A CLOSE race leading to a next-day recount has confirmed Perth city council’s lineup will not change, with incumbents Liam Gobbert, Clyde Bevan, Brent Fleeton, and Viktor Ko returned amid a field of 16 contenders. As the lower four winners of the eight who took office at the 2020 election, those councillors had just a…

THE wall of incumbency didn’t wobble at Stirling council’s election with all sitting councillors who re-contested their seats being returned. Elizabeth Re defended her Doubleview spot, Karlo Perkov has Hamersley again, Bianca Sandri’s staying in Inglewood, and Suzanne Migdale maintained her Lawley mantle.  Lawley contender Paul Collins came the closest of anyone to unseating a…

THIS year’s Perth Amateur Photographers exhibition will be a decidedly local affair with Covid preventing most Sandgropers from taking snaps outside WA. Featuring 150 photos from 47 amateur photographers of all ages and backgrounds, the exhibition has everything from stunning time-lapse shots of Perth to breathtaking snaps of native flora and fauna. Organiser and photographer…

VINCENT council has adopted a developer’s “local development plan” paving the way for Leederville’s first high-rise towers. Hatch and RobertsDay have proposed transforming the block next to WaterCorp in Frame Court into a 25-storey and 17-storey mix of residential, commercial and community spaces. At Tuesday’s meeting, the council adopted the plan with some minor amendments…

LABOUR shortages in the aged care sector may place Western Australians in jeopardy if borders are reopened too early, says the managing director of Mt Lawley facility Residency by Dillons.  Jackie Dillon said many aged-care positions were traditionally filled by international students and workers, meaning Australia’s closed borders – and particularly WA’s hard-line stance on…

CHICKENS and bees will be easier to keep in Vincent under a new proposed Animal Local Law. Mayor Emma Cole tells us the existing rules make keeping chickens “really tricky: you might only be able to have one chicken in the middle of your backyard”. Currently chickens are required to be kept 15 metres away…

FREMANTLE’S iconic Blessing of the Fleet is back this year after last year’s was cancelled over Covid fears. Festival committee president John Minutillo said following the break, this year’s Blessing and parade on Sunday October 24 would be a return to basics with a focus on celebrating Italian culture’s integration into Australia. “I think the…

THE hardy blokes at the Stirling Men’s Shed have built homes for one of WA’s cutest critters – the quenda. Made from wooden pallets and chicken wire, the 11 ‘bungalows’ installed in Cottonwood Bushland Reserve in Dianella give quendas a place to shelter from predators. Recently, 21 quendas were released into the Dianella area to…

ALMOST 100 years after the last great global pandemic, a reminder of its deadly toll has been getting some much-needed TLC. Tucked away in a beautiful patch of bush in Coogee, Australia’s oldest crematorium boasts a brand new paint job and a shroud of scaffolding around its chimney in preparation for some much-needed work to…

A LITTLE-known quarantine station in Perth’s southern suburbs, including its ghoulish crematorium, has been in the spotlight recently thanks to its connection to the last great pandemic to hit WA’s shores. Woodman Point Quarantine Station is an evocative site, but tucked away in a slice of bushland in Coogee, even locals who live within a stone’s…