AFTER years of waiting, Dawesville’s new shopping centre will open this weekend.
Located on Dawesville Road, near Old Coast Road, Dawesville Shopping Centre will host an IGA, a café, a chemist and a medical centre.
There is also space for an IGA liquor store, however a liquor license hasn’t been issued yet.
This Saturday is the first day of trading for the IGA.
IGA operator Gaurav Bansal said it was an exciting time for the area.
“Dawesville is growing and any area [this size] needs a local IGA,” he said.
“And this is a full-sized supermarket with a great range and competitive prices.
“We also have a major focus on being fresh.”
Developer Devwest’s executive director Chad Ferguson said the plan was always to have a multi-use site with the IGA and medical centre and it was good to have a café as well.
“It’s great to have the centre up and running and the Mandurah council were very helpful in the process,” he said.
Owner and chef at the centre’s café, Food + Drink Ann Bozanich said the shops gave her the opportunity to follow her passion.
“When I hit 30 I decided I was going to study something I was passionate about so I went to Tafe,” she said.
“It took me a while and I was working at Raven Wines as an apprentice but when that closed and this opportunity came up I thought: ‘Go for it’.”
Mrs Bozanich and her husband did a lot of the work on the café themselves, however the will have to wait until early February to open as the gas mains are not ready yet.
When the café does open six days a week, Food + Drink will sell food which Mrs Bozanich said would be “a little different” as she will make everything from scratch.
Owner of the medical centre and Chemmart Ross Darnell said being a part of the shopping centre was something he didn’t want to miss out on.
“The Dawesville area has been very much under-serviced by both retail and medical facilities for a long time,” he said.
“This will enable residents to go somewhere which they don’t have to drive nine minutes for, offering them both time and convenience.”
The medical centre will start off slow – with only one GP in the beginning – however Mr Darnell said he hopes within three years the four consultant rooms will be full.
The opening of the medical centre has also been held up, with the expected opening now at the end of next month.
