2023 Year in Review

With 2023 coming to an end, let’s take a look at our year in the City of Fremantle; from the return of the iconic Street Arts Festival to award wins and the opening of the Boo Park Bike Trails, it sure was a momentous year. 

January

2021 kicked off with The Voice coming to One Day giving Fremantle residents and visitors an opportunity to join the conversation. Multi-award winning duo Gina Williams and Guy Ghouse are among the artists joined us to perform at a free concert as part of the City of Fremantle’s One Day celebration on Saturday 28 January.

To top off a big first month of the year local hero, Leighton Bradfield, the co-founder of 20talk, was named Freo’s Citizen of the Year. He was recognised for his passionate advocacy for youth mental health and his dedication to building his charity form the ground up.

February

The Fremantle Arts Centre had something to celebrate in February with the final stages of Roof replacement works starting ahead of a big year for the well-loved facility.

March

In March Griffiths Park in Hilton celebrated a major upgrade with local primary school students and community members who helped shape the design. Woodsons arcade also received a facelift with a fresh coat of paint transforming it from a dark and dingey space to an inviting, repurposed gallery.

April

April was a huge month for Freo with the return of the iconic Street Arts Festival following a three-year hiatus due to COVID-19. The festival is the largest of its kind in Australasia and featured a mix of local, national and international performers from Japan, Scotland, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Germany, France, United Kingdom, Italy, the Philippines, Australia and the United States of America.

April also marked the completion of the ground-breaking Port Beach sand nourishment project. In the latest and final stage of works, 150,000m³ of sand was dredged from Fremantle Port’s deep water channel and used to extend the beach.

May

In May Freo welcomed Perth Festival’s High Voltage for a celebration of music, culture and WA rock legend Bon Scott. The family-focused extravaganza featured a musical procession through the streets of Fremantle with bands playing on flatbed trucks around a 5km circuit, along with live performances and fun activities across three celebration zones.

May was a good month for mountain biking enthusiasts with the opening of the Booyeembara Park Mountain Bike Trails. The first of its kind in WA, the mountain bike park features two 400m trails to cater for intermediate and experienced riders, along with a pump track for beginners.

June

In June the new 2023-24 budget was adopted by Fremantle Council with a focus on fundamentals. Fixing footpaths, unclogging drains and improving building maintenance were key features of the new budget, as well as continuing to deliver exciting projects for Fremantle.

July

The Let’s Talk Freo! community engagement program, aimed at shaping the City's Strategic Community Plan, culminated in the Weekend of Courageous Conversations in July. Through digital and face-to-face interactions, more than 4,900 people contributed to the City’s new Strategic Community Plan, at more than 40 events across Fremantle.

An ambitious Lego design that reimagines Fremantle’s iconic container cranes as water slides, roller coasters and a giant swing has been voted most popular design on this year’s Freo Builds Trail. Hilton Primary School student Jack Perkins, who is in year 4, said his winning Crane World design was inspired by his dad’s work in cranes.

August

The iconic Fremantle Markets' got a new lease on life in August with Fremantle Council voting in favour of granting the current operator a new 20-year lease.

Port Beach dune restoration was completed with the re-establishment of dunes as Sandtrax being stabilised with a variety of coastal plants. The re-establishment of the dunes followed the ground-breaking sand nourishment project, which involved moving 150,000 cubic metres of sand from offshore dredging and depositing it on the beach, using the so-called “rainbowing” technique, during February and March this year.

September

In September Fremantle partied like it was the 80’s to mark the 40th anniversary of Australia II’s famous America’s Cup win on 26 September 1983. From the centre of Freo, to Fishing Boat Harbour and Victoria Quay, a colourful celebration was enjoyed by all.

The City of Fremantle’s Recycling Centre was crowned waste champions in the Metro Local Government category of this year’s WasteSorted Awards. The award was presented for the continuous improvement made towards resource recovery.

October

The City of Fremantle Council was sworn in at an ordinary meeting in October, with two new faces, following the 2024 local government elections. Jemima Williamson-Wong was elected to fill the vacancy in Coastal Ward and Ingrid van Dorssen was elected to fill the vacancy in North Ward. Cr Williamson-Wong, at 21 years old, is the youngest person to join the City of Fremantle Council.

City of Fremantle was declared to be winning with waste with the launch of Verge Valet™ a free collection service for bulky items that can’t be reused or repaired.

The Fremantle Containers for Change Refund Point being recognised as WA's best medium-sized operator at the 2023 Change Maker Awards.

November

In November the City of Fremantle was inducted into the WA Tourism Council's Hall of Fame, after winning its third consecutive award for Excellence in Local Government for Tourism. City of Fremantle is only the second local government to have achieved this honour in the 50-year history of the WA Tourism Awards.

The signing of a 40-year licence agreement between the City of Fremantle and the South Fremantle Football Club in November represented a major step forward in the redevelopment of Fremantle Oval, ensuring this important heritage precinct’s future is anchored by community sport.  

November also saw the State Government’s announcement that the Swan River Crossings project is progressing after the local community voiced a range of opinions and comments on the previous concept. As well as Council supporting the advertising of a new business plan for Fremantle Public Golf Course.

December

We ended the year with a bang with the ever-popular Wardanji returning to Esplanade Park celebrating Nyoongar culture and the warmer Kambarang evenings by gathering for an evening of song, dance and storytelling. Wardarnji featured traditional and contemporary performances by dancers of all ages and market stalls showcasing local Nyoongar makers, artists and small business owners.

Propel Fremantle selected nine ventures to receive funding as part of its inaugural program. The Propel initiative, coordinated by the City of Fremantle alongside local partners, aims to grow Fremantle’s capacity for innovation and provide support to aspiring founders and entrepreneurs.

Thirteen local projects also received a funding boost in the City of Fremantle's latest round of Creative Arts and Community grants. The successful recipients, four for the arts, six for community and three for youth, share in almost $77,500 of financial support.