By Shiloh Thurrowgood and Callum Ludwig
A cooperative effort between Yarra Ranges Council and the Millgrove Residents Action Group (MRAG) has delivered a new pedestrian bridge between Gillis Street and the shops.
The previous bridge had a tendency to flood after heavy rain, leaving walkers stranded along Warburton Highway.
President of MRAG Maureen Halit said they are extremely happy with the new bridge, having asked for a long time for it to be remodelled.
“It almost used to flood right across the road, the bridge was totally inaccessible, and at times the boards would rot away and become quite dangerous,” she said.
“It’s well above the water levels, and I don’t think it’ll get flooded again.”
The new bridge arrives following a series of projects from MRAG that have made Millgrove more walkable, such as the Millgrove Muster cleanup effort on Dee Road and advocating for the recently constructed River Road Community Walking Track.
Ms Halit said it’s a real credit to the group and the work they’ve put in.
“It’s coming along nicely, we’ve got a good lot of motivation at the moment in our group and I want to really thank Council because they’ve been very supportive of us,” she said.
“We’ve now gone from Dee Road with the muster right up to Mackenzie King Bridge and hopefully that’ll be complete in the next month.”
The new bridge also now has a railing and is made from concrete and steel.
Ms Halit said it creates so much more safety for the residents.
“They don’t have to walk out onto the road anymore and put their lives in danger,” she said.
“All the school traffic turns right near there, early mornings and after school were a bit horrendous.”
MRAG is continuing to work on community resilience, looking at getting solar panels for the Millwarra Primary School, Millgrove Preschool, Yarra Valley Soccer Club rooms and the Millwarra Community Building, exploring the potential for a community garden and having recently hosted a resilient housing workshop.
Yarra Ranges Council Mayor and O’Shanassy Ward Councillor Jim Child said there was no other access, so it’s important they raised the bridge.
“If you look at Millgrove and what they’ve achieved there over the years, you couldn’t get from the Mackenzie King Estate, it was dirt tracks, but now it’s concrete all the way to the shops,” he said.
“We want to be able to connect people to their homes, to the recreation facilities, to the shops, or to their monthly market.”
