26th October 2022

A final message of thanks from Charles Reis, Campaign Chairperson.

Our Save Flinders Pier success was the result of a team effort. An extraordinary team, as it turned out. So, as we close-out our campaign, I would like to call-out each of our committee members who contributed their time, knowledge, expertise and effort to save our iconic pier for future generations:

Committee Members

• The late Trent Williams – organised our volunteer Flinders beach-cleans and introduced us to the dive community’s perspective of the pier.
• Alan Farrer – former Commodore of the Flinders Yacht Club who delivered engineering insights and estimates
• Claire Thorn – offered important tactical advice on our campaign strategy and also the workings of Government
• Jane Bowman – arranged volunteer scuba divers to remove seabed litter and educated all of us on the state of the seabed beneath the pier.
• Jo Monie – Flinders Community Association President and Heritage contributor to the Heritage application.
• Mark Holland – former president of the Flinders District Lions Club who led our independent condition report
• Mary Iles – organised our merchandise and events and put up signs across the Peninsula.
• Melissa Smith – provided commercial and tactical advice and organised signage printing and our real estate boards.
• Myra Kelly – our relentless champion of social media and taught us the strength of Instagram to a younger, wider audience.
• Dr Neil Hallam – resident botanist and our environmental expert who assisted the review of an independent environmental report
• Neville Wale – President of the Flinders District Historical Society who prepared the successful Heritage application
• Susan Grant – Flinders Community Association Treasurer and research contributor to the Heritage application
• Trish Hurley – Convenor of the pier’s school art competition with displays and awards to students and schools across the Peninsula, ably assisted by Patricia MacDonald

And our supporters…..

The 42,000 signatures on the change.org website with their messages of support;

The 3,000 people who signed petitions in the shops and the Flinders General Store; and our valuable financial supporters whose donations quickly rose to more than $40,000, enabling us to spread our message far and wide.

The 99 individuals who took the time to research and prepare personal submissions to Heritage Victoria in support of the pier’s heritage listing.

Our thanks go to all the retailers in the village who willingly put up signs and contacted their own customers to support our campaign. The Flinders General Store is worthy of special mention for its promotion and sale of our merchandise; and made sure stickers and caps were seen around the world…yes, even in New York! And Harry the Mussel Man who provided important feedback on the pier’s commercial importance.

Our congratulations to Chris Jaeger and his team of Iceberger swimmers who jumped, swam and sausage sizzled in support of the campaign. And to Peter Carew, who made signs, key rings and earrings from recycled squid jigs to help us raise funds.

We thank our Mornington Peninsula Shire Council and our Mayor, Anthony Marsh who kayaked his way from Flinders Pier to Somerville to help support the campaign.

Our thanks to St John’s Church which let us display our wonderful campaign trailer at the St John’s fete in January; and to the drivers who trailed the trailer around Victoria and posted her presence where ever they could!

Also, the Save Western Port group that reached out and provided tactical advice on how to promote our cause.

We acknowledge the local, state and country-wide media which published our news, stories, letters and photos and whose editors, reporters and broadcasters supported us all the way. We also thank the photographers who generously granted us access to their photos and video footage of the pier and life beneath the water’s surface.

And we must not forget Sir David Attenborough, one of the world’s greatest conservationists who hand-wrote to us at the very beginning of our campaign, not once but twice, in support of the weedy sea dragon habitat that we were working so hard to preserve.

We thank the local, State and Federal politicians and candidates who met with and listened to us and continue to support the Pier’s repair and preservation on social media.

And we thank you, our FCA members and friends who allowed us to use your front fences and nature strips for our signs; and provided encouragement and messages of support at each step of this campaign.

We leave the last words of this final post to our dear friend and colleague, the late Trent Williams who signed-off all his emails with the same catchphrase: The Voice of the sea speaks to the soul.

Trent will be in our thoughts every-time we step on to the pier; or dive amongst the wonderful creatures that will continue to call the old Flinders Pier their home.

Charles Reis

Chairperson, Save Flinders Pier campaign (Retired)

Heritage Recommendation for Pier a welcome start

On 16 March 2022, the Executive Director of Heritage Victoria recommended that Flinders Pier and the Flinders Telegraph Complex be included in the Victorian Heritage Register. The Heritage Victoria recommendation can be read here.

This is still only a recommendation, and a final decision will be made by the Heritage Council of Victoria in June.

Heritage Victoria has based its recommendation on an extensive study which has evaluated the Flinders Pier against 8 criteria, of which three criteria are likely to be satisfied at the State Level. The results are summarised as follows:

Importance To Victoria”s Cultural History –  YES

Contains attributes that are uncommon, rare or endangered – NO

Potential to yield more information about Victoria’s past – YES

Demonstrates characteristics of an historically important event or way of life. NO

Exhibits aesthetic characteristics. NO

Reveals a high degree of creative or technical achievement. NO

Evidence of a strong association to broader community or cultural groups. YES

Associated with the life or work of important Victorian(s). NO

It is possible that additional information from the consultation process could reverse one or more of the above results. In other words, members of the public now have the opportunity to identify anything else that is unique about the Flinders Pier; or prove an association with famous Victorians from our past.

Comments from the broader community will then inform the Heritage Council’s final decision on whether or not to officially include Flinders Pier on the Victorian Heritage Register.

Please have your say by completing the online submission form before the closing date of 17 May 2022. The form will take about 5 minutes to complete.

READ MORE

The Flinders Community Association’s campaign to Save Flinders Pier has had a small win, with the Flinders and District Historical Society successfully lodging an application to Heritage Victoria to list the pier on the Victorian Heritage Register. Heritage Victoria will undertake a statutory assessment under the Heritage Act (2017) to review whether the foreshore precinct demonstrates State level significance.  The matter is ultimately determined by the Heritage Council and the full process is likely to take at least six months. The heritage application provides a small reprieve for the historic Flinders Pier, the first 180m of which is scheduled for demolition by Parks Victoria in 2022.

The Flinders Community Association has established a fighting fund to save the pier, and donations to the fund can be made clicking on this link to the MyCause donations platform.