A town hall has come under fire after organizers were forced to cancel a Christmas light show due to too much bureaucracy.
Michael Eather announced on Sunday that the exhibition at 63 Grange Road in Sandringham, in Melbourne’s south-east, would not go ahead in December.
It’s the first time the 40,000 lights won’t be turned on in five years after Eather started the tradition of raising money for the National Breast Cancer Foundation.
Organizers claimed on Facebook that they had been unable to obtain a permit and traffic management approval from Bayside City Council.
“Despite our best efforts, the council has been unable or unwilling to support measures that could help reduce congestion during peak nights,” they said.
‘In addition to the logistical obstacles, the financial costs have become overwhelming.
“Over the last two years we have personally invested more than $10,000 to meet council requirements, making it increasingly difficult to continue.”
Eather explained that she started the light show at her mother Glennis’ home after she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015.
A town hall has come under fire after organizers were forced to cancel a Christmas lights display due to too much bureaucracy.
Over the past four years, the event has reportedly raised more than $70,000 for the charity.
The council required a local survey to be carried out before it could install “no standing” signs along the residential street to ensure traffic flowed smoothly.
However, Eather said the council never conducted the survey and requested that his team hire a traffic management company to get a plan.
Eather said the council had made its requests inconsistently.
‘A traffic management consultant I spoke to was of the same opinion (saying): ‘I need to know whether or not changes are occurring in traffic conditions in certain areas before we can actually proceed, and give them a traffic map.’ true and accurate, and obviously, our costs associated with it,’ he said.
Mr Eather’s family consulted neighbors who supported the “no standing” signage.
In response, the council offered an alternative plan, suggesting that Eather pay a traffic company to install bollards, rather than outsourcing the handling of singular parts of the traffic plan.
Eather said it would cost double to triple what they had previously paid for traffic management and was totally unviable.
Michael Eather announced on Sunday that the exhibition at 63 Grange Road in Sandringham, in Melbourne’s south-east, would not go ahead in December.
“I was hoping that (the council) would step up and try to help us a little more,” he said.
Bayside City Council expressed disappointment that organizers scrapped the display.
Director of Environment, Recreation and Infrastructure Jill Colson said council officials worked with event organizers for months.
The council sought to provide a safe environment for the community when the organizer proposed changes to parking restrictions, it said in a statement.
‘The need for the (traffic management) plan and consultation was communicated to the organizers on multiple occasions over an extended period; However, they have chosen not to provide the information necessary for this to happen,’ he said.
Colson said the event brought joy to the community, but needed due consultation with locals.
The council will continue to try to help organizers when necessary, he insisted.
Social media users said Bayside City Council should be “embarrassed” by the cancellation.
“They really seem to be one of the least community supportive councils in the South East,” one wrote on Facebook.
‘The local council has always been useless and unhelpful. A real pit of money managed accordingly,” wrote a second.
“They’re great when it comes to throwing money at crap that’s done poorly, without common sense, or exorbitantly over budget.”
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Bayside Council for further comment.