Newsletter: How did Cannibal Creek get its name?

🎊 WHAT’S ON THIS WEEK 🎟️

• SATURDAY, 10/01/26 | Ocean Sounds

• SATURDAY, 10/01/26 | Bass Coast Agricultural Show

• SATURDAY, 10/01/26 | School holiday activities at the Berninneit

• SATURDAY, 10/01/26 | Jonny Fritz and Joshua Hedley

• SATURDAY, 10/01/26 | Karavana Flamenca at the Berninneit

• JAN. 1 - 31 | Australian Near and Far Art Exhibition at The Hub

• DEC. 1 - JAN. 31 | Big Summer Read

🧺 FARMERS MARKETS 🥧

• SATURDAY, 10/01/26 | Coal Creek Farmers Market

• SATURDAY, 10/01/26 | Metung Market

• SUNDAY, 10/01/26 | Longford Community Market

• SUNDAY, 10/01/26 | Kongwak Market

🔍 HEARD THIS WEEK👂

🏠 Baw Baw Shire opposes 45-unit social housing development despite 356 people on waitlist

Baw Baw Shire councillors have voted to oppose a 45-unit social housing project in Drouin over fears the development will risk heritage-listed trees and cause parking problems.

The council’s opposition to the development comes as community groups are calling for a desperate need to increase social and affordable housing in the region.

What happened: At a Baw Baw Shire council meeting in December last year, councillors unanimously voted to oppose the state government's proposed 45-unit social housing development at 2-6 Lampard Road, Drouin.

The submission cited threats to heritage-listed English elms and inadequate parking.

Council’s concerns

Baw Baw Shire Mayor Kate Wilson told the Monitor it’s clear the area needs more social and affordable housing but would like the Victorian government to cooperate with local councils earlier in the development process.

“The proposal in its current state is going to significantly encroach on the canopy and in the root base of the trees,” Wilson said. “We've got policies in place to protect [the trees] right across the Shire and we think this development should follow those policies.”

The need for social housing in Gippsland

Gippsland Homelessness Network co-ordinator, Chris McNamara, told the Monitor: “There’s a desperate need for social and affordable housing. Drouin’s in desperate need for anything to give people shelter.”

• Drouin has 356 people on priority housing waitlists as of March 2025, according to statistics from the Gippsland Homelessness Network.

🗣️“These are people who are most in need, people who are escaping family violence, people with disabilities, health issues or people who are escaping disasters,” McNamara said.

Read the full story here.

🏞️ How did Cannibal Creek get its name?

Have you ever driven down Princes Highway and wondered how Cannibal Creek and the nearby Mount Cannibal got its name? Take a look at the video I filmed about the various theories floating around.

💰 “It’s time we started making the big decisions”: South Gippsland council debates whether to begin selling 400 buildings to solve financial woes

A vacant building in Foster has become the first test case for how South Gippsland will tackle its "eye-watering" infrastructure funding gap with councillors split on whether to sell or maintain council assets.

What happened: Councillors were divided at a South Gippsland Shire council meeting on December 10, debating whether to sell or lease vacant council-owned properties in Foster. 

Initially, council staff had recommended selling its Foster properties at 4-6 Power Street as well as part of 5 Simpson Street. 

However, councillor Scott Rae brought an amended motion to look at the cost of repairing and then leasing the property first, kicking off a debate over the council’s property management strategy.

Read the whole story here.

🥧 Bunyip Bakehouse’s bushman’s pie review

I’m an absolute fiend for a bakery pie, so while I’m travelling around the region interviewing Gippslanders I always make sure to taste test the local bakeries. Take a look at my review of a Bunyip Bakehouse pie below.

LOOKING NATIONALLY 👀

My colleague Archie Milligan from the National Account put together a report with the latest research on the country’s property market.

Property data firm Cotality says the Home Index Value jumped 8.6 percent in the last year, adding approximately $71,400 to the national median dwelling value.

Take a look at the full story below.