As part of the Forging Unique Skills and Experiences (FUSE) program, PCYC Mt Gravatt conducts FREE skateboarding lessons every month for young people between the ages of 12 to 25 years old.
The skateboarding workshops are held every second Monday and fifth Monday, if there is one for the month, under the expertise of coaches Claudia from Olliesonny. The sessions, which run from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., are open to all skill levels and the coaches also teach new tricks to the more experienced skateboarders.
For the rest of the year, here are the confirmed F.U.S.E. skateboarding workshop schedules at PCYC Mount Gravatt.
26 July 9 Aug 30 Aug
13 Sept 27 Sept 11 Oct
25 Oct 8 Nov 29 Nov
Skateboarding may seem hard and dangerous but once you start learning the skills and develop balance, it could be a healthy form of exercise. Skateboarding for hours allows the body to burn tons of calories and strengthen the legs and core.
In older kids, it’s could be a great means for getting around town. In young children, skateboarding builds up confidence as they attempt to master what seemed to be scary in the beginning.
In Australia, some 21 percent of young people engage in skateboarding as a form of recreation, exercise, or sport. It was integrated into the F.U.S.E. program of Brisbane City Council to help the youth learn new skills.
Photo Credit: PCYC Mt Gravatt/Facebook
Bookings are required to participate in the skateboarding workshop. Phone 07 3420 4655 for more information.
According to the Federal Government’s latest report on Child Care in Australia, Nathan and Mt Gravatt residents are shelling out over $16,000 a year per child left with childminders. For families availing of the subsidies, the cost is reduced to 50 percent ($8,000/year) or 85 percent ($2,400), depending on the subsidy.
Families in Carindale, Holland Park, Indooroopilly, Kenmore, Sherwood and Yeronga are paying $15,000 a year for childcare (without subsidies). Elsewhere, families in Gympie, Ipswich and Jimboomba spend $10,000 to $12,000 a year.
In December 2020, Queensland’s average childcare cost per hour rose to 3.7 percent at $9.80, whilst the national average is at $10.50 despite a price freeze imposed by the Federal Government as part of the COVID-19 economic measures.
Photo Credit: ParentiPacek/Pixabay
“Generally, the highest rates of growth have been in areas with lower fees. Many of the regions with the high average fee growth were in regional Queensland and other parts of regional Australia,” the report cited.
However, after subsidies, the average childcare cost per hour in Queensland should be at $3.28, deemed the lowest in the country. Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge said that a third of parents in Queensland are enjoying these lowered childcare fees.
The report comes as Prime Minister Scott Morrison signed the Family Assistance Legislation Amendment (Early Childhood Education and Care Coronavirus Response and Other Measures) Bill 2021 that will allow 99 percent of child care services to remain open during emergencies and disasters. This means that the facilities will continue to receive payments in case of massive emergencies, such as a pandemic.
“This legislation will give us the flexibility to respond with similar support during future crises,” Mr Tudge said. “We are investing a record $10.3 billion in child care this year, including $9 billion to subsidise fees for parents.”
A popular piemaker in Mt Gravatt is turning over his 12-year-old business, Piefection, to two dynamic newcomers seeking to expand the gourmet pie business.
Matt Roman — regarded as Brisbane’s pastry king for supplying gourmet pies to various restaurants, grocery shops, and butchers — has sold Piefection to Pierre de Villiers and David Rogers. The newcomers are planning to expand this pie business, which currently has two outlets: Mt Gravatt and Coorparoo.
Mr de Villiers and Mr Rogers are eyeing a northside expansion but the details are still under wraps. The business partners also said that they want to learn what the customers want as they grow Piefection and offer new flavours.
Photo Credit: Facebook
Mr Roman turned his pie business into a legendary staple, offering mouthwatering flavours like Jack Daniels BBQ Pork, the Guinness Beef and Mushroom Pie, or the Death by Chocolate pies.
Piefection became popular through word of mouth, as anyone who has tried his tasty treats can’t get enough of it. In fact, lines of customers are a common sight at his stores even after all these years. The pies are made fresh on the site every day using high-quality and locally-sourced ingredients.
