And so it is Christmas… almost… and the Wombat Post is closing down for a well-deserved break until February 2025.
This year we published 544 local stories and we had over 250,000 page views. We have over 700 subscribers who receive the weekly update and 120 paying members who help meet the costs of running the Wombat Post. We also publish a local directory of business and organisations, a calendar of local events and local death notices.
Some of our biggest stories this year related to local planning issues. The community is interested in protecting the beauty and character of the Daylesford/ Hepburn community. There was huge community resistance to the Dan Murphy’s liquor licence, but the story isn’t finished yet. Chanel 9 show, The Block, is coming to town and there were mixed feelings with some locals resisting the development while others welcomed the boost it will bring to the local economy. The Draft Town Structure Plans generated huge concerns for residents, particularly proposed boundary changes along East Street, Daylesford, and proposed planning restrictions (the “Orange Blob”) around the old Daylesford landfill site.
The Council Election sparked huge community interest with visits to our candidates page bigger than any other story we published this year. With a changed electoral structure to a Shire-wide election and limited opportunities to meet candidates from across the Shire, people depended on local media to inform their choices.
Community events are a big part of our local culture. ChillOut, Words in Winter, the Daylesford Art Show, the Swiss-Italian Festa, the Daylesford Agricultural Show and the Highland Gathering were hugely successful events this year as organising committees recovered from the battering they took during the pandemic years, tourists flocked back and the weather was somehow generous for all of the events.
A series on the causes and responses to domestic violence generated considerable interest but sadly, is unlikely to change in the frequency of family and gender-based violence in the community.
The community rejoiced at news of a possible Phoenix at The Rex, a rebirth of the Daylesford Cinema. It’s not yet a done deal and depends on securing community and government support so watch this space.
Finally, one of the best “good news” stories of the year was the Daylesford Football Netball Club winning the Senior Footy Grand Final and the A Grade Netball Grand Final on the same day. What a night at Victoria Park!
And the Daylesford and District Community News Association (publisher of The Wombat Post) held it’s fifth Annual General Meeting. About 50 people attended the AGM to hear guest speaker Cameron Stewart, Chief International Correspondent for the Australian in a Q&A with Raquel Stevens who writes for the Wombat Post. The Q&A explored Cameron’s experiences in covering US politics and particularly Donald Trump’s comeback and what it might mean.
The Wombat Post fills a gap left when the mainstream media abandoned local news. We aim to provide balanced, accurate and independent news and stories that cover the Daylesford district, including Hepburn Springs. We depend on the work of our volunteers including our editor and editorial committee and the many contributors who submit stories about what’s going on in our local community. And we acknowledge the generous sponsorship of the Community Bank Daylesford District to help us bring you The Wombat Post.
The Wombat Post has been publishing for five years now and we are outgrowing our web hosting site. Over the festive break we will be moving to a new hosting platform and tidying up the website. We hope that the new site will bring improved speed and reliability to our service.
We look forward to continuing to provide the local news and events next year after our usual January break. Our next scheduled issue will be published on February 7, 2025.
We wish all of our readers a safe and joyful festive season and a happy and prosperous New Year.
