Perth Voice Interactive

A DROP-IN homeless centre planned for James Street has been unanimously rejected by Perth councillors after more than 100 objections from locals.

Ruah currently runs the drop in centre on Shenton Street opposite Russell Square, but will soon redevelop the site into a seven-storey shelter for women and children escaping domestic violence.

Ruah found the new spot 270m away but it’s nestled among small businesses and homes. Owners who’ve invested in the area aren’t keen on the prospective new neighbour, fearing for their safety, businesses, and property prices, and conducted a letter writing campaign urging Perth council to refuse the planning application.

“This centre does not have a place in a thriving and successful business area with [restaurants], motel and residential accommodation business,” one objector wrote to Perth council.

One office owner wrote “I love Northbridge, I love its culture and diversity and everything that goes with it, but I do avoid the corner of Shenton Street where Ruah currently is at all costs. 

“It is unsafe and confronting and one of the few places where I consistently get verbally abused and accosted by all manner of people in all states of undress and intoxication, not to mention the human faeces and the overwhelming smell of urine.”

There were four letters of support from people who generally agreed the centre would help address problems.

At the May 24 Perth council briefing Ruah’s Elsie Blay told councillors there’d be more people sleeping rough in the CBD if they couldn’t find a new home for the centre.

Anti-social

“We’re part of the solution and we want to work together to end homelessness,” Ms Blay said.

The centre runs 8.30am to 2pm and provides a mail service, computers, and help filling out forms: “At our hub, clients will receive practical support in a housing first approach, be able to secure identification so they can apply for jobs, housing, and Centrelink,” Ms Blay said.

But councillors heeded the flood of objections and refused to approve the change of use application Ruah needed for a drop-in service. 

Cr Brent Fleeton moved the rejection, saying the drop-in centre would adversely impact on the character and amenity of the area through extra noise, anti-social behaviour and a reduction in public safety. The council’s town planning rules says they are to consider “amenity” when making planning decisions.

“There’s no denying the surrounding locality will change for the worse if this centre is approved,” Cr Fleeton said.

He said they should take heed of concerns and lived experiences from residents and business owners who’d invested in the area and wanted to improve it. 

Council supported his motion to reject the centre, which will likely mean a hold up for the construction of the seven-storey women and children’s hub.

Ahead of the vote Perth council planning staff had warned the council would be on shaky ground if they refused the change of use. It’s a pretty minor planning change that allows the building to be used as a “cultural and community centre” which the council’s own planning scheme says is welcome in Northbridge.

On concerns over loss of amenity, more crime, and falling property values, the council’s planning staff advised: “none of these matters form solid planning grounds upon which the proposal could reasonably be refused” which gives Ruah a potential case for appeal to the State Administrative Tribunal.

Lord mayor Basil Zempilas last week told a parliamentary committee that homeless services should start being more decentralised so they’re not all concentrated around the CBD.

by DAVID BELL

AN e-scooter share scheme is in the works for the CBD with Perth council voting to scope out a two-year trial, but they’re taking a cautious approach given safety concerns.

New state government rules in December 2021 legalised e-scooters but put strict and confusing limits on their use. They can now trundle along footpaths at 10kmh, and up to 25kmh on bike paths and some local roads as long as the posted speed limit is 50kmh or less and there’s no road markings. 

Now some inner city councils, Kings Park, and UWA are keen to get a joint e-scooter share scheme going, with Perth council leading the project and looking for private operators to set up docking stations.

There was concern over the safety of e-scooters as there’s been two deaths since scooters were legalised and a lot of accidents.

Perth councillors requested stats on how many injuries were associated with e-scooters but the data’s not available: The numbers are sprawled across computers in health departments, hospitals, police stations and the insurance commission, and there’s no specific road user class for e-scooters making for no uniform classification between those bodies. 

Councillor Clyde Bevan noted recent estimates of 250 e-scooter accidents and two deaths, and said: “I would just like to see designated pathways for them, for safety reasons.”

Lord mayor Basil Zempilas said “rigour around the safety and rules and regulations will be particularly important. However I’m sure the same rigour needed to be applied when motor vehicles first burst onto the scene and bikes made their way into our lives.

“And it is my belief, and I think the belief of many, that e-scooters are a part of modern city life and so I welcome the opportunity to see the City of Perth benefit from this trial.”

Councillor Liam Gobbert gets around town on an e-scooter and has looked into some safety options for the trial which will let the scheme’s operators program in strict controls preventing speeding.

