ABOUT 100 people followed up last Saturday’s pro-Palestine rally with a march on the WA office of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Perth on Wednesday.
The Friends of Palestine and supporters carried a list of the names of the 3300 Palestinian children who have reportedly been killed by Israeli shelling in the four-week conflict, representing them with small shrouded figures lined up on the ground.
FoP spokesperson Vashti Fox said the snap rally was in direct response to the Australian government abstaining from a UN resolution calling for a truce in Gaza.
“We need to force our government to do something about the genocide unfolding in front of us,” Ms Fox said.
“While Palestinian families are being murdered Anthony Albanese is swanning around the United States.”
Last Saturday (October 28) 5000 people gathered at the Supreme Court in Perth and marched through Murray Street.
Palestinian born Ayman Qwaider, whose family were killed in an airstrike in Gaza last weekend delivered a gut-wrenching speech pleading to the audience for the violence to stop.
Federal Perth Labor MP Patrick Gorman stuck to the party line in not calling for a ceasefire, but said all Australian mourned the loss of life.
“I unequivocally condemn the attacks on Israel by Hamas, and my heart breaks for those who have had loved ones cruelly taken from them.
“Hamas does not represent the Palestinian people and undermines their legitimate aspirations.
“Innocent Palestinian civilians should not suffer because of the outrages perpetrated by Hamas.
“Our government notes the humanitarian situation in Gaza and mourns for those who have lost their lives and for those who are suffering.”
He called on the people of Perth to commit to building a strong, inclusive community for all, rejecting all anti-semitic and Islamophobic rhetoric and attacks.
Early last month a pro-Palestinian protest in Sydney attracted controversy for alleged anti-semitic slogans and chants.
Prime minister Anthony Albanese said at the time he didn’t believe the rally should go ahead.
But FoP spokesperson Erin Russell told the Voice that with the situation escalating in Gaza there had been growing protests around the world and they hadn’t experienced any pushback about the Perth gatherings.
AN extraordinary election will be held in Bayswater to fill mayor Filomena Piffaretti’s old council seat at an estimated cost of $48,000.
Ms Piffaretti was a sitting councillor when she was running for mayor at October’s election, but resigned just five days before comfortably winning the mayoral vote.
If Ms Piffaretti hadn’t resigned then the seat left vacant by her ascension to mayor would have been “backfilled” without another election: A clause in the Local Government Act allowed for the candidate with the next-most votes to be appointed to any seat left empty by a victorious mayor.
In this case the replacement would’ve been Sally Palmer, an outspoken former councillor who’s often clashed with the mayor. Instead Ms Piffaretti’s impeccably timed resignation means Ms Palmer is now off council entirely, preserving the mayor’s balance of power for now.
At the October 31 meeting councillors queried if there was any other way to fill the spot (or simply delete that seat) without having to go through an expensive extraordinary election.
Legislation
But council staff have gone through the legislation with a fine-tooth comb and consulted with the WA Department of Local Government and have found no other option.
After searching out earliest plausible dates and avoiding public holidays, the extraordinary election has been scheduled for March 15.
The WA Electoral Commission hasn’t been able to provide an exact price tag for running the election, but Bayswater staff estimate it’ll cost ratepayers about $48,000 all up including the necessary notices and staff costs.
That’s offset a bit by not having to pay an empty seat the $2,746 monthly sitting fee in the meantime.
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 respect voters’ rights to “choose the council you feel will best represent you”.
Ratepayer Harry Bouzidis, no stranger to holding council to account during public question time, stood up at the October 31 meeting and said what many were thinking after reading the mayor’s explanation: “I’m still very confused.”
He said, “your statement seemed to be well-crafted. Am I to understand that through your door-knocking, members of the public expected you to resign as councillor in order to continue your campaign as mayor?”
Ms Piffaretti answered: “The sentiments I heard from the community whilst out doorknocking was that they wanted council chosen by them who can work together effectively.”
Mr Bouzidis said: “I’m no less confused… so members of the public did not think that you could run for mayor and also fall back on being a councillor if you didn’t get mayor? Is that what I’m expected to understand?”
