Perth Voice Interactive

A DECISION to impose a $30 fee for this year’s RTRFM music festival has put Vincent council offside, and it’s demanding its $5000 sponsorship back.

Council had agreed to help fund a free event on Beaufort Street but will take it back if the fee goes ahead.

As well as the fee, the festival is shifting from Beaufort Street to the Rosemount Hotel in North Perth.

RTRFM general manager Jason Cleary says various issues have “made the event unfeasible for the strip”.

First the main venue, Planet Cafe shut down. Then it turned out upgrades to the Flying Scotsman—for “a more professional sound”—probably weren’t going ahead. The other sticking point was the high cost of using the Astor.

The station says it’s more practical to shift the entire festival to the Rosemount as a multistage event, and will give 50 tickets to Vincent council as compensation for the changes.

“Effectively [council] is buying 50 tickets for $150 a ticket,” Cr Josh Topelberg says.

“They came to us for festival funding and we agreed to it. The funding doesn’t carry over to a separate event.”

Cr James Peart opposes, “effectively subsidising ticket sales”.

“Generally we wouldn’t do that except where the price of ticket sales is considered to be a token amount. For me, $30 isn’t a token amount,” he says.

Cr Ros Harley says the council funds events like the Revelation Film Festival because it’s a multi-event thing and includes free elements: “For me, this is different… this is by no means a token amount.”

Only Matt Buckels supported retaining sponsorship: “They’ve had to move due to unforeseen circumstances. RTRFM are a great stalwart of the city and do great things for local music. I think RTRFM deserves support in the City of Vincent.”

Mr Cleary says he’ll talk to the Rosemount to thrash out what to do next.

by DAVID BELL