He said they could stipulate “that the software limits the speeds of these riders to 10kmh on footpaths, and where they are able to access cycle lanes, to 25kmh. 

“I take the points that have been raised around safety, but I’m confident we can capably address safety issues.”

Only councillor Viktor Ko voted against the trial but didn’t weigh in on its merits this week. However prior to being elected Dr Ko said he didn’t support scooter or bike rental schemes because he’d seen them become an issue for councils when bikes get dumped.

Melbourne used to run a bike share scheme, but instead of returning the bikes to the proper docking stations many people left them lying on footpaths, hung them from trees, wedged them atop street signs and fences, hurled them onto roofs, and several dozen were thrown into the Yarra River.

A condition of the Perth trial is that any operator has to outline “what incentives/disincentives could be implemented to encourage users to return or dock e-scooters safely and appropriately after use”. They’ll also consider a programmed cut-off to deactivate the e-scooters “after hours to mitigate vandalism”, but there’s no word yet on what respectable e-scootering hours might be.

by DAVID BELL

AFTER years of getting passed over, underground power might finally be in the pipeline for parts of North Perth, Mount Lawley, Mount Hawthorn and Highgate.

Vincent council hasn’t been able to get any new underground power since a chunk of Highgate went under in 2009, despite it being a popular cause given it looks nicer, can boost house prices and lets street trees grow taller.

An attempt to bury the lines in Brookman and Moir Streets in 2015 didn’t go ahead because the majority of residents didn’t want to pay $8,260 per property to get it done.

A cheaper scheme is now being offered by Western Power to put in underground power rather than upgrading the ancient power lines throughout the city.

Western Power’s offered to cover two-thirds of the cost of the $49m project, leaving Vincent to pay $17.4m.

It covers 5336 properties, about a third of Vincent’s total. That works out to about $2500 per property in Perth and Highgate, $3400 in Mount Lawley and adjacent bits of North Perth, and $4000 in Mount Hawthorn and the neighbouring North Perth chunk. 

If the council doesn’t get on board, Western Power will replace old poles and wires “like for like” – that means they’ll be reluctant to then underground, meaning the new poles could be around for another 40-50 years.

Mount Hawthorn resident Jessica Reid wrote on behalf of Federation Street residents urging Vincent to seize the chance: “If it doesn’t go ahead, we understand it may be two generations before we have a chance to do this again which will be extremely disappointing for us, as residents.”

Underground power is estimated to increase house values by $12,000.

Mayor Emma Cole described it as “a golden opportunity”.

“For a long time, underground power has not been cost effective for the city, but this new opportunity is a game changer for the City of Vincent and our residents who have been asking for underground power,” Ms Cole said.

“The new Network Renewal Underground Program Pilot has brought the costs down and underground power is now within our reach.”

But outside those areas in need of urgent pole replacement, Vincent ratepayers who won’t get underground power may end up part-subsidising the beneficiaries in the short term to kickstart to project.

While eventually the council plans to set up a user-pays system, to get the ball rolling Vincent staff have advised putting aside $1m-$2m in the next annual budget “to ensure no delay in the roll out of this program”. 

Western Power wants to collect part of the payment around June 2023 before digging starts, so that money would sit ready to cover up-front costs of residents who opt to pay off their contribution across a multi-year payment plan. 

Councillors will decide whether to gather that fund at the upcoming budget meeting when rates are set. It may not be needed so soon, since there’s still 12 months of community engagement and design work before a full business case goes back to council for a final vote.

by DAVID BELL

AFTER enduring months of gibes for not diving straight into the pricey WACA pool deal, Perth council’s now waiting on the state government to get a move on and provide concrete plans amid rumours of a cost blowout. 

Throughout 2021 premier Mark McGowan repeatedly urged the council to pitch in for a three-way WACA/council/state deal to build a pool before the opportunity slipped away. 

Unaffordable

But the newly elected council and lord mayor Basil Zempilas were wary they’d end up with unaffordable maintenance costs. Aquatic centres can end up being huge burdens for local governments, like the costly Beatty Park in Vincent or the ever-expensive Bayswater Waves.

In August 2021 the council finally settled on paying a one-off capped $25m contribution, on the proviso they wouldn’t be on the hook for decades of endless upkeep bills which could’ve ended up bringing the total to $150m.

negotiation window for the state government to present plans to the council’s satisfaction but it’s taking longer than they hoped.

While the WA government says it’s all proceeding as planned, the lengthy negotiations have been costly for the council as its legal bills for negotiation keep piling up past $20,000.

