One of my main aims has been to upgrade the Guildford Road streetscape. Despite it being the face of Maylands and a key route for pedestrians, buses and cars, it is still the daggiest part of our town centre and has been neglected by our city for a long time.
In December 2016, at the City’s Annual General Meeting of Electors I proposed that the City investigate, together with Main Roads, possible tree planting locations along Guildford Road (for the purpose of shading pedestrians). Later, the Bayswater Council unanimously supported my proposal and instructed the City administration to provide a report on the issue. Due to the complexity of finding suitable locations to plant trees along Guildford Road (because of the current MRS amendment to widen the reservation, the need for Main Roads approval for any tree planting, and the extensive underground services which run under the verges), the city came back with only four proposed locations for tree planting all along this road.
This is an important step forward, as getting Main Roads approval for those few trees could create a precedent that the city will be able to build on! Nevertheless, the overall outcome is quite disappointing, as Guildford Rd is a main thoroughfare for cars and pedestrians and it needs serious landscaping improvements.
I will push for further investigation into other suitable locations for tree planting (or other ways to improve the road’s streetscape).
My original proposal as moved by Council in early 2017:
Below are previous posts on the issue (starting with the most recent post):
Councillor Elli Petersen-Pik, City of Bayswater - South Ward 