FREMANTLE PARK CENTRE WANTS COUNCIL SUPPORT

The Fremantle Park Centre, the club house for the tennis, lawn bowls and workers clubs, is struggling and has asked Fremantle Council for financial support.

The FPC is suggesting a three-year period where the City of Fremantle would give them $ 60,000 per year; a total of $ 180,000, whilst also still owing the CoF $ 6,180.50 in outstanding rates.

The three clubs did a membership drive and managed to sign up 130 new members, but how do they convince members to spend time in the venue and support the bar, which would create income.

Currently they only offer one day a week, on Fridays, where members and guests can eat at the club, and that is only a BBQ with a limited choice of only two food offerings, so not very attractive.

According to the Fremantle City officers there is a lack of branding and marketing and that would have to change. The club could cater for weddings, wakes and other functions with the use of outside caterers. Kidogo Arthouse does that very successfully, but of course they have an intimate heritage space to offer.

The Officer’s Recommendation is that Fremantle Council supports the Fremantle Park Centre with a one off payment of $ 60,000 and assess if any improvements have occurred after that year.

I want to caution our Councillors to go that way and remind them that Fremantle Council wasted a lot of money trying to keep other clubs alive. Money was given time and time again to support Kulcha, Deckchair Theatre, the Fly by Night Club, and others, but to no avail. They collapsed and closed.

The question ratepayers will be asking is if it is Council’s duty to support unsuccessful clubs, and if so what implementations that might have for other struggling clubs. Does Fremantle Council have a policy how to deal with it, or does it make decisions like this on a case by case basis only?

The item is before the FPOL Committee this Wednesday.

Roel Loopers

PROPOSED SMOKING AND VAPING BAN FOR WALYALUP KOORT AND HIGH STREET MALL

I have always been of the opinion that Australia is over regulated. Our Big Brother governments try to take as many liberties away from us commoners as possible and are eroding our freedom and rights.

So I was aghast to read that retiring Fremantle Councillor Rachel Pemberton is going to put a motion to the FPOL Committee of Fremantle Council this coming Wednesday to ban smoking and vaping at Walyalup Koort and in the High Street mall.

I often sit in the sun at Walyalup Koort for twenty minutes or so and never felt I was a victim of passive smoking. Our city square is very big and the seats are far apart, so why bother?

There are sometimes 5-7 people sitting together in the mall, and some of them smoke. Freo City has tried to get rid off them by taking some public seating out of the mall, now banning smoking and vaping is supposed to do the trick.

Leave if alone! I don’t smoke or vape, but unless the State Government makes smoking and vaping in public illegal, Fremantle Council should focus on really important things.

Roel Loopers

SOUTH BEACH PLACE PLAN BEFORE COUNCIL

The South Beach Place Plan will be coming before the FPOL Committee this coming Wednesday.

Below is a summary of the key actions from the stakeholder engagement process:

• Enhance and reinforce South Beach’s connections to its culture and stories (contemporary and precolonial).
• Enhance inclusion, access and walkability throughout South Beach parklands for all users.
• Invest in park infrastructure upgrades that enhance all visitors’ connection to nature for health and wellbeing.
• Continue to protect, showcase and enhance South Beach’s natural environment.
• Propose economic opportunities that balance the visitor’s experience and the community’s interests. Activities should reflect the unpretentious and social atmosphere.
• Create places within the Precinct where dog owners and non-dog owners feel comfortable enjoying South Beach.
• Create a pedestrian-first Precinct by reviewing all movement networks.
• Review car parking arrangements and other upgrades required to better suit all South Beach visitors.
• Provide governance and safety initiatives that support the welcoming South Beach vibe.
• Achieve an acceptable balance between campervan visitors and other users at South Beach.
• Improve connections from the Precinct to neighbouring areas.
• Enhance facilities at the dog beach to create a better visitor experience.
• Invest in infrastructure, events and activities which support the community and create a range of reasons to revisit.
• Enhance the playful side of South Beach for all abilities, genders and ages.
• Support connections to nearby local businesses and the Precinct.
• Consider how entrepreneurial activities can be supported that add vibrancy and amenity to the Precinct. This includes fitness instructors, market operators, food trucks, beach hire equipment, cultural events, and experiences, etc.
• Future proof for potential long-term aspirations may include café upgrades, additional toilet amenities, etc.

Click on images to enlarge. More information in the agenda and attachments, available on the City of Fremantle website.

Roel Loopers

ON THE FREO COUNCIL AGENDA

There are some interesting items on the agenda of this Wednesday’s FPOL Committee of Fremantle Council.

There is finally an application-by Dolce Dreams Pty Ltd-for the lease of the ground floor of the Evan Davies building at 13 South Terrace, where the Dome cafe used to be. Dolce Dreams want to open a cafe and request a 5+5+5 year lease, for which they would pay $ 400 per square metre. That is just over $ 87,000 per year, with the City of Fremantle contributing $ 150,000 toward the fit out costs.

It would be great to see that significant corner of the Cappuccino Strip activated again.

Clancy’s Fish Pub has a great proposal to build a Nature Based playground in Princess May Park, for which they would pay $ 150,000, plus another $ 72,000 for interactive lighting of the playground, the trees and the buildings. That would make a huge difference to the neglected park. In return Clancy’s is asking for another five years to be added to their lease, which would see it continuing until August 2038.

