Good to read about my old stamping ground - I spent several years working in Newstead as a 'Town' Planner for the Shire of Mt Alexander in the early 2000s. Newstead really is a lovely spot.
Here is some background on the local Telstra 'Hotspot', I was involved in issuing the related planning permit.
The site was established under the Howard Gov't mobile phone access guarantee to rural areas, as part of the second Telstra sell-off.
There was a deal of concern in the local community about the site being established, especially, to maximise coverage, the preferred location had the potential to place a local kindergarten and the public swimming pool in the zone of maximum exposure to radiation. This was taken care of by some site relocation (which probably moved it closer to Welshmans Reef) and the permit was subsequently issued by Council.
I haven't been back recently, however it is good to hear that coverage extends as far as Welshmans Reef for the locals who wish to access the internet.
Just shows how far technology has moved in a couple of years, as I'm fairly certain that the locals would've all been on dial-up 5 or 6 years ago.