🟠 Boroondara's nomadic cats

Also: Warrandyte's connection to the gold rush

Author

Matthew Sims
July 15, 2026

⏱️ The 152nd edition of our newsletter is a seven-minute read.

Hi there 👋 

Matthew Sims here, your reporter at the Eastern Melburnian.

🚗 Last Friday, I hopped in the car to make the trek to Warrandyte — specifically where the first discovery of gold in Victoria was recorded.

🥶 Despite being a very chilly morning, I found two fossickers, Theo and Alan, digging away in the creek bed. The two grandfathers said they came down to the site at least twice a week and stayed there from dawn to dusk.

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Today, we’re covering:

  • Boroondara council recommending improved education on cat ownership, despite more than three in four locals wanting some form of a curfew;

  • The approval of works to demolish and reconstruct the front of Canterbury’s “Shenley Croft” and build a two-storey rear extension; and

  • The history of Warrandyte’s gold rush and the fossickers still digging for the precious metal.

More than 3,650 Boroondara residents responded to consultation on whether or not to introduce a cat curfew, with support almost evenly split between a night-time curfew (38.4 per cent), a 24-hour curfew (37.8 per cent) and no change (23.8 per cent).

WHAT’S COMING UP 🎟️

📰 THIS WEEK’S HEADLINES

More than three in four Boroondara residents want some form of cat curfew, but council officers are recommending improved education instead.

At the council meeting on July 27, councillors will be able to choose from five options, including a complaint-based enforcement model — where the council would only investigate reports from residents rather than actively patrol for cats — or a night-time curfew trial from January 2027 to July 2029.

Boroondara is estimated to have 14,987 cats, including 4,816 registered and 10,171 unregistered.

Between October 2025 and May 2026, the council received 22 complaints about cat nuisance, half involving people feeding stray cat colonies. During the same period, it received 282 dog-related complaints, including 94 dog attacks.\

Under a curfew, residents could humanely trap roaming cats and ask the council to collect them.

The owners of registered cats would usually receive a warning for a first offence before a $102 fine for follow-up infringements. Unregistered cats would be impounded, with fines only issued if an owner claimed them.

Council officers say a curfew would likely increase impoundments, nuisance complaints and the number of unregistered cats.

The number of cat impoundments in Boroondara has risen from 264 in 1998 to 2,058 in 2024-25. The report estimates the council would need to trap up to 5,085 unregistered cats every six months for more than a decade to significantly reduce stray numbers, resulting in many cats being euthanised.

Tarni James said a decision to refuse extra planning protections on her family's former Canterbury home after it was destroyed by an arson attack in December 2023 was "a heartbreak".

Built in 1905-06 and known as “Shenley Croft”, the dwelling at 7-9 Mangarra Road is an Edwardian villa covered by the council’s heritage overlay, which protects it from inappropriate development and demolition.

Robert "Rob" James bought the house in 1957 for his wife Merle and their four children. Merle lived there until her death in June 2020.

The family sold the property for $3.1 million in November 2020, although the land was later estimated to be worth up to $6 million.

Victoria Police confirmed the house was destroyed in an arson attack in the early hours of December 9, 2023. No charges have been laid and the investigation remains ongoing.

Since February 2024, Boroondara council has urged the State Government to introduce a planning control requiring the house to be faithfully rebuilt.

However, in a June 25 letter to mayor Wes Gault, the Planning Minister said there was not "sufficient evidence" to show the owner was responsible for the fire or had deliberately allowed the property to deteriorate.

Councillors unanimously approved a permit this week to demolish and reconstruct the front of the house and build a two-storey rear extension.

Ms James said having to see her family home of more than 55 years burn was "gut-wrenching" and "tragic", but the approved plans were "the best we could hope for".

In a letter she sent to the Planning Minister, she described the government's response as "totally inadequate".

Before work begins, the owner must enter into a legal agreement with the council requiring the house to be rebuilt in accordance with the approved plans.

Boroondara council approves demolition and rebuild of Canterbury’s 121-year-old heritage mansion destroyed by fire

The 1,332sqm block of land at 7-9 Mangarra Road houses a heritage-listed Edwardian villa.

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🪏 BURIED TREASURES

WATCH: The story of Warrandyte’s gold rush

This quiet creek, less than an hour’s drive from Melbourne, changed Victoria forever.

About 175 years ago, one man discovered gold at Warrandyte’s Andersons Creek and sparked a rush that would transform the colony.

Watch the video below.

Instagram Post

Finally: A YIMBY Melbourne study has tracked which cities have the highest amount of planning restrictions, with Melbourne ranking at the bottom across all eight states and territories.

However, with more lenient planning rules, there are often more cases of overdevelopment or inappropriate projects receiving a green light.

If you feel a particular application in your area needs more consultation, please email us via [email protected]

That’s all from me this time

Cheers,

Matthew