Compromises of a laid-back life

The Generation Xers who participated in the roundtable discussion presented very strong, often polarised views about their city and the benefits, or otherwise, of calling Perth home.

To describe their feelings as a love-hate relationship would not be overstating the case.

They love the laid-back lifestyle, the environment and the weather, but they hate the restrictions on retail hours and state governments’ continued rejection of daylight savings.

Maybe social commentators are right when they describe Gen Xers as a greedy, want it all and want it yesterday generation. They want to have their cake and eat it too.

Or maybe it’s a case of a group of people who know what they want  and how they’re going to get it.

But despite misgivings about daylight savings and other perceived restrictions on lifestyle, the panel overwhelmingly nominated Perth as the place where they want to settle and start a family after they have travelled.

It’s not that they don’t like living here, but most feel there are better opportunities, professionally and personally, that need to be explored before coming home to settle in Perth.

So what do the technically savvy, streetwise, live-for-the-present, authority questioners and challenge seekers love and hate about Perth?

Joanne Wyne, an accountant with RSM Bird Cameron, said Perth was perceived as a big country town where there was nothing to do.

“In some respects it can be, but I think that’s nice,” she said.

“I am originally from England and went back 18 months ago and took four months off to work over there to get a taste.

“I was considering moving over there permanently, so I went for three months, worked and then went ‘I hate this’, I can’t wait to come back to Perth.

“The work I did in England was commerce so it was different to what I do here. Maybe if I did something similar my experience would have been different.”

Ms Wyne said what she liked about Perth was the weather.

“I could not have handled the dark winters [in England]. We have so many outdoors things to do here and so much more freedom in what we can do,” she said.

“In Perth I think there is a balance between work and recreation, firms are good like this.

“I’m not sure whether it is Perth or my firm, but it is a nice atmosphere to be in.

“As they say, Perth is a nice place to settle down and have kids.”

But of course with the good comes the bad and Ms Wyne’s one gripe about Perth is the roads and transport system.

“I hate the roads in Perth, they are shocking,” she said.

“England’s transport system is busy and hectic but the tube system in London was wonderful.

“You got to where you wanted to go and the motorways from Liverpool to Manchester were a nightmare, but they still seemed to go, whereas the freeway here sits and it takes forever to get to work. These are the things Perth needs to look at and fix.”

Ms Wyne said people she knew who visited Perth from England complained about the roads and the transport system.

“Here you wait for a bus for an hour whereas in England every five minutes a bus comes past. Such things are a real down side,” she said.

Braden Walton, an engineer with Maunsell, said the best thing about Perth was its proximity to everything.

“We are so close to so many things,” he said.

“Basically from Perth you’re half an hour from going for a walk up in the hills, you’re a couple of hours away from a pristine wine growing area, great surf and close to the river and ocean.”

Minter Ellison lawyer Troy McKelvie summed Perth up by saying: “It is a beautiful city, it is a good looking place, it is a nice place to be.”

One area that caused most participants some concern was the city’s inability, or lack of will, to make change.

Two examples were the continued rejection of daylight savings and the ‘No’ result in the recent extended retail trade referendum.

“I just wish Perth people would be a little more adventurous; anything new that comes up we just say ‘oh no just keep it as it is’,” Mr McKelvie said.

“The referendum was such a small thing. Given the way it was talked up I thought shops would be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and I got into the booth and it was like, three hours and it still got knocked out.”

Public Transport Authority project officer Rachael Westheafer said her housemate, who works in a retail outlet, did not want the longer hours because the standard working week had already changed so much.

“What started off in retail as a full-time week was Monday to Friday but now it can include Saturday and Sunday,” she said.

Michael Coombes, an engineer with GHD, said he thought it was “quirky” that WA always voted no to proposed change.

But Mr Coombes, who moved to Perth from Wollongong for windsurfing, said those types of decisions did not bother him.

MinterEllison lawyer Michael Rudd declared that he was pro-change and that Gen Xers overall looked optimistically at opportunity.

“We think ‘great why don’t they build that or do this’, but I also wonder that it might in fact in 20 years’ time set Perth apart because we are not following everybody else,” he said.

“In 20 years’ time will we look back and say we’ve missed our opportunity or I’m glad we didn’t because we stand out from everybody else.”

GEN X – WHY PERTH?

Pros 

• Perth offers a laid-back lifestyle.
• Weather.
• Environment, proximity to recreational facilities and locations.
• Nice, safe city to have a family.
• Big country town atmosphere had its advantages. 

Cons

• Failure to adopt change (daylight savings and retail trading hours)
• Better opportunities, professionally and personally, elsewhere that need to be explored.
• Public transport and road transport infrastructure inadequate for a major city.