on show today.

I have just been up doing the walk to the G and seeing the tens of thousands of fans pouring in is amazing.

I've got to say, NFL, they do the gear very well.

The colours, the caps, there's guys with big gold chains on.

Yeah.

It's so great.

Who aren't

infrastructure, the restaurants, the hotels, everything we've got, we are a sporting capital for a reason.

That's a big day.

You're turning up in your gold hot pants.

Look, I might pull the red jacket out for that one to get close to Kylie.

Another great thing on the carnival, which a lot of people haven't tuned in to yet, is it's the 150th anniversary of Test Cricket.

It's being celebrated with a one-off Test match between Australia and the old enemy, England, at the MCG.

So that will break records as well.

That's

tyres chalked or something? It's

What's your res-

Good morning, Ross.

Good morning, Russ.

Um, yeah, look, let me start by saying that during the election, I did commit six million dollars in funding for homelessness services, and I said that would be done through The Salvation Army.

Following the election, uh, we put that funding into our budget.

In fact, we increased it to nine million dollars, but it was then subject to an open and independent tender process.

Unfortunately, The Salvation Army was not the successful tenderer, and I am obviously very, very sorry about that, that they missed out.

No, no, but is the v- the view others hold who are lobbying you?

What do you know?

Yeah, thank you, Ross.

Good to be with you and the listeners.

So, yes, indeed, since the Westgate Tunnel has opened, we have seen increased truck movements through the inner city.

Generally, they are concentrated on the gazetted freight routes, which that's where they're meant to go, but we have seen a significant increase in big trucks on local roads as well, particularly around the Kensington area.

So...

Epsom Road, Kensington Road, Macaulay Road, in some cases those local roads have seen three times as many six-axle heavy vehicles using them.

Why are the trucks doing it? Are they doing it because they don't know where the Westgate Tunnel is or are they avoiding tolls?

Was there any thought, the fact that there was talk that it would come back after five years and it's now been 10, was there any thought of keeping it away from public light or was there something that ultimately forced the council's hand?

Look, certainly not on my part.

It's been frustrating that it's been in storage for so long.

It was meant to be for just five years, as you said.

CYP, the deliverers of the Metro, had it in storage.

The project took longer than expected.

It was in storage for longer than expected.

But the fact of getting on a plane, business class, flying to London when this event is already occurring, people already want to be involved with it.

Can you tell us what a data center actually looks like in reality, particularly for a city like Melbourne, and how those living near it would experience it?

So Melbourne is a city of five and a half million, and geographically, it's a significantly spread out, uh, city.

We have about 50 data centers a- across Melbourne, and they tend to be clustered, uh, close to where there is a good connection to the energy grid.

A- a- and secondly, they tend to be in, uh, former industrial areas, uh, close to the central city or in major industrial parks, more towards the perimeter outskirts of the city.

Wherever they're located, uh, they do tend to have a big impact on the local community.

The first thing is, particularly the sort of hyperscale centers, is that they are enormous.

I think of the old car factories or huge m- manufacturing facilities of, of yesteryear.

What would good look like? If, if we think into the future two, three, four years, what would a, a data center arriving in your city that you could be truly proud of look like?

Do you think that's a fair reflection o- of the reality, Nick?

Nick?Oh, look, I think Australia, and that includes Victoria, are having a political moment at the moment.

Uh, you look at that One Nation vote at the highest levels we've ever seen.

It is something quite extraordinary.

Uh, and look, it reflects the fact that, you know, people are very frustrated.

They feel like the system is not working for them, and they're taking it out on the establishment political parties by flirting with the likes of One Nation.

Uh, it's a big challenge for Labor.

The Premier

What's doing?

Good morning, Ross and Russ.

Indeed, the rumor file has got it right again.

Uh, indeed, that sculpture, Raise the Rattler, it's on the corner of Flinders Street and Spencer Street, for those who know the central city well, uh, is indeed being retired.

Uh, it's created by the artist David Michael Bell.

It rises about 10 meters off the ground.

It's a old W class tram, and it's at a 10-degree angle.

Great.

And, uh, like we should've all along, Lord Mayor, we're gonna be watching soccer in the heart of Melbourne.

Yeah, absolutely.

I think I, uh, Fed Square has become an iconic location for those big sporting moments, particularly international broadcasts.

And so, look, the eyes of the world and, uh, Australia will be on Fed Square when we slam those goals in, uh, the Socceroos during the upcoming World Cup.

And look, I, I do understand where Katrina Sedgwick and the, um, Fed Square team were coming from.

There have been challenges, uh, with, uh, soccer crowds at, at Fed Square.

But absolutely think the premier done the right thing in providing the support that's needed through community, um, uh, poli- uh, through police, security, and crowd management.

[laughs]

It has.

It's gone through a couple of owners.

Um, but the new operators, Starlight Attractions, very good, uh, people.

Uh, I can assure you that from an engineering perspective, it'll be 100%, uh, percent.

A- and they, they're gonna have new attractions around it, uh, new ways of marketing and attracting people to it, and that's gonna be a fantastic thing.

Like, it was five years ago that it closed, uh, at the height of COVID.

Now you've taken care of the wheel, can we do something about the firebombings, please?

please?Oh, yes.