Frankston, Victoria

Frankston Victoria
Frankston central business district viewed from Olivers Hill
Frankston
Coordinates	38°09′29″S 145°08′06″E / 38.158°S 145.135°E / -38.158; 145.135Coordinates: 38°09′29″S 145°08′06″E / 38.158°S 145.135°E / -38.158; 145.135
Population	34,457 (2006)[1]
• Density	1,657/km2 (4,291/sq mi)
Established	1853
Postcode(s)	3199
Area	20.8 km2 (8.0 sq mi)
Location	41 km (25 mi) from Melbourne city centre 21 km (13 mi) from Dandenong
LGA(s)	City of Frankston
State electorate(s)	Frankston
Federal Division(s)	Dunkley
Suburbs around Frankston: Port Phillip Seaford Frankston North Port Phillip Frankston Langwarrin Port Phillip Frankston South Baxter

Frankston is a suburb of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, located in the local government area of the City of Frankston. It is located 41 km south-east of the Melbourne city centre, near the northern-most point of the Mornington Peninsula. Due to its geographical location, it is often referred to as the "gateway to the Mornington Peninsula".^[2][3]

European settlement of Frankston began almost immediately after the foundation of Melbourne in 1835, as a fishing village serving the early Melbourne settlement.^[4] The "village at Frankston" was officially established after formal land sales took place in 1853, and was named following an official survey of the area in 1854.^[4] It became a suburb within the metropolitan area of Melbourne as a result of the urban agglomeration of the metropolis during the 1980s. Today, it lends its name to the broader local government area of the City of Frankston, and serves as its major activity and administrative centre.

Situated on the eastern shoreline of Port Phillip, Frankston has been a popular seaside destination of Melbourne since the early 1880s.^[2] Today, Frankston Beach is still one of the most popular in Victoria,^[5] and is recognised as one of the cleanest in Australia.^[6][7] It also hosts the largest annual sandsculpting exhibition in Australia.^[8][9]

Localities within the suburb include: Frankston central business district (CBD), Frankston East, Frankston Heights, Karingal, Long Island, Mount Erin and Olivers Hill. According to the 2006 Australian census, the suburb of Frankston had a population of 34, 457.^[1] The demonym for someone from Frankston is a Frankstonian.^[10]

Toponymy

The origins of the name "Frankston" have been subject to conjecture. One enduring theory is that Frankston was named after Frank Liardet, the son of early Melbourne pioneer Wilbraham Liardet, who built the first brick home in Frankston at his Ballam Park estate (in what is now the locality of Karingal).

However, a member of the Liardet family wrote a letter to The Argus newspaper in 1916 stating that this was not the case.^[11] Included with the letter was correspondence with the Department of Lands and Survey supporting the case that Frankston was not named after Frank Liardet.^[11] Instead, according to the correspondence, the Chief Draftsman of the department states that Frankston was named after Charles Franks, an early Melbourne settler killed by Aboriginals.^[11] It is also stated that the name "Frankston" was used from the first survey of the area in early 1854, a year before Liardet constructed his homestead.^[11]

Charles Franks arrived in Melbourne in 1836 and took up a land holding near Mount Cottrel, west of Werribee.^[11] Franks' land neighboured that of explorer and surveyor John Helder Wedge, one of the original settlers of Melbourne. Wedge's nephew Charles Wedge (after whom Wedge Road in what is now Carrum Downs is named), who arrived at the same time as Franks, managed his uncle's land before taking up a land holding in the Frankston area.^[11] In the correspondence published in The Argus, the Chief Draftsman of the Department of Lands and Survey surmises that, at the time surveying the area, the name "Frankston" was probably suggested to honour Wedge's deceased former neighbour.^[11]

