Perth, Western Australia (suburb)
Encyclopedia
Perth is a locality covering the central inner-city area and central business district
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...

 of the Perth, Western Australia
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....

 metropolitan region. Perth is split between the City of Perth
City of Perth
The City of Perth is a local government area and body, within the Perth Metropolitan Area, which is the capital of Western Australia. The local government body is commonly known as Perth City Council. The city covers the Perth central business district and surrounding suburbs...

 and the City of Vincent local authorities. Perth was named after Perth, Scotland
Perth, Scotland
Perth is a town and former city and royal burgh in central Scotland. Located on the banks of the River Tay, it is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire...

.

Built environment

The dominant land use in Perth is commercial. Office buildings include BankWest Tower
BankWest Tower
The BankWest Tower is a 52-storey office tower in Perth, Western Australia. Completed in 1988, the building measures to its roof and to the tip of its communications antenna. It was the tallest building in Perth from its completion in 1988 until 1992 when it was overtaken in height by Central...

, QV1 and Central Park - the tallest building in the city and the seventh tallest in Australia.

Significant buildings

The Perth Town Hall
Perth Town Hall
The Perth Town Hall, situated on the corner of Hay and Barrack streets, is the only convict-built town hall in Australia.Designed by Richard Roach Jewell and James Manning in the Victorian Free Gothic style, the hall was built by convicts and free men between 1868 and 1870...

, built between 1868 and 1870, was designed as an administrative centre for the newly formed City of Perth
City of Perth
The City of Perth is a local government area and body, within the Perth Metropolitan Area, which is the capital of Western Australia. The local government body is commonly known as Perth City Council. The city covers the Perth central business district and surrounding suburbs...

. By the late 1950s the Town Hall was considered too small for the council's requirements so Council House
Council House, Perth
Council House is a 13-storey office building set beside Stirling Gardens on St Georges Terrace in Perth, Western Australia. The 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...

, a modernist
Modern architecture
Modern architecture is generally characterized by simplification of form and creation of ornament from the structure and theme of the building. It is a term applied to an overarching movement, with its exact definition and scope varying widely...

 steel and glass building, was commissioned. Completed in 1960, Council House has divided opinions over its architectural merit. Both the Town Hall and Council House are on the Register of the National Estate
Register of the National Estate
The Register of the National Estate is a listing of natural and cultural heritage places in Australia. The listing was initially compiled between 1976 and 2003 by the Australian Heritage Commission. The register is now maintained by the Australian Heritage Council...

.

Demographics

Perth has a residential population of 6,341. Residents of Perth are drawn from a number of backgrounds - 40% of the population were born in Australia with minorities from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 (6.5%), New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 (2.4%), Malaysia (2.1%), Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...

 (2.1%) and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 (1.9%).

Arts and culture

The Perth Cultural Centre
Perth Cultural Centre
The Perth Cultural Centre is an area of central Perth, Western Australia and the collective name for the buildings of the Art Gallery of Western Australia, Western Australian Museum, Perth Gaol, Alexander Library, State Records Office, and Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts .William Street,...

 includes facilities such as the Art Gallery of Western Australia
Art Gallery of Western Australia
The Art Gallery of Western Australia is a public gallery that is part of the Perth Cultural Centre, in Perth, Western Australia. It is located near the Western Australian Museum and State Library of Western Australia...

, the State Library of Western Australia
State Library of Western Australia
The State Library of Western Australia is located within the building known as the Alexander Library Building, in the Cultural Centre of Perth, Western Australia....

 and the Western Australian Museum
Western Australian Museum
The Western Australian Museum is the state museum for Western Australia.The Western Australian Museum has seven main sites: two in Perth within the Perth Cultural Centre, two in Fremantle , and one each in Albany, Geraldton, and Kalgoorlie-Boulder...

. The Perth Concert Hall
Perth Concert Hall, Western Australia
The Perth Concert Hall is a concert hall in the centre of Perth, Western Australia. Situated between St Georges Terrace and Terrace Road, it is located near Government House, the Supreme Court Gardens and the Swan Bells, with a view to the Swan River....

 is located on St Georges Terrace.

