Agree with you Bayside on that one, in the grand scheme of things it is undervalued but "the Pines" is not one of them. Frankston is a big, big suburb and that is probably one of the worst parts of town.
Can you tell me where you lived? If you really did what you say you did, and lived in the area for 7 months then you were wearing rose coloured glasses.
I think Frankston in general is a great place for investment and a great place to live. Remember I'm the one who lives here. There is still a strong undertow of low life scum that are not going away as development happens and prices increase, check out Hampton East for a perfect example. Building a marina is not going to solve any of these problems and it especially won't solve them when it's a 20-30 minute walk from the city itself. And remember, the Pines is ~10kms from the proposed development site.
At the end of the day I merely pointed out that the Pines area is/was a housing commission, and that should paint an accurate picture for anyone looking to invest in that area.
FWIW, we own a unit in central Frangers - bought in 2003, and my SIL bought a house on "The Pines" the same year.
She works in Seaford and my wife is a nurse at Frangers Hospital - since 1999 (except the 3 years were in the US) and I worked in ICU there for almost 3 years.
We are up there a lot, have to go through it to go anywhere else as well.
From my years of observation of Frangers, I reckon it's not that bad. I've lived in worse places I can tell you.
South Frangers is really nice, Central is a bit more "commercial" but still allright, "The Pines" where the SIL lives is actually not as bad as people think.
"The Pines" is your typical lower-socio economic citizen area. Now, I'm not saying this to be derogatory; just stating facts.
But there are loads of good people living there - always a percentage of low intelligence hoons and bogans of course, but it is mostly full of normal people, pay their way and live life in a decent fashion. It is coming up slowly but surely, and my SIL has more than doubled her money since 2003, and is about to start the subdiv process on her block. She reckons it's been great.
Funnily, she is thinking of moving on - she has started to outgrow it, and is using her subdiv to fund this.
As for the Frankston Marina, here's my take on all this;
I live in Dromana, which is about 20 mins south of Frangers, 5 mins from the Marina Cove marina.
Martha Cove is going to be a terrific place; very "Monaco". It is spectacular and invokes a feeling of excitement, there are a number of very expensive boats sitting there now, but is currently a bit of a dead duck.
Properties are still sitting there unfinished, many are way too expensive and are sitting unsold. The commercial/retail section hasn't started, the private boat mooring berths are too expensive and many sit empty. There are only so many people floating around with $2 mill for a waterfront townhouse (thats about what they are) no where near the City. If it was in St.Kilda or Williamstown, or Port Melb - it would be a huge success by now.
But it will eventually become realistic in price, everything will get finished and it will be a fantastic place to live and visit.
We have seen this area create a lot of visitor interest all year round now - despite it's unfinished state. It has definitely put Safety Beach and Dromana on the map a bit more; the cafe activity on weekends, the values of the real estate - everything is improving and increasing. Not saying it is all due to Martha Cove, but it contributes; it's another part of the attraction to come.
How does this compare to upcoming Frangers Marina?
If they learn from Marina Cove's mistakes and make the place more affordable, and start the comm/retail section straight away so there are some amenities in place for the new residents who build there, and cafes etc for the visitors, it will go well IMHO.
People love Marinas. We visited plenty of them while in the US, and they are always a thriving, active place all year round. Ovbviously Summer/Autumn is the best time.
The Frankston Marina will part of this exisiting City-
- is closer proximity to Melb than Martha Cove,
- has improved freeway links to get there,
- train line,
- much bigger population than Safety Beach, Mt.Martha and Dromana combined
- hospital, Uni, TAFE, good schools
- large population
- IMHO makes it a project that will be an asset to the City.
Of course you'd want it to fail, that much is clear to all of us. In your negative world, jobs may not be a necessary thing. 
