The Melbourne Snap⚡- Friday 13 June, weekend edition
CERES saved, Albo opens news HQ, top private school sued over alleged abuse, popular bakery chain in staff pay dispute, Brownie Festival and the best hot chocolates in the city.
G’day and welcome back to The Melbourne Snap. I want to start today by briefly discussing AI. Don’t worry, I’m not about to pivot the Snap into another newsletter extolling the “GAME-CHANGING” developments in AI. You can get all that on LinkedIn.
No, this newsletter is all about transparency, so it’s worth sharing how AI is used to make the Snap because it’s a topic that comes up a lot.
I use AI for many things but not the words you’re reading.
The Melbourne Snap logo (as basic as it is) was produced by AI. I use AI for promotional activities if I want to make graphics. Lastly, I use it as a second pair of eyes for sub-editing. Some mornings, I’m really under (self-imposed) pressure to get The Snap out before my 7:30am deadline. Any writer or journalist will tell you it’s notoriously hard to catch your own mistakes. So after reading through the newsletter twice, I chuck it into ChatGPT in a bid to find additional errors I may have missed. It’s not perfect, but it sometimes catches things I miss.
Other than that, it’s really me at 5am, hunched over a computer (see end of email), face lit up by the screen, coffee nearby and going through a list of around 100 bookmarks scanning for stories, updates, and statements I think will be a good fit for this newsletter. In all honesty, I don’t just do it all in the morning. I often take notes of stories of interest through the day. The news briefs are written by me. My general rule is one sentence only, unless I feel an item deserves more of an explanation or context.
For better or for worse, the news judgments are mine, as are the words (excluding community notices sent in). I have experimented with using AI for the news briefs but too often it misses a key bit of info or ignores the very nugget that makes a story interesting. Perhaps one day the machines will be able to do the job better than me, but for now they’re relegated to support roles.
Sorry for the long-winded intro. Here’s Friday’s edition.
🌱In Wednesday’s edition, there was quite a bit of interest over the plight of community garden CERES in Brunswick East. They had to raise $150,000 by the end of the month or face insolvency. Incredibly, they’ve achieved it and now have a new stretch goal of $275,000.
➡️ Now they have four backers who will match every donation up to $50,000 until 30 June to help hit the new stretch goal. - CERES (donation information)
“We’re incredibly grateful. And we’re reminded, again, just how powerful this community is when it comes together. Your support will go straight to work, growing food, community and climate solutions at CERES.” - CERES
🚨 Police have raided a Dandenong home in the probe into the Truganina arson that killed Katie Tangey, 27. The fire is believed to be a mistaken hit linked to the illicit tobacco trade. - Victoria Police
Weekend weather
🧬 Monash IVF CEO Michael Knaap has resigned after a second embryo mix-up came to light. The latest bungle involved using the wrong embryo. - Tory Shepherd, The Guardian
📝 A citizen petition is calling on Port Phillip Council (LGA for St Kilda) to end its camping law exemption, citing rising street-level drug use, safety concerns and public disorder. You can find out more and sign the petition on Change.org (petition link)
🎻 Parasite Live in Concert comes to Hamer Hall on 23 August, with composer Jung Jae-il performing his Oscar-winning score live with Orchestra Victoria. - Arts Centre Melbourne
📺 Channel 7 has opened its new Melbourne HQ at Quarter Tower on Collins Street after 23 years at the previous Docklands site.
➡️ PM Anthony Albanese was there for the opening, where he said, “local news is absolutely critical”. - 7 News (Instagram)
🪖 Police uncovered WWI-era bayonets during a 2021 firearms raid in Caroline Springs and, unable to trace their owners, have now donated them to Rosebud RSL, on the Mornington Peninsula, for public display. - Victoria Police
🥐 Bakery chain All Are Welcome owes staff $243,000 in unpaid super and $125,000 in leave, after entering voluntary administration and relaunching under a new entity.
➡️ The company, which has stores in Northcote, Thornbury and Ivanhoe East, has yet to make a public comment - Adelaide Miller, Daniel Ziffer, ABC News
🚐 Melbourne-based caravan makers Jayco are being sued for allegedly misleading ads showing RVs off-road where warranty doesn’t apply. Jayco denies the claims. - Blair Jackson, news.com.au
🎤 Talking Heads frontman and music icon David Byrne will bring his Who Is the Sky? world tour to Melbourne’s Sidney Myer Music Bowl on 22 January 2026. - davidbyrneofficial (Instagram)
🎧 Aussie DJ and producer Sonny Fodera will headline Melbourne’s The Timberyard on Friday 17 October as part of his Australian tour. - Beat Magazine
🧾 Victoria’s Liberal Party may loan ex-leader John Pesutto $1.5m to avoid bankruptcy over a $2.3m legal bill, potentially earning $1m in interest over the life of the loan. - Benita Kolovos, Henry Belot, The Guardian
🇵🇭 The Filipino flag was raised at Bunjil Place, Narre Warren for the first time as the City of Casey marked 127 years of Philippine independence. - Ethan Benedicto, Berwick Star
🦎 A family west of Melbourne is pleading for the Victorian government to buy part of their land to protect the rediscovered and endangered grassland earless dragon. Scientists warn the species could vanish again without urgent action. - Peter de Kruijff, ABC News
🎤 Queen: Bohemian Rhapsody returns to The National Theatre Melbourne on 16 August, with Freddie Mercury impersonator Thomas Crane performing Queen’s greatest hits. - nationaltheatremelbourne (Instagram)
🏘️ Three real estate agencies - Barry Plant Werribee, Ray White Point Cook and White Lotus Truganina - will face court in July over alleged breaches of Victoria’s rental bidding laws, after listing price ranges or “contact agent” instead of fixed rents. - Wyndham TV
💻 Aussie data centre giant NEXTDC will build a $2 billion digital campus in Fishermans Bend, featuring an AI Factory and Tech Centre of Excellence. - Vic Gov
🍔 Mount Evelyn locals fear a renewed fast-food push after the former McDonald’s site in the eastern suburb was relisted for sale. - Matthew Sims, Eastern Melburnian
❗This is a particularly long edition today. If the email version is cut off in your inbox, you can read the online version here.
📈 The most-visited links from the last week
⚖️ An article explaining the meaning of “Doli Incapax“ in Victorian law
🍴 These are the A-list approved Melbourne restaurants stars love (second week in a row for this one)
🎉5 things to do this weekend
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