Como Beach and Jetty

Statement of Significance

• The beach and jetty have aesthetic value as a well maintained landscape and jetty in an urban environment. • The beach, jetty and associated public art works are a landmark when viewed from the Kwinana Freeway and contribute to the community sense of place. • The beach and jetty have historic value for their association with the development of Como as a holiday destination in the early 20th century. • The beach and jetty have social value for the members of the community who visited the place for recreation prior to the construction of the Kwinana Freeway in 1959. • The beach and jetty have social value as a place of ongoing passive recreation by members of the South Perth and wider community. • The former Sea Scouts hall has historic value for its association with the many scouting groups who have attended activities near this site since the 1930s.

Physical Description

Como Beach generally extends along the foreshore from South Terrace in the north to just south of Cale Street on the approach to Canning Highway. The Como Jetty is the focal point, located at the western end of Preston Street. The Kwinana Freeway impedes direct access to the foreshore except by way of five footbridges. The Como Jetty dates from 1982 but is in the same position as the original (1907). It forms a key feature of views along the foreshore and provides an important recreational facility. The Kwinana Freeway impedes direct access to the foreshore except by way of five footbridges. The Como Jetty dates from 1982 but is in the same position as the original (1907). It forms a key feature of views along the foreshore and provides an important recreational facility. The deck is timber and the timber piles have been sleeved to provide longevity. The deck is open sided along its length with handrails at the western end around the fishing platform. The foreshore includes walking paths, stone retaining walls, interpretation, picnic and play facilities in a manicured landscaped setting overlooking Melville Waters. Public artworks created by Danka Schulz von Lorenz and Jason Hirst commissioned by the City of South Perth in 2007 comprise three groups of human figures of varying ages symbolising aspects of the area’s heritage and historic lifestyle, including the Old Mill, a carousel horse, flocks of birds, fish and beach toys. At the base of the Preston Street footbridge on Melville Parade and the overpass itself is artworks by Malcolm McGregor inspired by the history of Como Jetty and Como Tramways. They were commissioned by Main Roads WA in 2002 during construction of the new bus way and footbridges on the Kwinana Freeway. The Sea Scouts buildings are at the southern end of Como Beach and comprise a pair of single storey simple structures constructed in the 1960s. The northern most building has an east-west axis whilst the southern building is on a north-south axis with boat access from the west elevation. Both are of brick construction with shallow pitched gable roofs. The grounds around the buildings have been enclosed with contemporary palisade fencing. The structures are on the beach and have a small timber jetty close by. There is no public vehicle access but pedestrian access is provided by way of the overpass and the cycle path runs along the eastern boundary of the site.

