Perth Arena, which is still quite a while from completion, has been a controversial project right from the start. It should have been completed long ago, and the owner of the company overseeing its construction clearly rues the day he became involved with it. He hates the very sight of the structure, memorably likening it to a "squashed beer can".

As if that were not enough abuse it has now been voted "Perth's ugliest building" in an online poll of Perth Now readers. If the building had a soul it would definitely be suffering self-esteem issues and be in dire need of counselling!

The negative perceptions may continue for some time. But I suspect that eventually the general feeling about it will change and it will become a much loved building.

Right now there's strong antipathy towards it because people do find change most disturbing at first. And not only has this building sprung up out of nowhere, but the one it is replacing -- the iconic Perth Entertainment Centre -- has been demolished just nearby over much of the same period.

Everyone who has grown up here has memories associated with the "Ent Cent". So its complete erasure must have had a negative effect on their sense of connection to the city, even if only subliminally. Perhaps some of this ill-feeling is being directed at the "new kid on the block"?

Well, it will be interesting to see how things develop ...

One thing I vaguely recall from when I was growing up was that the Perth Entertainment Centre itself copped a lot of the same kind of abuse currently being hurled at Perth Arena when it was new. So perhaps it's just another confirmation of that aphorism "the more things change, the more they stay the same".