Perth Voice Interactive

Raid a disgrace
MAYOR John Carey has tried to defend raiding the aged persons reserve by claiming that in his view the reserve has no purpose because a supposed “massive redevelopment of the site” wasn’t going ahead (Voice, October 11, 2014).
I wish to point out the reserve was established by a 1998 contribution from the retirement village’s board for the purpose of the acquisition, provision, maintenance, management or extension of the existing village or the purchase, construction or provision of aged or senior citizens facilities.
The fact it hasn’t yet been used doesn’t nullify its purpose, nor does it become the city’s money to spend however it wishes.
Reserve accounts exist to set funds aside for future needs in order to lessen that burden on ratepayers. It’s inevitable these funds will eventually be needed to cope with demand, so plundering them as a quick-fix for the city’s financial ineptitude is, in my view, disgraceful.
Mark Rossi
Buxton St, Mt Hawthorn

A great service
MALALA YOUSEF ZAI, a burqa-free Muslim teenager, has won the hearts and minds of the world with her warm smile, sincere gaze and passionate UN speech as the first teenage Muslim girl to ever address the UN assembly.
She has done great service to Islam and the voiceless children.
If she’d caved in to the Taliban’s threat and wore a burqa to obey it she would have never achieved what she has today with her facial expression. She deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for her fearless and burqaless noble act.
Alex Mulla
Smith St, Highgate

Seniors being ripped off
I WISH to challenge Mayor John Carey’s assertions that Vincent’s seniors reserve fund isn’t being ripped off, and that it has $2.7 million sitting in the reserve with “no purpose” (Voice, October 11, 2014).
Vincent council created the Aged Persons and Senior Citizens Reserve in 1997/98 for the purpose of providing facilities for all of Vincent’s seniors.  The reserve has been funded from “surplus funds” from the trading activities of the Leederville Gardens Retirement Village, owned by Vincent. Funds in the reserve have all come from the retirement village plus interest earned by the reserve. No funds have been provided by ratepayers.
The creation of this reserve was seen as a dividend for the broad community from the investment in the retirement village, and there was no intention the funds would only be used for the upkeep of Leederville Gardens.
Over the years Leederville Gardens has built up its own significant funds to provide for the upgrade and/or redevelopment of the village. Obviously, if the initial intention of the council had been that the funds placed into the seniors reserve were to only be used for Leederville Gardens the money would have remained under the care and control of the Leederville Gardens Board, and not placed into a separate reserve under the control of the council.
As of July 1 the seniors reserve had $3.6 million in it, of which $745,000 represented the accumulated interest from the past five years. The council wants to take this interest to help fund its accumulated deficit. At the same time it has collected $740,000 more in rates than was budgeted for because it neglected to include 389 properties in its calculations when setting the 2014/15 rates.
This windfall, gained through either a “mistake” or good luck, will cover the amount intended to be gouged from the seniors reserve, so there is no longer a need to plunder the reserve.
I also challenge the assertion the seniors reserve money has no purpose. The needs of seniors in our community are increasing each year, and the council should be looking for innovative responses to meet those needs.
The city has a large land holding in Hobart Street which may be a good spot for some sort of community facility.  It also has a number of infant health centres that are only used part time.  Perhaps these could be adapted to also look after community needs at the other end of our lives.
The council should not take any money from the seniors reserve, and should look at opportunities to provide meaningful facilities for the aging population, not just the young and fit.
Dudley Maier
Highgate
The Ed says: Mr Maier retired from Vincent council last year.

Mary’s too small
THE recent success of Vincent’s Art Markets and Bike Swap Meet demonstrates the community’s need for a larger public square.
The Mary Street piazza will be too small to host any community events and is not supported by adjoining business. The City of Vincent should seriously consider Barlee Street as a viable alternative place for a piazza with the adjoining car park providing an overflow space for larger events.
Glenn Christie
Vincent St, Mount Lawley