History

In 1898, the South Perth Road Board boundaries were changed to recognise Como as a new suburb, since the area had already been used for a number of years as a popular camping and swimming destination. In 1905 Swan Location 40, land bounded by South Terrace, Thelma Street, the river and Fremantle Road (Canning Highway) was subdivided James Gardiner, with part of it was purchased by Frank Edgcumbe who acted as another land agent. Known as ‘Como Estate’, they promoted the beach as a fine recreation spot for residents and visitors. Construction of the Como Jetty was organised by the developers in 1907 for a cost of about £1,500. The task was difficult as the piles and decking had to be arduously carted from Fremantle Road along Preston Street which was no more than a sandy track. The jetty replaced the narrow plank structure to the south of Thelma Street used mostly by yachts in summer. When built, the Como Jetty stretched out into the bay 1,000ft [almost 305 metres] from the shore, which made the beach accessible to the largest of the river steamers. This allowed for Como Jetty to become part of the ferry route between Applecross (Canning Bridge) jetty and the Barrack Street Jetty. The ferries provided access to Como Beach for swimming, camping and day trips. In return for surfacing Comer Street with shell, Frank Edgcumbe donated a portion of land from the Como Estate to the Municipal Council, and this became the Como Reserve. The Council considered schemes to make Como beach more popular. The first ‘Gala at Como’ event was held on 9 December 1909, and construction of toilets and fencing commenced in September 1910. In 1911, Como Beach was declared a public beach. The Council’s Beach Committee ran a Children’s Day on 30 January 1911 to mark the official opening. In the summer of 1912/13 camping facilities were improved, with seats and firewood supplied for campers. In readiness for the annual ‘Como Day Picnic’ in January 1913 new dressing rooms and toilets were provided. A sports program was organised, and 250 bags of refreshments provided for the children in attendance. Later in 1913 Council purchased Olive Gardens (popularly known as the ‘Olives') an area of ground on the river adjacent to the yacht club site, to expand the public recreation reserve. Como Beach could cope with thousands of people at a time, such as the Patriotic Carnival on New Year’s Day 1916, a charity event. It was jointly organised by the South Perth Municipal Council and the Como Progress Association, with assistance from a large number of other local organisations and volunteers. An estimated 5,000 people came to enjoy the beach, carnival amusements, sports, jetty swimming events, and a yacht race that was conducted by officials of the South Perth Yacht Club. However, as pressure on facilities mounted, no further camping was allowed for a period after 1919. During the 1920s a string of tea rooms, dance pavilions and lodging houses sprang up along the foreshore shell track of Melville Terrace (now Melville Parade), all the way to the Canning Bridge. These included Cassey’s and Harold Gordon’s Pagoda Ballroom. The tea rooms and dance pavilions were the centre of Como social life in the Inter-War period and during WWII. Kirk’s Tearooms was at the bottom of Preston Street opposite Como Jetty. It operated from c. 1930 and was open in summer all weekend as well as days children came for swimming lessons. The owners had their living quarters at the rear of the shop, which sold cool drinks, confectionary, ice cream and light lunch/afternoon tea such as scones and sandwiches. While the South Perth Road Board supported the development of the beach, it refused an application from Jimmy Stiles to build a hotel in Comer Street in 1928, on the grounds that it might lead to intoxicated behaviour and the harassment of young ladies going to and from the beach. Residents argued that having a hotel would be incompatible with “the spirit of Como”. As late as 1933, men and boys were prohibited from rolling their bathers down to the waist, as it was considered that bare chests would degrade the good reputation enjoyed by the beach. The Como amateur swimming club was formed in 1919 and active over the summers. It initiated the first ‘Swim Through Como’ event in 1921, which became an annual event. Participants swam from Canning Bridge to Como Jetty. In 1929, a swimming enclosure was constructed at the end of the Como Jetty through community fund raising and was used in the ‘Swim Through Como’ event in that year. The resulting swimming enclosure was home to the Como Swimming Club for many years. Local schools also used the swimming enclosure for swimming lessons and swimming carnivals. The Scouting movement which had been present in Como since the 1920s, formed a Troop in c. 1930 and were donated a boat for training. The troop regularly gathered on the Council’s Olives Reserve, but the lack of a storage shed on the beach was an impediment as theft of their equipment was an ongoing problem. In February 1931, the troop held the first of many fundraising events, but it was not until 1933 that sufficient monies were raised to build a small timber and iron shed. A further donation from the South Perth Roads Board enabled the construction of the 25ft x 25ft shed. Theft of the rowing boat in May 1933 was a significant impetus to build new headquarters surmounted by a lookout tower in the following months. The facility was opened on 7 October 1933 by Dr Lovegrove, Chief Commissioner for Scouts and Guides in WA. In April 1938, the 5th WA Group (Sea Scouts) Como was registered as the 1st Como Group WA. The insignia for the group was a white scarf with an albatross emblem. There was a significant housing shortage throughout Western Australia following WWII, precipitated by a cessation of wartime house construction, and an influx of post-war immigrants. The South Perth Road Board allowed people to live in caravans on their properties in Como until their houses were built. Cassey’s Team Rooms diversified into providing chalet and caravan accommodation. The Narrows Bridge and Kwinana Freeway opened in November 1958. Owing to the efficiency of the new freeway and the resulting extra mobility by cars and buses around this time, there was a decline in usage of the ferry service and trams. The Kwinana Freeway cut off South Perth and Como residents from the water, limiting leisure and tourism opportunities. The former Sea Scout headquarters were demolished as part of the freeway works and new premises and a small jetty were constructed further north. The Como Sea Scouts used these premises until the troop disbanded and the facility became available to the wider scouting community as the Scout Water Activities Centre. In 1980 the Kwinana Freeway past Como was two lanes each way. This has since been expanded with a rail line down the centre and three lanes each way. In 1982, the main Como Jetty was rebuilt by the Public Works Department because of the poor condition of the existing 1907 jetty. It was officially opened on 5 November 1982 by the Hon. E. C. Rushton MLA, who was at the time the Minister for Transport and the Deputy Premier. In 1995, the swimming enclosure jetty was declared unsafe, and a decision was made to remove it despite opposition from many, and to upgrade the main jetty. The enclosure was removed in 1997. In c. 2002, the Preston Street pedestrian footbridge over the freeway was replaced and interpretive artworks were included. The City of South Perth has continued to provide facilities at the beach and in 2007 installed several public art pieces which reflect the history of the beach and jetty.

Integrity/Authenticity

High

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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