News & Events

Encouraging events for the
Horse & Pony Club

July 11th, 2008

Small Farm Field Day a Big Hit

July 4th, 2008
Gidgegannup Showgrounds

Village News - June 2008

June, 2008

Small Farm Field Day

June 29th, 2008
Gidgegannup Showgrounds

Port Bouvard Ltd Supports Gidgegannup Events

February 8th, 2008

Port Bouvard Ltd Seeks Gidgegannup Community’s Views

November 16th, 2007

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Community Forums

We recently held nine community forums in Gidgegannup from 19-26 May to further explore the topics that were raised during the two initial workshops held in April 2008.

The nine areas for the community forums included:

1. Older residents, seniors and retirees (including those that are considering downsizing from the family home)
2. Recreation and civic clubs
3. Eco-tourism and visitor retention
4. Environmental sustainability
5. Abutting land owners to the proposed town site
6. Farmers,  small landholders and agriculture businesses
7. Youth
8. Business owners and economic development
9. Equestrian sector

Each of the forums contained on average between 10-20 attendees.  We were pleased with the number of attendees and particularly with the feedback we received from the community participants.  This local knowledge will prove invaluable as we start to piece together the many elements that go in to the preparation of a structure plan for Gidgegannup.

From the comments received from the majority of attendees, it is also apparent that the community forums were a good opportunity for the Gidgegannup community to hear the facts about the townsite planning first-hand.

Click on the above topics to gain a greater insight about each forum and keep returning to the website in the coming weeks as we start to explore in more detail some of the exciting ideas that came out of these forums.

Seniors/retirees

The first forum discussed the opportunities for existing older residents to remain living in Gidgegannup, but on smaller, more manageable properties if needed.  Retaining living opportunities for older residents in Gidgegannup does not necessarily mean providing a retirement village (although this may still be an option for Gidgegannup), but rather providing independent living opportunities in a way that integrates with the community.

In fact, as our architect Simon Youngleson of Simon Youngleson Architects pointed out, only 4% of those aged over 65 in Australia actually choose to reside in a retirement village.

What was key for these community members was the need to have the opportunity to remain actively involved with the community.

Indeed, the planning of the Gidgegannup townsite in a way that recognises the importance of – and fosters the opportunity for – “inter-generational change” is a major focus for us.  Good planning should provide the opportunity for people to move through their various life-cycles whilst staying in the same community.  The provision of a variety of housing opportunities goes a long way to achieving this objective.

The group discussed a range of living options, including cottage style homes that require limited maintenance – for example small garden areas.

Of course, ensuring that people have access to appropriate services and support networks are also very important considerations.

The participants at this forum identified that providing additional services within the townsite such as health-related facilities and home assistance should be considered as part of the future development of Gidgegannup.

The participants advised that Gidgegannup currently does not adequately cater for seniors.

Agriculture

Our sustainability consultant Josh Byrne, from Josh Byrne and Associates, outlined a number of unique options available for intensive niche agriculture as part of the growth of Gidgegannup.

Gidgegannup is blessed with excellent natural attributes that are conducive to agricultural production – at a variety of scales.  Harnessing the opportunities for food production – even if on a small scale, lot-by-lot basis, provides people with the opportunity to grow their own food on their own land and also opens up the opportunity to establish agribusiness as an important part of the Gidgegannup townsite economy.

This not only provides people with the option of a primary or secondary income stream (if they so wish), but also showcases the produce of the Gidgegannup region which in turn has positive implications for growing eco-tourism in the area – another  potentially important part of the Gidgegannup townsite economy.

Some examples of agribusiness that Josh spoke about included trials being conducted with Boab tree roots, which grow between 30-60 days and are a specialist high value crop and the Dragon fruit cactus, which are very water tolerant and produce fruit which could be used for smoothies and on fruit salad.

Our economic consultant, Grant Coble-Neal from ACIL Tasman, indicated that there were currently at least 27 agribusinesses based in the Gidgegannup area.  These businesses are shown on the map below.

These existing businesses (as well as those which we may have not yet identified) provide an excellent starting point for an economic cluster, the growth of which could facilitate strong agribusiness and eco-tourism economies within Gidgegannup.  The employment opportunities that these local economies would provide should not be under-estimated and will foster people’s options to work and live in Gidgegannup.

Josh also spoke about opportunities for agriculture businesses to sell their produce through a co-op or farmer’s market.  There was also discussion about introducing an industrial kitchen in the town site for value adding natural produce.

We are considering preparing fact sheets/simple business plans for selected business types to encourage diversification by existing land owners and to also encourage new residents to come to Gidgegannup to commence these types of businesses.