Another popular theory, that has entered into local folklore, is that Frankston was named after a pub called Frank Stone's Hotel. In 1929, future author Don Charlwood, a student at Frankston High School at the time, compiled a brief history of Frankston using living sources and local records supporting this theory. Charlwood's history was published over several weeks in the Frankston and Somerville Standard newspaper the following year.^[12]

According to Charlwood, the pub in question was one of the earliest buildings in the area and was originally called the Kananook Hotel. Located at the corner of Point Nepean Road (now the Nepean Highway) and Hastings Road (now Davey Street), the pub had two different owners under that name until it was purchased by a "Mr. Stone."^[12] After the birth of his son, Frank, Stone renamed his pub Frank Stone's Hotel.^[12] Charlwood suggests that the township "grew up" around the pub and that its name was taken from it in 1854.^[12]

However, according to local historian and author Michael Jones, in his book Frankston: Resort to City, Frankston is named after the British army general Sir Thomas Harte Franks.^[13] His theory is strengthened by the fact a number of other towns in the area, such as: Cranbourne, Hastings, Lyndhurst, Mornington and Pakenham, also have names derived from that of British generals and statesmen. Jones suggests that Andrew Clarke, the Surveyor-General of the Port Phillip District from 1853 to 1858, named all these towns.^[13]

History

Prior to European discovery, the Frankston area was populated by Indigenous Australians known as the Kulin people. Specifically, inhabitants in the Frankston area were from the Bunurong language group, of the Mayone-bulluk clan. Europeans first set foot in Frankston as early as 30 January 1803, thirty two years before the founding of Melbourne (the first major European settlement in the then Port Phillip District).^[13] A commemorative plaque near the mouth of Kananook Creek marks the location of where Captain Charles Grimes and his party went ashore searching for fresh water, and met with around 30 local inhabitants.

After the settlement of Melbourne in 1835, James Davey took up a large land holding in 1846, which extended from Olivers Hill to (what is now his namesake) Daveys Bay. Olivers Hill was named after local fisherman, James Oliver, who built a cottage atop the hill from where he kept an eye out for fish in the waters below.^[13] The first official land sales in the area were held in 1853, and Frank Liardet (the eldest son of prominent settler, hotelier and descendant of French nobility, Wilbraham Liardet), established the "Ballam Ballam" estate in 1854.^[13][14] The estate was the earliest officially recorded settlement in Frankston, and was located to the east of Port Phillip, in what is now known as the locality of Karingal.^[13] Liardet's original homestead "Ballam Park" remains today, and is now heritage-listed. In the 1910s, C. Evelyn Liardet, grandson of Wilbraham Liardet, wrote to The Argus newspaper to correct a suggestion that Frankston's name in any way derived from his uncle Frank Liardet.^[11]

Frankston's early development was hampered by poor soils, distance from the Melbourne city centre, and the existence of a major swamp occupying much of the area between Mordialloc and Seaford.^[13] Thomas McComb, who arrived in Frankston in 1852, also purchased much land in the area (over what is now the Frankston central business district) and did much to develop the local fishing industry. A pier was completed in 1857 and, between the 1850s and the arrival of the Melbourne railway in 1880s, the area developed as a small fishing community.^[2][13]

An Anglican church and school were built in 1855, with the first Frankston post office opening on 1 September 1857^[15] and a pottery established in 1859.^[13] During the 1860s, there were estimated to be around 30 people living in Frankston, with about 200 others living in the surrounding area. In 1874, a state school was built in Frankston as well as a Mechanics' Institute

A free library was opened in 1880. The first savings bank opened in 1881, and two brickworks factories and a cordial manufacturer were operating by the 1880s.^[13] The Melbourne railway came on 1 August 1882, which saw Frankston develop into a seaside resort.^[13]

Frankstons lure as a holiday destination increased particularly after the electrification of the railway service on 27 August 1922, which reduced average journey times from 90 to 62 minutes. Between these years, the area developed into a regional centre for the Mornington Peninsula and a playground for Melbourne's affluent.^[2][13]

