By Nicole Precel
HOBSONS Bay City Council will not fix a Williamstown laneway in disrepair.
The laneway, between Aitken St and Thompson St is unconstructed, and the council would therefore neither maintain nor pay for its construction.
Councillor Angela Altair submitted a petition to the council on 16 February on behalf of nine Williamstown residents and traders asking for improvements.
However according to the Road Management Act 2004 and a subsequent unmade laneways/right of way policy maintenance and construction issues motion, moved in council on 10 October 2006, the council does not take responsibility for the 150 unmade laneways in the municipality.
In that meeting, the council took the position that unmade laneways were generally only used by abutting private landowners rather than for public use.
At last week’s council meeting, the council came up with a few different schemes for the upkeep of the laneway.
The council officers said construction could take place through a special charge scheme with costs being shared by abutting owners, council would then maintain the laneway in perpetuity.
Hobsons Bay works and assets director Phillip McDonald said the council would only initiate a scheme if it received support in writing from the majority of residents who would be liable to paying the special charge.
The construction would cost in excess of $200,000 for the laneway, which was about 200 metres long and 4.6 metres wide.
Crushed rock and levelling the surface could also be arranged by abutting owners through a private contractor, but would provide a temporary solution which abutting landowners would have to maintain.
