Balcatta, Western Australia

Infobox Australian Place | type = suburb
name = Balcatta
city = Perth
state = wa


caption =
lga = City of Stirling
postcode = 6021
est =
pop = 9,495 (2006 census)
pop_footnotes=Census 2006 AUS|id=SSC51071|name=Balcatta (State Suburb)|quick=on|accessdate=2008-10-05]
area = 7.3
stategov = Balcatta
fedgov = Stirling
near-nw = Carine
near-n = Hamersley
near-ne = Balga
near-w = Gwelup
near-e = Westminster and Nollamara
near-sw = Stirling
near-s = Osborne Park and Tuart Hill
near-se = Yokine
dist1 = 10 | dir1 = NNW | location1= Perthcoord|-31.876|115.817|type:city(9495)_region:AU-WA_scale:30000|format=dms|display=title

Balcatta is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Stirling. It is a primarily middle-class suburb made up of mainly Italian Catholic, Greek and Macedonian Orthodox families, as well as many families from other European Orthodox religions. It is also one of the largest suburbs in the northern part of the Perth metropolitan area. Much of Balcatta is a commercial and industrial area.

History

Balcatta's name was derived from the Aboriginal words "Bal" meaning "his" and "Katta" meaning "hill".

The area became popular with Southern European migrant families as it was one of the few areas that had not been settled and many migrant families wanted to build their own homes in their distinctive style, many complete with plaster figurines of lions and romanesque style columns adorning the front verandah and entry. Similarly, other European immigrant families had already settled in nearby suburbs such as Osborne Park, who made their living as market gardeners.

The area was especially popular with Macedonian families, leading to the establishment of Macedonian Cultural Centre 'Ilinden' on Grindleford Place. Balcatta was also a popular area among other peoples from the former Yugoslavia. What is known as the Adriatic Centre was once called the Yugoslav Club; located on Jones Street, the name of the club was later changed so as not to offend or alienate members.

As many of the older families pass on and others choose to update by building a newer home further north, the area is becoming increasingly popular with those of Asian cultural background, perhaps attracted by the central location of the suburb and generous block sizes, which has also led to some parts of Balcatta being subdivided into small units or villas.

Many corporations have their headquarters in Balcatta, most noticebly ERG.

Areas of Interest

Jones Street

The longest street in Balcatta. Winding through a residential area, Jones Street has had repeated work done by the local council to try and smooth it out and make it more safe for both pedestrians and motorists. A number of new round-abouts have been constructed in order to slow down traffic at various points on the road. Jones Street also runs past Takari Primary School.

Amelia Street

This hilly street runs east to west through Balcatta. It also goes past one side of Balcatta Senior High School.

Balcatta Senior High School (BSHS)

This is the only high school in Balcatta and has a great number of cultural and ethnically diverse students. The school has specialist programs in the Arts such as Dance and Drama. BSHS was opened in 1967 and at the time was the northernmost school in the Perth metropolitan area.

Jones Paskin Reserve

A large oval mainly utilised in the summer as a cricket oval and for general use by the local community. This is the home ground of the mighty Balcatta Cricket Club.

External links