By BRIDGET COOK
A SMALL stretch of unmade road that caused frustration for many Casey residents is now completed.
The final stage of the major arterial road, Linsell Boulevard, in Cranbourne East, has been finished and was officially opened on Wednesday 22 May.
Linsell Boulevard runs between Narre Warren-Cranbourne and Berwick-Cranbourne roads, but the section of road between the Cascades on Clyde estate and Hunt Club estate were not joined, with about 150 metres of unmade road between the two.
About 250 local residents signed a petition in 2011, calling for the road to be completed.
Cascades on Clyde resident Lisa Sturzaker, who led the push, said at the time that it caused residents of both estates an inconvenience as they had to go around the estates to get to the other side.
Without the road being connected, Cascades on Clyde residents only had one road in and out of the estates, which caused problems when the floods hit.
City of Casey Mayor Amanda Stapledon said it was very exciting to see the ultimate connection of the two sections of Linsell Boulevard for residents and motorists alike.
“Motorists will benefit from the link between major roads, reducing their travel time and congestion on surrounding local roads,” she said.
“Residents will also enjoy substantially improved access to the Cranbourne town centre and their homes, increasing their time with family and friends and decreasing their time on the road.”
Cr Stapledon was joined by Linsell Boulevard’s namesake Derek Linsell at the opening of the road last week.
Through his work in the local community, Mr Linsell made a huge difference to the lives of many Casey citizens, particularly through his improvements to service delivery for disadvantaged people.
He was commissioned as a Salvation Army Officer in 1983, and in 1990 was appointed to commence and establish the work of the Salvation Army in Cranbourne.
His vision was to meet all needs that were presented, and under his leadership, unemployment, recreation, family services, youth and childrens programs were established.
Mr Linsell has worked for a number of major Australian organisations to develop improvement, leadership and community programs.
He now manages his own consulting firm which fosters programs including corporate social responsibility, innovation and leadership development within organisations.
The $2.8m Linsell Boulevard project was delivered by the City of Casey in collaboration with estate developers.
