The Western Australia State Government has announced its decision on the reform of Perth’s metropolitan local governments, including boundary adjustments and amalgamations.
The local governments being joined are:
- City of Swan and Shire of Mundaring to form City of Swan
- City of Bayswater and Town of Bassendean to form City of Bayswater
- City of Belmont and Shire of Kalamunda to form City of Belmont
- City of Subiaco and Town of Cambridge to form City of Subiaco
- City of Armadale and the north of the Shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale to form City of Armadale
- Shire of Murray and the south of the Shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale to form Shire of Murray
- City of Gosnells and City of Canning to form City of Gosnells
- A modified City of Stirling
- A modified City of Melville
Six local governments will also be almagamated into three, with the City of South Perth and the Town of Victoria Park forming the City of South Park, the City of Fremantle and the Town of East Fremantle forming the City of Fremantle, and the City of Kwinana and the City of Cockburn forming the City of Jervoise Bay.
Steps planned for the future will create a City of Riversea based around Perth’s western suburbs.
WALGA President, Mayor Troy Pickard, welcomed the outcomes of the Local Government Advisory Board’s recommendations and subsequent decisions by the Government.
“Today’s announcement takes the number of metropolitan Councils from 30 to 21, and eventually to 16 when the City of Perth Act is passed and the City of Riversea established.
“This is in line with the Association’s established position of supporting reform and a restructure of 15 to 20 Councils.
“While we are pleased the State Government has met this expectation, we are acutely aware that more work needs to be done.”
Mayor Pickard said the focus needed to shift to ensuring a smooth transition for the sector.
“It is well documented and broadly acknowledged that the State Budget did not provide sufficient funding for metropolitan reform.
“The Association estimates the true cost of reform to be around $100 million, far in excess of the Government’s current inadequate funding offer of $5 million each year for three years and $45 million in loans.”
Fremantle Mayor Dr Brad Pettitt said the new boundaries, which will come into effect on 1 July 2015, were a good outcome not only for Fremantle, but also for Perth’s southern corridor as a whole.
“There’s been a lot of heated debate throughout the process, and there’s probably a lot more to come, but it’s important to reflect back on why we’re doing this in the first place, and that’s to ensure local government is efficient and capable of serving the Perth metropolitan area’s growing population now and into the future.
“I’m glad common sense has prevailed and the logical argument put forward by the Fremantle Forever community campaign and the City of Fremantle via its submissions was listened to by the Local Government Review Board and reflected in the final recommendations.”
City of Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett said the outcome was bittersweet for the Cockburn community, as they will lose a significant number of residents and assets.
“The City will endeavour to look at ways to continue to meet the needs of its community and maintain service delivery to all users of these facilities including Jean Willis clients, the Phoenix Theatre Trust, the Cockburn Community & Cultural Council and RSL members.
“The new City of Jervoise Bay will form a strong and robust local government with the capacity to deliver dynamic and sustainable services to its residents through a vibrant and engaging staff supported by an active volunteer base.”
Full details are avaliable on the Department of Local Government and Communities website.
