FREMANTLE council’s annual electors meeting left me wondering if it should not be much tighter, with motions and public comments only allowed about topics that are under the authority of local government.
I do understand that many people are concerned about many things, but public health, state environmental issues and international military projects are well outside the power of Fremantle Council.
Why, for example, did we have to listen to all the conspiracy nonsense about the deadly dangers of Covid vaccinations, according to internationally renowned health expert Doctor Google?
AUKUS and fracking in the Kimberley no doubt worry me and many people in Fremantle, but there is next to nothing Fremantle Council can do about it.
What’s next? Demanding public council meetings about Gaza or the invasion of Ukraine? Let’s try to improve our own city and share ideas about how to do that and leave the national and international issues to the state and federal governments.
There are so many Freo specific issues that we should and could have addressed on the night of the AGM, but instead it was kidnapped by interest groups, many of whom do not even live in Fremantle.
It is a concern for me that people who are not on the City of Fremantle electoral role are allowed to attend the AGM and vote on motions, the latter because basically no one really knows where the electors are from. That should be changed.
But enough of the frustrating AGM. What is going on at Notre Dame University, that admitted it had been hacked, but neither staff nor students have been informed how serious the breach was.
Have bank account details been compromised, or other personal information? Surely transparency is absolutely essential, but NDA remained silent. Why?!
The fire that destroyed historic Albert Hall in Pearse Street in North Fremantle is a reminder how fragile many heritage buildings are.
Although this appears to have been a non suspicious blaze, according to FESA, how can we pro-actively protect our important heritage assets better?
What is disgraceful though, is that social media keyboard cowards immediately started to blame the owners, who were devastated, for the fire. That is so defamatory that is is not funny!
I don’t understand the outrage about the City of Fremantle stopping commercial waste collection by the end of this financial year.
The City advised that approximately 650 businesses are directly affected.
This represents 28 per cent of the total number of commercial and industrial rated properties in the City of Fremantle. The majority (72 per cent) of commercial businesses in the City of Fremantle are already using private waste providers.
The change basically means that the City used to charge a minority of commercial operators a fee for collecting their waste, so they now will have to pay a private waste collector instead.
That does not seem a big deal to me.
What is a big deal though is the silly spin by the City, that stopping commercial waste collection will result in better cleaning of footpaths.
Yep, sure. They’ll give the truck drivers a hose and make them clean walkways, which no doubt is not part of their duty statement.
The unions will have a field day with that.
And while the City of Fremantle has removed all public seating from the High Street mall, Fremantle Ports has installed three lovely public seating relaxation pods on Victoria Quay.
A Big Dingo sculpture will join the three round pods soon.
That’s how we create public realm, Fremantle council!
We are reaching the end of summer soon, but the City assured me that the installation of the shark enclosure at Bathers Beach is still scheduled for the end of this month.
I am wondering why.
The enclosure is to be removed by the end of summer, and reinstalled next summer, as a cost of $ 121,000 yearly.
So why install the structure at the end of February, to remove it after two months at the end of April? That is a waste of money!
Roel Loopers/Freoview