A very warm welcome to those of you who have signed this petition since my last update!

And to all of you, thank you for continuing to share this petition to stop the City of Subiaco redeveloping our beautiful Rankin Gardens.

For many years, my only New Year’s resolution was not to make any. This year is different. With the City of Subiaco’s public consultation period extended to 27 February, my resolution is to keep this campaign going, to send a clear message that many people (510 at last count) want to keep Rankin Gardens just as it is: a cool, leafy, tranquil place to sit, relax and reflect - to escape the busy-ness of our lives, whenever we can.

At the Council meeting on 16 December, I asked two questions: essentially, why does the City consider it appropriate to (a) redevelop Rankin Gardens as an outdoor concert/events space for major community events, immediately behind our war memorial, and (b) spend millions of dollars creating that outdoor events space when we already have Subiaco Theatre Gardens 290 metres away and Market Square 1100 metres away? It was difficult to follow the pre-prepared replies at the meeting, so I’ll be interested to see what appears in the minutes.

With the extended deadline for public comments, it will take some time for those comments to be collated in a report with a recommendation to Council about the project. 

We need to keep voicing our objections and concerns in the meantime.

You can do this either by emailing city@subiaco.wa.gov.au (marked Civic Precinct) or submitting your comments at haveyoursay.subiaco.wa.gov.au (new civic building and gardens).

With grateful thanks for your continuing support. Best wishes for 2026.