Vision to put life back into the city's historic core

As the entrance to Kalgoorlie-Boulder and the focal point of the small business community, Hannan Street stands as the centrepiece of the city.

But for all the beauty offered by the grand Federation-style buildings which sprang from the ground during the gold rush in the late 19th century, the street is tired.

The Hannan Street Revitalisation project seeks to change that by breathing life back into Kalgoorlie's spine.

Its objective - "to reinforce the role and function of the Central Hannan Precinct as the key retail destination within the city centre and broader Kalgoorlie region" - would be music to the ears of business owners who have seen more and more empty shop fronts appearing in the past few years.

The concept of redeveloping Hannan Street is nothing new - a proposal to close the street and turn it into a town centre was proposed in 1984.

Kalgoorlie businessman Chris Fyson, a member of the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder's steering committee for the redevelopment, said the 1984 plan produced a "half-baked job".

Mr Fyson described a redevelopment of the CBD as "absolutely critical" for the survival of the business community, saying there was nothing to encourage shoppers to "relax and linger".

"If we don't address Hannan Street as a whole and really give it some vitality and life, it's going to remain a moribund trading area," he said.

"If you ask any local whether they go into Hannan Street for the excitement of being a part of the street or whether they simply go in to do whatever shopping they want … they'll say that they only go in, do the shopping and go out again."

If the concept plan in its current format becomes a reality, the street would be transformed into an entirely new space altogether.

Much of the focus is around visual changes - creating a degree of aesthetic appeal which will undoubtedly be needed to complement any increased pedestrian traffic. St Barbara's Square, intended to be the town centre when it was built in the 1980s, would become one section of a larger "high street".

But the square is likely to receive a significant amount of attention, with proposed works seeming to reflect a desire to turn the space into more than just an access route to the businesses which currently occupy it.

An interactive water play area, clearly aimed at the younger demographic, and an audiovisual projector align with Mr Fyson's theory that the area needs attractions other than food and retail.

Erecting tracery lights in St Barbara's Square and Cassidy Street, a greater amount of landscaped verges and trees and a mural on the Endowment Building represent an effort to give the area greater visual appeal - the importance of which is reiterated throughout the concept plan.

The proposal also suggests opening the area behind St Barbara's Square up and creating a new space known as "The Grove", which will link pedestrians to the major shopping centres and the Endowment Building.

The success of the plan largely hinges on reduced vehicular traffic, which led to the suggestion of closing Cassidy Street with a cul-de-sac.

But more imperative to the eventuation of the City's vision is money.

While Mayor Ron Yuryevich was yesterday unable to say what the project would cost, given the modifications yet to be put before the council, he acknowledged the likely price tag would be "in the millions" and the City would be seeking funding through Royalties for Regions.

"Council has applied for the RfR revitalisation program - it didn't get in the first tranche and we would expect it would be considered in the second," he said.

With the City's push to obtain $25 million for a resort at the golf course through RfR unsuccesful, the Central Hannan Precinct looms as the key major development on the horizon for Kalgoorlie-Boulder.

Kalgoorlie MLA Wendy Duncan said she would "absolutely support" the project receiving funding through RfR, citing other town centre revitalisations across the State funded through the Nationals' flagship program.

"Hannan Street is unique in that it is lined with these magnificent historic buildings that we really need to make the most of," she said.

"Because some of them are owned by the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder we really do need to start putting our innovative thinking caps on as to how we can get those buildings occupied and how we can attract more foot traffic and more life and vibrancy into our main street."

The City will likely submit a business case for the project to the Goldfields-Esperance Development Commission on June 30.

If funding is secured, the concept will move to a detailed design stage and Kalgoorlie-Boulder will be one step closer to giving its CBD the makeover it has been desperately crying out for.

THE PLANS TO TRANSFORM HANNAN STREET

St Barbara's Square

·Provision of soft and hard landscaping, alfresco dining, seating and play opportunities to enhance the enjoyment of the space for those wishing to linger or just pass through.

·Create an interactive water play area that provides for up lighting in and around the St Barbara's statue.

·Create a "ceiling" to the public domain through the provision of tracery lights within St Barbara's Square and Cassidy Street.

·Install an audiovisual projector within St Barbara's Square to enable projections to be cast on to blank walls within the square.

The Grove

· Establish the space between Coles/Kmart and the Endowment Building as "The Grove", removing existing car parking, providing interactive art sculptures, active retail frontages to the space and opportunities for alfresco dining.

· Demolish the existing toilet block and replace with a relocated (along the southern portion of the Endowment Building) exeloo to help facilitate the de-cluttering of the space.

· Provide aesthetically pleasing bin enclosure and wash-down facilities.

Kalgoorlie Markets

· Attract further tenants within the Endowment Block (owned and managed by the City), particularly the Kalgoorlie Markets through the provision of incentives.

· Investigate ways to enhance the Kalgoorlie Markets as a dual use space, being a destination in its own right with retail and associated activities and a thoroughfare to other key community focused areas. A return to its former use as traditional markets is encouraged.

· Upgrade the façade of the Market Building where it interfaces with the secondary entrance to Coles by puncturing blank wall portions with large windows.

Cassidy Street Streetscape

· Create a "ceiling" to the public domain through the provision of tracery lights within St Barbara's Square and Cassidy Street.

· Create a suitable space that enables the installation of a Ring Main Unit.

· Use colour and line markings along Cassidy Street to visually restrict and "calm" the street including new lane markings for "see-and-be-seen" reversing zones, coloured/defined median and coloured/defined parking areas and consider allowing left and right turn movements on the intersection of Cassidy Street and Hannan Street.