• Mertome Village is one of the retirement villages Bayswater council is hoping to offload.
NORANDA RETREAT is one of several retirement villages set to be off-loaded by Bayswater council as it undertakes a strategic review of its aged care residential services.
Maintaining the council-owned villages has become financially onerous in recent years and Bayswater is already in negotiations about divesting Mertome Village to Hall & Prior and Heathley.
Other retirement complexes set to be off-loaded are Carramar Village and Salisbury Retreat.
The review will also include a rethink on Bayswater and Carramar hostels.
Councillors voted to “review and document the city’s aged care assets, and prepare and execute a strategic plan for the transition of services.”
“Preferred bids would be shortlisted to the next phase,” read the officer’s report.
“If council chooses to proceed with a proposal, then shortlisted parties will be invited to proceed to due diligence similar to the process followed for the Mertome redevelopment process.”
The aged care review will be conducted by Ansell Strategic and cost about $120,000.
VINCENT council has postponed making a decision on including Robertson Park on a short-list of sites for a new state tennis centre.
The existing centre in Burswood has major subsidence problems that would cost more than $50 million to fix, so Tennis West is considering moving to a new home and wants to add Robertson Park to a short list of four potential sites.
Vincent mayor Emma Cole said it was a “reasonable proposition” to relocate the centre to Robertson Park, but wants residents consulted on the proposal first.
Tennis West CEO Michael Roberts says the organisation wants to stay at Burswood, but would need state government funding to cover some of the hefty redevelopment costs.
He says some areas at the centre had sunk by half a metre, making all but two of the courts unstable.
“The cost involved with piling every structure and tennis court; that’s what we’re weighing up at the moment,” Mr Roberts said.
Vincent council voted to delay making a decision on the issue until February, after Tennis West had consulted with residents.
• A fenced dog park is off the agenda for Strutt Way Reserve.
COUNCILLOR Stephanie Gray has withdrawn her proposal for a fenced dog park at Strutt Way Reserve in Noranda, following a community backlash.
Cr Gray lodged a motion in May to “develop costings and a design for a specialist dog park separated for large and small dogs at Strutt Way Reserve to include fencing, dog agility equipment, water fountains and shade”, but then had the motion revoked at Tuesday night’s council meeting.
She told the Voice it would have been “a waste of council money”.
“The community were very unhappy with it,” Cr Gray said.
“As we’re there to represent their views, we thought it was best to withdraw the motion.”
Cr Gray said there were no fenced dog parks in Bayswater, but residents could use fenceless, dog-friendly parks on the fringes of the city.
She noted that the council had not completely dismissed the idea of a fenced dog-exercise area, but Strutt Way Reserve was definitely off the table.
POLICE have reissued a call for help in finding a hi-vis thug who bashed a man before stealing his backpack at a Bayswater car park in September.
The incident occurred just after lunchtime on September 15 when the victim was getting into his car on Railway Parade and was approached by a man not known to him.
The offender pulled him from the car, assaulted him and stole a blue backpack before running away.
Despite some minor injuries, the victim chased his attacker and was able to retrieve his backpack.
Police are now searching for a man described as medium build and between 20 and 30 years old. He was last seen wearing dark pant, gloves and a hi-vis jacket. Anyone with information can call Crimestoppers on 1800 333 000
BAYSWATER council is contributing $35,000 to two community festivals in a bid to make the city more vibrant.
At Tuesday night’s council meeting, councillors voted to give $20,000 to The Baysie Roller’s Bayswater Street and Arts Festival and $15,000 to the The Morley Momentum’s Laneway Fiesta.
The Baysie Roller’s festival in March is expected to attract more than 20,000 people and is a significant step up for the not-for-profit whose previous events over the last three years have been attended by about 5000 folk.
Featuring dance, theatre and visual art, the festival will have an historic theme, tracing the history and creation of the Bayswater town centre with inclusion of Aboriginal history and heritage of the area.
Set in the Bayswater town centre on King William Street, the festival aims to give a boost to local businesses.