If you are an agriculture-based business and would like to ensure you are included on the map below, please contact Grant on 9449 9611.

ACIL Tasman has been identifying existing businesses in the Gidgegannup area

Eco-tourism

Grant Coble-Neal from ACIL Tasman, discussed the opportunities to grow eco-tourism in Gidgegannup by capitalising on the natural and cultural attributes of the region.  Grant indicated that eco-tourism could have a variety of focuses including adventure activities such as mountain bike riding, spiritual activities such as a healing centre and nature-based activities such as with walk trails.  Noble Falls and Walyunga National Park (southern side) are excellent examples of nature-based tourism that attract visitors and income to the Gidgegannup region.

The benefits of tourism to Gidgegannup are of course many-fold and include increased income for local businesses and growth in local employment.

Eco-tourism is, however, about more than just experiencing the physical landscape.  Opportunities to attract visitors to the area by showcasing local food produce, crafts, arts and culture are all important contributors to the eco-tourism experience.

These different elements can be promoted on their own – eg a fresh produce market or a potter’s house - or can be combined through businesses such as a bed and breakfast or restaurant which may serve fresh, locally grown food, be located in an attractive landscape setting and display local arts and crafts for sale.

The provision of services and facilities that foster the positive experience of a visitor also need to be considered. For example, the community members indicated that the town centre needed to have a lay-way and barbecues for passing traffic to encourage them to stop and then visit the shops.  A visitor information sign and then a tourist centre (as the town grew) were also mentioned by the forum participants as important considerations.

Attendees who provided existing tourist-accommodation services also stated that they were keen for the local area to have an agistment service for those people who travelled to the area for horse shows and also a restaurant so that guests could dine locally.  It was also considered that a higher level of signage to direct visitors to Gidgegannup and its services was necessary.

Gidgegannup is fortunate to have a strong local organisation in “Experience Gidgegannup” which already promotes local businesses and tourism experiences.  The opportunity to further build on this work as part of the growth of the townsite is an exciting prospect for the future of Gidgegannup.

Toodyay Road businesses

The existing core of commercial and community activity in Gidgegannup is centred on Toodyay Road, near the Bunning Road intersection.  Many businesses have already established in this location and provide a variety of services to the local – and district – community.

The purpose of this forum was to understand the fabric of the commercial network and how this could be used as a basis for growing tourism, employment and local service opportunities as the Gidgegannup townsite is developed.

Clearly Toodyay Road is one of the key issues that dominates future development of this commercial centre and will need to be closely examined in terms of its impact on traffic movement and pedestrian access,  The future bypass of the townsite as part of the broader “Orange Route” planning by Main Roads Western Australia must also be considered.

Our traffic consultant, Robin White of Transcore, advised the forum that there are currently 6000 vehicle movements on Toodyay Road per day.  He also advised that 1000 car movements per day were recorded on Bunning Road.

Robin advised that the ultimate development of the townsite would increase these numbers to approximately 17,000 vehicle movements per day on Toodyay Road and 2000 vehicle movements per day on Bunning Road.  It was anticipated that about 7000 of these car movements would be from local residents.  Clearly Toodyay Road would continue to serve an important “through route” for district and regional traffic.

Robin indicated that upgrades would need to be undertaken to Toodyay Road and to the Toodyay Road/Bunning Road intersection to accommodate the increased traffic volumes.

The timing of these upgrades will need to be carefully managed with the staging of the growth of Gidgegannup.

Grant Coble-Neal of ACIL Tasman then talked further of the opportunities for Toodyay Road businesses to benefit from this trade before the Orange Route bypass may come into effect.

Grant indicated that with this increase in traffic it was important for the Toodyay Road businesses to consider their future requirements.  In about five years, and with the increasing traffic and congestion, some businesses would need to consider if they should relocate off Toodyay Road and service just local residents, while some would need to consider upgrading their premises to attract passer-bys to stop.

Community members indicated that steps should be taken to reduce the speed along Toodyay Road as vehicles entered the town and that this could be accommodated through a defined entrance, median strips and either slip roads or pathways along Toodyay Road.

Youth

As has already been acknowledged, 30% of Gidgegannup’s population is aged under 19 years.

As the medium to long term growth of Gidgegannup is likely to have the greatest impact on this segment of the population, it was important to hear their views and understand, from their perspective, what young people need and desire in a growing community.

