Heritage building part of new hotel
A landmark West Perth heritage building will be refurbished and developed into a 14-storey hotel under plans lodged with the City of Perth.
The building once housed Julio's restaurant known for its celebrity clientele, hosting the likes of Lady Gaga, Beyonce and Bono from U2.
The Italian diner closed last year and Perth-based property group Australian Development Capital bought the site.
The two-storey Federation Queen Anne building on Hay Street, listed on the City's Register of Places of Cultural Heritage, will be preserved and converted into hotel rooms, new restaurant, lounge and small bar as part of the $14 million revamp.
But Grafton Flats, a block of brick-and-tile inter-war residential units at the rear of the site, will be demolished to make way for a skyscraper hotel with more than 90 rooms.
The council decided in June that the flats did not meet the threshold criteria to be declared a building of cultural significance.
The planning application, lodged by RobertsDay, will go before council next week.
The original design of the skyscraper was deemed "unsympathetic and insensitive" in the way it related to the heritage building but the council's design committee had backed the revised plans.
According to the latest council report, planners are confident the hotel will be built using high- quality materials and finishes that are "sympathetic to the existing heritage building".
