‘Rare’ cottage to be fixed

A historic cob cottage in Christchurch will be restored and reopened as a living museum.

Tiptree Cottage in Harewood was built in 1862 and has been described as an ‘‘exceptional’’ and ‘‘rare’’ piece of colonial architecture.

The Christchurch City Council’s social and community development committee unanimously agreed on Wednesday to recommend contributing $117,480 toward the $237,000 cost of structurally upgrading and repairing the building.

Council heritage conservation projects planner Victoria Bliss said the cottage was exceptional because it still had its original layout and heritage fabric.

It was one of three surviving cob cottages in Christchurch but Tiptree was unique because it had two storeys.

‘‘The dwelling has high architectural, aesthetic, technological, and craftsmanship significance as a rare surviving example of a cob building in Christchurch and New Zealand.’’

The protected heritage building was an original example of a modest colonial farmhouse and provided a record of the pioneering role of the farm in the development of irrigation in Canterbury, Bliss said.

The cottage is owned by a trust, made up of descendants of the Savill family, who designed and built the cottage, and members of the Gregg family who bought the property in 1963.

The trust planned to restore and upgrade the cottage to enable it to reopen to the public as a living museum, which it was before it was damaged in Canterbury’s earthquakes.

The work would involve strengthening the cob with stainless steel ties and threaded rods, repairing the damaged cob and replastering with lime plaster.

The windows and doors and timber weatherboards would be repaired or replaced.

Trustees Helen and Kate McLeod said they were not sure when the work would be completed, as it would depend on when the trust could raise all the necessary funds.

Heritage New Zealand has granted the trust $45,000 and additional funding will be sought from other organisations and private sources.