The Town of Bassendean council has voted to reclaim ownership of the Pensioner Guard Cottage, the town's oldest surviving building, after determining that the Perth History Association (PHA) failed to commence major restoration works as required under a 2021 agreement. The decision, reaffirmed at the June council meeting, exercises a contractual right to buy back the property for $1, escalating a dispute over the future of the heritage-listed site.
Background of the Agreement
The 1850s cottage, listed on both the National Trust of WA register and the State Register of Heritage Places, was transferred to the PHA in 2021 for $1 under an agreement requiring the association to restore the heritage site. The contract included a clause allowing the town to repurchase the property if restoration milestones were not met. In 2023, the town approved PHA's plans to restore the cottage and use it partly as an office, but these works did not materialize.
The town claims that major restoration work had not started by the December 2025 deadline and that it was not satisfied PHA had demonstrated the financial capacity to complete the works. Mayor Kathryn Hamilton emphasized the need to protect the historic site. "The Pensioner Guard Cottage is an irreplaceable part of Bassendean's story. Bringing the site back into town ownership allows us to ensure it is protected and to carefully plan for its restoration and future community use," she said. "Our focus throughout has been on achieving an outcome that protects this important heritage place for current and future generations."
Dispute Resolution Attempts
The town stated it had attempted to resolve the dispute through formal dispute resolution processes before moving to arbitration, but said PHA was "unresponsive" and did not engage, leading to the town exercising its contractual right to reclaim the property. PHA chair Reece Harley criticized the council's approach, saying, "We've asked again and again to sit down with the mayor and councillors and work this out. Elected members won't even acknowledge or respond to our repeated emails asking for a meeting. It seems they prefer to hide behind expensive lawyers."
PHA's Restoration Efforts
The association countered that it has invested more than $207,000 into restoration over five years, secured a $100,000 State Heritage Grant, obtained required development and heritage approvals, and engaged a builder with a costed quote of $151,294 for the next stage of works. Completed restoration includes structural engineering, archaeological planning, heritage approvals, roof maintenance, crack repairs, repainting, landscaping, and ongoing maintenance while keeping the site open to the public.
Mr. Harley noted that the town originally invited the PHA to take on the project after abandoning its own restoration plans. "We were invited to take on this restoration project because the town decided it couldn't deliver it itself," he said. He argued that the association is now in a position to complete the restoration and that reclaiming the property would increase costs for ratepayers. "We're standing here ready to finish a low-cost restoration at no cost to ratepayers. Instead, the town wants to turn the clock back six years to a more expensive project and no better outcome," he said.
Proposed Solutions and Future Plans
PHA has proposed extending the existing agreement with strict milestones for completing the restoration while allowing the town to retain its right to reclaim the property if those milestones are not met. Mr. Harley said their offer to meet still stands and that he "genuinely believes" the Bassendean community is best served by a low-cost partnership rather than a costly local government procurement process, which would leave ratepayers "on the hook" for restoration and ongoing maintenance and operational costs of a local museum.
The town stated that if ownership returns to it, it will develop a restoration strategy, seek heritage grants, and investigate future community uses such as education, exhibition, arts activities, and public events.
