WA TOURISM HAS PERTH BLINKERS ON
It is very annoying how Perth-centric the Tourism Council of WA and the State Government are with constant calls for more attractions in Perth, while ignoring to invest in Fremantle and elsewhere.
It is even more annoying when the latest statistics do not support spending millions in Perth when international visitors are heading out in droves to get an outback experience.
The growth of international visitors in Perth was just 1.3 per cent but the growth of Golden Outback international visitors was a huge 49 per cent!
In fact every tourism region in WA outgrew Perth in visitor nights and spending, with an increase for the SouthWest of 23 per cent and the Coral Coast of 13 per cent.
Most of the hundreds of international tourists I talk to at the Roundhouse say Perth is nice but just another major city, while Fremantle is cute and has a lovely vibe, but very many of them come to head out bush up to Exmouth and Ningaloo Reef, or down South to Albany, Esperance and Margaret River.
The WA tourism industry’s obsession with Perth is ill-founded and narrow minded.
Roel Loopers
ENJOY THE GORGEOUS FREO SUNDAY!
It is going to be another gorgeous Fremantle Sunday so why not start the day this morning at the lovely Growers Green Farmers Market at Fremantle College on Lefroy Road in Beaconsfield.
It is open from 8am till noon with live music, fairies, face painting , Farmer Damian animal touch farm, fresh produce, great breakfast, coffee, lunch, organic fruit and vegies, etc.
The Growers Green is what Freo is all about!
plus
The last of the Fremantle Arts Centre Sunday Music courtyard sessions is on for this season with Grace Barbe, the queen of tropical rhythms. It’s free from 2-4pm and the cafe, pizza bar and bar are open.
Roel Loopers
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FREMANTLE SAILING CLUB OPEN DAY TODAY
The Fremantle Sailing Club has its open day today, Sunday March 31, so go and have a look and take advantage of the special new member’s deal they are offering.
From 3pm Lee Sappho will be playing and the views from the bar/restaurant are gorgeous, so go and have a look!
Roel Loopers
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EAST FREMANTLE BRIDAL TRAIL
East Fremantle wedding venues are emulating the Fremantle Wedding Walk with the Bridal Trail tomorrow, Sunday March 31, so go and check out some of the venues, have a meal or a drink and support the local businesses.
Roel Loopers
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GET A JOB VOTING FOR THE GOVERNMENT
Looking to earn some extra cash in Fremantle and surrounds?
Working at elections
Have you thought about working at an election?
Did you know the AEC employs around 80,000 Australians to deliver a federal election?
The majority of work is on election day only. However, there is a wide range of casual roles and opportunities to work throughout an election period, typically around eight weeks, including roles in early voting centres, mobile polling and after election day.
Why work at elections?
Elections are a fundamental part of our democratic process in Australia.
Every person working at a federal election makes a valuable contribution to Australia’s democracy.
At the AEC we are focused on delivering trusted, reliable, high quality and high integrity federal elections and other electoral events. Working at elections offers:
- competitive pay rates
- on the job training and support
- a unique work experience
- an opportunity to engage with the community, make new friends and expand your networks.
Register your interest
The AEC maintains a national register of people who may be offered temporary work during elections, including federal elections, by-elections, plebiscites and referendums.
If you wish to be considered for temporary election work, please submit an online Registration of Interest (ROI).
People from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
In the lead up to an electoral event, the AEC will assess your application and may contact you, if suitable opportunities become available in your preferred locations. Please note, the AEC cannot guarantee employment.
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IS NEW FREMANTLE TRAFFIC BRIDGE A CORE ELECTION PROMISE?
Elections are like Christmas where the anticipation of what voters and communities will get out of it is high, but when we are all quite cynical if the promises all parties make will ever be realised, and if Father Christmas in the form of ScoMo or Shorto will actually deliver.
Is the promise by the Labor and Liberal parties of a new traffic bridge in Fremantle one of their core promises set in stone or is it just yet another sweetener to soften us up and vote for a particular party?
