Westgate Apartments
Infill housing within a 1960’s shopping mall
Models
Illustrations
Drawings
Summary
Developed in 1965 as a collaborative venture between local government and the private sector, Westgate Mall was designed by Oldham, Boas & Ednie-Brown in association with Raymond Jones and helped revitalise Fremantle’s retail scene.
Over time, the precinct deteriorated as major retailers departed and by the early 2010s it had developed a reputation for high vacancy rates and antisocial public behaviour.
Recent nearby projects—such as Sirona Urban’s Point Street PBSA and PARC’s Little Lane apartments—have provided both impetus and proof for further redevelopment in the immediate area.
Westgate Mall Circa 2016
Our proposal was simple: remove the metal roof over the single-storey portion of the building and insert one new rectilinear mass. The new zincalume box sits entirely within the existing perimeter walls, set back to form double-height entry voids at each end.
Two typical 1.5 bedroom apartments are stacked and oriented head-to-toe. Openings are positioned to permit light and cross-ventilation at both ends while maintaining sufficient visual privacy between apartments.
Our approach was informed by local precedents such as Brian Klopper’s The Primaries, as well as other Japanese housing projects.
Existing Building
A physical sectional model and iterative 3D prints helped us to resolve the overall massing, opening locations and spatial quality. Because the project was difficult to progress quickly through 2D drawing alone, we naturally felt the need to adopt a more physical design process.
The project is now in the design development phase and is being progressed as a pre-fabricated timber structure.
Working Model
Information
Fremantle
Private
2026 -
Design Development
Multi-Residential
104m²
Concept Design, Documentation
City
Client
Year
Status
Type
Size
Services
Sion Bourne, Basim Boulos
Team