LED advertising billboard rejected for heritage building in Claremont

AN LED advertising billboard proposed for a heritage building in Claremont has been rejected.

Applicant and building occupant Spyglass Pacific wanted to install an 8.2m curved LED billboard facing Bay View Terrace at the corner Stirling Highway as well as a 5.5m billboard.

The application also included adding a third storey to the existing building, which would be refurbished.

The Metro West JDAP approved the third storey addition and refurbishment to the property at a meeting on Monday but did not accept the LED signage.

At a Claremont Council meeting earlier this month, Cr Jill Goetze said that an illuminated sign, in particular a third-party illuminated sign, was inappropriate for a heritage building.

Cr Bruce Hayne said there was divided opinion in the community as to whether the heritage building should be used as a billboard.

“It does not conform to the past practice of the town and the Town Planning Scheme does not list signage for good reason because it’s dealt separately under local law,” he said.

The council approved the third storey and refurbishment but rejected the signs when changes to the Metropolitan Region Scheme (MRS) for Stirling Highway were considered back in 2016.

However, only part of the site was included in the change, with the remainder in the town’s planning scheme.

In December 2017, the council rejected a building permit for all the work because the billboards did not comply with local laws.

A State Administrative Tribunal review subsequently found the permit could not be granted because the works had not been approved in the planning scheme.