Mount Hawthorn by arrangement, about 13 km from Landsdale
Mount Hawthorn is about 13 km from IBP Paving's base in Landsdale, a little past the edge of our regular run. We take work here by arrangement: send us the job details and a few photos first, and we will confirm whether we can fit it in and when. The work itself is the same as anywhere else we pave, from brick and stone courtyards to side paths, driveways and the drainage beneath them, with over 20 years of experience and a lifetime workmanship warranty.
Hawthorn Estate homes and tight side access
The Hawthorn Estate was subdivided in 1903, and today Mount Hawthorn is a sought after inner suburb that attracts young families. Between them, old houses and new owners shape the paving these homes tend to need. Renovations and extensions open up the back of the house, and the yard behind needs a courtyard that links kitchen, deck and garden. Older front paths and side passages are often uneven, and a new garden path in a clay paver that suits the period front is a common request.
Narrow side access is common on lots of this age, so we plan the logistics before quoting. Small machinery, hand barrowed base and staged pallet drops let us pave a rear yard without damaging the house, the fence or the neighbour's side.
Holding a 1 in 20 year storm on a Vincent lot
Mount Hawthorn is in the City of Vincent, and its drainage policy is written as a storm standard rather than a litres per square metre figure.
All stormwater from residential property is to be retained on site. A residential system must hold at least a 1 in 20 year average recurrence interval storm of one hour, and connection to the City's drainage is approved only in exceptional circumstances.
Source: City of Vincent, Stormwater Drainage Connections policy (amended September 2024).
In practice that means every new hard surface is matched with on site storage. On a small character lot the space for soakwells and grated drains is tight, so we plan their position with the paving layout rather than after it. Our Perth soakwell requirements page sets Vincent's rule beside other councils.
Sand, limestone and Galup to the south west
Most of Mount Hawthorn is thought to sit on Spearwood sand over Tamala Limestone, close to where the Spearwood and Bassendean dune systems meet along the old Perth wetlands chain. The sand is usually free draining, which suits soakwells, and it compacts well under a limestone base. There is no named wetland in the suburb; Galup, long known as Lake Monger, lies to the south west. The coast is roughly 7.5 km away, far enough that salt is not a factor in choosing pavers.
Crossovers, driveway widths and verge trees in Vincent
All crossover works, and some verge works, need City of Vincent approval before construction, and the City has specifications for both brick paved and concrete crossovers. If you plan to claim the crossover subsidy, lodge the application within six months of completion. Driveways and crossovers must be between 3.0 m and 6.0 m wide at the street boundary. Under the Built Form policy each lot has at most one crossover, 3 m for a single or 5 m for a double, set back 0.5 m from the lot boundary and at least 6 m from a street corner, with a maximum driveway grade of 25 per cent.
The verge is protected. Non permeable verge paving is not permitted, verge parking is considered only in exceptional circumstances and must be permeable, WSUD compliant and include at least one verge tree, and the application form caps paving at one third of the verge in brick or concrete unit pavers. Synthetic turf is not allowed. Driveways have to avoid verge trees, existing trees cannot be removed for vehicle access, and where a tree truly cannot be avoided it is replaced at the owner's cost and only with City approval. The City's heritage and character area guidelines also aim to keep crossovers and car storage off the primary streetscape, so on a character lot we look at rear access before suggesting a new front driveway.
Source: City of Vincent, Driveways and Crossovers Planning Information Sheet (May 2024); Local Planning Policy: Built Form; Verge Treatment Policy and Verge Paving Application form; Heritage and Character Area Guidelines.
Anzac Cottage and the streets around it
On Kalgoorlie Street stands Anzac Cottage, built by local tradespeople in 24 hours on 12 February 1916 for a returned Gallipoli veteran. Beyond Mount Hawthorn we also take work in North Perth, Leederville, Joondanna, Glendalough and Osborne Park; see areas we service.
