One of the richest councils in Perth will charge residents hundreds of dollars to have play equipment on their verges.
Councillors voted unanimously to implement the recommendations of its verge taskforces on June 28.
The new rules will see a $300 fee for verge play equipment such as trampolines, cubby houses and swings.
Larger play equipment will then cost a $100 annual fee to ensure it remains compliant.
It is understood equipment such as small swings won’t incur the ongoing cost.
Cr Craig Masarei said “it was with a heavy heart” that the council implemented the fees, but said it was “a balancing act” between those who wanted the equipment and those who used public playgrounds instead.
Cr Masarei said Cottesloe was the only western suburb local government that allowed verges to be used for play equipment.
Former Mayor Kevin Morgan told councillors they should put “bureaucracy back in its place” and argued Cottesloe’s verges were perfect for play equipment as they were “40 metres wide”.
“You could fit a cricket pitch on them,” he said.
Mr Morgan said it was “ludicrous” to hire someone to inspect play equipment that had not caused any issues and advised the town go back into talks with its insurance provider.
The new rules will see a verge inspector spend 2000 hours assessing almost 190 pieces of play equipment in their first year.
The policy will include tree houses, tree swings and other play structures.
A report to council had argued the Town already provided access to playgrounds for all ratepayers for free.
“It would be inequitable for the general ratepayer to pay for the choices of individual residents, therefore has recommended the above fee to cover this cost,” they said.
At a previous briefing session, Cottesloe CEO Matthew Scott said an audit in August discovered 190 pieces of equipment, which had likely increased.
The verge inspector’s workload is expected to reduce over the years as equipment already permitted only requires an annual inspection.
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