Melbourne council to stop cleaning roads
Ratepayers in Melbourne's City of Yarra say they've been "caught in the middle" of a funding stoush between the council and the state government over who should maintain roads in the area.
From July 1, major arterials like Hoddle Street, Brunswick Street, Smith Street, Queens Parade, Bridge Road and Swan Street will no longer be cleaned and monitored by the council.
Traditionally, the state government has provided funding to the council to look after the roads but the City of Yarra says the current compensation is inadequate.
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Ratepayers in the City of Yarra say they've been "caught in the middle" of a funding stoush between the council and the state government over who should maintain roads in the area. 9News
"We're only receiving $90,000 for approximately $1 million worth of work," Mayor Edward Crossland told 9News.
"Council will cease to deliver maintenance of open space, drain cleaning and other hazard response services on state government assets."
A spokesperson for the state government didn't confirm when or how often the roads would be cleaned.
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From July 1, major arterials like Hoddle Street, Brunswick Street, Smith Street, Queens Parade, Bridge Road and Swan Street will no longer be cleaned and monitored by the council. 9News
"Roads will be maintained in line with our responsibilities under the Road Management Act," the spokesperson said.
Clifton Hill resident Paul Jackson fears local amenity will suffer.
"It's very unfair, they have to look after residents first," he said.
"The residents shouldn't be in the middle of this silly little squabble."
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Traditionally, the state government has provided funding to the council to look after the roads but the City of Yarra says the current compensation is inadequate. 9News
Yarra Residents Collective founder Adam Promnitz says the decision could actually be a breach of the Public Health and Wellbeing Act, which stipulates councils must ensure the municipal district is maintained in a clean and sanitary condition.
"They have absolutely no legal basis to withdraw their cleaning services from the area, it's ridiculous," Promnitz said.
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City of Yarra Councillor Stephen Jolly says the move is "embarrassing".
"We're going to have streets in Zimbabwe cleaned more often than streets in inner-city Melbourne," Jolly said.
"You can't just walk away from street cleaning, you can't just talk away from a basic core service of council."
The City of Yarra says it will still deliver a cleaning service on state-owned roads twice a year.
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