Rarely a Dull Moment - The Budget and The Respite Centre

Welcome back to our regular feature, Rarely a Dull Moment where we report on the highlights of City of Fremantle Council and occasionally Committee meetings and other activities. We would have titled the feature Never a Dull Moment, but didn’t want to overpromise!

In 2026, we are very pleased to welcome Jenny Archibald to the RADM desk. Jenny will be well known to many Freo folk as a former Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Councillor of the City of Fremantle. Jenny brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to her new role as our RADM reporter and we are sure many Shipees will look forward to her regular RADM reports.

Welcome readers to our RADM report for the Ordinary Council Meeting of 8 July 2026 along with a Strategic and General Services Committee Meeting … both on the same night. And quite a night it was – swift decision making – so swift in fact that the $142.49 million budget was passed before you could blink! It took all of 8 minutes – which included public question time.

THE COUNCIL MEETING

For the Council meeting public question tim – there were two speakers. One on the topic of … you guessed it – trees! Liani Williams followed up on the proposed removal of trees at the Douro Rd roundabout to accommodate a pedestrian crossing, noting that it appears staff/Council may have stepped back from the proposal to remove the two mature Norfolk Pines in Douro Rd. No doubt we will see an alternate solution at a future Council meeting. And the other, Chrissie Maus, CEO of the Fremantle Chamber of Commerce, who applauded the allocation of funds in the 2026/27 budget to contribute to the Respite Centre Proposal – more is reported on this topic below when the item was discussed in the Strategic and General Services Committee Meeting.

So, with no Petitions, Presentations or Elected Member Communications, things moved along.

2026/2027 BUDGET

Well it was approved unanimously and with no comment! But to be fair, it is a very tidy document with a great deal of background work done by staff and elected members in the lead up to its presentation to Council. With no debate, the Council unanimously approved the item and the meeting closed at 6.08pm.

STRATEGIC AND GENERAL SERVICES COMMITTEE

Then at 6.30pm, on to the first ever S&GS Committee Meeting, capably chaired by Cr Mofflin.

The meeting included a range of topics, from pedestrian crossings to community health, the Fremantle Oval redevelopment and the proposed respite centre in Parry St – the latter attracting the attention of many.

Public Question time

Here, local resident Ian Kerr raised questions about Item SGSC2607-4 FREMANTLE OVAL REDEVELOPMENT BUSINESS CASE – more specifically on the zoning of the oval (a civic and cultural reserve) and how the proposed developments will be accommodated, as well as risk assessment of same.

However, the significant discussion topic was on Item SGSC2607-5 RESPITE CENTRE PROPOSAL, with 11 speakers – many in favour of the proposal but also a good number of concerned residents who live nearby in attendance. The input from the public was heartfelt both from those who are working to ameliorate the homeless problem and those who are concerned about the possible impacts.

Michael Pui, CEO of St Pats (more formally known as the St Patrick’s Community Support Centre) spoke for the centre, stressing that this won’t solve all problems, and that “solving the problem of homelessness can only realistically be done with the provision of long-term housing”. However, he committed to bringing “experience and a timely evidence-informed response to the proposal”.

Nearby resident Murray Slavin also supported the proposal, noting that this “is a sobering reminder that there is (currently) nowhere else to go …and that …this replaces homelessness with a night of safety”.

Brett Goring – an Aboriginal peer supporter – described his own challenging and heartfelt journey with homelessness: “…its about much more than a bed. Its about being welcomed by good people who know your name, being connected with professional support, having someone to walk alongside you and help you find a pathway forward….I remember what it felt like when someone helped me – this is community carrying community.….Fremantle is the right community to do this.”

Residents who live nearby questioned why the Council had not sought specific input from them prior to bringing the proposal to Council. Key issues raised included risk and poor behaviour, as well as more homeless people being attracted to this area should the facility be located in Parry St.

So the Headline Story – THE RESPITE CENTRE

The key topic of debate in committee – SGSC2607-5 RESPITE CENTRE PROPOSAL for the former St Johns Ambulance building at 14 Parry St, Fremantle. It is a Council owned building constructed between 1936 and 1974, and has recently been used by staff for operations. The proposal, developed by St Pats, Council and others, is to use the site to “provide up to 28 beds per night for men and women along with an opportunity to include two family rooms. It is proposed to operate seven nights per week, with the proposal that the City enter into an exclusivity arrangement for the centre to be operated by St Pats as an entry-level, short-term respite model for at least an initial five-year period”. Pete Stone, Director of Creative Arts and Community, in response to public questions, noted that the proposal put forward includes the opportunity for public liaison, and that there needed to be a clear framework for the proposal for the public to respond to.

With all committee members and other elected members present in support of the proposal, debate was mostly framed around ensuring public input was accommodated. It was agreed that the key concerns of residents needed to be considered, and Cr Graham stumped up with an amendment to ensure that community consultation with key stakeholders and others was included. Cr Mofflin commented that the community had been “asking for practical ways of putting the money where our mouth is”, adding that “this is a position of leadership that the City is taking”. The Mayor noted that “Fremantle is the first LGA (local government authority) to use its own asset for this purpose”.

With the amendment approved and commitment to bring community feedback back to Council, the recommendation to proceed was approved unanimously. This recommendation will now go to the Council for consideration at its next meeting, and we will report more comprehensively on this following that debate.

AND EVERYTHING ELSE

The most debated here was Item SGSC2607-4 FREMANTLE OVAL REDEVELOPMENT BUSINESS CASE. This has been a long saga of discussion and masterplans (five in all), review and more recently a State Government supported business case development to look at options for the Oval precinct’s future redevelopment. It presents “the final Fremantle Oval Redevelopment Business Case, following approximately 15 months of work between the City, project stakeholders and consultants to prepare a business case consistent with State Government requirements… Revenue generation is expected from community facilities (health club), hospitality and commercial tenancies, parking, as well as new content (sports and community) and major event hosting. Long-term development opportunities for a site of approximately 5000m2, immediately south of the oval have also been identified with a major short-stay accommodation development modelled within the Business Case as a leasing revenue opportunity. All revenue generated from the site’s activities will be re-invested into the site’s management and maintenance, consistent with the land management conditions of the site as a Crown Reserve managed by the City”.

For the remainder, a couple of pedestrian crossing discussions – SGSC2607-1 RESPONSE TO PETITION – PEDESTRIAN CROSSING AT HIGH ST AND AMHERST ST and SGSC2607-2 RESPONSE TO PETITION – PEDESTRIAN SAFETY ON HAMPTON ROAD (NORTH OF SOUTH ST), noting that further exploration of solutions will be required and Item SGSC2607-3 COMMUNITY HEALTH AND WELLBEING (PUBLIC HEALTH) PLAN 2026-2031 with lots of interesting stats and plans going forward were determined by the committee.

The remaining items will be determined by the Council at its next meeting. These include SGSC2607-6 AMENDMENTS TO FINANCIAL HARDSHIP POLICY, proposed to facilitate payments of rates spread over the year without interest or other costs should applicants meet the criteria, the review of various council policies, and SGSC2607-8 DESTINATION DEVELOPMENT WORKING GROUP CHAIR – to appoint a new Chair to this committee following eight years of dedicated investment in the role by local resident and current director of the Tourism Australia Board, Linda Wayman. Needless to say, the new appointee is under wraps until this item is discussed at the next Council meeting!

Signed off at 20.25pm. Goodnight Freo.

*By Jenny Archibald