Transport

Three freeways service the suburb - Mitchell Freeway
Mitchell Freeway
Mitchell Freeway is a long freeway in Perth, Western Australia, linking Perth's central business district with its outer northern suburbs. It is allocated Route 2 for its entire length and is named after former state Premier and Governor Sir James Mitchell....

, Kwinana Freeway
Kwinana Freeway
The Kwinana Freeway is a major arterial road in Perth, Western Australia, linking Perth with the southern suburbs and then further on towards Mandurah, a distance of . It has a speed limit of , except in central Perth and south of Lakes Road . Like all Western Australian freeways, the minimum...

 and Graham Farmer Freeway
Graham Farmer Freeway
The Graham Farmer Freeway is a major part of the metropolitan road infrastructure in Perth, Western Australia. It is long and links Rivervale and East Perth with West Perth, bypassing Perth's central business district...

.

Public transport facilities include three train stations (Perth railway station
Perth railway station
Perth Station including Perth Underground is the largest railway station in Perth, Western Australia, and functions as an interchange between the Transperth Trains Armadale / Thornlie, Fremantle, Joondalup, Mandurah and Midland railway lines, as well as the Transwa Australind.-History:The Victorian...

, McIver railway station, Esplanade railway station) and two bus stations (Esplanade Busport and Wellington Street bus station), as well as the East Perth Terminal, servicing intrastate and interstate rail and bus services. The Barrack Street Jetty
Barrack Street Jetty
Barrack Street Jetty, is one of the Transperth jetties, located on the southern edge of the Perth CBD in Western Australia. It is next to the Swan Bells. The Transperth jetty is located at pier 4 of Barrack Square.-Ferry services:...

 is the home of Transperth
Transperth
Transperth is the brand name of the public transport system in Perth, Western Australia. It is operated by the Public Transport Authority.-History:...

 ferry services. Perth is served by three free CAT bus routes and a number of open and high rise public car parks.

Streets

The main east-west streets through the city block are St Georges Terrace, Hay Street
Hay Street, Perth
Hay Street is a major road through the CBD of Perth, Western Australia. The street was named after Robert William Hay, the Permanent Under Secretary for Colonies. Sections of the road were called Howick Street and Twiss Street until 1897...

, Murray Street
Murray Street, Perth
Murray Street is one of four main east-west roads within the Perth central business district.The street, the central portion of which has become a pedestrian mall, was named after Sir George Murray, Secretary of State for War and the Colonies from 1828 to 1830.It is the one main road in Perth that...

 and Wellington Street
Wellington Street, Perth
Wellington Street is the northernmost of the four primary east-west streets in the central business district of Perth, Western Australia. It contains several of Perth's key facilities, including the new Harbour Town shopping development, the Wellington Street Bus Station and the Perth railway...

.

The main north-south streets are Barrack Street and William Street
William Street, Perth
William Street is a suburban distributor and one of two major cross-streets in Perth, Western Australia.Commencing in western Mount Lawley it also crosses the Perth to Fremantle railway at the Horseshoe Bridge....

.

The streets that have had sections converted to pedestrian malls are Murray Street, Hay Street
Hay Street, Perth
Hay Street is a major road through the CBD of Perth, Western Australia. The street was named after Robert William Hay, the Permanent Under Secretary for Colonies. Sections of the road were called Howick Street and Twiss Street until 1897...

, and Forrest Place
Forrest Place
Forrest Place is a pedestrianised square located within the CBD of Perth, Western Australia. The street was created in 1923, and has a history of being a focal point for significant political meetings and demonstrations.-History:...

.

Sport

Sporting facilities include Perth Oval, the home ground of soccer team Perth Glory. Under construction on Wellington Street, Perth
Wellington Street, Perth
Wellington Street is the northernmost of the four primary east-west streets in the central business district of Perth, Western Australia. It contains several of Perth's key facilities, including the new Harbour Town shopping development, the Wellington Street Bus Station and the Perth railway...

 is the Perth Arena
Perth Arena
Perth Arena will be a new indoor sporting and entertainment arena located on Wellington Street in the city centre of Perth, Western Australia. It is currently being built on the site of the former carpark for the now defunct Perth Entertainment Centre...

, an indoor stadium designed to host indoor sports such as tennis and basketball. Tennis clubs are located at Robertson Park and Loton Park.
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