Perth Voice Interactive

ELEVEN closed shops on a single block in West Perth’s Hay Street shows the area is in dire need of some love, says lord mayoral candidate Reece Harley.

Currently the sole candidate for the job — incumbent Lisa Scaffidi hasn’t said whether she’ll seek re-election — the Perth city councillor says much of the council’s investment and advertising campaigns are too focused on the CBD, with little attention paid to West Perth.

He says the area also suffers from paid parking and the withering effects of the mining slump, with now-empty offices once home to start-ups.

Crime statistics are surprisingly high for the area, surpassing Northbridge for categories such as burglaries and car theft.

Cr Harley doorknocked last weekend and says “all the residents are telling me they’d love this place to be a vibrant urban centre on the weekend”.

He wants to establish a precinct group of residents and business owners, modelled on the Beaufort Street Network in neighbouring Vincent, that would be allocated funds from the council to work on facelift projects. He also wants the area to get more from council-funded advertising and marketing.

He believes the place needs free parking on Saturdays, more business grants, and an end to alfresco fees that discourage restaurants from livening up the street.

“We need to abolish alfresco licensing fees,” he says. “I don’t understand why you’d tax activation.

A $1000 tax might mean nothing to a millionaire but it means a lot to these people,” he says, gesturing to a small eatery on the street.

The strip’s traders the Voice spoke to brought up one issue above all others: paid parking and the threat of fines scaring away customers.

Carol Angove runs St Louis Blues Boutique. She says “half-an-hour free parking would make a huge difference” as it lets people pop in for a browse or buy a coffee without hassle.

Ms Angove says the overall impact of the slowing WA economy and underemployment is hitting the street, as it feels like people just don’t have as much spending money.

by DAVID BELL