Big Don fires up Bayswater council tilt after loo frustrations boil over
The founder of a renowned barbecue outlet and one of the state's most acclaimed restaurateurs will run for Bayswater council after another planning clash with the city over temporary toilets.
Donovan MacDonald took to Instagram this week to declare his intention to run as a councillor in the West ward where he lives and where his popular restaurant Big Don's Smoked Meats – the first WA restaurant to receive a Good Food hat – is located.
MacDonald said he considered running at the last election ago after butting heads with the council, but things had been good over the past two years.
However, the latest dispute over temporary toilets – which MacDonald said came out of the blue and impacted the security of his business – spurred him to take the plunge.
'In the last two years, we've been pretty good. There haven't been any dramas, and I was too busy previously to be able to consider this,' he said.
'Now, my business is running pretty well. My team is phenomenal, and so I think I probably have the ability to actually do this.'
The latest issue relates to temporary toilets installed in the unit next door, which is also used by Big Don's as space for waiting customers.
The city said the toilets were installed without a building permit, and now MacDonald must get an occupancy permit for that unit space to resolve the toilet issue.
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