Arabic version: موقع تصوير في بولدر يطلق عريضة للمطالبة بمركز شرطة

According to ABC News, filming for Stan’s upcoming mystery thriller Two Birds in Boulder, Western Australia, has renewed calls for a permanent police presence in the Goldfields town. The heritage-listed Boulder courthouse was converted into a fictional police station for the production, giving residents a brief view of what a station on Burt Street could look like.

Ronnie and Stephen Maddocks, who run the neighbouring Grand Hotel, said the street became noticeably quieter while police signage was in place. Ms Maddocks said the effect lasted about three days, until people realised the station was not real. The set has since been dismantled, but more than 1,000 people have signed a petition seeking a 24-hour shopfront police station on Burt Street.

Businesses have raised concerns about crime and antisocial behaviour in the historic retail precinct. A worker at a licensed premises was allegedly threatened with a hammer last weekend after trying to stop the theft of cash and alcohol. Boulder Newsagency owner Mike Saville said theft and verbal abuse had become daily problems during his decade behind the counter, and called for regular foot patrols.

The petition, signed by 1,171 people, was tabled in WA Parliament on September 10 by Liberal MP Neil Thomson. WA Police said officers based at Kalgoorlie Police Station, about 5 kilometres from Burt Street, respond across Kalgoorlie-Boulder 24 hours a day and regularly patrol Boulder. Police data recorded 1,742 offences in Boulder in 2025, compared with 1,515 in 2024; 1,141 offences were recorded in the first six months of this year.