Location
Ashfield is a residential suburb of Perth, Western Australia in the Town of Bassendean. The suburb is located along the Swan River. The Midland railway line passes through the suburb and it is serviced by the Ashfield railway station.
The deepest point of the Swan River upstream from Melville waters occurs in Ashfield. It was in this area the farthest upstream recording of sharks occurred with one being caught in the late 1970s.
History
The housing was originally established as small collection of railway houses near the train line. In the late 1950s early 1960s the area experienced a small boom of housing (400 houses) mostly built by the then State Housing Commission partly funded by the sale of half the properties to individuals. In the late 1960s the State Housing started to reacquire some of those properties. During the late 1990s the suburb underwent a revamp driven by the State Housing Commission, now called the Department of Housing. This occurred in conjunction with the infill sewage project which was created to convert Perth homes from septic tanks and leach drains to mains sewage. They bulldozed houses on land where they had adjoining proper ties. For every three houses removed five to seven were built in their place. The majority of these were sold off to low income and first home buyers.
Transport
Well served by metropolitan train and bus services, the International Airport terminal is 20 minutes and the Domestic Terminal only 10 minutes from the town centre by car.
Community Events
Each year, the Town of Bassendean presents a range of events for the community. For information on what is happening now, visit their website: www.bassendean.wa.gov.au
