SUBMISSIONS to Melton council’s draft budget were voiced last week, with residents and community groups highlighting a mixed bag of concerns.
A total of 40 written submissions were presented to the council and 16 residents spoke at the meeting.
Many submissions were made by representatives of sports clubs, including Melton Hockey Club and Melton South Little Athletics Centre, that are in need of funding.
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Charity group Combined Churches Caring Melton (CCCM), which specialises in emergency food services, sought funding to relocate to a permanent site following development of its current council-owned building.
CCCM chief executive Denise Morris told the meeting the organisation needed financial support from the council to be able to move.
“We need to ensure that this program keeps going,’’ she said.
‘‘We started for the right reasons – there was a need for it, there was a service gap, we met that gap.”
The organisation provides emergency food relief to 300 clients a month and has 52 volunteers.
Another submission came from the Brahminy Foundation, which works with disengaged young people at risk of criminal behaviour.
The foundation sought $85,000 from the council to work with 15 young people in Melton.
Representatives of the Coburn, Cambridge and Watts Residents’ Association spoke on behalf of 12 submissions about community issues including funding cuts to road and footpath programs.
Council will consider the submissions before the final budget is presented to councillors on June 25.