It was the site of the first Australian Scout Jamboree in 1935.^[13] It was the only jamboree in Australia to be attended by the founder of the Scouting movement, Sir Robert Baden-Powell. Several streets in the locality of Frankston South are named after the event (Baden Powell Drive being the most prominent). The original grandstand used for the jamboree remained a historic landmark at Frankston Park for 72 years, until it was destroyed by fire on 12 February 2008.^[16]

The population of Frankston boomed during and after World War II, increasing from 12,000 in 1947 to 82,000 by 1982 (referring to the old town zoning system when Frankston and its surrounds were all part of the former "Shire of Frankston and Hastings"). This was due to the establishment of small government housing estates in the area, to house the families of Australian Defence Force personnel stationed at the nearby Balcombe Army Camp in Mount Martha and the Flinders Naval Depot near Hastings.^[13]

In 1959, the Hollywood film, On the Beach, starring Gregory Peck and Ava Gardner, was partly filmed in Frankston, at its railway station and in the surrounding area. The original novel of On the Beach was written by novelist Nevil Shute, who lived in Frankston's south-east, in what is now the Frankston suburb of Langwarrin.

On 2 September 2004, Frankston was nominated for the Bursary Award in the Livcom International Awards for Livable Communities. In October 2004, it received a Bronze Award for "management of environment and enhancement of quality of life". It won this award for "C Category Cities" (cities with populations between 75,001 - 200,000).

On 24 March 2007, Frankston won two awards in the Keep Australia Beautiful Victoria's clean beach challenge. It won the award for "Friendliest Beach in Victoria", and also the "Natural Heritage Award" for the maintenance of Frankston Beach and the provision of facilities. On 2 June 2008, Frankston was named Victoria's most sustainable city in the Keep Australia Beautiful Victoria's Sustainable Cities Awards.^[17]

Geography

The suburb of Frankston (not to be confused with the multi-suburb government area known as the City of Frankston of which the suburb of Frankston is a part) covers a wide geographic area in comparison with other suburbs of Melbourne. It also encompasses localities (not to be confused with being independent suburbs) which include: Karingal, Olivers Hill, Frankston Heights, Frankston East, Mount Erin and Long Island.

The suburb is bounded to the west by Port Phillip; the north by Skye Road and Overton Road (bordering the City of Frankston suburbs of Frankston North and Seaford); the east by McClelland Drive and the Moorooduc Highway (bordering the City of Frankston suburb of Langwarrin); and the south by Humphries Road, Robinsons Road and Golflinks Road (bordering the Shire of Mornington Peninsula suburbs of Mount Eliza and Baxter).^[18]

Topography

Frankston is at the southern end of a stretch of beaches that run from Beaumaris south to near Olivers Hill, unbroken except by Patterson River, Mordialloc Creek and Kananook Creek. Kananook Creek also runs close to the shores of Port Phillip, creating a long "island" effect, giving the locality the name "Long Island". The area is not technically an island, as the creek does not flow into the bay at any point other than its mouth near Frankston Beach. However, the creek was joined to the Patterson Lakes via an underground aqueduct in 1983, when a pumping station was built to improve water quality in the creek.^[19]

The central and northern areas of the suburb are generally flat, but the suburb rises gradually towards the east, then rises sharply at Olivers Hill in the south of the suburb. Also at Olivers Hill, where Sweetwater Creek meets Port Phillip, the beaches give way to weathered bluffs of sandstone and siltstone, with the odd sandy cove at Daveys Bay and again at Canadian Bay.

The southern uplands are at the northern end of an uplift area in a Horst-Graben structure that extends down the Mornington Peninsula. Similar plutonic intrusive uplifts occur on the Mornington Peninsula at Mount Martha and Arthurs Seat. The fault zones are currently inactive, though minor tremors have historically been experienced.

