YAGAN
SQUARE — RENEWAL PLAN
607. Dr K. STRATTON to the Minister for Local Government:
I refer to the McGowan
Labor government's commitment to supporting local businesses and
driving more economic activity in our CBD.
(1) Can the
minister outline to the house how the government is working to revitalise Yagan
Square to ensure that it is a major drawcard for economic activity?
(2) Can the
minister update the house on the other work underway to drive greater vibrancy
in our city?
Mr J.N. CAREY
replied:
I thank the member for her
question. I also note that I was with her and the Minister for Planning
yesterday for the announcement on the demolition of Princess Margaret Hospital
for Children, which is the next stage in a major renewal for housing in our city, with 2 700 homes for a population
of 4 000, which is brilliant for Perth and inner-city areas.
(1)–(2)
On the weekend, I announced a renewal plan for Yagan Square. We inherited Yagan
Square from the previous government and it is fair to say that the model has
not worked as planned. Our government is investing $5.4 million to renew Yagan
Square to give it more soul, to drive more vibrancy and foot traffic, and to
support the small businesses in the area. We have already been undertaking
significant investment in policing, with a permanent mobile police station
there and an extra 175 police in the city. This is about securing a new major
anchor tenant that will spread out and activate Yagan Square. That is why we
have locked in Nokturnl, which is a highly credible hospitality provider, with
both the Old Synagogue and the Beaufort, which is very trendy, I know.
Several
members interjected.
Mr J.N.
CAREY: There are a lot of hipsters at the Beaufort.
Mr M. McGowan: Not me.
Mr J.N. CAREY: It provides a high-quality product. The
Premier will be going there all the time. The Premier is the ultimate hipster—the
Rockingham hipster! This will be a quality destination, with five levels for
restaurants, a live music venue and a tavern. It will pump in that life that we
need.
We are also backing in activation
of our city through our $4 million grants program, which is about creating
events across the CBD to attract new people. The signs are very encouraging,
because the tourism and transport forum on
the weekend released key mobility data. It tracked the movements of eight
million Australians and it found that Perth is leading, with Adelaide,
in total visitations compared with pre-COVID levels. We are at 85 per cent of pre-COVID levels. Melbourne is at 71 per cent
and Sydney is at 67 per cent. When we
look at workers, Perth is leading the
nation at 71 per cent of pre-COVID levels. Melbourne is at 56 per cent and
Sydney is at 52 per cent. I note that the media release from the tourism
and transport forum actually stated that Perth was largely restriction free
during the pandemic compared with cities like Sydney and Melbourne, which
endured long lockdowns. It is no surprise
that the CBD has come out on top. The recovery that we are seeing in Perth, in
our city, is a direct result of our response to and management of the
COVID pandemic. That is very clear in the evidence from the tourism and
transport forum. But I want to assure all Western Australians that our
government will continue to invest in the Perth
CBD, not only through the $1.7 billion Perth City Deal, but also with renewal
programs, like at Yagan Square.
The SPEAKER: The member for
North West Central with her first question.