Should a new traffic bridge even be contemplated before we see the recommendations and outcome of the Westport Taskforce investigations into Western Australian ports and how freight should be handled? Is a new traffic bridge needed should a new port be built at Kwinana or would it be a waste of money?
The Libs and Labs have both promised $ 115 million for a new train traffic bridge, with the Libs throwing in a new pedestrian bridge as well for that money.
I noticed though that the pedestrian bridge is indicated as being to the east of the traffic bridge and that is a bit of a shame as uninterrupted views to the port would be magnificent and a tourist attraction if not obscured by the traffic bridge, so either put the pedestrian bridge to the west of the traffic bridge or make the traffic bridge lower or higher than the pedestrian bridge.
Anyway, it is unlikely to happen in my lifetime unfortunately, so my Christmas present this year will be the opening of FOMO at Kings Square. At least that is tangible and does not rely on promises from unreliable politicians.
Roel Loopers
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FREO CRUISE SHIP SEASON ENDED THIS WEEK
The Fremantle cruise ship season for this summer ended this week when the Viking left Fremantle Port on Thursday.
There were 35 cruise ship calls to Fremantle, which annually bring around 88,000 passengers to town with an estimated value to Fremantle of $ 235 million.
Shuttle buses from the Passenger Terminal on Victoria Quay to Kings Square were provided by the City of Fremantle, where they were greeted by tourist guides from the Visitor Centre, while roaming visitor guides walked around the inner city to give out information and street maps.
There were several ships who arrived on a maiden journey to Freo, including the huge MSC Magnifica pictured above.
The next cruise ship will arrive on October 20.
Roel Loopers
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MELVILLE WAVE PARK REJECTION SIMILAR TO FREO’S J SHED TAVERN
The rejection by the State Government of the proposed wave park in the City of Melville is a huge win for the community there and has a lot in common with the State’s rejection of the planned tavern at J Shed on Fremantle’s Bathers Beach.
It is quite intriguing to notice that both local councils approved the controversial plans against huge community opposition and outrage and that even the community votes at special electors meetings were ignored.
One has to wonder also about the proposed location of a wave park in Melville that is just a 20-minute drive to Fremantle beaches. From memory there has even been an application for a small wave park near Port Beach, which makes even less sense.
It is nice to notice that the planning approval process, that is often criticised, worked well in both instances and that inappropriate uses of crown land were rejected by the State.
Roel Loopers
FREO’S YELLOW ART REMOVAL A DELICATE ACT
I was a wee bit skeptical about the claims by Fremantle Society president John Dowson that the City of Fremantle did not want to take back to its original tuck pointing the building on the corner of High and Cliff streets that is at the centre point of the yellow art removal controversy, and Dowson’s assertion that tuck pointing the building would cost about the same as repainting the entire facade.
City of Fremantle Director of Infrastructure and Project Delivery Graham Tattersall says that many buildings in High Street have condition problems; for some, the multiple coats of paint over the years have taken its toll and in some instances this has also damaged the sub-strata.
Director Tattersall told me that in reality the cost of repairing and returning the building to its original tuck pointed style would be considerably more costly than that of the planned works related to the foil removal.
Tattersall said “The City is wholly supportive of owners electing to take this opportunity to contribute for further works to restore or further improve their buildings (where requested, we agree to contribute the value of the yellow foil works towards the cost of an owners revised scope) and would not decline requests of this nature.”
“A number of property owners have taken the opportunity to engage the City’s contractor to carry out additional work on their properties at their own expense, which has greatly improved the appearance of the street, but as these are privately owned buildings it’s up to the property owner to make that choice.”
I think it is important to clarify this and also point out that building owner, former Freo Mayor Peter Tagliaferri, has taken out a writ against the City for $ 50,000 and that this legal action is continuing.
I have been watching how very time-consuming it has been to remove the paint of the brick building in Pakenham Street that will became the home of the Fremantle Republic gin distillery and micro brewery, and hence wondered if the claims by the Fremantle Society that the cost of tuck pointing and painting were similar could be correct. The Freo City director says they are not.
Roel Loopers
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