Proposal to demolish historic facade
The Invercargill Licensing Trust is proposing to demolish a historic facade to make way for its new hotel because the cost to retain it will be too expensive.
Last week, the ILT submitted a resource consent to the Invercargill City Council for the construction and operation of a new hotel on the corner of Don and Dee streets.
In the application, the ILT notes alternatives to the complete demolition of the area were retention, strengthening and re-tenanting the existing Langlands Building at 73-81 Dee
St for commercial use, and retaining and strengthening of the facade to be used as part of the proposed hotel.
A structural assessment of the Langlands Building, done for the trust, found it to be a high life-safety risk, along with the old Deka Building next to it, at less than 20 per cent of the National Building Standards.
The estimated cost of retaining the building with strengthening to 67 per cent of the standard would be $4.62 million, while retaining the facade was estimated to be $1.85m greater than the cost of a new facade covering the area.
In the trust consent application, it says overall, the various assessments undertaken have identified that while technically feasible, strengthening the existing building or retention of the facade would result in a form of development that would be financially unviable.
The cost of the eight-storey hotel is expected to cost up to $40m, and will
include 80 rooms, a restaurant, cafe, bars, function rooms and car parking designed by Warren and Mahoney Architects.
The consent report noted the facade was missing key elements of the original ornamentation, which resulted in a facade that was ‘‘awkward in appearance, no longer achieving the proportion and integrity of the original design intent’’.
A Heritage Properties Ltd assessment recommended providing a continued connection to the block and history by giving the hotel a name connected with Langland, and the reuse of transferable materials.
The trust had consulted with Heritage New Zealand during the resource consent preparation, who was supportive of the trust’s proposal to develop a strategy to retain and upgrade the heritage buildings.
Southland Heritage Building and Preservation Society indicated its disappointment at the loss of heritage building, but acknowledged the financial difficulties in retention and reuse.
Most neighbouring property owners and occupiers supported the proposal, while two owners were concerned with the need for structural strengthening of boundary walls.
The trust says it would continue to consult with these people amid their concerns.
The existing building on the corner is listed as a Class 2 heritage building in the Proposed Invercargill District Plan, but it is not listed in the Heritage New Zealand list.