Asquith Street - Mt Claremont Shopping Precinct - parking and amenity upgrades

Wow, I wasn't going to comment but after reading a very negative comment about deli Chichi I feel the need to comment.

We moved to Perth 10 years ago from Melbourne 10 years ago, a thriving city with a thriving cafe and restaurant culture. We initially lived in Cottesloe but loved Mount Claremont so much we bought and built. We now consider ourselves locals.

We love deli Chichi and all the staff who work there! They make great coffees and have an extensive menu. We also LOVE the fact that the staff know us by name, make us feel very welcome and a part of the Mount Claremont community. We also love that with Perth's beautiful weather we are able to enjoy all the outside seating provided by the cafe. It is well restricted, allowing for easy pedestrian access and if anything is less crowded for seating than restaurants and cafes in Melbourne. There, the entire footpath would have seating! I know that this space is all about "the Parking" in the area but I just had to defend deli Chichi, it's fabulous staff and the community feel it brings to our lovely area.

We in fact would welcome more parking so that people less fortunate than us who live in this beautiful area, can come and enjoy all that is Mount Claremont. A suburb that provides vast open spaces and parks to walk my dog other than the tiny little park in Asquith St. My dog would get no real exercise there at all as it is too small.

Thank you and I say bring on more parking bays so that local businesses can thrive otherwise we'll end up like Napoleon St in Cottesloe with empty buildings for lease and no sense of community.

Congratulations to all at Deli Chichi, you're the reason we come down the street!!!!

Hi,

I live on alfred Road and walk to mount Claremont shopping area most days.
I have two dogs and both of my dogs were trained and socialised off lead in Asquith park as it is the only park in the area that is fully fenced.

I also have two children and the park is a safe walk and in a safe area so I feel happy to allow my children to walk to the shops and the small park with the dogs.

My children play soccer in other suburbs and those suburbs have much better dog friendly facilities. They have dog parks that include barbecue area, they parks are fully fenced and have double entry gates (you go through one and close that before going through the next gate and into the park) they are obstacles for the dogs and places for the owners to meet like minded dog owners. There are no facilities in this area other than Asquith park that are fully fenced that allow dog owners to exercise their dogs while grabbing a coffee or meeting for a chat.
It would be great if a dog area could be included in the proposals somewhere it’s safe to allow younger dogs the freedom to explore off lead and to socialise with other dogs in a safe environment.
Yours

Michelle Symondson

The removal of green space at Asquith Park and at the Kindy on Strickland Street should be an absolute LAST resort. It is hypocritical of the City of Nedlands to preach the importance of green space and tree canopies to its residents if it is so willing to demolish and bituminise its own parks.

All other avenues should first be exploited. The current options presented for comment are insufficient. For example, if approval has been granted by Dep. Transport to remove bus stop outside Asquith Park, then why not convert that into angled bays and keep the green space?

In my visits I have observed there are times when parking at the shopping centre is very difficult (weekend mornings, after school), however I refute the notion that the parking demand is constant. If a car park is built, it would be vacant for more than 70% of the time.

Furthermore, what real commitments have the owner/s of the shopping centre made to increase the number of bays on their own property? The City of Nedlands recommended that the bulk of the alleged parking shortfall be rectified by the centre owners on THEIR OWN property. What are they doing about the problem?

The survey did not leave me the option of comment. The parking is principally required for one business only, which hogs all the parking at the shops and in nearby streets. Provision of more parking at residents' expense is unreasonable. The owners of Deli Chicci should provide the parking at their cost. I do not frequent Deli Chicci and it has caused traffic chaos. Deli Chicci could easily have been accomodated at the the Mount Claremont Community Centre where there is provision for a cafe and there is no cafe there. Deli Chicci should relocate or purchase their own parking. Deli Chicci spreads its tables so as to limit safe access to other shops by pedestrians, especially those with disability. This should be curtailed. Deli Chicci is not for the local residents and it should have provided sufficient parking before the council gave it permission to operate the business. Clearly it has not complied with the conditions the council required. The council should operate on this matter in the interests of local residents as Deli Chicci has ruined the amenity of the area.

