Perth Voice Interactive

A STATUE of John D’Orazio should be built and placed at Riverside Gardens says former Bayswater mayor Terry Kenyon.

Mr D’Orazio was mayor for 17 years and later a Labor MP and government minister. He died unexpectedly in 2011 aged 55 during surgery.

During his reign, Bayswater introduced WA’s first security watch, Galleria was redeveloped and green bin recycling introduced.

Cr Kenyon describes Mr D’Orazio, with whom he was on council for 15 years, as a great leader.

“We don’t want to forget about the massive contribution he made to the local community,” he says.

“He used to stay on Leake Street, just up from the Swan River, so I think a statue at Riverside Gardens would be an appropriate location.

“The man was a bit of a legend in Bayswater.”

Cr Kenyon says a statue would honour Mr D’Orazio’s council achievements, and not reflect his career in state politics, which was marred by skirmishes with the corruption and crime commission and his excommunication from the ALP.

Son Greg says his father is still remembered fondly throughout the community.

“The minute people hear your surname is D’Orazio they start to smile and reel off stories about my old man,” he says.

“He was a big personality and character and did a lot for Bayswater. People don’t forget that overnight.” The council will vote on the statue next month.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

EIGHT kangaroos living in urban bushland in Dianella will be relocated to accommodate developments by Channels 7, 9 and 10.

The dwindling mob, including three joeys, will be moved from Cottonwood Crescent bushland to Mundaring National Park.

Stirling council has been umming and aahing about whether to move the roos since 2010, when 7 announced its plans to redevelop its former home.

The Osborne Road land occupies more than seven hectares and parts were rezoned to allow up to 80 units a hectare.

Cr Keith Sargent says the roos will be much happier in Mundaring where they will have 2400 hectares of bushland and an abundant supply of food and water.

“In a few years’ time the Dianella site will be built up with lots of traffic and extra people,” he says.

“Imagine all the stress that the kangaroos will go through when the building works are going on. The new site is much bigger and will provide a larger, more natural environment for the roos.”

Friends of Dianella Bushland president Jan Bant will be sad to see the roos go: she says kangaroos have been a local feature for nearly 60 years.

“This has been passed back and forth between the developers and the city—but no-one wants to take responsibility for it.

“I think once they found out how much it was going to cost to accommodate the kangaroos, they panicked.”

Channels 9 and 10 have also submitted development proposals. The council ordered that four months’ notice be given before work starts, to give it time to arrange the roos’ removal.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

THE colour scheme for the new $9.3 million Seventh Avenue Bridge in Maylands has been approved. It’s green.

Locals were involved in picking the verdure scheme for the noise walls and abutments. Maylands Park manager Dominic Cuscuna says it is a “living colour” that will add vibrancy to the area.

“It ties in with the greenery and trees in Maylands,” he says.

“Not too many bridges have a colour scheme like this and I think it’s far better than having some bland piece of infrastructure.

“It will complement the public artwork beside the bridge as well.”

The original 1913 timber trestle and deck bridge was used to carry horses and carts, vehicles and pedestrians over the railway line. The replacement will span more than 80 metres and include footpaths, space for four lines, bridge guard rails and increased capacity.

The bridge will include an $85,000 public artwork, chosen by Bayswater city council and local community groups to commemorate the bridge’s historic past.

The art is being developed by WA artist Jahne Rees, using recycled timbers salvaged from the old bridge.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

BAYSWATER city council will chop down a 23-metre southern mahogany in Maylands, after complaints from residents about falling branches.

A risk assessment of the Hillside Crescent tree following “sporadic limb failure”—including a large branch that fell in August —concluded the tree presented an unacceptable risk.

Cr Chris Cornish, who voted against felling the tree, took to Facebook to ask residents whether the council should have sought a second opinion.

“Goodbye big tree in Maylands,” he posted.

“What is your view—at a cost of circa $300, should the City of Bayswater seek a second opinion on whether any trees deemed ‘significant’ are a danger to the community before cutting them down?”

Catherine Rae said an arborist’s report should have been made available to councillors before they made a decision.

“That is the largest tree on the top of Hillside Crescent!” she posted.

“An actual arborist report would be an appropriate measure to take for a tree of this size.”

Mary van Wees also favoured a second independent opinion.

“An independent arborist report is a must,” she posted. “People’s arguments against retaining large trees in suburbia can be very subjective (as can the opposite POV) so its best to refer to a professional!”

Cr Cornish followed up his post with a blog: “A solution for preventing the destruction of trees. It has occurred to me that the best way to prevent the destruction of trees on public property is to place a financial valuation on the trees.

“I am advocating that in addition to all the info currently provided in the agenda, there would also be a financial value provided on the tree according to the Burnley valuation method (or similar).”

Council officers deemed that pruning the tree back any further would have placed it under stress and was not an option.

It will cost the council $1300 to fell the tree.

Two “suitable” trees will be planted in its place.

The Ed says: The grammar in the Facebook posts has been corrected. They’re just too awful to read otherwise.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

IT has a name that is undoubtedly vulgar but a new initiative in Perth has noble ambitions.

