❓ Question regarding the cost of acquiring William Street properties for the city rail project and the government's pre-commitment to lease office space in the development. The Minister provides figures and explains a shift in project priorities towards architectural and environmental outcomes.
AnsweredQoN 165Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
WILLIAM STREET PROPERTIES
The minister told this house on 17 September 2002 that in the event that the government would have to spend $40 million to acquire land and buildings in William Street for the city rail project, the proceeds from the eventual sale of that land would more than cover that $40 million. (1) What was the final cost of acquiring the William Street properties, and can the minister now give us an absolute assurance that she will recoup all the original acquisition costs under the current request for proposal process? (2) Can the minister please provide reasons for the government’s pre-commitment to lease 22 000 square metres of office accommodation at the William Street development at a cost of at least $9 million a year, or $135 million over 15 years? Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN
The minister told this house on 17 September 2002 that in the event that the government would have to spend $40 million to acquire land and buildings in William Street for the city rail project, the proceeds from the eventual sale of that land would more than cover that $40 million. (1) What was the final cost of acquiring the William Street properties, and can the minister now give us an absolute assurance that she will recoup all the original acquisition costs under the current request for proposal process? (2) Can the minister please provide reasons for the government’s pre-commitment to lease 22 000 square metres of office accommodation at the William Street development at a cost of at least $9 million a year, or $135 million over 15 years? Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for providing notice of the question. (1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
(1) What was the final cost of acquiring the William Street properties, and can the minister now give us an absolute assurance that she will recoup all the original acquisition costs under the current request for proposal process? (2) Can the minister please provide reasons for the government’s pre-commitment to lease 22 000 square metres of office accommodation at the William Street development at a cost of at least $9 million a year, or $135 million over 15 years? Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN replied: I thank the member for providing notice of the question. (1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
(2) Can the minister please provide reasons for the government’s pre-commitment to lease 22 000 square metres of office accommodation at the William Street development at a cost of at least $9 million a year, or $135 million over 15 years? Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN replied: I thank the member for providing notice of the question. (1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN replied: I thank the member for providing notice of the question. (1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
I thank the member for providing notice of the question. (1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
(1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
(1) What was the final cost of acquiring the William Street properties, and can the minister now give us an absolute assurance that she will recoup all the original acquisition costs under the current request for proposal process? (2) Can the minister please provide reasons for the government’s pre-commitment to lease 22 000 square metres of office accommodation at the William Street development at a cost of at least $9 million a year, or $135 million over 15 years? Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN replied: I thank the member for providing notice of the question. (1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
(2) Can the minister please provide reasons for the government’s pre-commitment to lease 22 000 square metres of office accommodation at the William Street development at a cost of at least $9 million a year, or $135 million over 15 years? Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN replied: I thank the member for providing notice of the question. (1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN replied: I thank the member for providing notice of the question. (1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
I thank the member for providing notice of the question. (1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
(1)-(2) The figures that we have to date - I assume these are the final costs - are $43.26 million for the acquisition of the site, and also for compensation that was paid to tenants on that site. Since 2002 we have decided to take a slightly different approach to this property. The Western Australian Planning Commission and the Government Architect have made strong representations to us that we should treat this as a landmark site on which we put a great deal of emphasis on achieving very high architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes. For that reason, we will not be assessing this project purely on a financial basis. In fact, the selection process will be done in two distinct stages. In the first stage, the price will be assessed; in the second stage, the architectural, environmental and heritage outcomes will be considered separately from the price. It may be that the government is prepared to put a premium on achieving on this landmark site very high outcomes, and we may not go to the highest price. It may also be that we are prepared to put some development money into that; that is, attract a price of less than $43 million. However, until we receive the results of the tender process, we will not know what that outcome will be. I assure the member that this was a very sensible outcome for government properties. It was clear that we would need 22 000 square metres of office accommodation. We had developed a comprehensive government-wide plan for office accommodation. Nothing like it had been done during the term of the previous government. Given that we needed that office space, it made sense to us to leverage off the benefit to the taxpayer by making a pre-commitment. However, I assure members that this is not the premium rate, as implied in the question. Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Mr T.R. Buswell interjected. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : I know the opposition’s obsession with unions and its hatred of them. Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Mr T.R. Buswell : No, I am just interested. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Cbus is one of four parties that have been invited to participate in this process. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
The SPEAKER : Order! The minister should answer the question. Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
Ms A.J.G. MacTIERNAN : Thank you, Mr Speaker; I know that the member for Wagin wants to ask a supplementary question. The accommodation is A-grade office space. The price that we have committed to is a fair, average price for that standard of accommodation. It is certainly not at the premium end of the market, as implied by the member’s question. The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
The SPEAKER : I call to order the member for Vasse for the second time.
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