Lilydale Christmas decorations: VicRoads orders volunteers to stump up hundreds of dollars

VOLUNTEERS raising cash to put up Christmas decorations in Lilydale because the council can’t afford to have been ordered by VicRoads to spend hundreds on a traffic assessment and road closures.

Amanda Yong, with her children Norah, 4, and Oliver, five months, is frustrated by the lack of support for her bid to decorate Lilydale for Christmas. Picture: Steve Tanner

THE push to bring Christmas cheer to Lilydale could be spoiled by bureaucratic red tape.

VicRoads has insisted the festive crew of six Yarra Valley residents, who are collecting donations to decorate Lilydale’s main street, pay for a traffic assessment, and road closures if they put up decorations.

The group, which has raised $1330, mostly through an online fundraising page and sausage sizzles, paid $200 for a local company to do the assessment, which was sent to VicRoads last week.

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But Wandin’s Amanda Yong said VicRoads gave the group just two weeks — November 15 to 30 — to put up the decorations.

And she said it could take up to 15 working days for the authority to decide on the plans.

If the plans are approved, the group will also have to pay almost $500 to close off a lane of traffic on Maroondah Highway while volunteers put up and then later take down decorations, she said.

Ms Yong said VicRoads rejected her suggestion of waiving the fees.

She said she was also disappointed with the response from Lilydale traders, apart from Stockdale and Leggo real estate agents, which gave $500.

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Ms Yong said: “We have approached every business along the street and they won’t donate,” she said.

“They’re happy to have us decorate but didn’t want to donate.

“I’m exhausted. I can’t even get $5 from anyone.”

She said after spending their donations on the traffic assessment and lane closures, it left very little money for decorating.

“We’re even thinking of putting some more of our own money into the project because we’ve done so much already.”

Ms Yong started her crusade to spruce up the gateway to the Yarra Valley as it looked “so depressing” at Christmas compared to nearby municipalities.

She said the group had also doorknocked more than 70 traders, but most did not want to donate.

VicRoads has been contacted for comment.