Neighbour Groups flourish in St Kilda

What started as one block of apartments expanded to the entire Esplanade and has further grown to include the residential part of Acland St and surrounding streets. With more and more people asking to join, there are now 99 members! We’ve chosen the name Green Knoll Neighbour Group as Green Knoll is an old name for St Kilda, particularly the bit of it near us. We started with one Community Connector, then two and now we have five people sharing the organising.

We create lots of opportunities to meet up in person – St Kilda is full of great spots where we can share a meal, a drink or a coffee. We have a spot that any of us can drop in any Tuesday for a chat and we have dinners and brunches at varying local places. We can now enjoy live music, theatre and walks along the bay with our neighbours. With a handful to a dozen people coming to each gathering, it’s been ideal for making real connections. We’re meeting fabulous people and talking about our area and local issues. We’re supporting local businesses and spreading the word on local developments, festivals and events. We’re planning to have street parties and barbecues / picnics in the warmer months. We’re making friends and helping one another. Someone asked the group – who can take a cockatiel? A neighbour did. Someone else asked to borrow a sewing machine – 3 were offered within 24 hours! An onion for tonight’s dinner? – easy now. Offers of help to neighbours who are injured or sick – plenty! Neighbours have swapped car parks so that an older man could get into his car, a huge relief for him. People now know who they can call on to walk their dog or help when they go away.

Lots of people ask to join our group but we don’t want it to get too big (if that horse hasn’t bolted already!) so we suggest they start their own Street by Street Group. A group has just started in St Kilda West and another is starting soon in another part of St Kilda.