Old Cemetery to be Redeveloped into Community Hub

Plans are in place for a cemetery to be redeveloped into a mixed-use hub after being sold by the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage to a private group of investors.

The site, 20 Bronte Street, was a known cemetery in Perth’s formative years, and in a statement released by the state government, is the burial site to “potentially hundreds of human remains”.

As a condition of the sale, developers Australian Development Capital (ADC) and Warburton Group have entered into a Heritage Agreement which will govern the remediation process and ensure “exhumation and reinterment is conducted in an ethical manner”.

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ADC and Warburton purchased the neighbouring Old Perth Girls School property, a 1.1-hectare heritage site last year for $5 million, with plans to develop both sites as an integrated precinct featuring a range of residential, retail, office accommodation and community space.

Lands minister Rita Saffioti said the buyers have extensive experience with similar redevelopment projects, including a number of heritage properties in Perth’s CBD.

"The property development team has a strong understanding of the heritage values of the property, and will respect the building's history and heritage as part of the repositioning of the site as a residential, mixed use and community hub," Saffioti said.

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"With this land sale, 20 Bronte Street in East Perth, currently a vacant block of land, will find new life with the iconic Old Perth Girls School as a mixed use, residential, retail, office accommodation and community space.”

The sale of 20 Bronte Street is expected to settle within the next 60 days.

Following settlement, details including the sale price, will be published on the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage’s website.