South Beach markets not closed

The markets at South Beach have been a great Freo institution and we certainly want them to continue.

Council has strongly supported the markets and subsidised the previous commercial operator for five years at around $30,000 per year. Last year, council decided to conduct an open and transparent process to secure a market operator for future years and decided that the ratepayer subsidy would be reduced.  We wholeheartedly acknowledge the creative efforts of Georgie Adeane and her team in establishing and building up the markets.

The City is keen to work with potential operators, including the previous operator, to understand how it can support a market to happen. Our EOI process invited potential operators to provide details of what that support might ideally look like, bearing in mind we also need to ensure value for our ratepayers in any commercial use of public land.

Our EOI process did not result in any offers to run the market which may suggest operators are still nervous in a time of COVID to committing to a full season of events. 

We are exploring a number of options to progress the situation and hope to find a solution that suits everyone into the future.