‘Old Junky’ artefact-free

The demolition of a historic pub in Marlborough has been delayed by ‘‘standard processes’’ due to the age of the building, owner Nelson Petroleum Distributors has confirmed.

NPD bought the Junction Hotel site earlier this year so its self-service petrol station next door could expand on to the site.

The Junction Hotel, in Spring Creek, was supposed to be demolished on July 22, after regulars packed out the pub for its final night on July 6.

NPD chief executive Barry Sheridan said the demolition was delayed due to the discovery of asbestos, and processes of Heritage NZ because of the building’s age. ‘‘Due to the age and the historic nature of the operations, they have to do a standard process report also,’’ Sheridan said.

‘‘Someone made an inquiry about the historical nature of the site, and when you have got a site with this history, Heritage NZ can ask for this process to be followed. It is just checking out if there are any iwi concerns or claims to the site or anyone that wants to be involved in that – and they have come back as a ‘no’.’’

Sheridan said it was important to check for interested parties in case they wished to have someone on site for the demolition. He also said no artefacts had been unearthed on the site since the process began three or four weeks ago.

‘‘There was a question raised about the archaeological side of things, which is not a standard process every time,’’ Sheridan said.

‘‘If you look at the age of the operations of this site and what it has been over the last 100 years, they want to cover that off as well.’’

The building was believed to be at least 96 years old, with one of the earliest photographs of the existing building dated 1923.

In early August, NPD confirmed the demolition had been delayed due to asbestos found in the ceiling and near the window frames.

Sheridan said all the asbestos was removed within a week.

Asbestos was ‘‘common in older buildings’’ and had been found in about 3800 different materials in New Zealand buildings.

Sheridan said demolition was set to begin in about three weeks, with the new petrol station scheduled to open early next year.