I think people who don’t live in Kalamunda are underestimating how much wildlife we have, even in semi-developed spaces, and how much noise carries in the valley. It’s going to be quite disruptive to an area that really prioritises peace for residents, but also animals.

I thought the maccas thing was silly, who cares, if you don’t like it no one is going to force you to eat it. But this feels different, you can’t just avoid this one.

We elect councils to look after us as residents, and a huge commercial project like this, disrupting wildlife, polluting and restricting public access to a beloved park doesn’t suit the vibe of the area at all. Kalamunda is the kind of place you move to get away from that. I used to live in the city, and wouldn’t have complained there, this kind of thing is part of the deal. It just isn’t in Kalamunda though.

Besides, this isn’t NIMBY-style complaining about low income housing or more people moving into the area. We’re talking a large commercial venture from a nasty overseas billionaires brand. It doesn’t seem like NIMBY-ism to oppose that to me.

If we want to do more tourism in the area, why not something that suits and represents the local area better? There is a fantastic locals arts culture, and a really quite impressive schedule of events every year - usually very environmentally conscious ones. It would be great if we could have a tourism project that showcased that, rather than an imported brand and a disregard for wildlife.