13/12/02
Architects, planners, heritage experts and Government representatives met today to discuss design options and development issues surrounding Perth's Old Treasury Buildings.
Opening a high-profile panel review and public forum on the future of the site, Housing and Works Minister Tom Stephens said the group of buildings at the corner of St George's Terrace and Barrack Street remained a major Western Australian heritage icon. The forum had been organised to stimulate debate on future uses.
Mr Stephens said the buildings had stood idle since the mid-1990s and it was now time for the State Government and the community to take up the challenge and bring the buildings back to life.
To graphically demonstrate the possibilities, the Minister recently challenged fourth-year University of Western Australia architecture students to create design proposals for the site. Their ideas were displayed and discussed at the forum, which was held in the Postal Hall of the Old Treasury Buildings.
The students were asked to develop workable solutions for the conservation and future use of the buildings. They were to consider the site's heritage value and architectural features, and incorporate 10,000sqm of new development.
"The students have set about creating design options to accommodate modern uses for these old buildings," Mr Stephens said.
"Their ideas are creative and thought-provoking and I hope they will stimulate wide-ranging community debate on determining future uses for this site.
"Architects, industry, investors, business, arts groups, heritage groups and key precinct stakeholders such as the City of Perth and the Perth Diocesan Trust all have legitimate and vital roles to play."
The forum will feature a panel of experts including leading Sydney-based architect Brian Zulaikha, Queensland Government architect Michael Keniger and University of Western Australia architecture school head Patrick Beale. Perth Lord Mayor Peter Nattrass and Heritage Council chair Marli Wallace are also on the panel, with Professor Geoffrey London, professor of architecture at UWA, acting as moderator.
Perth's Old Treasury Buildings were once a thriving hub of the Swan River Colony. The oldest existing buildings date back to the 1870s, and represent the work of some of WA's most eminent public architects, including Richard Roach Jewell, George Temple Poole and Hillson Beasley.
The buildings once housed Perth's GPO but have primarily accommodated State Government offices, including the Treasury, Lands Department and Titles Office.
Minister's office: 9213 6500
