THE Fremantle Ports Swim Thru will be held on Saturday December 12 at South Beach, with competitors able to choose from the 250m, 1600m or 3200m options. Organised by the Fremantle Masters Swimming Club, the Swim Thru is the longest running open water swim in WA and is run in support of St Patrick’s Community Support Centre and the Freo Street Doctor. Last year the swim stopped handing out single use plastic water bottles to participants and continues to be plastic free this year.
FREMANTLE Surf Lifesaving Club’s multicultural surf and beach safety program has won a major Surf LifeSaving Australia award. The program started in 2014 in collaboration with the Fremantle Multicultural Centre and focuses on teaching beach awareness and safety procedures to immigrants unfamiliar with the beach or with limited English.
DRAFTING of a masterplan for the heart of Beaconsfield has been completed and endorsed by the City of Fremantle. The plans include redeveloping the Davis Park, Lefroy Road quarry and former South Metropolitan TAFE area into a medium density precinct. The council’s masterplan includes the construction of improved bike and pedestrian paths, expanding public space, a possible new oval in the Lefroy Road quarry area.
GLASSON PARK will soon have a new mural portraying iconic East Fremantle landmarks. The mural, created by White Gum Valley artist Jessee Lee Johns, was organised by deputy mayor Jenny Harrington and the East Fremantle Public Art Panel and will replace the current artwork which is getting a tad faded. The mural will also feature in the council’s 2021 Community Calendar.
LARGE sandbags which mysteriously appeared on North Coogee dog beach recently are in fact geotextile sand containers (GSC) and will be used to create a temporary barrier to prevent erosion at the back of the beach. Eventually, the GSC’s will be buried by sand but serve to stop erosion during large storms and protect vulnerable coastal paths. The bags are expected to be used for around five years before Cockburn council comes up with a permanent solution.
MORE than 100 businesses and stakeholders met in Fremantle on Thursday to discuss how to create new opportunities in the state’s marine industries, known as the “blue economy”. During the forum Fremantle council announced it had put in a submission for $50,000 in federal funding to an expert-in-residence program to try and identify opportunities for technology-based start-ups. “It’s estimated that with a more focused and coordinated approach WA’s blue economy could double by 2030 to a total of 100,000 jobs and contribute up to $45 billion to gross state product,” mayor Brad Pettitt said.
A QUARANTINE order over large residential areas in Fremantle have been lifted as of yesterday (Friday December 4) after no new nests of red imported fire ants have been found. It follows a year of surveillance by the federal primary industries and regional development department after the pests, which can kill off picnics in affected areas, were found at Fremantle port.