Hastings 3915

New Hastings Community Centre

The new building for Hastings Community Services, i.e. the health centre "plus", is now open in High Street, Hastings, between the CFA fire station and the Western Port College.

As well as the Peninsula Health facilities from their former home on the corner of Coolstore Road and Victoria Street in Hastings, it will also include the Hastings Community Information and Support Centre from their former, and now empty, home in King Street. (Sadly the web site for the information centre, linked in our left hand column does not mention the new premises but it does detail their services which continue at the new centre).

Services provided through Peninsula Health will include dental, physiotherapy, speech pathology, dietetics, diabetes education, podiatry and children’s, women’s, and family and services. The Peninsula Health website is at http://www.peninsulahealth.org.au/

At the time of writing the one service lacking is doctors, which continue in their existing offices on either side of Victoria Street north of High Street in the centre of Hastings.

Hastings Community House is also moving into the new centre ready for its new season's activities starting in October. Though their website has also not yet been updated, their phone and email contact details remain as listed at http://www.hastingschi.com.au/ (click on the smile to get in!)

In a letter to the Hastings News August edition, local councillor Reade Smith suggests that the old community house buildings in Marine Parade "should be pulled down asap" but that other adjacent buildings should be retained and/or renovated.

Phone numbers:
Hastings Health Centre                                                 59792894
Hastings Community House:                                         5979 2918
Hastings Community Information & Support Centre         59792762

Most southern mangroves?

This ceramic mural at the entrance to the 4km Bittern Coastal Walk that stretches from Salmon Street in Hastings (opposite the caravan park) to Jack's Beach at Crib Point was created by the students of Hastings Primary School in 2008 and depicts the reefs and islands of Westernport, the wetlands, mangroves, brids and animals of Warrangine Park and the boardwalk that provides access to it. The names of the 10 students, assisted by artist Judi Singleton, are listed on the board seen above with some of the extensive mangroves.

Mangroves, seagrass meadows and salt marshes have a similar standing to rainforest in their biodiversity and are unique in their ability to survive salt water inundation and freshwater runoff. They have been described as the kidneys of our ecosystem.

The area used to be much larger but it remains one of the largest examples of coastal wetlands. Note that dogs are not permitted in the park.

See much information on the seagrass and mangroves and other plants of Western Port on the Western Port Seagrass Partnership page at http://www.seagrass.com.au/browse.asp?page=330

There's a link there to the regional fauna.