The City is currently inviting public comment on the proposal to include 17 places on the Heritage List.
All of these properties have been deemed to have either exceptional or considerable heritage significance – here’s a look at the stories behind some of them.
Joseph Duffell House, 135 Hamersley Road Subiaco
Built for Joseph Duffell, later Mayor of Subiaco in 1914, this house features bricks that were brought to Australia from France as ship’s ballast – and folklore has it that the house’s ornate tower, since it had no windows or access, contained hidden treasure.
The house is located on a prominent corner site, and is a well designed and detailed Federation Queen Anne villa that has been carefully renovated and restored in the decades since construction. It features decorative ‘Art Nouveau’ style glower forms, a slate roof with terracotta ridge capping, and two decorative face brick chimneys.
Diggins House, 16 Chester Street Subiaco
Built in 1919, this house (pictured above) is an excellent example of a well designed and detailed “gentleman’s villa”, in Federation Queen Anne style. It is also noted for its association with a number of prominent Western Australian families; including the Banfields and the Roberts, and for its association with the former Mayor of Subiaco (1978-1989) Richard Diggins.
Aerial photographs of the property since the mid-20th century indicate that few changes have been made to the house, apart from significant growth in the tree canopy around the residence. Key features include two bold window bays with leadlight glazing, and a wide verandah defined by slender ‘classical’ columns.
Rogerson Buildings, 1 Rokeby Road
Robert Rogerson purchased this site in 1907 and erected the Rogerson Buildings in 1923-1924. The new building featured six attached shops at 3-13 Rokeby Road, each with a modest residence at the rear.
The buildings have had many uses over the years, including a coffee palace (AKA a residential hostel), a small goods store, a confectioner, a tent maker, tea rooms, and a hairdresser and tobacconist. Over time, the interiors of the shops have continued to be altered with new fit-outs to suit changes to the tenancies.
You can have your say on this proposal via Have Your Say until 5pm Tuesday 24 February 2026.
