Not on my foreshore: Residents fight tiny trees set to block ‘million-dollar’ Perth views

8 hours ago 2

A Perth councillor has drawn parallels between the CBD skyline and Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa as he pushes for the removal of six trees on the city’s southern foreshore which residents fear will block their “million-dollar views”.

At a City of South Perth briefing on Tuesday night, councillors discussed Nic Coveney’s notice of motion about his meetings with “over a dozen” Jubilee Street residents concerned about they could lose their “multimillion-dollar views of the Perth skyline” due to trees planted on the south side of Lake Douglas, between their backyards and the river.

view of the trees from the footpath in front of Jubilee Street, looking towards the lake.

WAtoday’s research on the properties’ last sale prices shows a range of $2.35-$5.5 million.

Coveney’s reasons for his motion read that while he understood no-one owned a view, residents paid hefty sums for them, and losing views might impact their house prices as well as their amenity.

“If I had that view, I wouldn’t like to lose it either,” he said.

Coveney said residents had done the right thing by contacting the city and council instead of resorting to “vigilante” action.

He wrote that the trees were not in a location used for picnics or any other purpose and represented “no obvious amenity benefit to the wider community”.

The councillor conceded it was a “polarising issue”, but his stance should come as no surprise, given it was a pillar of his election campaign.

“The Perth CBD skyline has been ranked as one of the best in the world. In the same way you wouldn’t cover up the Mona Lisa for all to enjoy, we ought not cover up the view of the Perth CBD skyline for all to enjoy,” he wrote.

Coveney stated that protecting views and urban greening need not be mutually exclusive, and he viewed urban greening as more appropriate for verges, sumps, activity centres and parks.

City staff responded via the briefing agenda that the trees planted in the area around Lake Douglas (paperbarks, a peppermint and a marri) were consistent with its strategic direction.

View a few metres from the boundary of one of the private properties, with the saplings circled.

It noted the marri was planted to replace one that had been vandalised, and that one of the new paperbarks had also been vandalised, though it had survived.

They were placed 35-50 metres away from homes and on boundaries, not directly in front of properties.

The city chose these species and locations in part to help mitigate a grass waterlogging issue in winter, and said the strategy for the Lake Douglas area was underpinned by consultation.

Recently surveyed residents showed a clear favour for greening over maximising views.

City staff said Jubilee Street residents had been consulted during and after the 2024 planting and confirmed the trees’ lower branches would be pruned to “lift” the crowns as they grew, ultimately providing views beneath the canopies.

“The City has incurred costs in planting the trees and will incur further costs if Council resolve to remove the trees,” they wrote.

“An assessment … will be made to see if there is any viable cost-effective option to utilise the trees elsewhere … although survival expectations are considered low.”

They considered the “broader community interest and that of nearby residents has been considered appropriately.”

Staff recommended council acknowledge the feedback, recognise the community and environmental benefits of urban greening, and support the trees’ retention.

The city recently surveyed 345 people about trees versus views during its Urban Greening Strategy consultation, with the result showing the balance favoured greening.

City staff noted that 18 per cent (62 respondents) believed the focus should be entirely on urban greening, and only 4 per cent (15 people) believed the focus should be entirely on preserving views.

South Perth Tree Canopy Advocates spokesperson Bronwyn David said this was an era of climate change, declining tree canopy, species threatened with extinction and the polyphagous shot-hole borer.

“The last thing we should be doing is removing trees on public land,” she said.

“It seems that Councillor Coveney’s motion seeks to give greater priority to the views of a dozen people over the clear preference of the majority of residents.”

The council will vote on the motion next Tuesday.

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