FAQs

The City has been awarded $250,000 in RAC grant funding as part of their Reconnect WA initiative for the Morley Activity Centre, within the Walter Road West and Progress Streets precinct.

The Reconnect WA initiative is part of RAC's Reinvigorating Streets and Spaces Fund, which works in partnership with local governments in WA to deliver quick, low-cost demonstration and pilot projects to test ideas and create more people-friendly streets and inviting public spaces.

The project funding for 'A Connected Morley' will focus on delivering low cost public space improvements in the Morley Activity Centre, including public space activation, pedestrian pathway improvements, public art and greening, between August 2021 and June 2023.

One of the primary objectives of this project is to improve pedestrian connectivity and increase the vibrancy of the Town Centre.

Part of the grant agreement is to match the funding with complementary initiatives in the same precinct. Other key projects includes the rollout of new LED lighting within the precinct, Destination Marketing initiatives, Morley Town Centre Place Activation projects, Morley Streetscape Plan implementation and Shopfront improvements. 

The project funding will focus on delivering low cost public space improvements in the Morley Activity Centre between August 2021 and June 2023. It will trial low cost public space improvements within three key project locations within the Town Centre -  see Project Map below. The projects include:

1. Public Space Activation in the carpark outside King Hot Pot, Boba Boba and Bite my Banh Mi 
2. Public Space improvements outside the Morley library 
3. Streetscape Improvements on Progress Street
4. Wayfinding and walkability improvements 

A key differentiating factor in the projects methodology is the co-design process. Each of the key project will be delivered using different forms of co-design to empower community to shape the design and function of public spaces.  

The intent of the Reconnect WA project is to trial some low cost, temporary public space improvements. This concept is based on Project for Public Spaces 'Lighter, Quicker, Cheaper' theory that you can read more about here. As the projects have a temporary nature, they can all be relocated for implementation of any permanent streetscape improvements, maintenance works, or any other purpose. They are also intended to trail best practices for future planning projects, such as the Morley Activity Centre Streetscape Plan implementation. 

Some examples of other Reconnect WA initiatives in other local government areas include introduction of pedestrian and cycling-friendly initiatives, community art and alfresco activations, such as parklets.   More information on the initiative is available on RAC's website. 

• To improve pedestrian amenity, priority and connectivity, and introduce new vibrancy to public space within the Morley town centre by testing, trialling and implementing creative ideas for public space and infrastructure improvement. 
• To empower local community to shape the design and function of public spaces, and foster a sense of pride in, and ownership of Morley town centre (co-design process).
• To improve the reputation of Morley as a destination and place, and improve investor confidence. 
• To increase visitation to the town centre, sense of safety, sense of community spirit and belonging. 
• To inform best practice for future place and planning projects seeking to achieve similar outcomes.

The City of Bayswater has a place management approach for its major town centres. As part of this, Place Managers work closely with a mix of community and business groups, individuals and landowners to improve their town centres. Results this collaboration include place activation initiatives such as events, streetscape improvements, greening, heritage and cultural initiatives, and public art. This project is an extension of the placemaking projects the City currently supports to deliver, and aligns to the aspirations in the Morley Place Activation Plan. One of the objectives of the evaluation is to gather quality data to demonstrate the value and credibility of place projects in the future. 

The project locations and objectives were informed by recent community engagement, both formal and informal. The most recent informing strategy is the newly adopted Morley Destination Marketing Strategy (2021), which provides a good baseline data collection within this project. 

There is also intent within this project to test and trial creative public space ideas to inform future planning projects. For example, outcomes of this project will may directly impact the implementation of the Morley Activity Centre Streetscape Plan. 

This project aligns to the City's newly adopted Strategic Community Plan (2021-2031), as below:

Theme: Vibrancy

Goals: V1: Activate the City's town and neighbourhood centres; 

            V4: Support businesses across the City to grow and thrive.

Strategies:

• S1 Become more pedestrian friendly with accessibility for all.
• S3 Create local spaces to bring people together, with a focus on each suburb.
• S7 Support culture and the arts with events using local spaces.
• S9 Encourage sustainability and sustainable lifestyles with a focus on waste reduction, carbon reduction, education and the maintenance of assets.
• S13 Support economic growth and investment, and encourage commercial precinct and town centre activation.
• S14 Strengthen social interaction, connectedness and build the capacity of the community.

Any major streetscape improvements are out of scope for this project due to project timeframe and budget limitations. 

We do expect that more permanent, long-term improvements will be raised as part of this project, and these may be considered as a future budget commitment for the City, and others. 

There is scope however to make minor streetscape improvements, such as improvement to pram ramps and footpaths within the area, subject to budget. For example, it may be identified that an additional pram ramp is required to improve pedestrian connectivity/ walkability in the precinct. If you have specific ideas regarding the above, please contact the City to discuss further.

The Projects are now completed. Stay updated with future projects in the area by signing up via Engage Bayswater or emailing placemanagement@bayswater.wa.gov.au

A key component of this project will be evaluation to capture the learnings and successes of the project. This will be managed by and external consultant - element. 

The consultant, in partnership with the City will undertake appropriate stakeholder engagement with a broad range of participants to understand performance against the project objectives, and identify any unexpected consequences and lessons learnt through the project. We have an evaluation plan which identifies data collection methods and targets to understand how the project met its objectives. 

The final evaluation report, due in June 2023 will present the findings, conclusions and recommendations for the project, including before and after photos, and raw data, and provide commentary on how the evaluation results could be used to guide future planning with the Morley Town Centre. 

In addition the projects within the grant, the City is undertaking several other projects, including

1. Morley Activity Centre Streetscape Plan - detailed design process

In 2020, the City adopted a Streetscape Plan for the Morley Town Centre. This Plan describes and graphically illustrates the streetscape enhancements for the nominated streets in the activity centre. The Plan recommends a series of palette options, including street furniture, lighting, bins, planting, trees, paving etc. The final Plan can be downloaded via this link here: https://www.bayswater.wa.gov.au/online-services/forms-and-publications/plans-and-strategies/2019/draft-morley-activity-centre-streetscape-plan 

Part 2 - Detailed Design (to begin in 2021-22)

The second component of the Plan is a detailed concept plan of the streets within the Plan. The detailed concept plan incorporates a higher level of technical detail, such as the road horizontal geometry (based on a feature and level survey), road widening requirements, underground services and service pickups. The Plan also includes costs to develop the design to the level of detail required for tender and construction. 

2. LED lighting

With funding from Phase 2 of the Australian Government's Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program, upgrades to lighting in the Morley town centre will take place between October and December 2021. Passive lighting in the town centre will be upgraded to LED with $340,000 of funding from the program. LED lighting upgrades to the small pocket park adjacent to Morley Library (where Project 2 is located) will also occur with $30,000 of program funding.

3. Other Major Projects - City-led

• The Morley Sport and Recreation Club is currently receiving a large extension and upgrade
• Les Hansman Redevelopment Concept Plan