Dear City of Port Phillip Lord Mayor Louise Crawford and City of Port Phillip Councillors –

It is deeply concerning to see that the City of Port Phillip has allowed sections of Port Phillip’s beautiful beaches to be fenced off over the summer.

Parts of Elwood Beach, St Kilda Beach, West Beach and Port Melbourne Beach have been fenced off for outdoor dining as an extension of the City of Port Phillip Covid-19 hospitality assistance—without community consultation.

While the creative use of carparking and under-utilised footpath space for hospitality gives back to the community, fencing off sections of the beach diminishes it as public space. It does not add value. It takes something that was free for use by everyone and makes people pay to sit on the beach.

The City of Port Phillip has been a wonderful champion for public space.  It would be such a shame to see its legacy diminished by this decision. 

As we move beyond Covid-19 restrictions and temporary permits for pop up spaces we need to assess what worked and what didn't.

We ask the City of Port Phillip Lord Mayor and Councillors to take action and move to not allow this type of use of our beaches to set a precedent into the future.

Our beaches are for everyone, they should never be fenced off.