Paris House

Paris House is a boarding house dating from the 1820s and 1830s, later altered to shops around 1876-99, with further alterations in the 20th century. It is constructed of stucco over brick, with concealed roof and stucco end and rear stacks featuring cornices and wrought-iron balconies.

The building’s original range features a central three-window breakforward. The ground floor has a row of projecting shop fronts extending to the returns. The first floor retains original stucco detailing, with three-quarter engaged Ionic columns at the ends and between the windows, alongside Doric pilasters. A continuous entablature and blocking course run along the first floor. The first floor also has 6/6 sash windows in plain reveals with tooled architraves and a sill band. The ground floor shop fronts are articulated with rusticated pilasters, friezes, and dentil cornices where original. Many now have plate-glass windows and glass doors; the central entrance has a cambered-arched tripartite window with slender mullions and recessed, glazed panels. To the left, the shop front has frosted glass and margin-lights.

Interior features include a rear skylight to the stairwell with frosted glass and margin-lights, as well as a stretch of deep coving and pilasters.

Exterior subsidiary features include a balustrade over the projecting shops on the left-hand side, with stick balusters and embellished panels. A balustrade incorporating a web and scrolled lozenge motif extends to the right return.

Historically, Paris House appeared on Merrett's 1834 Map as a single building with Belgrave House, Imperial Square. The Ionic columns and Doric pilasters were originally full height. Rowe's Guide illustrated a ground-floor balcony with a web motif, which may have been reused in parts. In 1845, Rowe described it as Mesdames Haydon and Shaw's Boarding House, noting its prominent location and high-quality internal accommodations. The Promenade was laid out in 1818 as a tree-lined drive and by 1826 it was a carriage drive with gravelled walkways. Buildings on the north-west side were developed first. While originally flanked by "rows of elegant houses," by 1845 the south-east side had largely become dedicated to professional and business establishments.