We are very concerned that the exact reason Mt Claremont is so popular for it's village environment; family and parks is being taken away for car parks. Many families meet at the dog park to enjoy coffee or eats to sit while throwing a ball which will not allow this activity to take place.
It is very difficult for people who rely on walking the dogs to have somewhere secure and enjoyable for the welfare and enjoyment of the animals. Many people will not go to the Mt Claremont village if this is taken away.

What's not considered now with these new changes suggested to the Asquith Street Parking and Amenity Improvement project, is the bus stops on Asquith. There are 3 bus stops in very close proximity to each other for the bus route 27 (Perth destination). There's a stop on Rochdale close to cnr Asquith, then in front of Asquith park (Area 1) and again another bus stop on Asquith between Clematis Lane and Adderley St. There is no need for 2 bus stops on Asquith for this route. It makes sense to remove the bus stop from in front of Area 1 (Asquith Park). This will free up significant space in front of the park for more parking (e.g. angled). This was a thought in 2015 I note in council minutes. It's a great idea. The issue with converting the Area 1 park into car parking is that the resident on Rochdale purchased their house with a park adjacent. It's completely rude to convert this to a full carpark and more amenity is needed to be considered for them.
Your survey is too black and white - and needs options for 'other'. Whilst I stated that I agree to converting Asquith Park to car park, I believe it can be done such that the neighbour is better considered! I'm sure they'll be rejection of the Mayfair park option for car park reasons. In all honesty, there is the Library playground very close and park there. There is also parks for dogs at Lake Claremont and the oval on Montgomery opposite Mt Claremont Primary. So, I think you can better dissect Asquith Park to give a green buffer to the adjacent neighbour and have more car parking by removing the bus stop located there - which is totally unnecessary. Similarly, 25 Strickland is a park/kindy. Either it should remain as a kindy/park or be converted to a park, as that's what all residents have purchased their properties knowing. The Mt Claremont village is a village for locals - it's not supposed to be a village district for a wide audience - and promoting car transport to this location will actually entice more people to drive to the shops. Deli Chi Chi is not as popular as it used to be it seems, however that could change and there are more up market 'cafes' adjacent Hudson/Hughie and the bakery as well. It's true that parking along Stickland/Asquith needs addressing - right now the yellow lines are faded and people park again on those - esp on weekends when the council doesn't have any rangers to enforce and provide infringements. People are so lazy they don't want to walk 100m to get their coffee or drop their kids off at kindy - really shameful. I'd like to see the council promote healthy living and walking to the shops - many people drive such a short distance for a coffee catchup. I've seen neighbours' cars parked there from people who live in adjacent streets - total distance ~500m! And if you're going to have more carparks - take the opportunity to promote the environment by implementing a 'charging' parking bay for electric cars. Further, if Asquith Park is a carpark, it will be another heat sink of bitumen - definitely it needs trees, but I do not like the nib design - preferring the removal of the bus stop and creating back to back parking and leave a green strip to buffer the neighbour with trees. And please repaint the current yellow lines on Strickland/Asquith as it's well faded - esp on the crest of the hill of Strickland. Thank you - Peter Weston 0477200261

We moved to the area in 1981. All the local shops were retail, so customers would enter the shop/s briefly to make a purchase then drive away. The demise of the local hardware shop provided cafe-size shop footage and a cafe appeared. As a consequence its patrons would stay for a considerable time leading to parking issues. The increase in traffic in the area since has been significant. The installation of a roundabout at the Rochdale/Asquith intersection would encourage motorists to use that entry rather than minor roads. A roundabout there was recommended by Main Roads many years ago.

Please retain the Asquith Dog Park. There are plenty of residents in the area that frequent this park. My son takes our dog there for exercise. It is safe and secure for dogs to run around. Please seek other alternatives for the parking problem.

It is disappointing to see that the removal of remaining open space is such a priority, whilst there is a push for infill.