While participants in the WA Business News forum agreed that more inner-city development was needed, the issues and consequences that arise when residential and commercial developments are combined are well known, as evidenced by the Old Swan Brewery and Hudson Bar.
And although Western Australia’s residential apartment market remains strong compared with those in the eastern states, an influx of massive high-density developments on the city’s fringes raises the question of demand.
Among the larger projects being proposed are: Belmont Park (3,500 residences); Gateway (2,700 resi-dences); Peninsula (1,100 residences); and Emu Brewery (1,010 residences).
Australian Hotels Association executive director Bradley Woods suggested there should be no accommodation on the waterfront, but rather only commercial uses including hotels, retail, restaurants and bars.
“It means you don’t have a problem with noise, you don’t have a problem with people saying shut down after nine o’clock,” Mr Woods said.
“What we have seen, like the Old Swan Brewery, it has been hijacked by some individuals. We’ve seen all the trading conditions being shut down in a couple of areas and it is unfortunately to the greater loss of the population of WA.”
Commodore Hotel general manager Tony Palotta said creating connectivity with the coast and hubs of activity in the city was important.
“Let’s create attractions in the city that give the visitors and the locals something to do,” he said.
“A survey has found that the coast is the number one place to take guests, but there is no connectivity there; we need to create that, as well as hubs of activity in the city.”
Coldwell Banker Pro Property principal Brett Wilkins said demand for apartments was still very strong in WA, and supply was all being taken up.
“If all the units being proposed were built at once there would obviously be a problem, but the big developments are all staged,” he said. “The foreshore land is the very best in town, and I have no doubt residential apartments would be taken up there.
“I have no concern at all about the amount of apartments coming up – the market is great, and will absorb them easily.”
Mr Wilkins said issues with mixed-use developments and noise needed to be sorted out.
“You cannot have the situation where apartment owners are shutting down facilities; you can’t close down the life that makes a place what people want,” he told WA Business News.
“Maybe some places should be soundproofed a bit better, but some people just should not be living in the city.”
The state government’s policy to stop urban sprawl needed to address the issues of licensing and noise, he added.