Ms Piffaretti said: “What I’ve explained is that after speaking with the community, I thought for the best interests for our community if I was not elected mayor, I would not continue as a councillor.”
However if she’d lost the mayoral vote and decided to resign her councillor role, the backfill provision would also apply: Sally Palmer would get the empty seat, and there’d be no need for an extraordinary election.
A tenacious Mr Bouzidis persisted: “Ok, and you decided that just a handful of days before the election? Ok. Alright. Were you aware that your sudden resignation as councillor five days before the election count would trigger a by-election in north ward?”
Ms Piffaretti: “I’m aware that an extraordinary election is a normal process when a councillor that was elected in 2021 resigns… I was aware of the process.”
Mr Bouzidis asked “were you aware of the enormous estimated cost of $50,000 to $70,000 for a by-election that your sudden resignation would impose on the ratepayers of Bayswater?”
Ms Piffaretti: “I accept that the timing wasn’t ideal, but just to clarify there has been an extraordinary election in the past for the north ward in the City of Bayswater, and that cost, to clarify, was $30,000.
“We’re unsure of what the cost is at this stage.”
Mr Bouzidis, after hearing about the updated costs, asked: “You were aware that it would cost the ratepayers of Bayswater $40,000?”
Ms Piffaretti: “I’m aware there’s a process.”
Mr Bouzidis: “And that didn’t bother you?”
Slightly exasperated, Ms Piffaretti said “Mr Bouzidis, I’ve explained my reasons.”
“Ok,” Mr Bouzidis wrapped up. “I just wanted to clarify things. I just wanted to know if it bothered you or not.”
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 tentpole business City Motors closed about five years ago when Holden stopped making cars.
This project, dubbed “Sydney Charles Quarter” after the founder of City Motors, is slated to take up almost one third of West Perth’s Pickle District.
• Architects Cameron Chisholm Nicol aimed for a design that’d evoke “visual reminders of the site’s heritage”.
But unlike the mid-section that’s in line to be demolished to make way for a Bunnings, this one won’t be displacing a host of arts and events businesses.
This has made it far less controversial than the Bunnings plan, which attracted 330 submissions, with 309 of those being opposed. Sydney Charles Quarter attracted just 21 submissions total. Only five of those were in opposition, mostly concerned about traffic.
• Most of the site is taken up by the dormant City Motors site, closed since Holden stopped manufacturing cars. Photo from Rowe Group’s development application
The project is mostly in-line with what Vincent council and the Pickle District Town Team put on their wishlist in the newly minted Pickle District Planning Framework, which called for this landmark site to host “a variety of land uses including boutique retail, food and beverage offerings, bars, businesses, space for art and culture, and music”.
But it’s a little low-lying: The Pickle plan called for seven to 21 storeys for this “key” site, and this development barely scrapes the seven-storey minimum at its highest point.
The six buildings planned include a five-storey apartment block with a supermarket at ground floor, a five-storey block of commercial rentals and apartments, six storeys of offices and a seven-storey hotel. A broad commons area fills the middle.
The Old Pickle Factory, from which the whole district got its moniker, will be retained and renovated and continue to serve as an event space.
Vincent council staff have recommended the $107 million project be approved when it goes in front of the Joint Development Assessment Panel on November 7.
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 the October 25 both councillors got five votes each from their colleagues – the expected factional split numbers-wise, though the votes were anonymous.
CEO Jeremy Edwards gravely announced: “Madam mayor and councillors, we have not been able to establish a single candidate with an absolute majority for first place.
“… we will be drawing lots to determine who is elected.”
• The new Bayswater council was all smiles at their first meeting where Elli Petersen-Pik (centre left) became deputy mayor to Filomena Piffaretti (centre right) via a drawn lot.
Staff had a pair of hollow blue balls on hand for this eventuality, which we hear were disseminated to councils ahead of the election.
Each ball had a slip bearing a candidate’s name inserted, and a blind pluck from a box saw Cr Petersen-Pik elected.
Most councils have an odd number of members to avoid these kinds of ties.
But due to Ms Piffaretti resigning from her council position during the election her old North Ward seat remains empty for now, so Bayswater has 10 members instead of the usual 11.
