On opposite sides of St George's Terrace, two cafes tell the story of how Perth's CBD is recovering from COVID-19.
Many businesses that relied on office workers' dollars were pushed to the brink over the first half of the year, with mask mandates keeping many at home.
"You could almost play footy down the Terrace," was barista Anthony Arnold's assessment.
From behind the coffee machine at the base of a 12-storey office building, he has had a front-row seat to the effects of staff working from home.
"We're still probably about 50 per cent to a third away from where it was beforehand, but definitely noticing a difference week-to-week," he said.
It is a difference also being driven by shrinking WA case numbers, with the number of new infections on Monday falling to its lowest level in nearly three months.
Just 4,849 new cases were reported, the lowest figure since March 14, with one COVID-related death and 279 people in hospital with the virus.
Unique dishes help weather COVID storm
Across the road from Mr Arnold sits a very different cafe, offering cheesecakes that look like actual slices of cheese and coffee served in an avocado.
Co-owner Nancy Feng said her focus was not on serving workers, but instead on doing "something different".
"We always wanted to bring something new to Perth," she said.
"Especially with our desserts as well, you probably can't see anywhere in Perth, so everything here is unique."
By advertising on social media, including TikTok, Ms Feng has been able to attract customers into the city, or catch the eye of tourists, rather than rely on office workers.
It means her cafe was not affected as much as others when more people were working from home, and things are looking up even more now as travel continues to pick up.
"From the last two months I've noticed a difference, and people keep telling me 'I'm from the eastern states'," she said.
Removing masks brought workers back
Google Mobility Data, which uses information from people's smartphones, gives some of the best information available about how routines have changed over the last two years.
For most of 2021, it showed the number of people in workplaces within the City of Perth was at, or above, pre-COVID levels.
Once workers returned in early 2022 though, with mask mandates in place, those numbers steadily fell — dropping to around 13 per cent lower than pre-pandemic rates in mid-April.
As the requirement to wear masks was removed at the very end of April, that measure rose by about 6 per cent.
It then fell again as WA reached its second COVID peak, but remains at levels not seen since early March.
Rates for what Google calls "retail and recreation" are far lower than last year, though.
These figures are likely influenced by the fact that while many have returned to the city, they're only doing so for part of the week.
Some of the CBD's most prominent employers, including Rio Tinto, law firm MinterEllison and consultancy firm KPMG, are continuing with "flexible work" policies which allow staff to work part of the week at home and part in the office.
That is worrying news for people like Mr Arnold, who fears what lower levels of activity will mean.
But the rates are still better than other cities around Australia, with Sydney offices still about 30 per cent quieter than before COVID and offices in Melbourne about 15 per cent lower.
A city evolving to meet post-COVID demands
Linda Robson lectures in geography and regional development at the University of WA and said the last two years had accelerated the way the city was already moving.
That includes more people working from home and, likely in turn, companies reducing the size of their offices as fewer employees come to the office every day.
"It is quite amazing how long people resisted online meetings and things because the technology has been there for a while," Dr Robson said.
"But I do think people will return to the CBD mainly for the reason that we've missed it.
"People are gregarious, they like to meet, they like to exchange ideas."
And as people's work habits evolve, so too will how the CBD is used.
It means there might be more appetite for businesses like Ms Feng's and greater challenges for those catering to workers, like Mr Arnold's.
"There's so much investment in the buildings and infrastructure in the CBD that it's highly unlikely that the CBD itself would die," she said.
"But as a meeting place for meetings, for coffee, for tertiary activities like museums and venues, it will most definitely bounce back," she said.
More apartments the future for CBD
As the Mayor of Perth, Basil Zempilas has been keen to sell the CBD as a place to work, visit and live.
He acknowledged challenges facing the city, including the rise of work from home and the popularity of suburban shopping centres.
But Mr Zempilas remains confident the CBD will continue to be an important location, particularly because it is where travellers form their first impressions of WA.
"It just means the city needs to look ahead, to keep innovating and evolving, to make sure that it can attract visitors, shoppers and office workers," he said.
"This is our retail heart, and this is certainly our commercial heart and it's also becoming a residential hub, and that's what we continue to build."
Dr Robson said while retail and hospitality in the CBD would still be impacted by the after-effects of COVID for some time, the push for more apartments in the city would deliver dividends in the long term.
"At the moment, you are serving the working population between 9am and 5pm and you're closed overnight and over the weekends," she said.
"Whereas if you get more residents within the CBD, then you have that after-hours business as well.
"But that takes time, you've got to start developing these new land uses."
It means empty shopfronts that litter the CBD might remain for some time, as the city adapts to its new role in the lives of West Australians.
