The legal battle to try and stop a concrete plant being built in Bayswater will cost ratepayers at least $170,000. The unelected but powerful state administrative tribunal is on the verge of approving a concrete batching plant over the objections of the elected council and hundreds of local residents. In June 2011 the council rejected…

The Liberal candidate for the federal seat of Perth, Darryl Moore, opposes gay marriage. Mr Moore told the Voice this week marriage should be between a man and a woman “as defined by the Marriage Act”. Earlier the Australian Marriage Equality lobby group had issued a press release calling for Mr Moore to outline his…

While some predicted traffic chaos when train lines went down this week it was hard to fault the Public Transport Authority’s handling of replacement buses. On Monday morning buses ranging from little nightspot tour vehicles to five-star coaches were press-ganged into service by the PTA to bolster its own fleet. They picked up thousands of…

The co-naming of Weld Square as “Wongi Park” is off the table. Vincent council had approved the dual naming in principle, but mayor Alannah MacTiernan told the Voice it was dropped following meetings with the indigenous community (last week we reported the name had been adopted). “There wasn’t a great deal of enthusiasm,” Ms MacTiernan…

Vincent city council’s community consultation is under fire. Locals have complained about not being notified of big developments and projects in their neighbourhood. Leederville traders Debbie Saunders and Stuart Lofthouse say the council failed to notify them of new works at the Oxford Street Reserve, which turned out to be a snafu with the council’s…

Stirling city council has defended spending $16,375 to send a councillor to an audit conference in Florida even though he’s not on its audit committee. Cr David Lagan flew business class return to Orlando to attend the Institute of Internal Auditors international conference from July 14-17. The cost included flights, registration, cash advances and seven…

A dog owner has escaped with a $400 fine after his two staffordshire bull terriers mauled a dog in front of two terrified children in Mt Hawthorn. It is the second time in a year the staffies had been reported to Vincent city council for attacking a dog. The two boys, aged four and six,…

Golfers are having to book a week in advance just to get on a course in Bayswater. The city has gone all Caddyshack following the closure of the Burswood public golf course in April, with golfers suffering withdrawal symptoms swamping the Maylands Peninsula and Embleton courses. Bayswater mayor Terry Kenyon said the freshwater lakes made…