Future council votes won’t be down to the blue balls, which is a special rule for breaking a tied vote for deputy. In other tied scenarios the presiding member gets to cast a second vote, and that’s almost always the mayor.
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 the vote in central ward, coming in behind incumbent Steven Ostaszewskyj’s 55.34 per cent and runner-up Rhiannon Italiano’s 33.16 per cent.
Mr Singh has previously sat as an external member on the council’s Inclusion and Diversity Advisory Committee, and has previously asked some provocative questions and opposed the council considering moving citizenship ceremonies off Australia Day.
At the October 31 meeting he took aim at the civic centre’s Aboriginal flag being flown at half mast after the Voice to Parliament referendum failed.
“I was one of the candidates in the recent local elections,” Mr Singh said.
“I come from a background where, from a language perspective, there’s only 518 members of Punjabi-speaking, only 461 members of Hindi-speaking, and 448 members from the Sikh community, which means that I face a whole lot intersectional barriers in coming to the election.
“I lost the election, obviously, so, very devastated. I was wondering if the City would fly the Australian flag at half-mast for a week to join me in my morning?”
• Nirmal Singh posted this cheery picture on his Facebook campaign page ahead of the vote, but said he was now “mourning” his election loss.
Bayswater CEO Jeremy Edwards answered: “That would probably not be the case… doing that for a candidate in a local government election”.
Mr Singh pointed out “when the referendum thing happened, and the result came out, the City flew the Aboriginal flags for a week at half-mast.
“This was a period when there was no further directive on this – flying the flags at half mast. The council was in caretaker mode. There was no [Reconciliation Advisory Committee] meeting who could have decided.
“The overall referendum result was 60 per cent to the ‘no’. The City didn’t like it, fair enough. All the states said no; The City didn’t like it, maybe. All the polling booths in the City voted no, 51 per cent.
“Why then did the City [fly] the flags at half-mast?”
Mr Edwards answered, “I made the decision to fly the flags at half-mast based on consultation with the reconciliation group committee members”, though a formal meeting had not been convened.
Mr Edwards noted his decision was also based on a 2018 vote from council when they supported the Uluru Statement from the Heart, the document signed by many Aboriginal representatives calling for the Voice to Parliament.
Ms Singh said he’d refrain from further comments, beyond noting “the City went against the votes. Anyways.”
Mr Singh has been a colourful commentator in Bayswater’s public gallery in the past year.
In February when the council toyed with moving citizenship ceremonies off of Australia Day, he said the idea “clearly diverts the focus of the City of Bayswater from the new citizens joining the Australian community”.
In March he said the council taking investments out of fossil fuel companies was “hurting the City’s earnings” and putting a financial burden on ratepayers.
He also queried the membership criteria of the council’s Reconciliation Advisory Committee in March: “The eligibility of the Reconciliation Advisory Committee reads that ‘up to seven community members who satisfy one or more of the following criteria’ among others ‘identify as a person of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent’.
“Would I be eligible for membership of this committee if I identify as a person of Aboriginal descent?” he asked.
The answer was “yes”, but with a note that “as part of the assessment, the City may request confirmation of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait heritage”.
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 agriculture if it gets loose.
Bayswater and Belmont were heavily hit and were declared “corrective action zones”, and they’ve been under strict requirements to cook, freeze or solarise any fruit before disposing of it (solarising is sun-baking fruit in a plastic bag to kill the Qfly). Residents were also required to pick up all fallen fruit within three days.
• The strictest rules governing fruit disposal in Bayswater have lifted, but the wider quarantine zone remains.
Eradication
The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development announced this week that the eradication process had gone well enough that those measures could now be lifted, while adding these practices are still “highly recommended” to prevent the Qfly or other pests from taking hold.
There’s still a huge quarantine zone with a radius stretching 15km out from Bayswater where some lesser restrictions apply, like needing to process any commercially-grown fruit before it can be shipped out of the quarantine zone.
DPIRD chief plant biosecurity officer Sonya Broughton said in a press release people should remain vigilant.
“The biosecurity response is making good headway and the program is now being wound back as we move into the next phase of the campaign,” Dr Broughton said.
“While baiting and property inspections have ceased, monitoring and surveillance will continue.
