Council Hou.se | |
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Council House
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General information | |
Type | Office building |
Location | 27-29 St Georges Terrace, Perth, Western Australia |
Coordinates | 31°57′24.02″S 115°51′38.71″E / 31.9566722°S 115.8607528°ECoordinates: 31°57′24.02″S 115°51′38.71″E / 31.9566722°S 115.8607528°E |
Construction started | October 1961 |
Completed | 1963 |
Cost | £1.5 million |
Owner | City of Perth |
Height | |
Roof | 47.9 m (157 ft) |
Technical details | |
Floor count | 13 |
Design and construction | |
Architect | Jeffrey Howlett & Don Bailey |
Main contractor | J. Hawkins and Son |
References | |
Council House is a 13-storey office building on St Georges Terrace in Perth, Western Australia. Located beside Stirling Gardens and Government House in the city's central business district, the 47.9-metre (157 ft) building was designed by Howlett and Bailey Architects and opened by The Queen in 1963, after Perth hosted the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. For most of its history, it has served as the headquarters for the City of Perth.
Built in a modernist style, the building has been the subject of vigorous public debate about its heritage value. Some parties, such as the Royal Australian Institute of Architects, consider the building to be an important example of modernist architecture in the city, whilst others consider it ugly. These conflicting views led to animosity in the 1990s, when the State Government refused to heritage list the property, and instead recommended its demolition. Despite this, the City of Perth opted to renovate the tower and keep it as its headquarters. Following this, the building was admitted to the State's Heritage Register.
The site was originally home to the Colony's governing Legislative Council in a building which came to be known as the Old Government Offices or Public Offices. The building was designed by Acting Civil Engineer Henry Reveley in August 1836 after he was asked to prepare plans for public offices on the site. A call for tenders was made, and the tender accepted was for £1,833, well above the £1,200 maximum specified in the call for tenders. Payment was delayed until February 1839.