THE building at 334 Beaufort Street, Perth has had many uses throughout the decades, with the most recent being a bike shop showroom.
Bayswater residents Anthony Hart and Avril Strutt have refitted the building, which Mr Hart said was once an old carriage works and stables, for a new career venture.
It was also listed as a Buchell’s Garage in the 1920s, used as a polling place during 1927 elections and changed hands to become Paul’s Garage in 1936.
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READ NOWMy Ride Perth Central opened in December, but not before the couple had to reinforce the dangerous ceiling, provide support for the floor slab and remove a dividing wall to open it up for a showroom.
“It was a car stereo shop and they moved over the road,” Mr Hart said.
“It was two separate buildings and we opened it to one building, the dividing wall was falling apart; one side was the carriage works, the other side was stables so we returned it to transport in a way.”
When seeking a change from the corporate world, Mr Hart said he wanted his next venture to involve his passion for cycling.
“I never cycled competitively, just recreationally,” he said.
“We have always been a one-car family even though we’ve got three kids; whoever had the kids had the car and the other cycled.
“The irony of it, I haven’t been on my bike since I set up the shop.”
Mr Hart said he wanted to encourage more people to get out of their cars and cycle more.
* In March, 1938, second-hand car dealer Charles Francis Paul from Paul’s Garage was found not guilty of assaulting Alfred Hayes.Source: The Daily News archives
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