Mayor and CEO share optimistic vision of Bunbury’s future with projects to create ‘true tourism precinct’

Bunbury is set for an exciting future, with several projects in the works, according to the mayor, but the time frame for many of them remains a relative unknown. City of Bunbury Mayor Jaysen Miguel and chief executive officer Alan Ferris spoke on Wednesday at an economic briefing hosted by the Bunbury Geographe Chamber of Commerce and Industry. They walked the audience through the annual budget, as well as the plans which lie ahead for the city. Among the projects touted was the Bunbury ocean pool and a new Blair Street hotel next to the Bunbury Regional Entertainment Centre. Councillors approved the land sale for a high-rise hotel back in 2022, with a 12-storey, 153-room development slated for the lot which is currently a carpark. Fielding questions from the community and business leaders as to what the development would mean for parking at BREC, Mr Miguel said there would be enough parking for the hotel within the development, and other plans were being made. “Some of the works which have been happening with the rollout of the smart parking technology has given us a very good idea about what bays are being used and what areas are being used, and there’s a parking strategy being formulated for that,” he said. “Obviously we did commit to looking at temporary solutions around that immediate area as we’ve worked through the process with this group . . . (and) there are some temporary solutions across from the youth precinct as well. “But again, it’s about the big picture as well. We’re going ‘well, what parts of land do we want to use for car parking?’ and some of our premier lots of land we’ll probably make use for other things.” Plans for the hotel will have to contend with a high-pressure sewerage system which runs under the lot. Despite this, Mr Ferris said he was excited by the idea of new projects changing visitors’ first impressions of Bunbury. “You think about what’s already there, the Dolphin Discovery Centre and then across the road there’s the potential for a cultural centre and that true tourism precinct, that entry statement into Bunbury,” he said. “Then you pass Koolambidi Woola, you’ve got a brand new hotel, and potentially Bicentennial Square — that changes the way that whole interface between the inlet and the city. “How exciting is that?” The other major project is the city’s intention to build an ocean pool, which councillors approved in June last year. Mr Miguel said the city had recently received the backing of Bunbury-based Indigenous group Gnaala Karla Booja Aboriginal Corporation. “They basically said . . . they fully support the project,” he said. “There’s a couple of things they want to make a comment on, but it’s going to give us a bit more of an ability to get this back to council to see next steps. “There’s obviously a lot of work we still need to do. We’ve done the community consultation, we’ve got the master planning, it’s about putting that into practice and then how are we going to fund this thing?” According to a 2023 concept design, the pool could cost nearly $20 million to build.