Regional visit to highlight government funding progress

Goldfields-Esperance Minister David Michael returned to the Goldfields-Esperance region this week, catching up with local government leaders and attending a significant regional tourism event in Ravensthorpe.

• Goldfields-Esperance Minister David Michael sets sights on key regional investments
• Significant liveability projects underway in Norseman, helping attract and retain regional families and essential workers
• Nature to put on a spectacle at the Ravensthorpe Wildflower Show

Goldfields-Esperance Minister David Michael returned to the Goldfields-Esperance region this week, catching up with local government leaders and attending a significant regional tourism event in Ravensthorpe.

During the visit, the Minister attended the Goldfields Volunteer Regional Organisation of Councils, highlighting the recent announcement to invest more than $10 million in support of three projects under the Regional Housing Support Fund. This significant funding will help deliver essential residential housing and land developments in the region.

Successful projects included $1 million toward Pensioner Community Housing in Norseman delivered by the Shire of Dundas, $4 million to the Shire of Esperance to develop 36 lots as part of Flinders Estate Stage 3, and $5 million towards M/Group's residential housing development as part of Amara Estate in Kalgoorlie-Boulder.

In Norseman, the Cook Labor Government has committed $850,000 to deliver major infrastructure upgrades at Norseman District High School.

The investment is specifically targeted towards improving early childhood and outdoor learning environments at the school.

Pre-primary building upgrades will include enhancing existing facilities for the school's youngest learners and construction of a specialised nature-based outdoor play area to encourage active, open-ended play and student wellbeing.

Additionally, two new modular homes were completed in Norseman in June 2026 for the Government Regional Officer Housing program.

The two-bedroom, two-bathroom dwellings were built off-site in Perth and trucked over 720 kilometres to the Goldfields town to provide housing for local teachers through the Department of Education.

The use of modular building methods has been utilised to speed up regional housing supply.

These dwellings are vital to attracting and keeping essential public sector workers like teachers and police personnel in remote areas.

The Cook Labor Government also contributed $100,000 to improve Norseman's sports facilities, including resurfacing community netball and basketball courts, upgrading two tennis courts, and adding a new pickleball court.

Contractors are currently being engaged to create this great addition to Norseman's community recreational facilities.

Minister Michael also travelled to Ravensthorpe, visiting the historic Town Hall to witness what is widely celebrated as one of the largest wildflower shows of its kind in the world. The event showcases approximately 700 botanically identified floral specimens collected by licensed volunteers throughout the globally recognised UNESCO-listed Fitzgerald Biosphere.

The Ravensthorpe Regional Herbarium acts as a vital scientific hub for the Fitzgerald Biosphere, backed by Lotterywest support. Partnering with annual events like the Ravensthorpe Wildflower Show, it houses thousands of pressed local flora specimens.

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