Free Wanneroo concert canned for Australia Day festival

THE City of Wanneroo has cancelled its annual Wanneroo Presents Concert this November and will introduce a multicultural festival on Australia Day instead.

Councillors unanimously supported the changes to the 2019-20 events calendar at their July 30 meeting.

Moving the recommendation, Mayor Tracey Roberts said it was important the City changed to reflect its more diverse community, with 44 per cent of the population born overseas.

“We are celebrating our 20 year anniversary,” she said.

“The proposal for the festival is to celebrate what unites us as a community.”

The January 26 festival would be held at Wanneroo Showground following the Australia Day Citizenship Ceremony, which has been one of the biggest in Australia for several years.

Mrs Roberts said it would be an opportunity to showcase local talent, such as Jordan Anthony who recently appeared in The Voice and the Subih Brothers who appeared in Australia’s Got Talent in 2016.

She said RetroRewind at Yanchep National Park and the Global Beats and Eats festival in Marangaroo would remain on the events calendar.

Funds allocated to the November concert, which has been held since 2013 and cost almost $240,000 last year, will be used for the festival.

While the cost of the festival was yet to be determined, a council report said the 2019 Australia Day Citizenship Ceremony cost $133, 381 with more than half of that spend on equipment hire, including the giant marquee that the City wants to maximise use of.

The report said the festival could include food vendors, multicultural performers and fireworks, with the latter likely to cost $15,000 for 15 to 20 minutes.

Several councillors noted discussions with the City’s reconciliation action plan and multicultural advisory groups had been supportive of the festival.

Cr Dot Newton said although there had been media commentary that the event would “offend our Aboriginal community”, the City worked really well with its Aboriginal community.