With Piefection’s sale, Mr Roman is redirecting his focus on Iris, the new Mediterranean rooftop restaurant at Fortitude Valley’s Hotel X. He is also preparing to lead the kitchen of Willow, a new cafe in Balmoral from Stone’s Corner restaurateur Adam Dartnell.
Construction of a new general learning facility at the Upper Mount Gravatt State School, which has been underway since October, is estimated to finish in May 2021.
In October 2020, Upper Mount Gravatt State School announced that a new facility was in the works, setting itself up to provide the school with 10 new classrooms on top of shaded learning and play areas.
The construction of the new facility, a general learning centre that would serve as an extension of the main campus, will be spearheaded by the project delivery company Wiley, who have been working on site since October. Completion of the project is expected to finish in May 2021.
This new facility came about to replace the temporary classrooms the school had brought in using a crane following a fire on the 14th of June 2019 which ravaged the campus, destroying the books, possessions, and artwork of over 200 students.
Through the combined efforts of six fire crews, the fire was under control in 90 minutes. Despite the swift response, much of the building had been destroyed, which led to the implementation of the aforementioned temporary classrooms to replace what had been lost in the fire.
It only took the school two days to get classes up and running again. To this day, the cause of the fire remains a mystery, and both the police and the fire investigators have deemed it suspicious.
The Upper Mount Gravatt State School is located at 1899 Logan Rd. For more information, visit their website here. Likewise, learn more about the project manager Wiley here. Follow the Facebook pages of both the school and Wiley for the latest updates and announcements concerning the new building.
Dr Greg Thomas, the Principal Dentist at Bupa Dental Garden City, explained that providing mouthguards is the most direct and effective way they could support their local sports club.
“AFL is a physical sport and players can be at risk from dental trauma as a result of collisions or other mishaps. A custom-made mouthguard is an essential piece of personal protective equipment that can safeguard against unforeseen dental injuries incurred while playing the game.” says Dr Thomas.
Mouthguards play an important role in the safety of all football players, acting as shock absorbers for their mouths and teeth. If a player is hit in the face with a ball or through colliding with another player, the blow sends shockwaves through their teeth, jaw, and skull. A mouthguard effectively minimises the damage by capturing those shockwaves, diffusing them, and then dispersing them.
The Bupa Dental team, which has sponsored the Mt Gravatt Vultures Football Club for three years, has also taken this opportunity to inform and educate its players and members of staff on some of the dental issues caused by sports drinks. These drinks have the potential to cause tooth decay, which in turn influences sporting performance and general health.
With their new mouthguards, the Mt Gravatt Vultures will be able to protect themselves from potential injuries such as broken teeth, or mouth and tongue injuries.
The Mt Gravatt Vultures Football Club can be found in Dittmer Park, 40 Klumpp Rd, Upper Mt Gravatt. To learn more about Bupa Dental Garden City, visit their website or follow their social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram for the latest updates and announcements.
To celebrate their reopening on the 11th of March, 2021, barbershop Just Cuts Mt. Gravatt is offering free haircuts to 30 of their inaugural customers as they open their new venue on the ground floor of Westfield Garden City.
Following the drastic changes to the business landscape brought about by the pandemic, the Mt. Gravatt branch of Just Cuts salon has decided to relocate.
“We’re moving to a premium site right next to the food court,” says Michael Mercer, owner of the Just Cuts franchise. “It’s more attractive to me because our no appointments, just walk in business model suits higher foot traffic locations.”
COVID-19 has been particularly problematic for local businesses based in shopping centres such as Westfield Garden City as people are keen to spend less time in public indoor areas.
“Thursday night business has dropped 50% and weekends have dropped overall,” adds Mr. Mercer.
Despite Just Cuts’ apparent decline in customers, their weekdays have also become busier as customers would prefer to get in and out of salons as quickly as possible to follow COVID-19 guidelines and safety measures. In order to adapt to the new environment, a change of venues was necessary to increase engagement with the Mt. Gravatt community.
For the first time since the salon first set up ten years ago, Just Cuts Mt. Gravatt will change venues in order to adapt while the Queensland economy recovers. There will be no shutdown period between salon transfers, and Just Cuts’ priority will remain on hygiene and delivering quality haircuts to their customers.
