Swan River Trust and Liquor Commission chair Jim Freemantle says he isn’t anti development.
WHAT motivates a retired banker to become embroiled in the emotional standoff between the community, developers and environmentalists over the shimmering centerpiece of our city?
The answer is the same thing that put him at the centre of the deeply divisive debate over alcohol consumption.
For Jim Freemantle, chair of two of the state’s most influential bureaucracies – the Swan River Trust and the Liquor Commission – it was the community, not the conflict, that he saw at the heart of both of these controversial social issues.
Behind the headlines and sensationalist rhetoric, Jim Freemantle took on the challenge to find common ground between entrenched positions and ultimately balance the demands of an evolving city with its vibrant heart – the community.
Mr Freemantle’s influence on the evolution of Perth, and Western Australia as a whole, cannot be understated (and will continue well beyond his tenure).
He was instrumental in the creation of a small bar licence, which has injected new life into the city.
However, hs work has drawn a red line through a number of high-profile development proposals, earning him a reputation in some quarters for being anti-development.
Ironically, many of the project approvals from these two agencies have been just as unpopular.
Mr Freemantle doesn’t agree with the emotive labels but in his 10 years at the Swan River Trust he has dealt with his fair share of brickbats.
And as he prepares to relinquish the chairmanship, he is big enough to admit mistakes have been made; but he is adamant a world-class, contemporary Perth has always been the trust’s goal.
He says great cities of the world have all capitalised on their waterfronts and Perth should be no different.
“We have never been anti development, what we are is anti bad development,” Mr Freemantle says. “We are working very cooperatively with the (Perth Waterfront) taskforce and our view is ... when it is finished it will be another significant development to make the city and the river one.”
One of his biggest regrets is that the trust hasn’t created a development blueprint for the Swan River.
He says a broad plan for the river will identify development precincts on the banks of the Swan as it winds it way through the city.
The similarities between Mr Freemantle’s role with the trust and the Liquor Commission are striking.
Both of these largely invisible state agencies wield extraordinary power and are charged with balancing the pressures of a growing population with the needs of the community and the environment.
It’s a difficult three-way balancing act that will never satisfy all parties, but consensus is not the ultimate goal for Mr Freemantle.
The former chief executive of Home Building Society, Mr Freemantle traversed an unorthodox road to the banking sector.
Born and raised in Victoria, Mr Freemantle dropped out of university in his first year and did “what most kids did to grow up, [I] went and worked for a while. I went jackarooing and then worked as a stock and station agent in the country,” he says.
“I grew up and then suddenly realised all my friends were getting degrees and going on to careers.
“And while it was a great life I realised I would still be sitting on a fence looking at cattle for the rest of my life and going nowhere if I didn’t go and do something.
“That is when I joined the National Bank and went to university part time.”
He went on to do a masters of business administration and, after following his banking career around the globe, ended up in Perth with NAB.
Following a chance meeting with Home Building Society’s former chairman, Bernard Wright, Mr Freemantle stepped up as Home’s chief executive, where he served from 1995 to 2002. It was a role he relished, particularly given Home’s strong connections with the community.
That theme that has been a constant in Mr Freemantle’s career and continues to motivate and energise this 67 year old.
After stepping down from full-time work in 1995, Mr Freemantle’s focus on the challenges facing the community have sharpened.
In addition to his work for the Swan River Trust and the Liquor Commission, Mr Freemantle has also worked for Racing and Wagering WA as well as MDA National Insurance and several public-private partnerships.
By his own admission, development on the Swan River and the controls around alcohol are two of the more complex and controversial public issues in WA at the moment.
“If you want to talk about getting involved in complex human situations here are two for you, liquor and the river,” Mr Freemantle says.
“But I love these things ... because they involve the community.
“It’s recreation and how to enjoy that and with liquor it’s how you try to come to grips with providing a relaxed, sensible consumer-friendly drinking environment.
“And try to prevent poorly run premises and how you address the alcohol-related harm issues.”
But despite his energy and enthusiasm for the work of the trust and the commission, Mr Freemantle remains a realist about their reach.
He says all the legislation and controls in the world won’t stop problem drinkers.
And while the vast majority of people did the right thing and more importantly wanted to do the right thing for the river, there will always be an element of society that, through ignorance or greed, will damage it.
