PBSA Tower Proponent Puts Up Workaround to Perth’s Noise Rules

In March, the City of Perth introduced development requirements aimed at ameliorating noise impacts on residential developments from loud venues such as nightclubs. The regulations were in turn designed to protect the viability of the venues.

The GES application said the standards were not capable of being achieved for the Stirling Street PBSA.

The firm’s planning report identified the nearest late-night venue as The Court Hotel, a well-known, longstanding spot catering mainly to Western Australia’s LGBTQ+ community, about 135m south of the site.

▲ GES Real Australia has proposed an alternative approach to attenuating noise for its student housing project at Stirling Street in Perth.

GES argued its site was on the periphery of the noise-sensitive area regulated by the city, and so the exercise of extraordinary discretion concerning noise attenuation would be warranted.

“Given the inherent challenge in achieving the required façade attenuation, consideration has been given to how the intent and objectives of the framework may be achieved through other means,” GES said.

“Overall, it is considered that the primary goal is to protect sleeping areas from excessive noise.

“Put simply, the prescribed scheme standard measures how much sound the building façade removes, whereas the alternative approach we have developed measure[s] the noise actually experienced by a resident within the sleeping room.”

Designed by mja studios, the development would have five car parking bays, including one accessible bay, along with two motorcycle bays and 66 bicycle spaces.

GES—directed by Melbourne-based Alan Hall and Czech Republic-based Radka Zachova and David Barva—anticipated that construction of the tower would take 24 months.

Public comment on the planned tower is open until November 15.