Dianne Cappelli is a long-time Brimbank resident who also runs her own community Facebook page where she shares local news, updates and events. She spoke to Sam Porter about her community.
What’s your connection to Brimbank?
I was born at the soon-to-be-closed Footscray hospital, but my family then moved to St Albans when I was a toddler. We lived in St Albans West, where I attended Albanvale Primary School for four years, then we crossed the train tracks to the east, where I attended St Albans East Primary School, Kealba Secondary College, then Vic Uni in St Albans! So, I’ve lived in Brimbank most of my life!
What do you like about where you live?
I am very familiar with the area, so I know where to go to eat, shop; attend events that interest me; parks and recreational areas to play sports, take the dogs for a walk or just chill out.
What, if anything, would you change about where you live?
I’d love for Brimbank to be cleaner. We all need to play our part, and of course the council needs to do their bit too. But it’s a shame to see our streets with litter, dumped rubbish and overgrown grass both in public places, and private residences. I’d love to see this change and have people take pride in where they live.
Where is your favourite local place to spend time?
You will likely find me at the local dog parks. My dogs love attending, and I can just relax on a park bench or chat to other locals about their pets. Brimbank has quite a few dog parks now that cater for large/active dogs, and a separate area for small/shy dogs which is great.
What’s something people would be surprised to know about you?
During the Covid lockdowns, I advocated to Brimbank council to upgrade Green Gully Dog Park. It went from being a square fenced patch of grass, to the dog-friendly design it has today. That process took about two years and funding was allocated, then the park was upgraded the year after.
I had a senior dog at the time called Sammy who loved attending the Cairnlea Dog Park (Kevin Flint Reserve), but unfortunately he passed away before Green Gully Dog Park opened, so to me – it’s Sammy’s park. Because if it wasn’t for him, we wouldn’t have the park for the local dogs to enjoy.