The Morley Momentum’s Laneway Fiesta, to be held in February or March, is expected to attract more than 2000 people
The laneway fiesta will have a range of multicultural food trucks, stalls and entertainment, provided by local businesses and community groups.
The fiesta will be located on Progress Street, in the heart of the city centre, in a bid to activate and showcase the area.
Fiesta organisers will also receive a $5000 grant from Bendigo Bank.
• Seasonal Brewing Company is planning a micro-brewery at 175 Guildford Road.
A NEW micro-brewery is set to open in Maylands after some planning ping-pong between the applicant and Bayswater council.
The Seasonal Brewing Company – a 620sqm boutique micro-brewery with a tasting and dining area at 175 Guildford Road – was approved by council on Tuesday night.
The council had originally approved the micro-brewery in March, but owner Nick Southwell wasn’t happy with some of the conditions including those relating to parking, the use of forklifts and outdoor lighting.
Premium
He went to the State Administrative Tribunal, which asked Baysy council to reconsider some of their conditions at Tuesday’s meeting.
“The facility will produce premium quality beer on site to satisfy the high end of the craft beer market,” read the council officer’s report.
“Due to the small scale nature of the brewing operation, there will be an emphasis on experimentation and attempts to create unique styles that are not produced elsewhere in the state.
“The primary source of income will come from on-site sales in the tasting area and by way of takeaways in two litre containers.
“In addition to this the external wholesale distribution of kegs to other bars in the Perth area will form an additional source of revenue.”
The venue will have a limit of 200 patrons and be open 5pm-10pm on weekdays and noon to 10pm on weekends.
Two existing buildings at the site will be interlinked and there will be an al fresco facing Guildford Road.
A 14-bay car park for the micro-brewery and one loading bay is proposed at 66A Seventh Avenue, opposite Ellard Lane.
• Yefsi owner Artha Limnios and chef Grant Greyling. Photos by Jenny D’Anger.
LUNCH for one at Yefsi at Attika turned into a Shirley Valentine moment as Greek music played in the background and the decor evoked the sparkling blue water and white sands of an idyllic Greek island.
Then my food arrived and my love affair with Greece was sealed.
Yefsi means flavour, “and food, life and people,” says owner Artha Limnios.
The cafe is a labour of love for the Perth businessman and his family, and they gave me a warm welcome as I walked in, easing any anxiety I had about dining alone.
Grant Greyling, a former sous chef at Jamie’s Italian, is in charge of the kitchen where everything except the pita bread is made in-house.
Even though breakfast was long gone I was tempted by the baklava pancake ($7), which comes with dried fig, apple, baklava syrup and vanilla ice cream.
Grilled squid with goats cheese ($18) also sounded good, as did the revithokeftedes (chickpea fritters $18).
The fritters arrived in a steel ramekin, where they rubbed shoulders with horiatiki (Greek salad), grilled haloumi, pita bread and a tzatziki dip.
The soft pita had been lightly charred and was just crisp on the outside and soft and moist inside.
The salad was so fresh the capsicum looked like it had been picked minutes prior to being served, and the fritters were soft but dense with a crisp coating.
I’ve never been a fan of olives, but somehow they combined with the other flavours to conjure magic in my mouth.
I took home a couple of spanakopita – made fresh in the eatery’s bakery that morning – for dinner.
The huge swirls were great, with the sharpness of the feta overlaid with garlic and spinach, and encased in bread rather than filo pastry.
Costing $8, they’d be perfect for a workday lunch.
The D’Angers finished dinner with a bougatsa ($8), a custard-filled sweet pastry that was sweet, but not cloying.
After all that Greek tucker D’Angerous Dave was concerned I might do a Shirley Valentine and jump on a flight to Athens – but Yefsi’s authentic food is enough escapism for me.
Yefsi at Attika 279 Newcastle Street, Northbridge open 7 days 7am–3pm 0420 388 851
• The Kransky Sisters are looking forward to Christmas. Photos supplied
THE Kransky Sisters are bringing their tuba, keyboard, tambourines and even a toilet brush to Perth for a Very Kransky Christmas.
The Voice caught up with Mourne Kransky as she and sisters Eve and Dawn were getting ready to leave their hometown of Esk in remote Queensland.
