Perth Voice Interactive

‘Selfish’ attack on foreshore flora

Three mature native gum trees have been poisoned along the Maylands foreshore. Two have died, one struggles on.

Bayswater council staff suspect homeowners of killing the trees at Berringa Park Wetlands in order to get a better view of the Swan River, but proving it is hard going.

“The drill holes—typically used to assist in poisoning trees—and ringbarking strongly suggest the attack was a deliberate attempt to kill the trees,” Swan River Trust manager Stephen Lloyd says.

The council voted to erect a 1.5m sign at Berringa Park, reminding people that destroying trees is a criminal offence. The maximum penalty for killing a tree is $5000.

Maylands Labor MP Lisa Baker describes the attacks as “selfish”.

“Tree poisoning is a direct attack on the right of the entire community to enjoy and have access to beautiful parklands amongst our suburbs,” she says.

“I support the SRT and the Bayswater city council in measures taken to combat this selfish act of destruction of public property and our community’s natural environment.”

Cr Chris Cornish says the “wetlands area is a delicate ecosystem which we must preserve”.

Cr Sonia Turkington is more circumspect: “I support council’s decision to provide in principle support to the Swan River Trust to erect a sign where a tree has been poisoned.

“However, I do not support groups that come in and plant vegetation that will deliberately take away the views of the river which people enjoy.”

After a tree was poisoned in Bardon Park in 2008, council erected two similar signs.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

Backers hope for no bitter after taste from 7th attempt

A mammoth $350 million, three-tower project has been given the thumbs up for the old Emu brewery site on Mounts Bay Road.

The Perth development assessments panel—including PCC councillor Rob Butler—unanimously approved the 268-apartment, 120-hotel room development by owner AAIG Pty Ltd (said by local planning boffins to be Singapore and Malaysian-owned).

The 31-level office block will flood Perth with an additional 48,000sqm of office space and it’s hoped the 35-level tower will ease the squeeze on Perth’s dire short-term accommodation shortage.

A combination of residential and commercial use would reportedly “increase the day time and night time activity in the locality” and the attached public plaza will spruce up pedestrian links in the area.

Online forum Skyscraper City, a hangout for town planners, urban design hobbyists and assorted tall building enthusiasts, was abuzz: “This would be the ultimate skyline changer we’ve wanted for so long,” posted hayds. “This will be the nice cherry on top [of] everything else going on,” ryan79 said. “A kick-arse design was submitted for once,” Bullswool commented.

AndyGM was cautious: “Cursed site, will never happen,” he said, referring to six previous approvals for the site that never started.

by DAVID BELL

The Barnett government is set to do a u-turn and allow Muslims to celebrate Eid at Kings Park.

In March, the Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority refused an application for a 2000-people Eid-al-Fitr celebration at the Saw Avenue picnic area, arguing capacity for the area was limited to 500 (Voice, March 9, 2013).

BGPA chief Mark Webb had said the popular community event had outgrown the picnic area and could create parking and traffic snarls.

The decision threatened to bring to an end a trouble-free 19-year tradition that is enormously popular with local families.

Following further discussions with the BGPA the Islamic Centre is now planning to submit a revised application and management plan for the event.

“Recognising the importance of the Eid celebration to the Islamic community, there has been ongoing constructive discussions between Kings Park and the Islamic Centre to find a suitable location for the Eid prayers,” WA multicultural interests office spokesperson Liz Rehfeldt said.

The BGPA says Hale Oval, with a capacity for 2000, is shaping up as a possibility.

The Voice contacted the centre but it didn’t get back to us.

The BGPA estimates 4500 attended Eid-al-Fitr and 4000 attended Eid-al-Adha in Kings Park last year.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

A volunteer group that helps people overcome narcotics addiction has been refused a discount on venue hire in Maylands.

Bayswater city council is charging Narcotics Anonymous the full rack rate of $3120 for a three-day hire of the RISE for an August conference.

Cr Graham Pittaway was unrepentant, saying the council was not a “bleeding hearts club”.

NA usually books a place in Yokine for $1000 but it was unavailable.

Cr Alan Radford says the group has nothing to do with Bayswater and as a state-wide body doesn’t merit a discount.

But Cr Chris Cornish says the council has previously provided financial support to national and statewide groups, including the WA cancer council, Telethon and the Fred Hollows Foundation.

“We dish out donations left, right and centre—didn’t we give a donation to a frisbee group—and here we are knocking back a worthy organisation who are trying to address a huge problem in society,” he told colleagues.

The self-funded NA, run by volunteers, relies on donations to survive and a hat is passed around after every meeting.

It provides a 12-step program for recovering drug addicts throughout the world and hold 24 meetings in Perth’s metropolitan area every year

Cr Marlene Robinson says drugs touch many lives in Bayswater and it doesn’t matter where the organisation is based.

Cr Sonia Turkington was also in favour of a discount: “Goodness knows, drugs are a problem of today—narcotics is a killer.”

Around 600 people are expected to attend the NA convention, including representatives from WA correctional services and people who run homeless shelters.

Half of NA’s members are in rehabilitation centres.

The Voice contacted NA, but it didn’t get back to us.

The convention is scheduled for August 16-18.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

A rehearsal studio in Mount Hawthorn has been given an eleventh hour stay of execution.

Vincent staff wanted to close down Dream Studio on Oxford Street and had recommended councillors axe it.

A staff report said the business doesn’t “protect and enhance the health, safety and general welfare of the city’s inhabitants”.

It says there aren’t enough parking bays and there was a recent noise complaint.

Staffers had given owner JB Poole “numerous extensions to deadlines” to get back to them with more info for a retrospective approval, the report says.

It also notes a spotted history of operating without approvals and outside approval conditions.

