Construction continued

After the First World War structural framing of steel and concrete, and the introduction of safe passenger lifts, allowed architects to design taller buildings. These developments reflected the emergence of a Modern Movement in architecture in Europe and America, a style which rejected the classical and decorative elements of the Edwardian and late Victorian period, still dominant in places like Western Australia.  During the 1920s and 1930s steel girders formed the basis of most buildings.  Steel was hidden behind Donnybrook stone and brickwork which were of more decorative than structural importance.

Following the Second World War a low-cost housing boom saw the construction of cheap housing in newly developed suburbs in Australian cities like Perth.