The City of Mandurah has extended the timeframe for what appears to be the final lease for the iconic King Carnival.
Last week, the Mandurah Times reported the carnival had been offered a six-month lease extension, allowing it to stay on the city’s Western Foreshore until November, but owner David Miller was seeking a longer lease to guarantee their operations through the busy summer holiday period.
The carnival’s future has been in doubt since the start of the year when Mr Miller told the Times he didn’t know if his lease would be renewed once it ended this month as the city was looking towards a new future for the prominent site.
Its location on the Western Foreshore has been earmarked for a major redevelopment.
City of Mandurah chief executive Casey Mihovilovich confirmed in January the council had endorsed its preferred proposal.
Busselton’s Shelter Brewing Co. is understood to be the preferred proponent for a 21-year tenure on the site, marking its first foray outside the South West.
Last Tuesday, Mr Miller, who has owned the park since 1999, met Ms Mihovilovich and successfully secured a further six-month extension on the renewed lease, enabling the carnival to continue to operate until the end of April 2025.
Ms Mihovilovich said the longer lease would allow King Carnival to trade through the summer school holidays and Easter period, which Mr Miller was last week campaigning for.
The longer timeframe will likely mark the carnival’s last year on the Western Foreshore, with Ms Mihovilovich confirming the city would work with King Carnival over the next year “to ensure a smooth transition off the site at the end of April 2025”.
She said awarding a long-term lease was a long process.
“The process to award a long-term lease for this significant location is extensive and involves community consultation, various approvals, legal requirements and commercial negotiations that will take some time to finalise,” she said.
“We are pleased to be able to accommodate King Carnival until the end of April without negatively impacting the process to award a long-term lease on the site and appreciate the operators continuing to work with us to ensure a smooth transition off the site.”
The city is currently working on the major land transaction process of the site, with plans for the wider Western Foreshore Leisure Precinct — which includes the King Carnival site, as well as the skate park, playground, oval and war memorial — and the commercial site’s proposed business plan, which is expected to come before the council at its May 28 meeting.
It is expected the community will be able to have its say on the future of the site after this month’s meeting and the council will then take the public’s feedback into consideration before making a decision on whether to proceed with the land transaction.
Although it appears the Carnival’s days are numbered, Mr Miller said he would continue campaigning to get the lease renewed again next year and was optimistic about the attraction’s future.
“We can keep fighting the good fight to see if we can obtain a longer lease,” he said.
“We are more than happy to work with other businesses on the Western Foreshore and to discuss all options with the city moving forward.
“The City of Perth, Busselton, Fremantle, Hillarys boat harbour, all bring in amusement rides to help with tourism.
“The City of Mandurah has a different mindset for some reason, however we are hopeful we can keep this incredible Mandurah icon alive for families everywhere to enjoy.”
In February, hundreds of the Carnival’s supporters marched in a rally through Mandurah’s centre to show their support in saving it from redevelopment. Mr Miller said there were plans for more action later this year.
King Carnival has been on short-term contracts with the city over the past three years and Mr Miller has in the past called for longer lease periods to give him more certainty.
But despite the new longer lease from the city, Mr Miller said investing in the park over this period would be “impossible”.
“It’s impossible to spend large amount of capital on a 12-month lease,” he said.
“We have no chance of getting this expenditure back in such a short time period.
“We will be keeping up all the maintenance and gardens to the same high standard it has always been.”