Sydney Art Deco Heritage

This example of the interwar style Art Deco bank buildings built by the Commonwealth Bank is located in Croydon at 6 The Strand. According the the owner of the grocery shop next door the bank finished operations in the building over 10 years ago and the building is currently a video store. The Commonwealth Bank building boasts a nice Art Deco relief above the front door however the rest of the building has been painted unsympathetically to the style. Art Deco relief above front door Sources: Commonwealth Bank Archive Department

A stroll down Nerang Street in Southport reveals several beautiful Art Deco buildings. As one of the oldest suburbs on the Gold Coast in Queensland Southport has several excellent examples of Art Deco architecture. Continue down Nerang Street from the Town Hall and you will discover the Cecil B DeMilles Hotel on the corner of Scarborough Street. With its long open verandahs above the awnings and the imposing round Art Deco facade it occupies the corner site like a grand old Hollywood starlet. It is the oldest public house on the Gold Coast to maintain its original name throughout all its years of operation The new hotel replaced an ealier structure on the site and was designed by Addison and MacDonald. It opened in 1938. The exterior of the building included brown and cream tiles with Venetian red bricks cut through with cream bands. The roofing tiles were multi-coloured Marseilles tiles. The interior decoration of the hotel was in red, green and autumnal tones and featured poli...

The former Hahn Automotive Services at 117-117A Cleveland Street in Darlington is a rare example of an interwar Art Deco style service station that dates from the key period for the development of service stations in NSW from 1925 to 1939. Plans for the existing building were submitted to council 10/9/37. The building was built on the site in 1939 as a service station and was designed by DT Morrow & Gordon architects of 129 Pitt Street Sydney for Messrs Chippendale Estates Ltd. It has continued being a service station to this day. Sources: Sydney of Sydney Archives and History Resources

The building at 686 Botany Road (Cnr Gardiners Road) in Mascot was originally a Commercial Banking Company of Sydney branch. It is another example of a 1930s interwar period Art Deco suburban bank building. It is listed in the 1934 book "A Century of Banking - the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney Limited, 1834-1934". The CBC merged with the National Bank in 1981 to form the National Australia Bank. The building was sold in 1988 for $676000.00. It is now home to "Simplicity Funerals". Facade detail Sources: Botany Bay Heritage Listings CBC Bank Archives Sydney Morning Herald - 29/11/88 pp38

The Commonwealth Bank Gladesville was located at 219 Victoria Road in Gladesville. The original Government Savings Bank building was built by Alexander Simpson and Sons under the architectural supervision of Messrs Ross and Rowe in 1920. The GSB merged with the Commonwealth Bank in 1931 and operated from the existing GSB building. The bank sold the building in 1989 but continues to operate from the site. Facade detail The new facade of 1937 In 1937 extensive alterations were carried out by Hogden Bros which included this new facade. The 1992 awning addition An awning was added in the early 1990s to accommodate additional services which severely compromised the look of the Art Deco facade. Sources: Commonwealth Bank Archives Department