City to revitalise West End

Following on the successful completion of the Esplanade, the City is poised to start extensive refurbishment works on one of Geraldton’s most precious heritage buildings, the Original Railway Station on Marine Terrace.

Once completed, the Original Railway Station will house the Geraldton Visitor Centre progressing the West End’s position as a valued community asset and an entry point for visitors to the City.

At the same time much needed refurbishment works will be undertaken on the Sail Inn Fish and Chip shop.

Adjacent to and in between the two sites are a number of iconic Moreton Bay Fig trees which are listed on the City’s Geraldton Tree Preservation Inventory register.

City of Greater Geraldton Director of Creative Communities, Andrea Selvey, said the trees haven’t been given a haircut for a number of years and the result has been some damage to the buildings.

“The leaf and fruit litter from this particular type of tree is aggressive to the metal roofing as well as blocking the gutters and down pipes,” she said.

“To prevent interference with the replacement of roof structures on both buildings, some judicial pruning is required. Given the size of the trees the amount of growth removed will be quite minimal.

“A Norfolk Island pine, adjacent to the building will also require some pruning, works will be carried out over the next two weeks and is estimated to take two days to complete,” said Ms Selvey.

An arborist was engaged by the City to inspect the trees and to produce a detailed report to guide the required work. The health and maintenance of the trees is of paramount importance and every precaution will be taken to ensure they are not damaged.