“The department thanks residents, businesses and industry for their continued support to eradicate this potentially damaging pest.”
The quarantine zone has to stay in place until at least December 4, a provision triggered by a single fruit fly being detected outside the Bayswater area back in September. Official rules are up at www.agric.wa.gov.au/qflyupdate
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 a quiet natural space for relaxing and reflecting (and helping out some local critters with new homes and food).
• Greening Australia study lead Ruth Cripps, Bayswater mayor Filomena Piffaretti, and Greening Australia’s senior program officer Ross Wylie. Photo via City of Bayswater
“This project will see an open grassed area transformed into a natural parkland, offering an inviting, shaded area for people to use, as well as increasing our tree canopy and biodiversity,” Bayswater mayor Filomena Piffaretti said in a press release.
They’ve brought in the environmental group Greening Australia to come up with the plan, and they’re looking for feedback about what people want to see, such as picnic nodes, pathways or spots to stop and reflect among the greenery.
If you miss the on-site chat there’s online submissions open at engage.bayswater.wa.gov.au or at Bayswater’s libraries until November 13.
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 on November 13.
Presented by Michael Verde, Dementia Without Loneliness discusses the emotional isolation of people with dementia-related impairments and methods to ease emotional isolation. It’s on from 5:30pm-7pm at the Bayswater Civic Centre on Monday November 13.
On Tuesday November 14, Laughter Yoga will be held at Bayswater Community Centre from 12:30pm-1:30pm.
Laugh WA will turn your fake laughter into real laughter through hand-clapping rhythms, breathing exercises and laughter exercises, reducing stress and boosting the immune system.
After all that hilarity, have a quiet time out and do some Card Making at Morley Community Centre from 1pm-2:30pm on Tuesday November 14.
Participants will get the chance to make unique and personalised cards and Christmas decorations. All craft materials and afternoon tea will be supplied.
Are you a senior gay, lesbian, bisexual, trans or intersex person?
Then you might want to attend a presentation by GRAI, a community-controlled, culturally safe, not-for-profit organisation working to ensure older LGBTI people feel safe and welcomed. It’s from 6pm-7pm on Wednesday November 15 at Bayswater Library.
If you like Columbo and Murder She Wrote, the Mind Theatre Murder Mystery Game for Seniors will be right up your alley. Join Eamonn from Totally Board and enter a world of mystery and intrigue in animmersive and interactive role-playing game.
It’s on Friday November 17 and 24 from 10am-12pm at Bayswater Library.
The mental and physical health benefits of tai chi are well known, so don’t miss out on the beginner-friendly Tai Chi Classes at Morley Community Centre from 11am-12pm on Friday November 17.
You can’t beat a good old Sing-along Sundowner.
Kick back and enjoy a free sausage sizzle while the group Senior Moments take you on a joyous sing-along to hits from the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s at Morley Community centre from 4pm-6pm.
Seniors Week is on from November 12 – November 19. To see the full list of events and to register go to bayswater.wa.gov.au/seniors.
WITH a new name, new song, and a buzz building around them, Battle of the Bands winners VACATE PALACE are lining up the gigs and ready to reach new goals. Frontman Bon, bassist Oscar, drummer Seb, and lead guitarist Cuba sat down with KIRSTY LICH to talk about their single McHorns and what to expect from the avant-garde indie punksters.
FORMED as The Supremacists in 2022, a name change to Vacate Palace came when bassist Oscar joined the then-trio, both becoming a perfect fit for the band.
Frontman Bon says the original name came out of a joke rivalry between their north and south-of-the-river friends, but Oscar’s recruitment threw a spanner in the works.
“We all live north of the river, but Oscar lived south of the river at the time… we were just really struggling for names, three little boys in Cuba’s garage.”
Drummer Seb adds that they took the single name Vacate for a while, but as the band evolved it became a staging post.
“It was great, to us, it was a sort of getaway, something different,” he said.
“As we grew up and became a little more self-aware, we thought it was a bit corny and didn’t really fit who we wanted to be in the future.
“We spent a lot of time pondering, we knew we wanted to keep our original roots. We decided on Vacate Palace.
”It was open to interpretation and unique, we liked it in that way.”