The place looked likely to get the chop but, just hours before the council meeting, the item was deferred as Cr Ros Harley moved for a compromise to save the longstanding business.

by DAVID BELL

Tranby House on the Maylands foreshore is set to become a tourist attraction, with Captain Cook Cruises set to re-launch its river cruise to the site.

Bayswater city council has voted to modify the new Tranby Jetty to accommodate larger commercial vessels, after the company expressed interest in making the heritage-listed house a stop-off point.

Cr Sonia Turkington says the National Trust has struggled to attract visitors to the circa 1839 house, and the cruise visits will provide a major tourism fillip for Maylands. “We have a responsibility to bring tourists into Bayswater,” she says.

Council is building a $247,000 Tranby Jetty after the original fell into disrepair. It is expected to be ready by November.

Cooks’ CEO Pauline McAlinden says the plan is to offer daily cruises to Tranby, with 15-minute stopovers.

“It’s early days so we’ll need to talk with Bayswater council and Tranby House about what we can do,” she says. “The main priority is to get people back to the house and give it exposure.” The jetty will be open to all commercial vessels but the council will not charge a fee in order to avoid complications over state funding rules.

The item was brought up at the last minute and several councillors wanted more time to examine the likely impact of a larger vessel. “We want to use the river; but wisely,” Cr Mike Anderton says. “I have a background in marine engineering and I think we need to do a study on what impact these larger vessels may have on the riverbank.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

An official report on the $544,000 rort at Stirling city council that triggered a former employee’s suicide is nowhere in sight three years after the investigation began.

In 2010 a WA corruption and crime commission inquiry revealed collusion dating back to 2003.

Investigators believed a former building manager had received kickbacks in return for guaranteeing contracts to suppliers, regardless of whether they cost more.

The day the man was to testify in 2010 he killed himself. Since then, a number of contractors have been charged and made to pay restitution but the CCC appears in no hurry to publish an official report.

“The commission doesn’t have a date when a report on the city of Stirling will be tabled in the parliament,” CCC spokesperson Owen Cole told the Voice.

Former Stirling councillor Paul Collins says that until the report is published, a cloud of uncertainty will hang over the council: “It is now more than three years since the CCC investigation began and will be three years this November since public hearings were held which identified a number of flaws in the city’s procurement of goods and services,” he says. “One witness called to give evidence committed suicide and a number of criminal convictions have since been attained against different persons but we still do not a have a final or even interim report.

“The CCC’s report will be very important in determining full accountability at the city for the misconduct but this will be harder to achieve the longer the CCC takes.”

In 2009 Mr Collins, along with members of the council’s audit committee, pushed for an independent audit after noticing contracts over $10,000 hadn’t been put out for tender. Their probing kickstarted a wider investigation that uncovered alleged rorting, which led to the CCC’s involvement.

Mayor David Boothman says the council has worked closely with the CCC to significantly reduce the risk of future rorts.

“In terms of financial checks and balances we are now the benchmark by which other councils in Australia measure themselves against.”

by STEPHEN POLLOCK

A photo of dog poo has been handed to Vincent city councillors by a ratepayer deeply unhappy with the approval of a block of units and offices in North Perth

The Albert North Perth—an eight-office, 11-unit project on Albert Street—was initially deferred when it went in front of council in December 2011.

The WA heritage council spoke against the development saying it would negatively impact on the neighbouring primary school’s heritage value, and the school P&C was concerned it’d block the library’s natural light.

After some rejigs it was approved by councillors in February 2012.

Now, as site works commence, three locals are opposing the project, asking councillors to reconsider the approval almost 18 months after it was given the thumbs up.

Neighbour Hesson Razavi says it’ll block out most of the sunlight from his backyard.

Nearby resident Paul O’Brien says community consultation failed because he’d only found out about the development from his neighbours.

Local Craig Willis says it shouldn’t go ahead on safety grounds because the “blind” vehicle exit is near a school. He also points out that while council approved four offices, the developer is now advertising eight.

But Ms MacTiernan says the locals are out of luck: Nothing can be done to go back on the decision and any attempt would see the council pulled in front of the powerful state administrative tribunal which handles planning appeals.

She says the eight offices instead of four are a non-issue: The council approval covered a set amount of space for a particular use and how it was divvied up wasn’t important.

The mayor says she found it hard to believe anyone could’ve been unaware of this project given the attention it received and the information that went out.

The $63,000 from the project’s per cent for art cash looks likely to be spent on a 2.8m 300kg reading light by artist Robin Yakinthou, subject to input from locals (as it’ll be put on public land near the school and not on the development site). Guiding Light”, aims to reflect an education theme for the school next door.

It was the artist’s concept sketch of the lamp that led Mr Willis to hand dog poo pictures to councillors, asking them to seriously consider the turds as an alternative to the giant lamp.

Mr Willis was annoyed he’d had a meeting set up with council CEO John Giorgi, who didn’t show and sent minions along instead. “The lack of respect was pretty ordinary,” Mr Willis said. The council took his questions on notice and will undoubtedly work feverishly on a response.

by DAVID BELL

A paperwork snafu has seen trees outside the Albert North Perth development severely overpruned.

Locals were concerned when they spotted the trees had been given a drastic haircut.

Council CEO John Giorgi says it was a mistake that so much was cut off. Vincent had received a request “to cut back the trees from the property line” and added “this is a normal request from residents/developers, which is actioned on an ongoing basis throughout the city”.

The council engaged a contractor and a crew came around to lop off some branches.

“Unfortunately, the contractor’s paperwork contained an error and another crew attended the same job and undertook additional pruning.

“The city’s officers are currently liaising with the contractor regarding this matter to determine what action will be taken.” He says the trees’ shapes were already compromised by powerlines.

by DAVID BELL