltdown Project to submit a full application to the shire planning department to allow transparency of the proposal.”

In a statement to the Gazette, the Ice Meltdown Project committee said it would like the community to be correctly informed that, as per council advice, an amended planning application has been lodged.

“It is full and complete, and has been prepared by a suitably qualified person,” a committee spokesman said. “Claims by the petitioners that this has not been done are false.”

“We do understand that we have had community opposition to the proposal and hope that the recent full application submitted provides enough detail to allay the concerns of the public. The only people using the centre will be those who have completed an eight-week detox program.

“In any event, we respect the concerns of the community and hope that the planning process can achieve an outcome that is suitable for all parties.”

The committee said the planning application was for an “Education and Recovery Support Centre” - not a residential rehabilitation or a day rehabilitation.

It is envisioned the site will support administration as well as offering workshops reintroducing life skills such as cooking, men’s and women’s health, basic life support and tutoring as well as introduced interests such as woodwork, horticulture, music and art.

“We envisage a place that will give our participants security and confidence to be supported in their early days of recovery,” said the committee. “There will be no medications administered on the site. We encourage the involvement and contribution of talents from of volunteers to the workshops.”

Responding to what the committee called “misinformation circulating in the community”, TIMP said it uses an independent auditor to validate the program’s finances, maintains a duty of care in its scope of practice, holds insurance coverage, is a registered charity with the ATO, and a complaint made to AHPRA “was found to be unjustified”.

“Athlone residents will be in no more danger than other residents of the Baw Baw Shire who currently face substance abuse affected people in the community,” a spokesman said.

“We have been running a meeting weekly from The Drouin Anglican Church for the last three years without complaints.”