The young attendees to the forum indicated that they would be inclined to stay in town if the following opportunities were provided:

• Affordable accommodation in the town centre which they could then share with friends eg flats
• Employment opportunities both on a part-time and full-time basis
• Increased sporting facilities such as a basketball court in the town centre, which could then become a focal point for youth activity and a general meeting place.
• Increased live entertainment and concerts with a strong youth focus  (fostering the local youth music scene through the promotion of bands and music spaces is one way of achieving this aim).
• Provision of camping grounds so that young people coming to attend these concerts have affordable accommodation options
• Opportunities to introduce water sports in local lakes – also introduce a better and more central BMX track and skateboard park
• Public transport to allow greater flexibility – even if it was just to Mt Helena
• Variety of retail around fashion and music available in the Gidgegannup area
• Learning centre on par with a TAFE campus etc

Overall the young people enjoyed the current lifestyle of Gidgegannup, but identified a general lack of services and opportunities.  The attendees considered the planned growth of Gidgegannup as an opportunity for them to remain in the area.

Environmental sustainability

The research – and implementation – of initiatives within the town site that set new benchmarks for environmentally sustainable outcomes is one of the core foundations for Port Bouvard Ltd’s approach to the growth of Gidgegannup.

As we all understand, “sustainability” is about much more than environmental initiatives as we define them – sustainability must also incorporate strong social and economic outcomes, as without all of these being tied together, achieving the right and appropriate outcome in any one area becomes much more difficult. 

For example, a strong sense of community and social cohesion are very reliant on

a) A strong economy that provides employment options and financial independence and security and

b) A sense of place that links back to the appreciation of the natural environment.

Whilst environmental sustainability will permeate right throughout the development, it was considered important that a separate forum be held to highlight some of the exciting initiatives that are available to us, both at the “macro” and “micro” levels.

With community and Government support, we believe Gidgegannup will become renowned as a place in the hills that is connected with the landscape and environment within which it exists.

From a development perspective, this ranges from using locally sourced materials such as rock from the site for road and landscaping construction; designing the residential areas in stages that are based on local urban water systems (eg reflecting the particular soil profile and topographic features of individual pockets within the townsite); retention of vegetation wherever possible and undertaking new plantings; use of native species of plants in gardens that have low water-usage; recycling grey-water for non-potable purposes, and; sensible, climate-designed buildings to maximise solar efficiency and reduce external energy dependence.

Our sustainability consultant, Josh Byrne of Josh Byrne and Associates, talked at length to the forum about all of these types of initiatives and his passion for this subject was very evident.

These are, of course, just a few of the many options that exist.  Coordinating these into a cohesive development project is a significant challenge and will require support across the board.

The forum also discussed the environmental work that had been undertaken to date by Port Bouvard Ltd, which has included flora and fauna studies and land capability assessment.

The results of these studies are outlined in detail in other sections of this website and we encourage you to check out these pages so that you are familiar with the results so far.

Discussion about how to incorporate potable water requirements and waste water treatment options was also undertaken at the forum.

As part of the town planning approvals process, the Water Corporation requires that conventional planning for Water Corporation scheme water connection and conventional waste water treatment and disposal be undertaken.

In order to meet these regulatory planning requirements, we are currently working with the Water Corporation to identify options that satisfy these conventional outcomes.

We are, however, strongly of the view that “non-conventional,” leading-edge practices should also be pursued in order to achieve our principle of incorporating significant sustainable practices throughout the development. 

This particularly means looking at ways to reduce the amount of potable water required, through grey water reuse, water tanks included in properties, central water storage tanks where appropriate, appropriate landscaping and stormwater disposal systems and the use of water-efficient appliances in the home.

Landowners Within or Adjacent to the Townsite

A number of landholders, who are located within or near the townsite, attended the community forum to express their views on the development and understand the opportunities and implications for their properties and lifestyles.

Some residents asked that the townsite land abutting their landholdings be sensitively designed to minimise the impact on their views and amenity.  This could be achieved through close attention to lot shape and control over the placement of houses on those lots.

Other residents considered what the opportunities may be for development of their land where it abutted the townsite.  We advised that we could not control development outcomes outside of our landholdings, but that we would be pleased to talk to landowners about how we included them in the structure plan for the townsite.

Residents also indicated that they would like pathways (bike and walking) into the town centre to ensure that they were able to access the area easily.

Port Bouvard Ltd confirmed that the general principle of design of the residential lots would be to radiate out in size from smaller (T5) in the town centre through to larger (T3) at the townsite edge, subject to local site conditions (see transect diagram below for details).

