There are about 62,000 residents in the current City of Bayswater, which will expand under State Government plans to incorporate about 117,000 residents next year.
Bayswater Mayor Sylvan Albert said the changes would result in the City becoming more sustainable and effective, but the true cost was unknown.
‘The City of Bayswater has allowed $850,000 to begin with; the details of the changes will have to now be worked through,’ he said.
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Cr Albert said the focus in the short term was to ensure all residents were able to access services, with no decisions made about what will be done with council facilities made redundant by the changes.
‘The key outcomes at the moment are for people to be able to receive their rates and know where to pay them,’ he said.
‘Our computers have to be able to speak to the Town of Bassendean computers; we are working through all of that now.’
Adding parts of Mt Lawley, Menora and Inglewood to the City of Bayswater is the most divisive part of changes.
Mt Lawley Society president Bruce Wooldridge said removing these areas from the City of Stirling was the ‘worst possible outcome’ for the heritage suburbs.
‘We believe that Stirling has the most effective heritage protection regime in place of any council in Australia, with Bayswater’s existing approach being fundamentally flawed,’ he said.
‘Stirling has enshrined the Heritage Protection Area concept for Mt Lawley, Menora and Inglewood in its local planning scheme. This provides highly effective protection for all buildings built before 1960.’
Cr Albert said the heritage protection for those areas would remain post-reform, with the current policies to be adopted by the new council. He said a meeting with Local Government Minister Tony Simpson this week should clarify issues regarding how the new councils will take shape beyond July next year.