Environment

Frankston is generally a leafy suburb, with some natural heritage elements. A number of large informal nature reserves exist in the suburb including: Bunarong Park, Casuarina Reserve, Paratea Flora and Fauna Reserve and Sweetwater Creek Nature Reserve. All reserves have formal walking paths and contain a broad range of Australian native flora and fauna, with hundreds of species indigenous to the Frankston area, including over 20 species of orchid. Large formally-designed parks in the area include: Beauty Park (converted from a swamp in the early 20th century) and the George Pentland Botanical Gardens (converted from a golf course in the mid 20th Century).

The Frankston foreshore area has also retained much of its natural element. Consecutive Frankston City Council's have sought to protect the native flora and sand dunes along the beaches. An extensive raised timber walking path called the "Frankston Boardwalk" winds through this section of the foreshore in order to protect the area, whilst also allowing it to be enjoyed by visitors. Only a small section of the foreshore remains developed, near the mouth of Kananook Creek and the 500 m Frankston Pier, called "Frankston Waterfront". The waterfront features extensive landscaping, a themed playground, car parking, a restaurant with bay views and a million dollar Visitor Information Centre.

Climate

Frankston has a temperate climate similar to that of Melbourne, however, is usually around 2 °C cooler than the Melbourne city centre. In many cases, Frankston is one of the last areas of the greater Melbourne area to feel the effect of the cool change weather effect that occurs during the summer season.

At one of the widest points of Port Phillip, Frankston's seaside residents have an unobstructed view of oncoming westerly weather patterns. On rare days of severe storms with galeforce westerly winds, Frankston briefly becomes one of the few places on Port Phillip with wave swell of size that allows surfing.

Landmarks

The Peninsula Centre, constructed in 1973 at 435 Nepean Highway is Frankston's tallest and most visible building at 12 storeys. However it is also controversial. Celebrity Barry Humphries declared it Australia's worst building in reference to its brutalist aesthetic.^[20] As a result (and due to it being vacant for many years, it has been the subject of numerous redevelopment proposals in recent decades.^[21]

An arched pedestrian bridge over Kananook Creek was erected between 2002-2003 was part of the redevelopment of the foreshore and immediately became one of the city's most striking landmarks.^[22]

Frankston Pier is considered an iconic landmark.^[23] It was originally built in 1857 so fishermen could ship their catches to Melbourne. It has been extended and repaired over the decades. It is popular with fishermen and boaters, and summer weekends will find children diving off the pier in contravention of local by-laws.

Community

Demographics

According to the 2006 census, 69% of Frankston residents are born in Australia, with the most common overseas places of birth being England (7.2%), New Zealand (2.5%), Scotland (1.5%), Germany (0.8%), and India (0.7%).^[1] The most common Christian denominations in Frankston are Catholic (22%), Anglican (18.7%), Uniting Church (4%), Presbyterian and Reformed (3.4%), and 25.5% of Frankston residents claim not to be religious.^[1]

An aging population in the suburb of Frankston is balanced by several new housing developments in neighbouring suburbs within the City of Frankston. The median age in the suburb of Frankston is 38, with 22.8% of the population over the age of 55, and 17.4% of the population under the age of 14.^[1]

Subdivisions

The dominant suburban nature of the area means it is not as diverse as residential areas closer to the Melbourne city centre, and the area has little multi-story development. However, due to its position as a gateway to the Mornington Peninsula, Frankston has been designated a "transit city" in accordance with the Victorian Government's Melbourne 2030 urban integration policy, which will increase focus on multi-story residential development in the central business district.

House prices in Frankston have risen over the years, however the suburb still remains as one of the more affordable of the greater Melbourne area. As of March 2011, the median house price is $357,000.^[24] Most areas of Frankston consist of traditional quarter-acre blocks (colloquially known as the "Australian Dream"). Some apartments and flats are centred in areas close to the central business district.

