50 years ago
May 1975
A day care hospital costing $98,965 is to be built at Echuca District Hospital.
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The Echuca Hospital Board has approval from the Hospital and Charities Commission for the contract.
The hospital manager, Mr Eeon Macaulay, said that work was expected to start in three weeks and finish in five months.
Specifications will include facilities for the elderly and people suffering from diseases of the aged.
Treatments including physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and eye and dietary sections will be established and patients will be given a meal as part of the service.
***
Echuca Technical School’s Agricultural Apprenticeship training program, which started in February, is continuing favourably.
This program resulted from public interest in a scheme to train young people going on to the land to work.
Ten apprentices have started the course and it is expected that a similar intake will continue.
At the end of their training of three to four years, they will be granted a skilled Farm Tradesmen’s Proficiency Certificate.
The Echuca City Council and Echuca Sewerage Authority have granted the Technical School use of an area of land on the sewage farm.
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A proposal to convert the cross intersection when the Perricoota Rd joins the Cobb Hwy into a T-intersection has again met strong opposition from Moama councillor Jim Hickey.
The proposal envisages the closing of Francis St, Moama, and the eventual re-routing of traffic using this approach to the Cobb Hwy to another street further south.
At the May meeting of Murray Shire Council, shire engineer Mr S. Jackson said he had put forward a plan for the conversion of the intersection in reply to a request from the Department of Main Roads.
The department has offered a grant for an annual minor traffic engineering and road safety work program.
Cr Hickey said the question of the conversion of the intersection had arisen at a previous meeting and after due consideration had been rejected by council.
25 years ago
May 2000
The historic rail link to the Port of Echuca will be reconnected following the approval of a $150,000 state government grant.
The announcement ends years of lobbying to reinstate the ‘’other half’’ of the Port of Echuca’s history, according to Port of Echuca Authority manager Bruce Whelan.
He said the rail link was a priority of the Port of Echuca Heritage Precinct Masterplan.
‘’The beauty of the rail link is that it’s restoring what was already there,“ he said.
‘’We’re not thinking up anything gimmicky.’’
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St Mary’s Parish in Echuca is negotiating to buy land in Echuca West to build a new Catholic primary school.
A member of the parish finance committee, Ed McEniry, said the parish was negotiating to buy a 2.5 hectare site.
Mr McEniry said negotiations for the land were still at an early stage and it would be premature to release firm details.
‘’It will require a financial commitment from parishioners and substantial Federal Government assistance,’’ Mr McEniry said.
He said all options to buy land adjoining the existing St Mary’s site, between Percy and Anstruther streets, had been investigated and had proved cost-prohibitive.
***
Almost $200 was raised as part of Heartkids Day in Echuca. The $194.15 was raised through face painting, a count the jellybeans in the jar competition and the sale of Heartkids merchandise.
All money raised goes to paediatric cardiac research at Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne.
Echuca-Moama Heartkids Victoria branch country co-ordinator Michelle Hall said the aim of the day was to raise awareness of children with heart conditions.
The police, fire brigade and search and rescue services also joined the Heartkids youngsters and their families.
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Echuca’s Rainbow IGA Supermarket will shut its doors for the last time on Friday, June 23.
The decision to close the store was made by the current owners, national food distribution company Davids Limited. Staff were informed on Monday.
Rainbow IGA currently employs 10 full or permanent part-time staff and six casuals.
A spokesperson for Davids in Melbourne said eligible staff would be offered positions at other stores — the nearest being Bendigo — or a redundancy package.
Four staff have been with the supermarket for a total of more than 70 years.
10 years ago
May 2015
Echuca-Moama Triathlon Club member Steve Gray was named the Triathlon Victoria Club Volunteer of the Year at an awards breakfast on Sunday.
And the sensational number of congratulatory messages on the club’s Facebook page are a clear indication of the presence Gray has at the club.
Tri club president Anna Price said the modest and generous Gray was just an all-round ‘‘nice guy’’ who had finally been recognised for all the work he does at the club.
Gray is the brains behind the Echuca Sprint, which is just one stage of the Rural Tri Series which is also hosted in Yarrawonga, Albury, Wodonga, Warrnambool, Maryborough and Horsham.
The past president of the club and life member was humbled to receive the award and said he was proud of how far his club had come.
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When Carlton runs on to the SCG tonight it will be a new-look side in more ways than one.
When the Blues take the field, not only will they have a new coach, but a new-look jumper.
The jumper, designed by Echuca artist Clive Atkinson, has been commissioned as part of the AFL’s Indigenous round.
Mr Atkinson, whose nephew is Carlton defender Andrew Walker, designed the jumper which depicts three of the oldest Aboriginal symbols: the rainbow serpent, the long-necked turtle and a trio of men.
Indigenous players, including Walker, tried on the new uniform in the presence of Carlton great Syd Jackson.
***
Campaspe Shire Council’s flagship was sinking earlier this week. Literally.
Water had to be pumped from the PS Alexander Arbuthnot paddlesteamer’s hull on Monday when council — preparing to slip the paddlesteamer — moved the vessel to the Onion Patch.
Council said it was moved to remove equipment to reduce the vessel’s weight.
But during the move it sprang a plank in the hull and water started pouring in.
Fortunately, staff were on hand to stop the paddlesteamer from going under.
Prosperity general manager Anne Howard said staff assisted in moving the paddlesteamer back to its mooring and pumped the water from the hull.
The boat was put on the slip on Wednesday morning.
RIV Herald