“We want to maintain the confidence our clients have in our salon,” adds Mr. Mercer.
With a team of eight local artists, Just Cuts Mt. Gravatt is expected to reopen on Thursday, March 11, 2021, at 9:00AM. The new shop will be located at Westfield Garden City’s ground floor opposite Boost & Kathmandu, near the southern food court.
Follow their Facebook page for the latest news on deals, dates, and general updates.
Montezuma, Mount Gravatt’s popular Mexican eatery found on the corner of Logan Road and Lumley Street, could soon close to make way for a new KFC outlet following the filing of a development application with Council.
According to the plan (DA A005637253), Montezuma’s fitout will not be torn down. Instead, the structures will undergo refacing, modifications and installations as it rebrands into a KFC, the popular American fried chicken fast-food chain.
Collins Property Development Pty Ltd filed the application in mid-January 2021. The plan also includes a drive-through section via Lumley Street.
Per the application, parts of the car park area will be reduced from 55 to 31 to accommodate a pedestrian pathway and a dedicated loading bay.
Photo Credit: PD Online/Brisbane City CouncilPhoto Credit: PD Online/Brisbane City Council
Meanwhile, a spokesperson from Mesa Australia Pty Ltd, which owns Montezuma, said that it’s still business as usual in their Mount Gravatt outlet, as they await the arrival of a new CEO by February.
The spokesperson didn’t reveal any relocation plans for Mount Gravatt. Montezuma has other outlets in Albany Creek, Capalaba, Taringa, and North Ipswich.
Montezuma has been a restaurant franchise since the late 1970s. As with other businesses in the food industry, the restaurant has scaled-down dine-in operations and has been offering takeaway options.
Vapiano, the famous pizza restaurant with an outlet at the Garden City in Upper Mount Gravatt, is bracing for some changes amid this new normal. The eatery will soon introduce a new ordering system that will give the customers more control of their dining experience.
For the last decade, Vapiano’s stores across Queensland have had a familiar ordering system where diners line up at the food stations and then see the chefs prepare and cook their meals.
The new process will incorporate smartphone technology and QR codes, as well as ditch the need for queueing.
Diners may immediately secure their table once inside Vapiano and then place their orders from their smartphones.
Photo Credit: Facebook
The idea is to keep customers comfortably seated whilst the waitstaff provides the service. They may also use their smartphones to pay for their meals so that no one has to leave the table.
However, customers who come in without smartphones may still place orders at a dedicated but smaller corner in the restaurant, where physical distancing will be observed.
The kitchen’s operation will also be altered to reflect the new ordering system.
Photo Credit: Facebook
Managing director Will Cooke believes that will keep the restaurant more efficient whilst maintaining the quality of its food and service.
Meanwhile, Vapiano will also bring in new tables and lighting to freshen up the ambience. The Brisbane City outlet is the first to make the design changes whilst the ordering system will be introduced at the Garden City outlet in Mt Gravatt before the holidays.
Vapiano serves homemade Italian comfort food like pasta, pizza and salads with meals tailored to the customers’ preference.
“Whether you come in for a cheeky after work cocktail in our bar area, or spend hours enjoying a meal with friends in our restaurant, we pride ourselves on serving only the best made-to-order pizzas, house-made pasta, hand-tossed salads and delicious dolci in a fun, relaxing atmosphere filled with fresh herbs at every table and live olive trees.”
Dine-in business has restarted for Maa Kinn Bangkok Street Food since mid-May but under the “new normal,” this Upper Mt Gravatt restaurant has been serving up more than just authentic Thai dishes for its patrons.
Maa Kinn is also giving discounts for customers who will choose to shop online and pick up their food from the store on Logan Road in a bid to promote social distancing and no-contact transactions amidst this pandemic.
For July, customers who place orders on their online website and pick the items up themselves will get a 10% discount from the full-priced menu.
The list of food includes a budget-friendly selection of spring rolls, puffs, wontons, curries, stir fry dishes, noodles and noodle soup, and house specials like Som Tum (papaya salad with tomatoes and peanuts), Red Duck Curry with a range of sauces, Kanaa Moo Grob (crispy pork belly with Asian vegetables), and Garlic Prawns.
