Perth Voice Interactive

A DRY creek bed, “mud kitchen”, garden maze and jungle gym made from tree branches are part of a proposed $110,000 playground at Coolbinia primary school.

The school’s parents and citizens association is planning to open a nature play area—complete with pink river sand, gardens and a pint-sized outdoor kitchen for making mud pies.

It will be ready by the next academic year and be the newest nature play area in the region, following the opening of a similar playgrounds at North Perth and Bayswater primary schools and Braithwaite Park.

P&C president Nigel Dennis wants his children, pictured, to grow up playing in nature like he did on his family’s South Australian farm. “I remember falling off stuff and grazing arms,” he says. “It’s great for kids to learn about falling and getting sores and cuts.”

Designer/artist Bernhard Kaiser from Natural Play Environments says it’s important for children to play freely and get their hands dirty.

He says that’s not possible on “sterile” metal and plastic play equipment. “Children are engaged in the natural environment where they can find bits and pieces and creepy crawlies,” Mr Kaiser, 60, says.

“They ask where the insects came from, dirt gets on their fingers and they can smell the wood and feel the cracks in logs. It’s good on a sensory level.”

Coolbinia primary, now in its 60th year, has raised more than $80,000 for its playground, but needs help to get over the line.

Parents and former students can “buy” a piece of the playground: a hand-painted tile ($100) or an engraved brick ($50) or stainless steel plate ($150). Orders close by Monday, July 27. Public donations are also welcome. For more information, visit http://www.coolbinia.wa.edu.au

by EMMIE DOWLING

VINCENT council is claiming fame for being the leader in street arts across Perth.

The council last week published a You Tube video about its successful mural program, which involves investing anything from $500 to $10,000 (for large pieces such as that at Luna cinemas) for urban art.

Last financial year, the council commissioned 21 murals—13 were done in the past six months. In 2013/14, it put in money for three.

The largesse compares to only three local government-backed works at Bayswater council, three in Stirling and 18 in Perth since July 2013.

Vincent mayor John Carey says the council is ahead of the rest because it’s “one of the first to provide funding to businesses” for art and has a good relationship with creative groups such as Laneway Collective.

Staffers at Bayswater have asked Vincent for advice.

“Street art has the incredible ability to transform a public space, create more interest and encourage more activity in streets without costing ratepayers a lot of money,” Mr Carey says.

Council spokeswoman Shenade Unicomb says the city also matches up artists with traders for privately commissioned work—for example, artist Amok Island’s painted fish on seafood shop Kailis Bros in Leederville.

“It’s hard to put an exact number of how many murals have gone up as some building owners commission pieces directly,” Ms Unicomb says.

Illustrator and urban artist Sarah McCloskey painted a mural just off Oxford Street, Leederville, as part of FORM’s “Public 2015” project in April.

The 23-year-old says exposure from that piece has led to more work in the city, and plans to work with more local traders.

FORM public project officer Rhianna Pezzaniti agrees Vincent is doing some good things in the art scene.

“They’re definitely leading the way in terms of volume.”

by EMMIE DOWLING

VINCENT’S NEW STREET ART GUIDE
• Oxford Street, Leederville—at least 14 murals have gone up in this street over the past year
• Beaufort Street, Mt Lawley—walk down Beaufort Street towards Highgate. Also check out the lane behind Grosvenor Road, near the Flying Scotsman locomotive.
• Around Scarborough Beach Road, and Fairfield and Coogee streets in Mt Hawthorn artists did three murals here in the past year.

THE number of staffers at Stirling council earning more than $100,000 a year has skyrocketed more than 450 per cent in two years.

This financial year, 121 of 1317 employees at WA’s most-populous local government will take home a six-figure pay packet—up from 90 last year and just 22 in 2013/14.

Last month the council passed a budget that includes a $3.5 million increase in employee costs for items including wages, superannuation and workers’ compensation insurance.

CEO Stuart Jardine, who gets no pay rise or bonus this financial year, says pay and ”flexible employment options” such as a nine-day fortnight attract and retain the best employees.

“Such benefits aid to attract and retain talented staff across all areas within the organisation,” he told the Voice.

He boasts Stirling’s retention rate is high: turnover was 11.9 per cent in 2013/14, well under the 15 per cent target.
At Perth city council 78 of its 720 staff are taking home more than $100,000 this financial year. Two years ago it was 43.

