A BAYSWATER ratepayer has used public question time to grill mayor Filomena Piffaretti over the timing of her resignation. The timing meant her empty council seat could not be filled by runner-up candidate Sally Palmer (“Shock resignation,” Voice, October 21, 2023). Ms Piffaretti had explained her resignation in a Facebook post stating she wanted to…

ANOTHER massive Pickle District site is up for redevelopment, with a tired Newcastle Street caryard to become a six-building mini-village with a hotel, shops, bars and housing. The megablock is owned by the company Automotive Properties and currently hosts a few scattered car-related businesses, but most of the massive block has been dormant since the…

A BALL plucked from a box at random has seen Bayswater councillor Elli Petersen-Pik become Bayswater deputy mayor after an evenly split vote with Josh Eveson. Cr Eveson is a strong supporter of mayor Filomena Piffaretti and almost always votes in-step, while Cr Petersen-Pik has tussled with the mayor on a range of issues.  At…

A CANDIDATE who lost last month’s elections has called for the Bayswater civic centre’s Australian flag to be flown at half-mast to “join me in my mourning”, part of a jab at the council admin’s decision to fly the Aboriginal flag at half mast after the failed referendum. Nirmal Singh got 11.5 per cent of…

SOME rare good news on the invasive insect quarantine front: The fight against the ruinous Queensland fruit fly is going well enough that stricter quarantine measures have been lifted in Bayswater and Belmont.  The Qfly was spotted in Bayswater in March 2023. It preys on many backyard fruit trees and is a serious threat to…

THOUGHTS are sought for Bayswater’s long-awaited ‘urban forest’, with a pop-up feedback session at Riverside Gardens East planned for November 4 between 3pm and 5pm. Bayswater council’s been wanting to plant a swathe of trees around the sun-baked turfy patch of Riverside Gardens to the east of Eric Singleton Bird Sanctuary to turn it into…

FROM laughter yoga to a sing-along sundowner, Bayswater council have lots of great events lined up for Seniors Week. Stay on Your Feet: Move, Improve, Remove is run by Injury Matters WA, who will share tips on how seniors can stay active, independent and safe in their daily lives. It’s at Morley Library from 10am-11am…

BASIL ZEMPILAS is back as Perth’s lord mayor with a third election win, while an extensive preference count among 10 council candidates saw contenders jostle back and forth before some late reversals.  Mr Zempilas claimed 56.5 per cent of the vote against Sandy Anghie’s 36.49 per cent, with newcomer Will Leyland polling at 7 per…

ALISON XAMON is the new mayor of Vincent, coming in ahead on both primary votes and preferences.  Ms Xamon is formerly an upper house MP for the Greens but ran independent of the party, and says she’s far happier in a council role than in state parliament. Technically she could still be called back to…

LONG-serving Bayswater councillor Sally Palmer is off council after Saturday’s election. The empty north ward seat she would’ve stepped into with the second-highest vote on the weekend was blocked off by a last-minute resignation from mayor Filomena Piffaretti that will instead spark a by-election (“Shock resignation,” Voice, October 21, 2023). As the Voice predicted, Cr…