Checking on promises
IT has been 100 days since Daniel Andrews and his team took power on the back of promises of millions of dollars in capital works projects for the Geelong region.
The Geelong Advertiser yesterday sent its checklist of promises to the Premier’s office and asked for an update on progress of those projects.
The Premier’s office initially responded with a 20page document and later emailed a series of quotes from Mr Andrews.
The document said the Drysdale bypass had been fasttracked, a fact this paper reported last month along with news that an earlier-than-expected allocation of $2 million had been made towards the bypass.
That money will allow design work and community consultation to begin on the $106 million project.
The new road will provide an alternative route for trucks, which now drive through the town centre, and will reduce congestion, improve pedestrian safety and cut travel times to Portarlington, St Leonards and Indented Head.
In his statement yesterday, Mr Andrews said the State Government was also pressing on with the Simonds Stadium upgrade and had fast-tracked the building of a P-12 school in Bannockburn.
“This is just a start,’’ Mr Andrews said. “You elected us to build the projects that Geelong needs and we will keep our promises on each and every one of them.’’
In Geelong itself, the Labor Party promised $70 million for Simonds Stadium, $30 million for GPAC, $12 million for Geelong High School and to relocate the WorkCover head office to Geelong.
In the region, Labor promised $109 million for the Drysdale bypass, $15 million for the Portarlington Safe Harbour and $4 million for planning to connect Geelong Ring Road to the Bellarine Peninsula.
Mr Andrews also said Geelong had done it tough over the past few years and his government was working hard to get the city back on its feet again.