LAWYER John Hammond says the wheels are in motion with a supreme court legal action lodged against the state government over council mergers. He says the basis for the action is the government failing to comply with the local government act, rendering the merger process invalid. Mr Hammond, a former Cottesloe mayor, is representing Vincent…

STIRLING city council has approved a rate rise of 3.48 per cent, one of the lowest across Perth and the lowest in Voiceland. Perth upped rates by 4.9 per cent, Bayswater 3.8 and Vincent 3.65. Stirling mayor Giovanni Italiano says the council is debt-free. The domestic waste charge jumps 8.25 per cent, from $278 to…

A NEW short doco about Weld Square delves into the long history of the park as a meeting place for Aboriginal people. Our Patch, put together by the Film and Television Institute and the Vincent city council, came about because there are few written records about the park. They got in touch with Aboriginal filmmaker…

A ONE-ON-ONE theatre festival has turned to crowdfunding to raise cash for its productions. Crowdfunding through sites like Pozible or Kickstarter let supporters donate cash to see a project get off the ground, providing a bolster for artists usually surviving on government grants and two-minute noodles. Plays, movies and books have been funded through the…

ALANNAH MacTIERNAN says WA Labor reforms hail the start of a more mature union movement in WA. At WA Labor’s state conference last weekend, delegates passed rules to give rank-and-file members more say on leadership and pre-selections. The changes follow the severe embarrassment of Labor’s senate election re-run. A well-publicised deal between two powerful unions…

MT HAWTHORN residents are gathering a petition to oppose a small bar planned for the ground floor of their apartments block. Paul Parin is keen to convert his Red Dust photographic gallery, at the foot of St Elmo, into a bar for arty types. Planning rules allow for a cafe but residents say the building…

A NEW cafe is planned for the corner of Beaufort Street and Central Avenue. Stirling city council approved the development application Tuesday night. Joshua O’Donnell wants to open in the vacant antique store on the corner, in a strip with two antique dealers, two hairdressers and a nail salon. “The cafe will enhance the area…

THE label says not to use glyphosate in winds above 8km an hour, but the King’s Park Botanic Garden Authority was spraying the weed killer with abandon Monday morning, ahead of a fearsome storm. The label also states the product isn’t effective if there’s “rainfall soon after application,” because it simply washes off, is diluted…

AMY and Hilton Nunn celebrate their 80th anniversary July 7. The Bayswater couple, 100 and 105 respectively, immigrated from Swaziland in 1987 and plan to celebrate the milestone with family. Their bodies ageing in sync, Ms Nunn’s loss of hearing is matched by her husband’s blindness. “I was still at school when we met, only…

BAYSWATER council staff are pointing the finger at turf contractors over an infestation of microscopic soil pests in reserves that will cost ratepayers at least $230,000 to control. Sting nematodes thrive in Perth’s sandy soils and damage turf grass by feeding on the roots. A council report says the tiny worms have hit several reserves,…