🟠 Ward games and high-rise living

Also: Another look at the heritage-listed Bayswater bottle shop

Author

Matthew Sims
June 10, 2026

⏱️ The 143rd edition of our newsletter is a seven-minute read.

Hi there 👋 

Matthew Sims here, your reporter at the Eastern Melburnian.

💰 After about 10 years of working in journalism, election promises, budget investments and project timelines can begin to blur together.

💲 The funding situation surrounding Maroondah Hospital came across my radar when the project was not included in the latest budget from the State Government.

💵 Now, a month on, the State Government has put some money on the table — $20 million with help from the Federal Government — towards a new children’s emergency department.

🪏 I did some digging through the local news archives and discovered this project was first promised in November 2018, as part of funding for new kids units across five hospitals.

🔎 Maroondah is the last cab off the rank to get the ball rolling on this project. And we’re still waiting to see what’s going to happen with funding the full development of the hospital, too.

We’re covering:

  • Expansion plans at a retirement village opposite Westfield Knox gets the go-ahead;

  • A $20 million investment towards a dedicated children’s emergency unit and the MPs claiming it’s a rehash; and

  • Our video looking into the history of an abandoned wine saloon and bottle shop in Bayswater revives a local debate.

“Our current housing stock is inadequate to meet demand.”

Knox councillor Susan Pearce said she believed new units within Knox’s Levande retirement village would provide ageing residents with appropriate lifestyle options, including easy access to Westfield Knox.

WHAT’S COMING UP 🎟️

📰 THIS WEEK’S HEADLINES

Two new apartment buildings with 172 units will be built opposite the Westfield Knox Shopping Centre, with retirement living operator Levande already relocating some residents to make way for the expansion of its existing retirement village.

Located at 466 Burwood Highway, the Levande Knox retirement village currently consists of 204 units.

On Monday May 25, Knox councillors voted to grant a planning permit for the construction of an additional 172 new units within two apartment-style buildings – with part of one set to reach seven storeys or 24 metres high.

The development will require the demolition of 28 existing units and communal facilities, with a new community hub set to include a cafe, gym, games, room, pool, sauna and social spaces.

Knox Council received 15 objections against the proposal and four letters of support, with concerns raised including loss of privacy and overshadowing.

According to a spokesperson for Levande, staff members on site have already co-ordinated moving five residents living in units marked for demolition, with more moves planned over the coming weeks.

Located within the Knox Central Major Activity Centre, a number of councillors said the project satisfied the focus to deliver high-density housing within the area.

Seven storeys, 172 new units: Knox Council green lights retirement village towers opposite Westfield shopping centre

The project would level 28 existing units to make way for building the two apartment buildings, as well as a community hub.

Opposition and independent MPs claim a $20 million investment shared between the state and federal governments for a dedicated children’s emergency department is merely a “repackaging” of funding first promised in 2018.

In November 2018, former Premier Daniel Andrews promised $62.4 million to create dedicated children’s emergency departments at five Victorian hospitals, including Maroondah Hospital in Ringwood East, if Labor won that election.

In the 2021/22 budget, the State Government increased this investment to $102.4 million.

While two of the five promised projects have been completed and two others are under construction, no dedicated children’s department has been delivered at Maroondah.

In September 2022, Andrews announced a minimum $850 million commitment towards the redevelopment and expansion of Maroondah Hospital, alongside a proposal to change its name to the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital.

Original plans outlined construction would begin in 2025 and be completed by 2029. To this date, no works have begun and no funding has been fully confirmed.

Health Infrastructure Minister Melissa Horne announced the State Government would join with the Federal Government in investing $20 million towards a new children’s emergency department on Thursday.

Design work is underway for a ground-floor children’s emergency department where young patients can be triaged separately.

Early works to relocate the emergency department administration area have also begun, with construction expected to start in 2027.

North Eastern Metropolitan Region MP Nick McGowan described the announcement as an “awful hoax”.

“This is a disgusting re-announcement, except worse, because the promise was never delivered back in 2018,” he told the Eastern Melburnian.

Independent Ringwood MP Will Fowles said a dedicated children’s emergency department would be “good news for local families” but was “not a new idea”.

“This announcement appears to be another example of the government repackaging old promises rather than delivering the full redevelopment it committed to at the 2022 election,” he said.

Maroondah Hospital receives $20 million for a children's emergency department eight years after it was first promised

Construction on the dedicated children’s emergency department is scheduled to start in 2027.

👀 DID YOU SEE?

Demolish or renovate? Bayswater’s bottle-o awakens years-old question

On the King’s Birthday public holiday, I decided to blow off the dust on one of my first big videos: the history of the abandoned wine saloon and bottle shop in Bayswater.

Across both Instagram and Facebook, the repost has more than 350,000 views and more than 1,500 comments across both platforms, with people arguing whether the building should be rehabilitated as a pub, museum or other community space — or demolished and redeveloped.

What do you reckon?

Instagram Post

This week, I’m starting to delve into the insect world, mainly looking at how the lifecycle of termites has changed over recent years due to warmer weather.

If you’ve had a rough (and costly) encounter with these ferocious wood-eaters recently, please reach out to me via [email protected]

Cheers,

Matthew