The Victorian Liberal Party has pledged $1.5 million towards two Greek Community of Melbourne cultural initiatives if it wins government at the upcoming state election. The announcements followed a feast-day service at St Dimitrios in Prahran. Shadow Minister Evan Mulholland said a Liberal government would give $1 million over four years to the Antipodes Festival. Member for Prahran Rachel Westaway pledged $500,000 towards a theatre and cultural space at the St Dimitrios Hall site, where work is already underway.
Consumer spending across Stonnington grew 8.1 per cent on the previous year, reaching $3.78 billion in 2025/26, according to new council data. Malvern East, including Chadstone, remained the largest spending destination at $1.8 billion, up 13 per cent. South Yarra and Glenferrie Road, Malvern also recorded gains, while night-time spending made up 22 per cent of the total. Council says it will fund precinct activations, business grants and night-time safety work in 2026/27.
Victorians vote on Saturday, November 28, in a state election that could end Labor's 12 years in government. Opinion polls show Labor, One Nation and the Coalition each have about a quarter of first preference votes. The Coalition is the favourite on a two-party basis, but One Nation could hold the balance of power in a hung parliament. Enrolment closes at 8pm on Tuesday, November 3. Early voting opens on November 18, and postal vote applications open on November 4.
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The National Institute of Circus Arts, known as NICA, is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a special performance called Coming Home. The show runs on November 20 and 21, with a preview on November 19, at NICA's campus in Prahran. It traces the Institute's history, from a pilot project in a shed in Docklands in 1999. Alumni, trainers and current students will perform together. Every ticket sale will go to NICA's Excellence Scholarship Fund, which currently covers up to 30 per cent of tuition fees.
Stonnington council has begun a 30 km/h speed limit trial across 12 local areas, starting Monday 19 October 2026. Streets in Malvern, Prahran, Toorak, South Yarra, Armadale, Windsor and Glen Iris will have the lower limit until 23 April 2028. The areas were chosen because they sit near schools, shopping strips and key bike routes, where children and pedestrians are more exposed. Council will monitor vehicle speeds and the number of drivers, cyclists and pedestrians, and will also gather community feedback. Residents can share comments through the Connect Stonnington page.
Victoria's electoral commission will open one low-sensory voting centre in each of the state's 88 lower-house districts ahead of the 28 November election. The centres open on 17 November, a day before other early-voting sites, and are staffed by trained mobile voting teams. They aim to offer a quiet, low-stimulus environment for neurodivergent voters and those with sensory needs. The program follows trials at by-elections in Warrandyte, Prahran, Werribee and Nepean, where attendance was recorded. Campaigners remain allowed nearby, subject to standard six-metre exclusion zones.
Detectives from the Cardinia Crime Investigation Unit have charged a 16-year-old following an extended police follow across several Melbourne suburbs. The teenager, from the greater Cardinia area, faces a range of offences, including dangerous driving while pursued by police, reckless conduct endangering life, theft of a motor vehicle and failing to stop on police direction.
A 31-year-old man has been arrested after a long police chase across suburban Melbourne in an allegedly stolen Holden Commodore. Police say the car reached speeds of up to 200km/h even after its tyres were shredded by road spikes. The chase began in Chadstone early on Friday and passed through several southeastern suburbs. The man faces charges including dangerous driving while pursued, motor vehicle theft, drug possession and driving while disqualified. He was refused bail at Dandenong Magistrates Court and will appear in court again on October 12.