The locality of Olivers Hill boasts imposing bay and city views, and is home to the most expensive real estate property in the entire City of Frankston. It also overlooks Frankston Beach and the Frankston Waterfront. Known locally as "The Hill", some properties have been sold for in excess of $2 million, when the 2005 median price for a house in Frankston was only $228,000.^[25]

According to the 2006 Australian census, 30.4% of residents own their property; 30.4% are purchasing their property; and 31.4% are renting their property. Of all residents, 75.9% live in a house; 14.4% live in an apartment, flat or unit, and 8.6% live in a semi-detached house, terrace house or townhouse.^[1]

Community initiatives

The "Frankston 2025 Community Vision" is community initiative where Frankston residents were asked where they envision the City of Frankston to be by the year 2025. Public meetings, workshops and statistical surveys were staged over 12 months from September 2006, and the initiative was officially endorsed by the Frankston City Council in October 2007. The then mayor, Cr Glenn Aitkin, officially adopted the vision on 24 November 2007.^[26]

A not-for-profit community supermarket was established by the Bayside Dream Centre to provide groceries and other essential items to disadvantaged people within the community at affordable prices. The service is available to all people, not only concession card holders.

In 2008 'Vada Cafe'^[27] was opened in Frankston central. This came as a development from the Gateway Children's Fund,^[28] which is a fund developed between the partnership of Compassion Australia and Gateway Church. The aim of the cafe is to raise funds for community development and to create awareness of the poverty in Papua New Guinea - particularly the 'Vada Vada' slum in Port Moresby. The cafe also has Fairtrade Certification by the Fair Trade Association of Australia and New Zealand.

Economy

As a primarily residential area, the economy is primarily a tertiary with a heavy retail and service focus. The Frankston CBD (spanning the area between Nepean Highway and the railway station) contains a retail core, including the major regional shopping complex as well as street shopping, restaurants, bars, pubs and nightclubs.

Since 2003, the City of Frankston has invested in Frankston as a tourism destination. The City's first tourism marketing strategy was adopted in 2003, with a focus on the Frankston Beach and the waterfront precinct, retail core and surrounding heritage sites.^[29]

Bayside Shopping Centre, the largest shopping complex on the Mornington Peninsula, is located in the Frankston central business district. It features major department stores such as Myer, Target and Kmart; two supermarket chains Coles and Safeway, and over 250 smaller specialty stores and food outlets, located over three interlocking malls. The centre also contains a small entertainment precinct with restaurants, bars, and a 12-screen Hoyts Cinema complex.

The second-largest shopping complex is Centro Karingal, located in the locality of Karingal, around 5 km from the Frankston central business district. It features two Safeway supermarkets, a Big W department store, and 120 specialty stores. Like its central business district counterpart, the centre also contains an entertainment precinct, called "StarZone Karingal", with restaurants, a pub, a gym and a 12-screen Village Cinemas complex. StarZone Karingal is also home to one of the three V Max "super screens" in Australia. The Frankston Mitre 10 Home & Trade is located next to the Centro Karingal shopping centre.

There are at least 14 nightclubs in the Frankston central business district alone (mainly centering around the Nepean Highway and near the shopping complex). Restaurants from many cuisines including Italian, Greek, French, Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, Indian and Fijian cuisine operate in the CBD, a number of which have been listed in The Age's "Good Food Guide".

Major automotive dealerships of Holden, Ford, Chrysler (also retailing Dodge and Jeep), Toyota, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Suzuki and Hyundai (also retailing Kia) operate along Dandenong Road, in the suburb's north-west, as well as a light industrial area mostly involving the automotive repair industry. The area also spills over into the neighbouring suburb of Seaford, and centres around Hartnett Drive. The Seaford industrial area also contains some bulk retail and cash-and-carry outlets.

Education

Frankston has educational facilities for early childhood, primary, secondary, TAFE (vocational) and tertiary education. A number of government and private primary and secondary schools operate in the area, as well as the Frankston Campus of the Chisholm Institute (TAFE) and the Monash University, Peninsula campus.