Bayswater mayor Sylvan Albert refused to reveal current details of high-income earners at his council, claiming it was too “personal” to make public. He would repeat only what was already on the public record, that 25 staff received more than $100,000 in 2013/14.

Bayswater’s budget reveals staff will receive a collective wage raise of about $900,000 but there’s no way of knowing how that is shared amongst employees.

An extra $400,000 will go to other costs such as workers compensation insurance.

At special council meeting last week, councillor Martin Toldo asked colleagues to consider imposing a wage freeze.

Finance and corporate services director Carissa Bywater says the pay rise is a requirement of a signed  enterprise agreement.

Vincent council failed to reply to the Voice’s questions.

by EMMIE DOWLING

ANYONE who’s been down to Point Fraser lately might’ve noticed a distinct crimson hue in the water, but it’s just a dye tracer put in the water as part of scientific monitoring.

The study by the Perth city council, Southern Cross Uni and ECU puts in a non-toxic fluorescent dye to track water movement through the wetland to the Swan River.

Constructed as a demonstration wetland back in 2003 to capture and treat stormwater from East Perth, it features open pools and vegetation to filter nasties from water before it heads into the river.

Stabilisation works are just now wrapping up in an attempt to keep the foreshore from further slipping away by laying down a cage and planting the lot with sedges.

by DAVID BELL

PERTH city council issued an average of 655 parking fines every day last year to rake in $7.64 million—more than double the combined total of neighbouring Vincent, Stirling and Bayswater councils.

City inspectors stuck 97,171 fines to windscreens last financial year—down from 108,253, worth $8.12 million, in 2013/14.

Council spokesman Michael Holland says the drop is down to more people complying with rules, using public transport and cycling.

The most common parking offence was failing to display an unexpired ticket.

Hotspots were Hay Street ($574,000), Murray Street ($498,000), St Georges Terrace ($455,000), Adelaide Terrace ($447,000) and Francis Street ($342,000).

Vincent council collected the second-highest parking fine revenue across Voiceland—it is set to rake in $2.28 million from 26,599 fines.

The inner-city council trumped WA’s most-populous local government, Stirling, which scooped up a relatively paltry $790,000.

Vincent CEO Len Kosova says penalties are avoidable: “People could choose to park legally and perhaps walk a few steps or minutes further,” he says in an email statement. “It is unfortunate that some people just do not read the signs before they park or choose to park in dangerous locations like over footpaths.”

Bayswater council collected $141,430 from 2313 fines. Maylands was the city’s hotspot with 181 fines handed out on Eighth Avenue, 112 on Central Avenue and 97 on Tenth Avenue.

by EMMIE DOWLING

SEVEN storeys looks like it’ll be the future face of North Perth’s chunk of Charles Street, with the local development assessments panel approving a whopper 89-unit building it had previously rejected.

More than a dozen residents turned out at the first meeting in April to see off Salomone Projects’ $28 million plan for 318-324 Charles Street.

Appealed

But the developer appealed to the unelected but powerful state administrative tribunal, which ordered the DAP to reconsider the plan after a few rejigs.

On Tuesday the DAP—consisting of three unelected members and two elected members from Vincent council—buckled and approved the slightly revised building 4–1 (mayor John Carey the only no; Cr Josh Topelberg voted with the appointees).

Meanwhile Joe Scaffidi’s project at 283-285 Vincent Street has hit another hitch. Mr Scaffidi wants to demolish a couple of houses and erect a six-storey eating house/office/shop with 34 units but the DAP deferred it for further fiddling.

by DAVID BELL

A PLAQUE honouring indigenous war veterans was unveiled Monday at a Bayswater council NAIDOC week commemorative ceremony.

The plaque was originally proposed for the 100th year anniversary of ANZAC Day. However, the council missed the deadline due to what mayor Sylvan Albert says was extensive consultation with Aboriginal stakeholders and veterans.

“It ensured that the commemorative plaque is respectful, appropriate and has the full support of all” he says.

Vietnam veteran John Schnaars, president of the Honouring Indigenous War Graves, told the Voice it was a very special event he was proud to be part of. “In my view it was the veterans who went away to war then, who had no rights in this country to vote or anything, who led the change of history in Australia, towards Aboriginals having rights.

“The plaque has enabled indigenous Australians to finally be recognised around the country for their efforts in WWI and WWII.”

by ALANA CHRISTIAN