Residents in the historic Perth suburb of Guildford are mounting a last-ditch bid to prevent a 24-hour McDonald's approval by planning authorities.

Just a year ago the community was celebrating after Guildford Hotel was restored and re-opened, the culmination of an eight-year battle to save the 120-year-old pub from demolition.

The refurbished hotel was an overnight success and now draws hundreds of patrons every weekend.

And although its revival has been welcome, it has brought with it a new set of problems for locals.

Increased traffic, parking shortages and plans to build a 24-hour McDonald's behind the hotel have local campaigners rallying again.

Battleground block: the unofficial car park behind the Guildford Hotel where McDonald's hopes to build. ( ABC Radio Perth: Emma Wynne )

The battleground is a block of land behind the hotel which is currently used as car park, but Luke Martino, the hotel's owner, has long wished to develop the site to recoup some of the cost of restoring the hotel.

Opponents are adamant the block needs to remain a car park and that a fast food outlet in a modern building would detract from the community.

Historic island town 'at risk'

Guildford, in Perth's east, was the site where the first Swan River colonists pitched their tents when they arrived in 1829.

Its 700 homes and buildings are some of the oldest in Western Australia.

"Guildford is unique, probably in Australia," Barbara Dundas from the Guildford Association said.

"It's the only town of first settlement that has never expanded beyond its boundaries."

While residents welcomed the Guildford Hotel's restoration, it has added to parking and congestion problems. ( ABC Radio Perth: Emma Wynne )

Ms Dundas said she believed Guildford's future was as a heritage-listed, well-preserved tourist destination served by small businesses and enough parking to accommodate tourists.

"The whole future of Guildford as a cultural heritage area is at risk [from McDonald's]," she said.

She describes Guildford as an "island town" because it is hemmed in by the Swan and Helena rivers and bordered by flood plains.

The streets and buildings were laid out before cars were a consideration and consequently there are already few places to park.

She would like the local council to acquire the land behind the hotel and make it a permanent car park.

"We need that car park. We have an absolute parking crisis," she said.

"There is no parking in Guildford. That block has always been a car park."

Drive-through could be the last straw for one loyal resident

Bromwyn Facer has lived in Guildford, one door down from the hotel car park, since 1997.

She runs the local twilight markets and was one of the founders of the visitor centre.

She said if the McDonald's goes ahead she may well leave the area.

"One of the reasons I moved here was because of my vision.

"I don't have any vision in my left eye and my right eye can see only shadows.

"So it was really important that I could walk up the street, grab a coffee, walk to the post office.

"[Since the hotel reopened] our verge has become a car park. We even have vehicles that park on the footpath."

Guildford residents says the streets and verges are packed with cars already. ( ABC Radio Perth: Emma Wynne )

The prospect of having to navigate a fast food outlet with a busy car park and drive-through is too much for her to bear.

"I do think it's going to take away a bit of my independence and put me at risk," Ms Facer said.

Maccas site within 100 metres of primary school

Claire Scanlan runs the local playgroup and her son attends Guildford Primary School, which is 100 metres from the proposed McDonald's site.

She is furious at what she says is the lack of consideration of the health and safety issues associated with the outlet.

"The primary school has recently been named Australia's fittest school," she said.

"These children are fit. Many of them walk to school."

She said she had been told that the location of the primary school and the proximity of fast food would not be considered when a planning decision was made.

"The Government is spending billions of dollars a year on obesity," she said.

"One-quarter of primary school aged children are overweight, but the Health Department have told me this is nothing to do with them."

Development decision 'irrevocable'

Residents are also unhappy that planning approval will not be made by local councillors at the City of Swan but by a Joint Development Assessment Panel (JDAP), a decision-making process introduced by Barnett government in 2011.

Barbara Dundas says Guildford's future lies in heritage tourism, and the historic look of the town needs to be preserved. ( ABC Radio Perth: Emma Wynne )

The JDAP was designed to streamline and speed up development approvals but are loathed by suburban resident groups which argue they impose inappropriate developments on unwilling communities.

The JDAP is due to rule on the McDonald's application in June.

"The JDAP is three government experts on the panel with two people from council," Ms Dundas said.

"They will have five days to sit down, read the reports and come up with a decision and that decision is irrevocable.

"The process undermines the whole role of local government."

In the meantime residents have told the ABC they will continue to collect signatures and gather evidence for their arguments against the golden arches.

"We are optimistic as a community because we believe in the value of this town, and if we are speaking with one voice we will be heard," Ms Dundas said.

Neither McDonald's Australia nor the City of Swan responded to requests for comment.