There are 12 primary schools in the suburb, eight of which are government schools and four are private. Three of the private primary schools are Catholic-aligned and the fourth is the junior campus of the independent K-12 Woodleigh School (the senior campus is in the neighbouring suburb of Baxter).

There are five secondary schools in the suburb, three government schools which are: Frankston High School, McClelland College and Mount Erin College, and the fourth is the private Catholic-aligned John Paul College. Frankston High has an excellent academic record^[30] achieved by a range of extension programs for all students including those who are gifted as well as non-academic programs.^[30] It is considered one of the most successful government schools in Victoria.^[30] Admittance to Frankston High School is based on residing in the designated "zone" of the school. Real estate agents often market properties in the area around Frankston South as in the "FHS Zone" to lure families wishing to send their children to the school.^{[citation needed]}

Monash University, Peninsula campus has a teaching and research focus on health, human development and wellbeing, and is affiliated with the nearby Frankston Hospital. The campus was originally the Frankston Teachers' College, founded in 1959, before becoming affiliated with Monash University in 1990. The campus occupies the former "Struan" Estate, with its former stately house now the administration building of the university.^[31]

Infrastructure

Health

Four hospitals operate in the suburb of Frankston and service the greater area of the City of Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula. The major regional hospital, Frankston Hospital (which is part of the Peninsula Health Network), and the Frankston Private Hospital are both located close to the Frankston central business district. The St. John of God Rehabilitation Hospital and the Peninsula Private Hospital are located further east in the locality of Karingal. A large concentration of medical-based businesses are located close to Frankston Hospital. According to the 2006 Australian census, 4% of the Frankston population is employed in the hospital industry, making it the most common industry of employment for Frankston residents.^[1]

Transport

As Frankston is the southern-most suburb of the greater Melbourne area and also the "gateway to the peninsula", it is well serviced by both road and rail. The suburb is connected to the rest of Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula by the Nepean Highway, Moorooduc Highway and the Peninsula Link (the latter which connects to the EastLink Tollway). The suburb is also connected directly to the Melbourne city centre via the Frankston railway line.

Bus services run throughout Frankston's suburbs and also connect it to the neighbouring cities of Dandenong and Casey. Regional bus services connect the south-west Mornington Peninsula, and the south-east is connected via the Stony Point railway line. The main transport terminus for the suburb is Young Street, on the edge of the Frankston central business district.

Eastlink is a $2.5 billion tollway that opened on 29 June 2008, and connects Frankston with its north-east neighbours of Dandenong, Ringwood and Nunawading. Prior to and after its opening, residents believed that EastLink would create further traffic congestion on the already congested Frankston Freeway (where EastLink terminates), and the intersection of the Frankston Freeway, McMahons Road and Cranbourne Road. Calls by Frankston City Council and local Federal MP, Bruce Billson, have been made for the State to construct the Frankston Bypass in order to ease traffic congestion.^[32]

Culture

Arts and heritage

The suburb has a number of theatre venues, council-operated and private art galleries, as well as many public art pieces (mainly around the Frankston central business district). Major theatre venues in Frankston include the Frankston Arts Centre (along with its Cube37 art space), and the George Jenkins Theatre (part of Monash University's Peninsula Campus). The suburb is also home to a number of award-winning amateur music and theatre societies, including the Frankston Symphony Orchestra, Frankston City Band, Mornington Peninsula Chorale, Peninsula Light Operatic Society, Panorama Theatre Company, Frankston Theatre Group, and the People's Playhouse. The suburb is also home to the internationally-renowned Australian Welsh Male Choir.^[33]