Deciding whether to grant an extension or pull out of the deal altogether at this week’s meeting, Cr Brent Fleeton said: “I am frustrated that it’s been six months since we passed the resolution and we still can’t reach an agreement for a pool.

“We don’t have the budget to keep paying lawyer fees that the state has. The state has the [State Solicitor’s Office], we don’t, so ratepayers are paying for the state’s delay here.

“I hope the WACA project hasn’t blown out by too much ‚Äî we all hear things in this environment, Cr Fleeton said. “I don’t know if we’re still going to get the same pool we had last year,” with details to come in a development application in the next few months.

Lord mayor Basil Zempilas said while the delays were costly, “it can’t go on forever, and a six-month extension seems reasonable … we want to see this delivered”. 

by DAVID BELL

COUNCILS have been meeting behind closed doors too often, local government minister John Carey (right) says.

Councillors locking the public out of meetings at the drop of a hat has been a constant bugbear for anyone concerned with transparency.

Vincent and Bayswater have both been criticised by ratepayers over their confidential workshops, where votes aren’t formally cast but prepwork is done on upcoming items.

And Perth council’s secret decision to close Citiplace Child Care Centre meant parents and staff had no chance to offer solutions to keep the place open. 

Mr Carey didn’t mention any specific council in an announcement about a push for reforms on confidential meetings, but it came shortly after Cambridge council’s secret meeting with just 22 minutes’ notice on May 2.

Mr Carey announced on May 19: “I am concerned that some councils hold some meeting items ‘behind closed doors’, without the public or press being able to attend, for issues which simply don’t need to be confidential.

“The everyday business of council should always be open to the public, with very limited exceptions for matters that should be held confidentially, for clear and specific public interest reasons. 

“That is why, as part of local government reforms, we will be amending the law to be very clear about the limited circumstances, like CEO recruitment, which councils should consider confidentially. 

“This will ensure that items such as planning matters, including planning referrals back from [the State Administrative Tribunal] and decisions about leases of local government property are made openly and transparently, and with all residents and ratepayers being able to view the decision-making process.”

Mr Carey seemed to allude to Cambridge’s short notice meeting but without naming the council: “Calling sudden meetings, outside of genuine emergencies, can deprive councillors and interested members of the public with the opportunity to participate in them, and erode public confidence in local government.”

He said he’d review the requirements for providing notice. The current local government act says for a “special meeting” notice only needs to be given “before the meeting”, without any minimum window. 

by DAVID BELL

TWO Northbridge counsellors say a groundbreaking Netflix program which dropped in April is building bridges between the LGBTQIA+ and straight community.

The Netflix TV adaptation of the Heartstopper graphic novels by Alice Oseman avoids the stereotypical queer tragedy of mainstream Hollywood. 

Rotten Tomatoes reviewers have given it a 100 per cent rating with a 98 per cent average audience score, which one of the counsellors (who only wanted to be identified as Daniel) said was an indication of its broad appeal.

“It is so easy to consume, whoever you are,” the Freedom Centre peer educator said. 

Daniel said Heartstopper “isn’t erasing the issues that still exist for queer people, queer young people especially,” but treated them with a deft touch.

It was important for an audience “to be able to understand and empathise with their experiences”.

Within the first two days Heartstopper hit the top 10 of English series with 23.9 million viewing hours globally. 

Daniel’s colleague Oakly said the show which didn’t hyperfocus on any particular queer identity, but showed a range of people integrated into general society.

Oakly said having queer sexuality and gender validated at such a young age was something that most of the queer community wished they had. A common feeling for the young people that Oakly deals with was a “feeling of missing out on this quintessential, beautiful queer narrative”.

NO TV show has ever had the same quality of songs as The Simpsons, and Perth-born Melbourne-based muso Dale ‘Boadz’ Boaden is bringing the classic tunes to his hometown for a one-night nostalgic singalong. 

Boadz studied jazz guitar at WAAPA and says the quality of the songs is top notch, with the writers’ love and knowledge of music clearly shining through. 

Other shows like Family Guy or South Park have had a decent song here or there, “but not enough to fill a show,” Boadz says.

“The Simpsons? Banger after banger.”

Those who grew up watching the dysfunctional but sweet yellow family every night share their own dialect of one-liners that’ve wormed their way into every day speech, and songs like ‘Monorail’ or ‘Dr Zaius’ have likewise been lodged deep in our brains like a forgotten crayon stuffed up the nose.

“What’s so fun about doing it is, I’m 32, and everyone around that age knows them all,” and even when people think they don’t remember them the lyrics seem to come flooding back as the show rolls on.