View the Transect Model for Gidgegannup (1.1 MB)

Equestrian

In conjunction with eco-tourism and also agri-business opportunities which we have discussed in other forum pages on this website, Port Bouvard Ltd believes that equestrian activities could also create a strong economic and employment base in the area.  This could be part of the equestrian industry itself, but could also have value-added implications for eco-tourism.

It was evident that there are a number of existing equestrian based businesses in the Gidgegannup district, however additional opportunities were identified for short term/casual agistment, riding schools and horse hire (for tourism based treks and rides).

The group also discussed the standard of the existing equestrian based facilities and the desire for an indoor stadium.  The group also considered that an extension to the existing bridle paths to permit for connections to Lillydale Road etc was necessary.

Whilst the community at the April workshops had identified the Council land between the existing Toodyay Road commercial area and Orange Route bypass as a possible location for an employment node such as a local industrial area, it was clear from the attendees to this forum that this land and the Main Roads Western Australia bypass land was currently being used by the equestrian community.  Whilst the land may not have the topographical variation which is better suited to cross-country courses, it is located next to the Showgrounds which has significant and obvious advantages.

The equestrian clubs currently use 70 acres of the land owned by the City and Main Roads Western Australia for cross country competitions and have just resigned a 10 year lease with Main Roads.

Obviously, much discussion centred on what the medium to long term implications would be for the equestrian community when the Orange Route bypass was constructed.  The timing of the bypass construction is unknown and is largely within the control of Main Roads Western Australia, although it is considered likely to occur at some time in the medium to long term development of the townsite.

Because of this, it is important that the equestrian community be involved early in the structure planning process to ensure their requirements are maintained into the future.

Sporting clubs, recreation and civic facilities

The Recreation Club (“the Gidge Rec Centre”) is already in discussion with the City of Swan for expanding the existing services in the area.  Port Bouvard Ltd obviously supports these initiatives and needs to work closely with these future plans to optimise the efficient use of facilities.

The attendees at this forum identified that an indoor sports facility would permit for an increased number of sporting activities such as Pilates and a gym.  A square playing field would also be of benefit to accommodate hockey, soccer and rugby which may not have sufficient access to the existing Percy Cullen Oval.

The members also identified that it was important that the sporting facilities were linked to the town site via pathways and bike paths.

From our preliminary discussions with the Education Department during our research into a future structure plan, it has become clear that a second public primary school (in preference to expanding the existing Gidgegannup Primary School) will be required within the townsite.  It would seem that there are logical arguments as to why the second public primary school should be located in close proximity to Percy Cullen Oval and the Rec Centre to permit sharing of facilities.

In addition to sporting activities, the idea of a cultural centre was also raised with the intent of creating a “jazz” focus due to an existing band in the area.  This type of initiative provides the opportunity to capitalise on and grow the music and arts culture in Gidgegannup and we strongly support anyone who may have similar initiatives to contact us so we can see how your requirements can be either included in the structure plan for the town or fostered in the community generally.

What’s next?

As you can see, there are a number of factors we have to consider as we plan for the growth of the townsite in a way that meets the needs of all sections and ages of the community.

Port Bouvard Ltd will take on board the comments received during the forum sessions and start formulating a master plan for the town site, which we hope can be submitted to the City of Swan later in 2008.

We will continue to consult with the community during the preparation of the plan to ensure it meets the needs and aspirations of as many people as possible.

In the meantime, if you want to get the facts about the development then log onto this website (www.choosegidgegannup.com.au) or call Samantha Reece of SMR on 9480 0470 or Jeff Strahan of Port Bouvard Ltd on 9368 6200.  Alternatively if you would like to add any further comments to what you have read then please contact us to discuss further.

We will also have an information stand at the sustainability marquee at the Small Farm Field Day on 29 June.  Residents are welcome to attend the booth and learn more about the development and its opportunities.

Port Bouvard Ltd would like to thank all attendees to the forums and for their worthwhile input.

Attendee feedback

The attendees to the forums indicated the following comments:

• People in the area can be unnecessarily hostile to developers – more information regarding how PBL intend to develop (eg water systems) so people will understand and support the new technologies
• Very happy with this forum. Look forward to more further on.
• Open and frank discussions
• Some balance achieved in the face of negative publicity
• Good clarification on townsite and elements proposed to enhance/optimise the outcome
• Good luck, great job
• Good to see a consultative process taking place
• Good information
• Good interaction by the small groups. The emphasis on the smallness of the discussion groups for positive results should never be underestimated.
• Great to meet new community members with interests in developing civic/recreational facilities. Also Simon’s ideas strike a chord.
• Research reviewed by the Architect Simon was priceless and useful. George (town planner) revealed very good draft plans.