Frankston Arts Centre overlooks the Frankston CBD, and houses an 800-seat theatre and art gallery. The centre plays host to a number of major performances, including regular shows by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Victorian Opera, and is a tour venue for the Melbourne International Film Festival, Opera Australia and a number of national theatre companies.^[34] Next to the arts centre (Davey Street entrance) is Cube37, an intimate performance venue and exhibition space. 'The Cube', as it is locally known, also encompasses a state-of-the-art glass studio frontage for multimedia exhibitions at night. The Frankston Ballet Company, founded in 1998 by local resident Arthur D. Wellington performs throughout the year at each of the venues.^[35]

A public art program, adopted by Frankston City Council, has been in place since the turn on the century. Recent major public art additions in the suburb includes "Sentinal", a five-metre-tall abstract wooden sculpture of a native sea eagle located on Young Street by sculptor Bruce Armstrong, "Power of Community" located in Beauty Park by famed mosaic artist Deborah Halpern, and "Sightlines" along Frankston Peir by Louise Laverack that consists of 22 modular components (poles) decorated with nautical flag-themed weather vanes, with light panels embedded in the poles which reflect the movement of the waves below.^[36]

A self-drive tour, known as the "Frankston Cultural Drive" (signposted as Route 12), showcases the Frankston area's cultural and natural heritage. The tour takes in parks, gardens, galleries and historic homesteads as well as showcasing a large collection of contemporary sculptures. It includes local landmarks such as: the Frankston Arts Centre, George Pentland Botanic Gardens and the heritage-listed homestead "Ballam Park" (which are all in the suburb of Frankston), as well as the McClelland Gallery + Sculpture Park, "Cruden Farm" and the National Trust of Australia property "Mullberry Hill" (which are all in neighbouring Langwarrin). An audio CD is also available from the Frankston City Council which details information about each attraction.^[37][38]

Festivals and events

The annual Frankston Waterfront Festival (formally the Frankston Sea Festival) is a weekend long celebration of Frankston's seaside heritage, held at the end of summer on the Frankston Waterfront.^[39] The festival features a large food and wine fair, live entertainment, rides and the popular amateur swim/run event, the Frankston Bay Classic (a 7 km swim and 14 km run, with prize money awarded to the winners of each leg of the event).^[40] Sand Sculpting Australia, who stages a sand sculpture exhibition, relocated their host city to Frankston in 2008. The exhibition, which is held over three months at the start of each year, now coincides with – and is now a feature of – the Frankston Waterfront Festival weekend.^[41]

The Christmas Festival of Lights is a popular annual Christmas event and one of the biggest on the Frankston community calendar. The 2007 event attracted 25,000 people to the Frankston central business district to watch the lighting of the 100-year-old Norfolk pine tree, fireworks display and engage in community festivals. The festival also includes the "I Love Frankston" Parade (inaugurated in 2007 by, the then mayor, Cr Glenn Aitken). The annual parade consists of community groups, sporting clubs, schools and local business marching through the streets of Frankston in a show of civic pride, culminating at the Christmas Festival of Lights.^[42] For the last 7 years, Gateway Church has led the Carols by Candlelight and finale.^[43]

The Good Friday Festival on the Frankston Foreshore has grown considerably since 2005, with the Frankston City Council estimating 3,000 people attending the event in 2009. Churches around Frankston combine to host the free event, which features music, drama, face painting and other community events.^[44]

Sports and leisure

Many sporting fields and some small stadiums exist in the suburb. Most notably, the historic Frankston Park (home of the Victorian Football League's Frankston Dolphins) and the Frankston Basketball Stadium (home of the Australian Basketball Association's Frankston Blues). There are three golf courses in Frankston, the 1912-established Frankston Golf Course, Centenary Park Golf Course and the Peninsula Country Club (with two more in the greater City of Frankston). Also, the City of Frankston Bowling Club (lawn bowls) once hosted the World Bowls Tournament in 1980.^[45] The men's singles event was won by David Bryant.

