Heritage Areas and Local Planning Policy 6.2 - Heritage Protected Areas

UPDATE: At the 25 June 2024 Ordinary Council Meeting, it was resolved to remove a portion of the Tyrell Street North area (between Edward Street and Striling Highway) from consideration as a Heritage Area and from the Policy.

The City is considering designating a number of city blocks as Heritage Areas. Heritage Areas are collections of places making up a section of historic streetscape. Designating a place as a Heritage Area ensures that the area’s unique qualities are protected from inappropriate development and supports the community's ability to work together to conserve the character and features of the area.

Please see the FAQs to the right for answers to frequently asked questions, including how heritage areas affect property values and what works are allowed on a Heritage Area property.

You can provide your comments through the relevant survey below or via email to planning@nedlands.wa.gov.au. Comments for Clifton Street and Meriwa Street close at 5pm on 3 June 2024.

Comments for Tyrell Street and Mountjoy Road recently opened and consultation is underway beginning 10 June. Comments for Tyrell Street and Mountjoy Road close at 5pm on 8 July 2024.

As part of a pilot program, City Officers are focusing on the following areas in May 2024:

1. Clifton Street

2. Meriwa Street

City Officers will extend consultation to the following areas beginning 10 June 2024:

3. Mountjoy Road

4. Tyrell Street South

 Tyrell Street North

The Local Planning Policy

The Heritage Areas are accompanied by a draft Local Planning Policy 6.2: Heritage-Protected Places. This Policy describes the culturally unique heritage significance of each area and sets out built form guidelines that apply to both contributory and non-contributory properties within an area.

Contributory versus non-contributory

Within a Heritage Area, houses are labelled as either contributory or non-contributory. Contributory places include original houses as well as those that have been altered but still contribute to the heritage significance of the area. Non-contributory places are those places that have either been demolished and replaced with newer construction, or significantly altered such that they contribute little to the significance of the area.

What does this mean for you?

Importantly, the built form requirements within the policy apply to all lots within a given area.

If your property is a contributory property, a Heritage Area designation means that the house should be retained, and any external alterations you make to your property and which are visible from the street will require special consideration to show that they are in keeping with the design and form of the dwelling. Streetscape alterations should generally be designed in a manner consistent with the original form of the dwelling, with the intent of maintaining and upkeeping the facade and publicly visible parts of the house.

If your house is non-contributory, it means that there is more ability to demolish or alter the house, however, design of all dwellings must be consistent with the contributory houses in regard to bulk, scale, siting and, to an extent, design. For example, if a new house was proposed, the front setback would need to be consistent with front setbacks within the area, and with any second floor set well back from the front of the dwelling in order to preserve the sense of a single storey streetscape.

Though faux heritage is discouraged, the design of new or altered houses should reflect the heritage significance of the area.

In Heritage Areas, internal alterations or extensions to the rear of a house which are not visible from the street do not have heritage considerations.

Frequently Asked Questions

The document available to the right includes answers to frequently asked questions and dispels some common myths about heritage protection, such as the myth that it means a property can't be redeveloped, or that heritage protection leads to loss of property value.

We want your input!

Community support is critical to the success of this project. City Officers will attempt to contact affected owners and occupants through a variety of means including letters, signs on site, and personally visiting each street at different times of the day to make ourselves available for discussions.

Officers will be visiting the proposed Heritage Areas during the following times to be available for in-person discussions:

• Corner Mountjoy Rd and Princess Rd - 4:30pm - 5:30pm – Wednesday 12 June 2024

• Corner Mountjoy Rd and Princess Rd - 12:30pm - 1:30pm – Saturday 15 June 2024 

• Corner Tyell St and Elizabeth St - 4:30pm - 5:30pm – Monday 17 June 2024 

• Corner Tyell St and Elizabeth St - 12:30pm - 1:30pm – Saturday 22 June 2024 

Please contact us at planning@nedlands.wa.gov.au or 9273 3500 if you have any questions or would like to discuss the proposals in more detail.

Comments for Clifton Street and Meriwa Street close at 5pm on 3 June 2024.

Comments for Tyrell Street and Mountjoy Road close at 5pm on 8 July 2024.