Tenders sought for WA short stay accommodation site

By PETER ROWE

The WA State Government has released a Request for Tender seeking a service provider for the Aboriginal Short Stay Accommodation in Geraldton.

The restricted tender is seeking an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation or registered Aboriginal business to manage and operate the Geraldton Aboriginal Short Stay Accommodation.

“As construction of the Geraldton Aboriginal Short Stay Accommodation project continues, today, we’ve released a Request for Tender to deliver culturally appropriate and personalised support and services,” Housing and Homelessness Minister John Carey said.

The successful proponent will welcome guests to Geraldton and provide a broad range of services during their stay, including guest management and support, transportation, meals, laundry, cleaning and maintenance.

The Geraldton Aboriginal Short Stay Accommodation will be Western Australia’s fourth bespoke build providing safe, culturally appropriate and affordable accommodation solutions for Aboriginal people visiting regional centres.

It will provide a total of 44 units comprising 16 single/couple, 14 family and 14 universally accessible rooms that will be able to accommodate up to 100 guests.

There are currently three other Aboriginal Short Stay Accommodations operating successfully in Kalgoorlie, Derby and Broome.

Two Yamatji artists have been commissioned to create artworks for the project.

The two artists were appointed following an Expression of Interest process and will be designing artworks for the entry, a glass mural and a half basketball court for the short stay.

Nicole Dickerson, based in Geraldton, has participated in numerous group exhibitions in Perth and the Mid West, and has a number of awards, commissions and public artworks under her belt.Nicole will be designing the half basketball court and entry mural at the short stay.

Justin Martin is based in Perth, and his paintings and sculpture works can be found across the metropolitan area from Rockingham to Joondalup, including schools, shopping centres, Perth Zoo and Whiteman Park. Justin will be designing the glazing for the common dining area.

Construction by registered Aboriginal business and local Geraldton builder, GBSC Yurra, started in February with accommodation units now under construction, and roofing, wall framing, and external cladding already completed on more than half of them.

The tender process can be found at https://www.tenders.wa.gov.au/watenders/index.do and will be open for six weeks.

A non-mandatory briefing session will be held in Geraldton on 12 November 2024 to answer respondents’ questions.