Visitor’s to Fremantle’s High Street Mall will soon be able to enjoy new public seating and tables, bike parking facilities and enhanced lighting as part of the City of Fremantle’s $275k upgrade of the mall’s public realm.
The upgrades, scheduled to be completed by the end of 2015, are being delivered as a project within the place management, activation and urban realm program which forms part of the City’s Economic Development Strategy 2015-2020. The program aims to increase vibrancy in city streets (commercially and socially) and rejuvenate inactive areas of the city.
City of Fremantle Manager Economic Development & Marketing, Tom Griffiths said the upgrades would improve the visual appeal of the mall as well as provide a better pedestrian and shopping experience.
“The High Street Mall is a well-known and highly-visible place in Fremantle and along with being a retail destination in itself, provides a vital link between the CBD and the West End of Fremantle,” Mr Griffiths said.
“Over the past year the City has worked with landowners to devise a strategy to enhance the mall, which we all agreed was looking tired and in need of some attention. Part of this was landowners re-branding the mall and developing targeted leasing strategies to attract the right mix of retailers.
“There’s also been some great work by landowners in preserving and improving the heritage components of some of the mall’s buildings, particularly in the Manning and Atwell Arcades.
“The City is now honouring it’s commitment by rolling out some improvements to the public spaces in the mall which will be practical and enhance the look-and-feel of the area.
“We’re also partnering with the owners of Atwell Arcade to implement an interactive public art piece we hope will become a key feature and talking point of the new-look mall. We expect to have this installed later next year,” Mr Griffiths said.
High Street Mall enhancements
The following are scheduled to be delivered by the end of December 2015:
• Installation of new light poles with superior lighting at four key locations throughout the mall
• Replacement of existing furniture with new tables and seating at strategic locations throughout the mall ~ seating design and location will achieve a significant increase in available seating
• Replacement of existing water fountain
• Installation of modern bins/waste receptacles (including recycling)
• Upgrade of existing bicycle parking facilities.
To further enhance the mall and provide a focal point, an interactive public art piece will be delivered in partnership with the contributing property owner of Atwell Arcade by mid-late 2016.
Background
The High Street Mall is at the heart of Fremantle’s city centre, connecting Kings Square to Market Street. Once a ‘hub’ of retail activity, the mall has faced a range of challenges in recent years as a result of declining economic conditions which have affected retailers globally.
To address this, the City has budgeted $275k towards revitalising the mall, with property owners agreeing to support this by contributing at least $50k collectively. Property owners have also made a significant investment into rebranding the mall and upgrading their buildings and shop fronts; as well as collaborative action to achieve a more sustainable retail mix.