South Perth Police Station (fmr)

Statement of Significance

The following statement is drawn from the Heritage Council of Western Australia Register entry for the inclusion of South Perth Police Station (fmr) in the State Register of Heritage Places in 2003.

South Perth Police Station (fmr), a single storey brick building with a Marseilles pattern tile roof, constructed in the Federation Free Style with stylistic elements of Federation Gothic, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons:
• the place is an intact and relatively well maintained example of an early twentieth century public building and is representative example of Federation Free Style of architecture;
• the place is an important and familiar landmark in South Perth having a double frontage to two main streets, Labouchere Road and Mends Street. The place has an enhanced prominence by its steeply pitched roof and striking striated style of detailing contrasting red brick with white stucco bands known as ‘blood and bandages’;
• the place is contemporary with a group of civic buildings within the immediate vicinity of similar domestic style and scale; which together coherently form a small town centre and constitute a heritage precinct;
• the place is a representative example of a police station incorporating residential accommodation and neighbourhood policing in the first half of the twentieth century, and is representative of the ongoing policing of law and order in the South Perth area;
• the place contributes to the community’s sense of place by its long standing presence, the service it provided to the community, its distinctive architectural styling and prominent location; and,
• the place is a fine example of Government Chief Architect Hillson Beasley’s influence on the development of civic buildings in Western Australia.

Physical Description

The South Perth Police Station and Quarters (Former) is situated in a prominent position at the junction of Mends Street and Labouchere Road but is becoming subsumed in a development site. The former Police Station and Quarters is located on a triangular site resulting in a dual frontage to Mends Street and Labouchere Road.

The place is a single storey red brick and tile detached structure of the Federation Free Style architectural style displaying the characteristic ‘blood and bandages’ aesthetic that was popular in Federation era. The bandages are painted stucco bands that served to break up the monotony if the brickwork and highlight architectural features of the design. In this instance, the stucco elements included the rendered plinth, window lintel and sill details, arch details, string courses and capping to the parapet walls. A rendered panel with the words “POLICE STATION” remains extant on the gable to the south façade overlooking the Mends Street intersection. A secondary smaller rendered panel with the same words is positioned on the west elevation overlooking Labouchere Road.

The Police Station and Quarters (fmr) is of asymmetric plan form with a north –south range, responding to Mends Street, which intersects with the east-west range that extends across the Labouchere Road frontage. Each of the elevations are characterised by gables with rendered capping. The principal façade is the south elevation consisting of two entrances, one either side of the projecting gable wing. The south-eastern entrance is accessed via an open sided porch element with arched opening on the east elevation and wider opening on the south elevation. The second entrance is located on the south west corner.

The south west corner is a more traditional arrangement of verandah extending across the recessed section of façade with entrance into the building on the rear wall. The verandah is of brick construction with brick arches with rendered detailing and brick balustrade. The arched opening abutting the projecting wing forms the access into the verandah area. The door is a solid timber door with single sash adjacent.

The remaining elevations are quite plain in comparison to the south elevation and contain a range of sash windows of differing proportions but all appear to be a variation of multi-paned top pane with single pane sash below.

The roof is a series of steeply pitched gables roofs clad in terracotta tiles with tall brick chimneys with rendered corbelling and bands.

History

This place was built in 1908, under the direction of the Public Works Department Chief Architect, Hillson Beasley (1855-1936). Beasley was Chief Architect from 1905 until 1917 and designed or was responsible for the design of a number of significant public buildings including Government House ballroom, Perth (1899), the competition-winning Western Australian Parliament House (1900), Claremont Teacher Training College (1902), Perth Modern School (1909-11), additions to the Western Australian Art Gallery and Library (1899-1911), Midland Courthouse (1907), Fremantle Post Office (1907) and Fremantle Technical College annexe (1910).

The first policeman to be appointed to South Perth was a constable in 1898. With the growth of the South Perth community in the early 20th century it was resolved to build a police station in the civic hub of the community in Mends Street. Tenders were called by the Public Works department in early 1908 and the successful tenderer was W.H Roberts with a fee of £1048.6.6. Construction was likely to have occurred through 1908 and 1909.

When officers were appointed to the new station, they and their families were expected to live in the accommodation quarters built as an integral part of the two cell station. The first officer recorded was in 1910, when the constable in charge was Constable Richard Fitzgerald

When the South Perth Police vacated the station in late 2002 and relocated to the Kensington Police Station, the City of South Perth purchased the site in 2004. In January 2005, the Minister for Local Government, Ljilianna Ravlich, with Mayor John Collins, opened the City’s Community Safety Resource Centre, which housed the Safer City Office, City Rangers Services and a Community Policing Unit. The City’s Rangers moved from the Civic Centre to the South Perth Police Station and Quarters (Fmr), continuing the function of the building in local community policing and remained there until c2014.

Purchase of the South Perth Police Station and Quarters (Former) site by the Council meant that it owned all of the land bounded by Mends Street, Labouchere Road and Mill Point Road, other than the South Perth Post Office site. All of this land was known as the ‘Civic Triangle’. The Civic Triangle was sold to Finbar Group Ltd, Real Estate Developers as a landmark development site in September 2014. A development proposal for the site has retained the two heritage-listed buildings, South Perth Police Station and Quarters (Fmr) and South Perth Post Office.

Aerial photographs indicate the form and extent of the building has not changed significantly since its construction although internal alterations have been undertaken in accordance with current expectations and building codes.

Integrity/Authenticity

Low / High

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Last Update

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.