The show’s had a resurgence among 90s kids in the past couple of years. Until recently the episodes were hard to access, leaving us to hunt down DVDs or search obscure pirate sites hosted in countries that no longer exist. 

Nostalgia

In the chaos and lockdowns of 2020 the whole Simpsons back-catalogue was finally made available for cheap, legal streaming, and many 90s kids flocked back to the show to nostalgically bask in television’s warm glow. 

“I hear it all the time,” Boadz says, from those who grew up doing “the exact same thing: 6pm, Channel 10, chuck it on, let’s go.”

He says part of the value is picking up all the little jokes we never got as kids. “Something that’s so good about going back and watching it as an adult… the amount of content they pack into an episode, coming right down to the songs, it’s insane. It’s such an artistic achievement that will stand the test of time, those golden years.”

He first performed Simpsons songs at a gig booked at a pizza place. “10 people came down, and eight of them were my friends.”.

Since then he’s kept adding songs to try to get to every single song in the golden years of the first 10 or so seasons, from the ballads like Can I Borrow a Feeling? to the short one-line songs rolled into medleys.

“Once the show gets going, it’s not that much about my performance: I feel like I’m hosting a party, and the audience is so involved that I really feel like I could get them started and then go get a drink,” he says. “A lot of people know every word!”

Value

He says non-viewers get a lot of value out of it too when they suddenly realise the weird idioms their partners have been saying for years are actually iconic references: “They’ll say: there’s so many lines I didn’t realise were from the show.”

He’s been trying to get the show back to Perth for the past 18 months but with lockdowns here and in Melbourne “I think we’ve rescheduled this about seven or eight times”.

But hometown Homer-heads are still dead keen to see him: Even when refunds have been offered for cancellations, Boadz says “people are holding onto their tickets, they really want to come!”

Boadz’s Songs in the Key of Springfield plays June 10 at the Rosemount, tickets via rosemounthotel.oztix.com.au

by DAVID BELL

A BIBRA LAKE business is helping young women embrace their period and overcome any stigma and shame they feel. 

Run by Eve Kermack and Karen Peradon-Alaga, Wild, Wise and Worthy hold workshops on a variety of topics connected with female empowerment, menstruation and being comfortable in the female body. 

“We wanted to create a really safe container where girls can be seen and heard,” Ms Kermack says. 

“The importance of the work that we do is to allow a girl to feel like she’s not alone in her experience of growing up.”

Recent workshops include Growing Bodies and Cycle Wisdom for Mums and Girls, focusing on body changes during puberty, and the Queen of Her Kingdom discussing body sovereignty, body image, boundaries, consent and beauty.

There’s also workshops for older girls like Let’s Talk Online, about the ramifications of covid on their emotions and social lives, and Let’s Talk About Friendship focusing on conflict resolution and building self-esteem to handle the changes in friendship dynamics that typically occur at ages nine to 11.

“I think that if a girl can see her worth and her value and know that she belongs and likes herself, then she gets to really live life fully,” Ms Kermack says.

“We don’t have the magic wand, but we definitely want to be part of the village that can help parents with those really positive messages that they want to instil in their kids.”

Wild, Wise and Worthy recently released their Bud to Blossom first-period hampers, containing a variety of goodies including two pairs of period undies, cleansing grains for skin changes during puberty, deodorant to deal with body odour, lip balm, ceremonial cocoa drink powder for chocolate cravings, and affirmation cards to reminded girls they are beautiful, wise, worthy and totally less clinical – more like a celebration of a girl becoming a young woman – and a nice way to start a discussion with your daughter about her period.

Society’s perception of menstruation is slowly changing – last week the Spanish government approved plans to allow women suffering from period pain to take unlimited paid time off work. The draft law still needs to be passed through parliament, but it’s the first government in Europe to get this far.

In recent times, high profile female tennis players have become more vocal about period pain affecting their ability to perform. Previously they would have been too embarrassed to discuss it or it would have been viewed as an excuse for a defeat.

Ms Kermack is also studying to become an accredited coach to work with mothers who are still ashamed about their body image or menstruation, but don’t want their daughters to feel the same way. 

“They’re trying to break the cycle of what they were delivered from their parents, to the messages and the stories and experiences they had, and they’re really consciously trying to create a different narrative for their kids,” she says.

Wild, Wise and Worthy also held a workshop Critical Critters at the Coogee Live Festival and in local schools, teaching kids how to deal with their inner critic and be gentler on themselves.

For more info on workshops and hampers go to wildwiseandworthy.com.au

by GEORGIA GIBSON