There are two rules for Fuckup Nights: First, meet someone new. Second, share a fuckup.

The events are part of a movement by an organisation called Soften the Fck Up. Under the auspices of Beyond Blue, the nights are aimed at getting people to share their vulnerabilities instead of “hardening up” and keeping it all bottled up inside, like a pressure-cooker with no valve.

Perth’s first Fuckup Night was held after-hours in a Hay Street cafe last week and was hailed a big success with nearly 100 people gathering to share their blunders.

I heard funny ones about George Costanza-esque social gaffes, sad stories about not being there when a family member died, and an awful lot of tales involving bodily fluids.

The local night was organised by Perth-based FIFO driller Yassmin Abdel-Magied and lawyer Nicholas Van Hattem.

Ms Abdel-Magied, originally from Sudan, told us that too often blokes just clamp up.

With suicide the biggest killer of men aged 14-44, Soften the Fck Up’s motto is “we don’t need to redefine masculinity, we need to undefine it”.

The organisation wants to get rid of the stigma that talking about feelings is unmanly, and show that talking about the little stuff makes it easier to open up about the bigger stuff.

With the first night a big success, organisers are likely to hold another early next year, just in time to share your Christmas stories.

by DAVID BELL

BAYSWATER city council will investigate fencing off Shearn Memorial Park in Maylands following concerns from locals over dog safety.

The park, designated as a dog off-leash exercise area, is beside the busy Central Avenue and locals wrote to council asking for a perimeter fence and traffic signage at the Carrington Street intersection.

The wire-mesh fence would replace the 20-year-old low-rail fence, which cannot be upgraded and has large gaps between each railing.

Cr Michelle Sutherland pushed for the fence to be included in the mid-year budget review, but other councillors said the budget was tight and granting the request could open the floodgates for similar requests.

“I’m worried that if we fence off this park we will set a precedent and people using other parks beside busy roads will ask for the same thing,” said deputy mayor Mike Sabatino.

“We would be inundated with people asking us to fence off reserves beside lakes, the Swan River or any other spots that are considered a hazard.

“There are over 160 parks in Bayswater and fencing off a lot of them would cost a lot of money and push up rates.”

Shearn Park, on the border of Stirling and Baysy, is an active reserve which becomes an on-leash area when it is used for sport.

Cr Chris Cornish says when he took his two sons down to play soccer at the reserve he found two dog turds in the goal mouth.

“I’m slightly concerned that fencing off the park would increase the number of dogs and impact the people who use it for sport,” he says.

“It is an active reserve and very popular with people who play sport—both dog walkers and people playing sport should be accommodated.”

Officers estimate that fencing off the entire park with 1.2m chain-mesh will cost approximately $35,000, while fencing off only the Central Avenue side will cost around $15,000.

Council voted to undertake community consultation, install a “Community Friendly Park” sign and consider allocating funding next year.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

THE massive Luna Palace mural is complete with Sydney-based artist Fintan Magee laying down the final strokes on Tuesday.

A projector and a cherry picker were needed to create the 30-metre piece—the biggest in Vincent—with the cost split between Vincent city council and Luna.

Magee says he uses regular acrylic housepaint to get that painterly effect, influenced by South American and European styles.

The piece is called The Migration, and depicts a man struggling along with the weight of his old life on his back, inspired by the big part immigration plays in Perth’s story.

Magee’s previously painted in Miami, Moscow, Buenos Aires, Copenhagen, and Vienna.

by DAVID BELL

A PhD candidate wants Maylands decision-makers to get off their butts and pound the streets with locals.

Tina Askam is researching whether there are tangible benefits to officials and property developers walking with residents before making decisions that affect the community.

Since last year the Edith Cowan Uni student has completed 50 walks with locals, aged from eight to 80, through the suburban heart of Maylands.

“Most of the walks have centered around Eighth Avenue, Whatley Crescent and the central shopping area,” she says.

“On one walk, I ended up going around with a lady who was doing her shopping. The walks usually last about an hour and we finish up with a coffee and a chat.”

The 43-year-old says a wider theme of her research is related to social justice, where locals have a greater say in what happens in their own neighbourhood.

In recent years the introduction of majority-appointed—not elected—development assessment panels has muzzled local opinion and influence on developments.

“On these walks decision-makers and people get to re-connect with their local surroundings and get a tactile feel of the area—including smells, sounds and sights—rather than just looking at a map or a building plan.

“It is a much more immersive experience. People tend to walk about on autopilot in their local area without taking everything in.”

In the UK, controversial intellectual and journalist Will Self has promoted the benefits of reconnecting with his environs by walking everywhere, in a process dubbed “psychogeography”.

He remarked how despite having lived in London for years he’d never seen the mouth of the River Thames.

He’s since walked to Heathrow airport and across Los Angeles without using any transport—besides the plane to cross the Atlantic.

Askam, who lives in Leederville, plans to finish her research in March and hold an exhibition of her findings in a yet-to-be-determined location in Maylands in May.

If you are a local and want to go on a walk with Askam visit http://www.whatmakesmaylands.com.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK