Mayfair Flats

Values

The place is an unusual Inter-War Functionalist residence with Inter-War Art Deco elements.

The place is representative of the type of flats and apartments that were built in Perth, and its immediate suburbs from the 1930s in order to accommodate the growing population.

The place is an examples of William G Bennett’s residential architecture.

Physical Description

The two storey residential complex is a rendered and face brick building with a hipped tile roof. The front elevation is symmetrical, with a central entry, and ground floor and first floor windows and balconies mirrored on each side. Both floors have six bands of narrow horizontal bands of brickwork on their front face, and the upper floor balconies have curved corners.

The name “MAYFAIR” heads the top of the central parapet.

The complex consists of four two-bedroom flats.

History

After the Swan River Colony was established in 1829, settlement by the colonists began in and around the Perth area. The area to the north of the Perth was part wetlands stretching 50 or 60 miles northwards, and was not considered an ideal site for settlement. However, despite the swampy conditions, by the early 1830s land to the north of Perth was beginning to be being settled, and land had been granted to individuals such as John H. Monger, William Leeder, Thomas Mews. Drainage of the lakes close to the city begun in the 1840s freeing up additional land for settlement.

With the arrival of convicts from the 1850s, infrastructure and public works increased and improved. Some basic roads were constructed with convict labour, but the area now known at the Town of Vincent was mainly occupied by dairy farmers, markets and gardens and the roadways were left as gravel. During the latter part of the nineteenth century, the Town of Vincent area was subdivided and slowly populated with residences, workers cottages, hotels, and churches.

By the turn of the century, the area to the north of Perth began developing rapidly, particularly in Leederville and North Perth. Leederville became a municipality in 1896 and in 1899 the suburb of North Pert was declared. Post Offices and Police Stations were established in central areas, as well as town halls and religious meeting places, to meet the needs of the rapidly expanding population.

By the 1930s the construction of residential complexes began, as boarding houses were being converted into self-contained flats. Many applications for the construction of flats were submitted, but refused as the land was too small for development. This led to specific areas being zones for flats.

Mayfair Flats were built in c.1937 as a consequence of the growing fashionability of the flat lifestyle, and the densification of the area’s population. William G Bennet was contracted to design the complex, which reflects his style of architecture which can be seen in his other buildings located around Perth and the state.

The first Fair Rent case to be heard in the Metropolitan Fair Rents Court was in regard to the Mayfair Flats in October 1954.

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