FAQ

We believe a community facilities plan is needed for the following reasons:

1. Population growth and change

In the last five years, the City of Fremantle population has increased by almost 5,000 people and from 2016 to 2036 the population is expected to grow by a further 11,556 people, with 6,063 new dwellings and a significant increase in ‘seniors and elderly aged’ (70yrs+), ‘parents and homebuilders’ (35-45yrs) and ‘young workforce’ (25-34yrs) expected. This will place growing pressure on existing community facilities and will generate the need to upgrade some facilities and to build new community facilities.

2. Changing community facility trends and models

With many of the City of Fremantle’s community facilities built some time ago to meet the needs of the day, community facility needs, trends, models and standards have changed considerably since this time. The demand for new and better community facilities is expected to grow over time and with increasing maintenance costs with ageing buildings, there will be growing pressure on available financial resources.

3. It's time to update community needs and aspirations

While the City of Fremantle completed a Strategic Recreation Needs Assessment in 2011 and has made much progress towards addressing the recommendations of this report and has also completed other strategies and plans that have community facility implications, such as a Youth Plan and Aged Friendly City Plan. It's time to review and update community needs and to develop an integrated picture of the needs and priorities across all community facilities.

4. We need a strategic approach to planning our future facilities

With a growing population and changing community expectations, it will not be possible to fund all community facility demands. This highlights the importance of a strong evidence base in determining our community facility needs and priorities. We also need to plan for providing our community facilities in the most innovative, affordable and sustainable way possible.

The Community Facilities Plan: Future Directions 2036 will focus on the following facilities provided by the City of Fremantle:

• Sporting grounds and facilities

• Recreation centres

• Community halls, centres and spaces

• Aquatic and beach facilities

While the City of Fremantle provides other important community facilities such as art and cultural facilities, parks and trails and the library, these will not be included as they are covered in other in other projects or plans.