Politics · Australia · 12 hrs ago
Martha Cove residents face $541,000 bill for underpass lights
Martha Cove residents face a $541,000 bill to replace lights in a public underpass.
The development is in Safety Beach on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula and has more than 1,800 homes and about 830 marina berths.
A long-term agreement requires owners to fund local maintenance and replacements, even for infrastructure the public can use.
The Department of Transport and Planning plans to replace 50 lights along an 80-metre stretch with LED lights.
Residents say the department has not explained the cost clearly or provided design documents, and they are concerned about future maintenance expenses.
Residents have also paid for public underpass lifts and a boardwalk replacement, but say they should not have to cover the full lighting cost.
The work is due to start this month, and the owners corporation says it cannot prevent the department from taking the money from its maintenance fund; the department says it is working with residents to meet safety standards.
Martha Cove residents face a combined $541,000 bill to replace lights in a public underpass used daily by motorists.
The Victorian Department of Transport and Planning says it is working with the owners corporation to maintain the underpass to safety standards.
Residents’ representative Neil Pope says the department has not adequately explained the cost or provided design documents.
A section 173 agreement requires residents to fund maintenance and replacements in the area.
The light replacement project is due to begin this month.
- Who
- Martha Cove residents, through their owners corporation, are being asked to fund the work by the Victorian Department of Transport and Planning.
- What
- Residents face a combined $541,000 bill to upgrade 50 underpass lights to LED.
- When
- The project is due to begin this month. The article was published on November 8, 2026.
- Where
- The underpass is at Martha Cove in Safety Beach on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria.
- Why
- A section 173 agreement requires residents to fund maintenance and replacements in the area.
Martha Cove residents
Victorian Department of Transport and Planning
Cost and responsibility
Martha Cove residents
Residents’ representative Neil Pope says it is unfair to make residents fund the public underpass lighting upgrade and says the department has not adequately explained the $541,000 cost.
Victorian Department of Transport and Planning
The department says it is working with the owners corporation to maintain the underpass in accordance with safety standards.
Construction began on the Martha Cove development.
Residents spent a combined $450,000 on underpass lifts and replacing a 2.3-kilometre timber boardwalk.
The underpass light replacement project is due to begin.
- Proposed bill
- $541,000 combined
- Lights to be upgraded
- 50
- Underpass stretch
- 80 metres
- Development location
- Safety Beach, Mornington Peninsula
- Residents
- About 3,000
- Marina berths
- About 830
What people are saying
This is ultimately an issue of fairness, accountability and the proper use of property owners’ money
We accept that we have to look after the marina
As a privately funded development, the owners corporation is responsible for the ongoing operation and maintenance