Bon says the new name had echoes of the famed Crystal Palace built to house the Great Exhibition in London in 1851.
“A palace is something grand, large, the boys agreed.
“It foreshadowed what we wanted to be… everything has connotations to it nowadays, a palace is grand but sleek – it’s us.”
Bon says creativity rather than box-ticking drives their writing.
Rather than having our song choices and lyrics try to fit into a certain aesthetic or genre of music, we try to get a huge range to really push and extend ourselves and ability as a band.
“It displays so many different things, and really what we are capable of.
“[Originality] comes sort of comes naturally to us.
When we are doing things, it’s not like we are actively thinking ‘how can we do this like no one else is doing it’.
“We enjoy being unique, but the thought process is definitely not only to be original but just to be ourselves and extract things from our influences.”
Oscar says the band is, “a democracy, a creative conversation in the sense that we are all talking about what we want to do and who we want to be, nothing too structured, we let things happen when they happen”.
The new single Mc Horns was recently released, based on a clip Bon had stored away in his voice memos.
“One afternoon we were messing around at Oscar’s house on an old keyboard; it had this horn effect,” Bon said.
“I remember thinking it sounded so strange but would have the capacity to be cool.
“A few months later we started rehearsing as a band and formed it all together, added some catchy and fun lyrics.
Lead guitarist Cuba says the recording process was unique.
“If you listen closely the drums are actually majorly over-dubbed with electric drums, which is influenced by [American rockers] Turnstile.
• Vacate Palace say having an alcohol-free venue like the Y has been a big boost for their career.
Master
“It was recorded with Michael Jelinek who mastered a lot of the Psychedelic Porn Crumpets – he is quite a master in the domain of music creation.”
Vacate Palace held their single launch at the YMCA (Y) HQ in Leederville.
“The experience was honestly great, and it was interesting to see returning faces from even our last headliner in December last year,” Oscar says.
“It almost felt like we were building a fan base from all our other gigs, it’s so nice to see some familiar faces come around, and enjoy seeing us play.
“It was so awesome to sell out for McHorns”.
Bon says hearing that they sold out the gig was really satisfying and a justification of the work they did pushing the gig.
“It’s just a little crazy; not so much a dream but something that’s always on the agenda, to try and sell out, do as well as we think we can.”
Cuba says there was a bit of a scramble leading up to the gig, as a couple of members had been away and they needed a bit of polishing.
“We were rehearsing for around four to five hours every day, minimum, before the headliner.
“We knew we had sold out, but when the curtains opened and we saw the masses of people jammed in the gig space, it was sort of like ‘wow’.
Seb said the Y was the vital step in getting them playing in front of fans.
• Yep, might be time to work on a new official band photo.
“Playing here definitely has influenced us as musicians and helped us grow – very much due to the large crowds that come down,” he said.
“The sort of alternative groups embracing our music inspires us to branch out creatively and play new things for them.
“Each time we aim to be slightly different when we play at the Y; it’s just a blessing that we get this forum to be shit and get good.”
Oscar said having a venue not caught up in WA’s liquor licensing rules was valuable for young bans.
“In terms of all age’s aspect it’s great for us, as a band whose members’ ages range from fifteen to eighteen… to get in anywhere else, you have to have an older friend or family member to take you.
“Having to go to a gig with your parents really isn’t the same as going with your mates,” he laughs.
“It sucks as pretty much all other venues are clubs but what makes the Y so important to us, is that it is all ages, drug, and alcohol free, and so incredibly easy to get to… I mean the train is just there.
“There’s just nothing else like it for teenagers in Perth, or even Australia, I think.
Supportive
“The scene is all very supportive, everyone looks out for one another, it’s almost friendly competition, you get inspired by others your age.
“It’s awesome to see everyone progressing and growing together”.
Cuba says they’re ready to head back to the studio.
“The next step for us would then be focusing on recording; we’ve got so many more songs banked up that we would love to put into an EP.
“Once that’s done, we’d love to be back doing another headliner here.”
Bon says they’d love to support bigger bands to build their profile: “We have these crazy visions for what we’d like to do in terms of performance and songwriting – we just gotta’ keep pushing.”
Perth Voice Interactive 