A south-west survivor of child sex abuse says a Warrnambool Street honouring a senior Catholic priest should be renamed.

The survivor, who cannot be named for legal reasons, says Fiscalini Drive in the Toohey Estate should be changed. She said she told Monsignor Leo Fiscalini she was being sexually abused in 1972 and he accused her of “telling lies” and left her in the care of her abuser. 

“The County Court of Victoria has accepted my evidence as truthful, jailing my abuser last year,” she said.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuses acknowledged Fiscalini and Bishop Ronald Mulkearns knew of a complaint Gerald Ridsdale had sexually molested a boy in Mortlake, yet they permitted him to continue working in the area. 

Fiscalini instigated the purchase of the land in 1973 where the street now runs.

The woman contacted The Standard after last week reading about Emmanuel College’s decision to erect a plaque acknowledging child sex abuse within the church and that it should never happen again.

Warrnambool City councillor Peter Hulin is supporting the woman’s push to rename the street.

“I spoke to the (council) chief executive officer Bruce Anson about a year ago,” he said. “Now I have decided to speak with the church directly and see how they feel about it. I’ve had a very respectful discussion with the church and allayed the concerns of the survivor. I am now waiting for them to get back to me.”

Cr Hulin said he understood there could be some inconvenience if a street had to be renamed.

“But when you consider what the survivors have been through and the effect on their mental health, it’s only appropriate it should be changed,” he said.

“It’s not uncommon for street names to be changed. We have to work with the community to get a satisfactory result.” 

A Warrnambool City Council spokesman said there was a process to follow to rename a street.

He said community consultation would be undertaken with people who lived in the area. 

“The naming of roads and localities is governed by the Victorian government’s Office of Geographic Place Names,” the spokesman said.