Thank you Star Weekly for stating the terms of the 'Save McIvor Reserve" petition so clearly, for all in the community to see.

We are very proud of all those that have stood up to be the voice of reason for this community, and made this story of protecting parkland in our city, one of broad public interest.

We've had some significant wins with week:

With support from our councillors, we have successfully compelled MCC to move the endorsement meeting for the McIvor Reserve Masterplan from the 21st to the 29th March, which will (through a very small concession on MCC's part), give us 11 days to evaluate the masterplan.

The Yarraville-Footscray Bowling Club has publicly rejected Council's offer to absorb them into this ill-conceived stadium development; a courageous step for members who wish to preserve the culture and identity of this much loved club.

Without club support MCC must willfully endorse the demise of the club as we know it, or MCC has to take even more parkland, or significantly reduce the footprint of the stadium, or hopefully abandon the stadium proposition entirely and move it to a brown field site where it belongs.

Contrary to the CEO's insistence that Councillors meeting with community is not possible, Mayor Carter (and we trust, all the other councilors) agreed to meet face to face with the community on the weekend following the release of the masterplan.

But don't be fooled into a false sense of victory just yet. Councillors may engage, but we still have to maximise this opportunity to show them that the MCC's rationale for prioritising bricks and mortar development over preservation of scarce public greenspace is flawed, and is not in the best interests of this community. It's also not the way forward if we truly value our natural resources and what they deliver to all residents.

Community support to take action against this Council is still growing. If you wish to make a meaningful contribution by joining our protest or connecting with councillors to get your message across please reach out at friendsofmcivorreserve@gmail.com . The proposal for McIvor Reserve is just a small part of a bigger problem of changing the culture within this council, which is a challenge we can only meet as a united community.

Thanks for your ongoing support.