Even for these oddball ladies, a toilet brush seemed a strange thing to take on tour.
“It makes a lovely ‘shooshing’ sound and keeps the keyboard clean,” Mourne (aka Annie Lee) says.
As the eldest sibling, she cared for her sisters after their mother left.
“Dawn’s father is not our father,” Mourne says. “He’s the reason our father left.
“And he left with our mother and she never returned.”
The question I wanted to ask, but felt I couldn’t, was whether the ladies are indeed ladies.
With strong features emphasised by long black hair and a deadpan expression, they look like Morticia Adams’ aunties in drag.
So instead we talk about the sisters’ identical outfits, consisting of spotted blouses and long navy skirts.
“We get our clothes at Glenda’s Fashion house in Esk. We get all our things there including our smalls. They have twin sets dating back to 1935,” Mourne says.
“Eve had a job there for a day. She lost it for giving away the wrong coloured money.”
Firmly stuck in 1950s Australia where they feel most comfortable, the sisters find songs on the radio they can Kranskyise.
“Sometimes they play it more than once and we can pick up more and get the whole song,” Mourne says.
Over the years they’ve covered an eclectic raft of artists including Nana Mouskouri, the Eurythmics, Talking Heads, the Bee Gees, Daft Punk and Steppenwolf.
“We pick songs because they remind us of our lives,” Mourne says. Songs help us to forget, or remember to forget.”
You can catch the weirdly endearing sisters at the Heath Ledger Theatre from December 13-15.
LIVING the life of Riley is as simple as moving into this Tuart Hill home on Riley Street.
This almost-new property has timeless appeal and light-filled spaces.
Honey-gold bamboo floors flow from the entry hall to the vast open living/dining/kitchen at the rear of the home, adding a warm glow to crisp white walls.
The three bedrooms and pleasant sitting area are on the second level, where carpets help to mitigate any noise.
The main bedroom is a generous space with walk-in-robes and has an en suite with double vanities.
The ground floor is dedicated to living areas, where almost floor-to-ceiling doors lead out to a lovely garden and al fresco.
The huge kitchen has attractive, light-grey benchtops and a massive central island. There’s heaps of storage including a walk-in-pantry.
The living spaces flow seamlessly, making it a great setting for entertaining family or friends.
Peel back the doors to the covered al fresco and there’s even more space.
And if you need to chill out after entertaining all those guests, there’s a modern gazebo with a timber ceiling and floor. Sitting on 405sqm the low-maintenance garden has a flowering cherry tree, high walls and semi-tropical plants, creating a green oasis.
And if the kids need to burn off even more energy, there’s a couple of parks in walking distance.
There’s a choice of private and public schools nearby, including Tuart Hill Primary, which is a short walk away
And it’s a mere four minutes drive to Dog Swamp Shopping Centre.
by Jenny D’Anger
25B Riley Street, Tuart Hill offers over $845,000 Susy Kohn 0418 944 293 Edison Property Residential 6500 0200
• Getting ready for the Arty Farty Children’s Christmas Party: Jimmy Murphy up back with Grace and Evelyn Murphy, with Bess Chetkovich and Sarah Bennett getting their giant guitar in tune. Photo by David Bell.
THE Light Up Leederville Carnival is taking a break this year, but there’s still plenty to keep kids entertained in Leedy in the lead-up to Christmas and New Year.
If the name is anything to go by The Arty Farty Children’s Christmas Party, run by town team Leederville Connect, is sure to be a hit.
There’ll be a bunch of arty stuff to do – draw on the street without getting arrested, giant party games, Father Christmas will swing by and Vincent mayor Emma Cole will turn on the Leederville Christmas lights.
All the schools that usually perform at Light up Leederville will be there, with the Highgate and Aranmore primary school choirs.
The Mount Hawthorn Primary school kids will be singing in Italian.
They’ll be joined by the tiny dancers from Tippy Toes and young musicians from the School of Rock.
The free arty farty party is on December 2 at 5pm, with the Christmas lights switched on at 7.30pm.
Perth Voice Interactive 