The Cliffe - Owners

Owners

The original owner of The Cliffe was Neil McNeil, who purchased the land in 1892 - only one year after Peppermint Grove was surveyed into building allotments. McNeil was one of the owners of the Jarrahdale Timber Company which exported timber for the paving of London Streets at the turn of the century. Because of his strong business interest in timber and his conviction of its suitability as a building material, McNeil built his home as a showpiece of jarrah construction. Unfortunately, McNeil's vision of majestic timber houses, rather than houses constructed of brick and stone, was not shared by the Peppermint Grove Road Board which later legislated against timber construction in the area. The property was sold in 1927, following McNeil's death, to Lance Brisbane, a prominent West Australian industrialist. When Lance Brisbane moved in 1933, Brisbane's brother, David Brisbane, and his family, occupied The Cliffe until his death in 1960.

Dr Harold McComb, a prominent plastic surgeon and Dr Athel Hockey (AO), a renowned geneticist, subsequently purchased The Cliffe and lived there until April 1995. The McComb's had four sons, two of whom (David and Robert) performed in the iconic Australian post-punk rock band, The Triffids. According to rock historian, Bleddyn Butcher,

"Between 1978 and 1981, the Triffids recorded six collections of original songs at The Cliffe. The house remained a sanctuary and source of inspiration throughout their career. Its peculiar location, an eyrie on Devil's Elbow overlooking Freshwater Bay, gave David a startling perspective as well as a beautiful view. When he became interested as a teenager in forming a band, he and the future Triffids would gather in the cellar at The Cliffe to practise, the size of the grounds ensuring there were few neighbours to disturb."

According to Robert McComb, the home inspired his famous brother, who loved the house:

The house was the home of the band while we were in Perth. The sprawling rooms, lofts and underground cellars we used to rehearse in were things most Perth houses didn't have; there was such a strong atmosphere there that Dave would return to it for inspiration.

The cover of The Triffids' last album, The Black Swan (1989) was photographed in the stables at the rear of the house during the summer of 1988/1989.

In April 1995, the McCombs sold the house to a local real estate agent, Christopher Shellabear: "“Our family all left home and my wife and I were rattling around in this huge house”, Harold McComb explained. On 30 June 1995, following receipt of petition from local residents worried about the potential redevelopment of the site, the Heritage Council of Western Australia issued a Stop Work (or Conservation) order under Section 59 of the Heritage of Western Australia Act 1990. On 17 July 1995, Chris Shellabear sold the now-encumbered property to Sharon Creasy, wife of prospector Mark Creasy, for $2.7 million. On 10 October 1995, the Heritage Council of Western Australia added the property to the State Register of Heritage Places on an "interim" basis. The Creasys contested the interim listing for nine years, and in 2004 the Heritage Council removed the dwelling from the interim listing and placed it on the permanent register. There was a legal dispute as to whether the listing was done correctly, resulting in the Heritage Council re-registering it on the permanent list in May 2005. The Creasys estimate that the dispute has cost them $225,000 in legal fees and claim that the house is now uninhabitable, estimating it would cost at least $2.8 million to make it liveable and much more to renovate it completely.