‘Perfect storm’
New city demo project a further hit to retailers
As the Wellington City Council embarks on a project to demolish its Civic Administration Building, a retailer says a “perfect storm” means there is nowhere viable left in the city to open a store.
Letters have gone to businesses around Te Ngākau Civic Square in the central city – who have already spent years hampered by a $187.5 million Central Library rebuild and the up to $329m Town Hall strengthening – that work starts to demolish the Civic Administration Building this week.
In late 2023 the council said the demolition on the quake-damaged building between the library and town hall was budgeted at $8.4m. Council spokesperson Victoria Barton-Chapple said the current cost was commercially sensitive but “significantly less”. For context, the council has budgeted an extra $5.8m to get on top of a backlog of leaky pipes this year.
At Caffeinated Dragon Games on Victoria St, opposite the library construction site, Rhys Kaan said there was a “fear atmosphere” along the strip with the library reopening still thought to be years off.
“Do we manage to survive until the library opens?” He had looked at moving but found all options around the city were too small, too expensive, or in the wrong location.
Kaan said the council’s letter was “lovingly rich on detail” but missed out how it would affect businesses in the area.
The library work had led to a “significant” drop in his business but the latest work would mean three projects in a row with the associated noise, dust, and shaking. For now, his working days were to the sound of jack hammers and other machinery at the library. At one point his shop was shaking.
“It takes a toll,” he said.
After 76 years in business, most recently on Wakefield St opposite the Civic Administration Building building, Gubbs Shoes shut down in late 2022. Julie Gubb said a range of factors had affected business including Covid-19 and the 2016 quake, but the closure of the library saw foot traffic drop ”dramatically”.
The stretch of Wakefield St, once boutique retail, was now “virtually empty”.
“Nobody is interested in renting there because of the work at the Town Hall,” she said. She had looked at opening Gubbs Shoes elsewhere but a “perfect storm” of pipes being dug up, buildings with quake issues, and a lack of parking meant she couldn’t find anything and switched to becoming an online shop.
“Quite frankly, I don’t see anything that is any good,” she said.
Letting agent Johnny Curtis, trying to lease the former shoe shop site and another on Wakefield St, said all the works in the area had made it a “dead thoroughfare”.
The council letter to shop owners said hoardings would go up around the Civic Administration Building today and work would start on April 1. To minimise disruption, the council had gone with the “fastest demolition option”. But part of Wakefield St would be shut to traffic from June to September, then it would be down to one lane to December. The Victoria St entrance to Te Ngākau Civic Square would be closed from late-May to December or February.
Businesses affected by the work could get help from WellingtonNZ, the council-controlled organisation set up to support economic activity across the wider Wellington region, a council statement said.