The Founding of the City of Melville

The City of Melville’s foundations began in 1901 when the Melville Roads Board was established. The first Melville Roads Board Building was built in 1904 and located in a hall in Kintail Road, Applecross.

In 1913, the Melville Roads Board’s Council Chambers were built on the corner of Stock Road and Canning Highway, Bicton. The Board’s 1913 Annual Report stated that there were 67 miles (107 kilometres) of gazetted road in the District of which 21 miles (34 kilometres) were “made up”. Annual income was £2,000 ($4,000) and the population was under 2,000.

In 1943, the Melville Roads Board became one of the first Districts to organise a corporate body dedicated to community service. For example, whilst the primary responsibility of Road Boards was rates, roads and rubbish, the aim of the corporate body was to promote the communal interests of ratepayers including foreshore development, parks and reserves, new roads and schools, churches and other public services. The City has experienced several name changes. In 1962, the name changed to the Town of Melville and, in 1968, it became the City of Melville.

It has also grown significantly in size and population. In 1968, there were 199 miles (318 kilometres) of bitumen roads and 21 miles (34 kilometres) of “unmade roads”. The population was approximately 52,000 and the area covered was 21.6 square miles (56 square kilometres).

Today the City currently incorporates 18 suburbs, covers an area of 52.72 square kilometres, has 500 kilometres of “made up” roads, an annual income of $61 million and a population of approximately 100,000. It is a leading Local Government Authority employing nearly 800 full-time, part-time and casual employees who deliver quality services to almost 100,000 residents and stakeholders.