Photo Credit: Maa Kinn Bangkok Street Food/Facebook
Photo Credit: Maa Kinn Bangkok Street Food/Facebook
This month, Maa Kinn has also picked Micah Projects as its beneficiary for Charity of the Month. Micah Projects is a not-for-profit organisation that provides support for children and families who have been affected by social injustice.
Customers of Maa Kinn have the option to donate to the cause when they place their orders and it will be matched by the restaurant’s owners.
“Here at Maa Kinn, we believe that charity starts at home,” Maa Kinn’s statement read. “Therefore with the help of our customers, family and friends, we are accepting monetary donations to go towards purchasing dry and canned goods to go into Emergency Relief packs that are given out to individuals and families that are doing it tough during these unprecedented times.”
If you’re keen to support Maa Kinn Bangkok Street Food check their store online or visit their Facebook page for the store’s trading hours.
I have been looking for a great Thai restaurant on the Southside for sometime. There have been a few that are good and I ordered a couple times from them, but still kept looking for a really great one. There have been a couple that have been down right disappointing or they have changed hands. Last night we tried Maa Kinn for the first time, OMG! we have found it, the best Thai food on the Southside. The dishes were packed full of flavour, perfect protein:vege ratio, and we tried a dish we haven’t seen elsewhere, Ginger Stir fry we added prawns….. oh my goodness, it was delicious! My husband isn’t normally a ginger fan, but he was willing to arm wrestle me for the leftovers. Highly recommend Maa Kinn.
Trudy Radenovic, Google Reviews
“I popped in with a friend today for lunch. I had Thai green curry and it was fantastic. The people that served us were lovely – very friendly. If the rest of the food is as nice as what had today I’ll be a regular – thankyou!”
Here’s your chance to get rid of clutter at home as the next kerbside collection in Mt Gravatt and Mt Gravatt East is set for Monday, the 9th of March 2020. Time to get moving and gather up items the weekend before the scheduled collection.
Take note to bring out only acceptable items, such as sporting equipment, bath and laundry tubs, carpets and rugs, electronic waste, white goods, furniture, small household appliances and wood products less than 1.5 metres in size. If you need to get rid of bottles, glass, mirrors, hazardous wastes and other unacceptable items for kerbside collection day, you can make arrangements with resource recovery centres instead.
Whilst kerbside collection helps reduce the clutter in your home, you can stay clutter-free by adopting these simple ways.
1. Have a proper filing, organisation, and storage system.
Where does all your clutter come from? In most homes, the most common clutter sources are:
Bills, lists and documents
Children’s items
Clothes
Tools (kitchen, gardening, related hardware)
Electronic devices and chargers
Decorative stuff and knickknacks
If you are able to identify the source, you will be able to see what needs a filing, organisation, or storage solution. For instance, if you’ve got piles of paperwork at the kitchen counter, you might need a filing rack in that space to keep documents orderly. If you have gardening items, you might need a console or cabinet in the backyard so that these are not all over the place.
2. Chuck out things you “might” use one day.
Professional organisers have one rule of thumb: give items away if you haven’t been using it for more than a year. So, that bread maker sitting inside its box at the back of your pantry, which you only used once in three years, could be of a better use for someone else. Maybe a relative or a friend will want this unexpected gift.
3. Essential items should have space in your house.
As soon as you walk in your front door, where do you put keys, phones, wallet? Where do you hang your coat, jacket or scarf? These are basic essentials that you always need when you leave the house so these must have an accessible and organised space in your house, such as a table, shelving or cubby hole by the door.
In the same way, your kitchen pantry or cabinet must have a special space for essential ingredients. If you use certain items more often than others, it must be stored and placed where you can easily see and reach out to it, rather than putting these all the way to the back of the storage.
Photo Credit: LouAnneClark/Pixabay
4. Get rid of old items if you bring home a new one.
Cycling through your items regularly greatly reduces the clutter. If you’ve got a new mop, there’s no use to keep the old one since you won’t use it anymore. You also don’t need to dump old items in the garage. Why not have a garage sale or donate your old stuff at tip shops?