The suburb of Frankston also supports a number of community level clubs for Australian rules football, cricket, golf, basketball, netball, soccer and tennis, as well as baseball, hockey, badminton, volleyball, gymnastics, athletics and croquet clubs. The beach area supports a yacht club, a surf lifesaving club and the state's oldest Australian Volunteer Coast Guard flotilla. Frankston also boasts one of the largest public skate parks in Australia, and urban skateboarding is popular.

Soccer has fast become one of the most popular sports played at a junior level in the Frankston area with playing numbers increasing every year. Currently Langwarrin Soccer Club is the leading club in the Frankston area with the senior team currently plying its trade in Victoria's State League Division 2. Other teams in the area are Seaford United, Frankston Pines, Peninsula Strikers, Skye United and Baxter.

Australian rules football is popular in the suburb, and is played at both a regional and state level. The Frankston Bombers, Karingal Bulls and Frankston Y.C.W. Stonecats play in the regional Mornington Peninsula Nepean Football League (in the Peninsula and Nepean Divisions respectively). The state club in the suburb is the Frankston Dolphins, which plays in the Victorian Football League. In previous years, Frankston was the recruiting zone for professional Australian Football League clubs, Hawthorn Hawks, and later St. Kilda Saints, and many star players from each team were recruited from Frankston (see List of Frankston people).

The St. Kilda Saints Australian Football League club signed a deal with the City of Frankston in 2007 to relocate its training base to Belvedere Park in Seaford.^[46] The deal included a $10 million development of a training and administration facility which was completed in 2010, based on the facilities of the UK's Chelsea and Aston Villa soccer clubs.^[47]

Indoor and outdoor beach volleyball is also becoming increasingly popular in the suburb of Frankston. 2008 marked the inauguration of the Frankston Beach Volleyball Series (part of the Virgin Blue Beach Volleyball Series) which attracted A-list players, including Olympian Tamsin Barnett. The event was also broadcast on national television and, on the first day, the Nine Network's Today broadcast live from the event.^[48]

Notable residents

Notable Frankston residents includes the legendary Australian entertainer Graham Kennedy, the eighth Australian Prime Minister Stanley Bruce, the 39th Premier of Victoria Sir Rupert Hamer, the "father" of the GM Holden car company Sir Laurence Hartnett, famed artists Sir Daryl and Lady Joan Lindsay, children's author Paul Jennings, poet and novelest Myra Morris, and Australian rules footballers Dermott Brereton, Nathan Burke, Robert Harvey and the coach Leigh Matthews.

References

Notes:

Texts:

• Jones, Michael. Frankston: Resort to City. Allen & Unwin: Sydney. 1989. ISBN 0-04-442114-1
• Brown-May, Andrew and Swain, Shurlee. The Encyclopedia of Melbourne. Cambridge University Press: Melbourne. 2005. ISBN 0-521-84234-4
• Watson, Kerry. Frankston 1901-2000: An oral/pictorial history. Frankston City Council: Frankston. 2000. (Online Version)

Other:

• Frankston Visitor Information Centre, Frankston, Victoria.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Frankston, Victoria.

• Frankston Visitor Information Centre
• Frankston City Council
• Long Island

v t e Suburbs of the City of Frankston, Melbourne, Victoria Carrum Downs Frankston Frankston North Frankston South Langwarrin Langwarrin South Sandhurst Seaford Skye

v t e Localities in the suburb of Frankston (LGA: City of Frankston) Frankston East Frankston Heights Karingal Long Island Mount Erin Olivers Hill

v t e Cities of Victoria, Australia Greater Melbourne Melbourne Dandenong Frankston Melton Sunbury Werribee Regional Victoria Ararat Bairnsdale Ballarat Benalla Bendigo Castlemaine Colac Echuca Geelong Hamilton Horsham Maryborough Mildura Moe Morwell Portland Sale Shepparton Swan Hill Traralgon Wangaratta Warrnambool Wodonga List of Melbourne suburbs List of localities in Victoria