Palace Arcade, next to the National Hotel in High Street, want to install a parklet, where there once was an underutilised parklet at a Brazilian restaurant, but City Officers are recommending that Council rejects the application. I believe that would be the correct decision, as the place already got an alfresco area.

The FPOL meeting is on Wednesday, June 14 at 6pm in the Walyalup Civic Centre chambers and will also be live streamed.

Roel Loopers

FREO CAT DOES NOT HAVE NINE LIVES

It looks like the Fremantle free CAT bus service, to South Fremantle and back, is going the same route as the CAT bus to the Fremantle Arts Centre. It will be scrapped, if full council agrees with last Wednesday’s FPOL Committee decision about it.

The Freo CAT is loved by the few people who regularly use it, but it is an expensive subsidised service for the City of Fremantle, that pays for 60 per cent of the operastional costs, while the PTA only supports the service by 40 per cent.

It is unfortunate, but Fremantle Council needs to learn to spend its limited money better and more clever, so the CAT can’t be a priority, and there are a lot of buses through Fremantle.

Roel Loopers

FREMANTLE MARKETS LEASE ON THE AGENDA AGAIN

I am a bit confused that an item considering the leasing of the Fremantle Markets is on the agenda of this Wednesday’s FPOL Committee of Fremantle Council. I had the impression that was all done last year, and was expecting work on a new roof over the service yard to start soon, but it looks like negotiations with the current lessee are still ongoing.

The proposal is for the current lessee to get a new lease of 10+5+5 years, commencing at the start of 2023 and is considered a major land transaction.

There would be a base rent of $ 550,000 per annum, plus a turnover rent of $ 250,000 per annum, for the market that has more than 150 stalls.

Building upgrades, including the new roof I mentioned above, of $ 3,000,000 would be funded by the lessee under this proposal.

Officers consider it too risky to go through a lengthy Expression of Interest period, fearing that many stallholders would disappear and not wait for the outcome, and that if a new lessee would be the preferred tenderer it would be likely that they would be requesting financial assistance from the City of Fremantle for fit outs, and probably several rent free years, so it would cost the City money, instead of receiving significant revenue from the market, if it smoothly continues with the current lessee.

The Fremantle Markets is the number one tourist attraction in Fremantle, with Fremantle Prison coming second. It is also popular with Freo locals.

Roel Loopers

NORFOLK STREET EXTENSION TO FISHING BOAT HARBOUR

Fremantle Council has talked about extending Norfolk Road to Mews Road for as long as I can remember, but it looks like they will finally be getting serious about it, as the item is listed on the FPOL Committee agenda of this Wednesday.

The extension of Norfolk Road would create a better connection between the inner city and the Fishing Boat Harbour, which would become necessary if the planned large development in the FBH is realised.

The Italian Club has for many years also expressed the need and desire to develop their site, to ensure the survival of the club.

“The extension of Norfolk Street would require the City to pursue an amendment of the Metropolitan Region Scheme (MRS) with the Western Australian Planning Commission (WAPC) as well as a Local Planning Scheme amendment in parallel. The MRS amendment process presents an opportunity to facilitate the redevelopment of the Fremantle Italian Club through changes to the current MRS Zoning over the site from ‘Parks and Recreation’ to ‘City Centre’. Change in zoning would enable development of residential and complementary commercial land uses appropriate for a prime City Centre location neighbouring the waterfront.“

This will no doubt be a pretty long process, dealing with all the red tape to get approval for the changes, so let’s get on with it!

Roel Loopers

BETTER VISION FOR WALYALUP CIVIC CENTRE

The FPOL Committee of Fremantle Council will on Wednesday decide if it will lease 16 Newman Court of the Walyalup Civic Centre to For Eyes Optometrists.

The proposed lease would be for 5+5+5 years, with a starting rent of $ 38,640 per year, plus GST for the 168 square metre shop.

There is no rent free period, but the City of Fremantle would contribute $ 30,000 toward the fit-out costs of the shop.

Roel Loopers

FROM ARTS TO LEISURE CENTRE CAFE

Rather intriguing to read that the FPOL Committee of Fremantle Council will on Wednesday decide if it will grant a lease to run the long vacant Fremantle Leisure Centre cafe to the people who successfully managed the Canvas cafe at the Fremantle Arts Centre for ten years, but then did not get their lease renewed late last year.

This is yet another example that the City of Fremantle acts in mysterious ways sometimes, and not always in the best interest of the community or lessees.

So how long will we now be waiting for new operators of the Arts Centre cafe, the the long vacant former Dome cafe and the vacant Carriage cafes?

Talking about cafes, why is the South Beach cafe not also demolished when the condemned toilet block is being replaced? It is more or less the same building, that also has severe concrete cancer. How safe is it to keep the cafe open?

Roel Loopers

DO WE WANT TO PAY TWICE AS MUCH FOR VERGE COLLECTION?

Fremantle Hilton Ward Councillor Ben Lawver communicates really well with the community. He is very active on social media and also does letterbox drops of a newsletter.

Ben Lawver posted the above on Facebook and I want to share it, since changing how bulk rubbish is collected will come up for consideration at this Wednesday’s FPOL Committee of Fremantle Council.

Ben Lawver questions if we are prepared to pay twice as much for verge collection, that would only happen when people pre-book to get their household rubbish collected.

Have your say at the FPOL Committee, or email your Councillors: Members@fremantle.wa.gov.au

The FPOL Committee starts at 6pm at the Walyalup Civic Centre. If you want to address the meeting come a few minutes early and put your name on the list of speakers.

Roel Loopers