State seeks consultants for cultural centre

THE state government is moving to the next phase of its redevelopment of the Perth Cultural Centre, with six tenders currently being advertised from which a team of consultants will be selected to develop a master plan for the precinct.

Among the roles advertised recently by the East Perth Redevelopment Authority (Epra), which is overseeing the project, is an urban designer to lead the master planning for the area and a place or vision consultant to “develop place brand and define place vision” for the centre.

The development of the centre was named by Culture and the Arts Minister John Day as one of his key objectives soon after the Liberals took power in late 2008.

In the Barnett government’s first budget, the Perth Cultural Centre was provided with a new allocation of $23 million for asset investment, including $8 million of recurrent funding.

At the time, Mr Day said the centre had become run down and under-utilised.

The Perth Cultural Centre is generally defined as the precinct bounded by Beaufort, William, Francis and Roe streets containing the WA Museum, WA Art Gallery, the State Library, the new State Theatre, the State Records Office, The Blue Room Theatre and the Perth Institute of Contemporary Art, surrounding an extensive plaza area.

The state theatre opened to much fanfare last week, providing another busy venue for the area, which abuts the Northbridge entertainment district and will be connected to the CBD when the Northbridge Link takes shape in the coming years.

The first stage of the redevelopment involved the restoration and modernising of 16 street front buildings along William Street.

Mostly shops, the buildings from several different eras have been restored and are now mostly let to small retailers, many of which have an avant-garde feel.

That work has been part of an $11 million of short-term revitalisation works to transform the Perth Cultural Centre and help attract large numbers of visitors for respite, social use and cultural experiences.

In addition to the William Street work, there has been the creation of an urban orchard and native wetlands, improved lighting, furniture and landscaping, and the installation of new retail pods that will house cafe-style vendors.

Epra said the pods were chosen because they were contemporary in appearance, versatile and suitable for a variety of operations.

Pajeco, the first pod tennant, is located near the native wetlands and opened just before Christmas last year. The proprietor is Alberto Tassone and the outlet offers pasta, coffee and gelato ice-cream.

The second retail pod, located closer to the museum, is a new venture by Braydon Harrison of CBD bar Tiger Tiger, and partner Izet Imamovic. Called Polly, it will also offer food and beverages.