Latest news with #HeritageNewZealand
NZ Herald
3 days ago
- Health
- NZ Herald
World War I soldier's journal detailing scientific breakthrough gifted to National Army Museum
The journal belonged to Private Hugh Montgomery Purdie and contained entries on everything from basic physics formulas to chemical compounds. Purdie was a plumber from Auckland who served with the New Zealand Expeditionary Force in Europe. The Heritage New Zealand team found his notes on water sterilisation particularly interesting. 'Purdie's observations of a particular method of water sterilisation are remarkable,' Edwards said. 'What he describes is a method of sterilising water using ultraviolet light generated by large military searchlights, which he had likely come across in France.' Purdie tested his theory with water from the Seine that was purposely contaminated to assess the effectiveness of the method. 'The process was subjected to severe tests. The water to be treated was drawn from the Seine below Paris and was further contaminated with germs of cholera, diphtheria – indeed, every effort was made to make the water as poisonous as possible,' Purdie wrote. 'The germ-contaminated water was then drawn off in the usual manner, being induced to flow over the lamp, and upon withdrawal was found to be absolutely sterile – all contagious germs having been completely destroyed as a result of exposure to the ultraviolet rays.' As a qualified plumber, Purdie recognised the importance of sanitation and, therefore, the significance of these findings. 'What's also impressive is Purdie's ability to see the potential for this new technology to improve the lives of many, suggesting that it would only take a small dynamo to feed the lamps with the necessary current,' Edwards said. 'The fact that he took time to record what he knew of the process in such detail shows he could see the potential of the method. 'What he would not have known was that, after technology improved in the 1930s, the UV method would become a widely accepted and scientifically proven method of treating water adopted by large cities around the world.' Currently, Paris uses a mix of carbon, UV light and ozone to sanitise its drinking water. After the armistice that ended World War I in November 1918, Purdie was promoted to sergeant and transferred to the army's education department. Edwards believed it was possible his writings were notes that he may have used in some of the teaching in his new role. The National Army Museum said it would add the notebook to its collection of WWI soldiers' diaries and memorabilia. 'Purdie's notebook is an incredible piece of the New Zealand First World War experience,' collections and exhibitions manager Caitlin Timmer-Arends said. 'We are grateful for the diligence of the Hospice Mid-Northland staff and volunteers, and thankful to my former colleagues at Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga for their part in the donation.' However, Purdie's story still has some details missing, which Edwards is keen to resolve. 'We have managed to find out some information about Hugh – that he served in the RNZAF during World War II, though probably not overseas; that he was married with two children and that he died in 1980. 'If anybody has any additional information about Hugh Purdie, his family or his notebook, we'd love to hear from them.' People with more information can contact Bill Edwards at infonorthland@
Newsroom
5 days ago
- General
- Newsroom
Throwaway culture is a recent privilege we just can't afford
Opinion: Images of the Gordon Wilson flats on the Terrace in Te Aro, Wellington, may have persuaded many readers that Chris Bishop was right to amend the RMA so that the flats, owned by Victoria University, would be eligible for demolition. Bishop states: 'The flats sit as an ugly scar on the Wellington skyline,' and that they are, 'emblematic of a failed planning system that prioritises preservation of heritage, no matter the economic cost'. He got one part of that sentence right: the building is emblematic of a failed planning system, that allowed the building to fall into such disrepair that it was perceived widely as a scar on the skyline – a process that many have described as demolition by wilful neglect. It is not my intention here to argue in favour of the flats' heritage status; interested readers can read more about the McLean and Gordon Wilson Flats on Heritage New Zealand's website. Whether you think they are ugly or brutalist or represent a period in New Zealand history that should be preserved, is beside the point. Its heritage listing is being used as a scapegoat. The cold, hard, fact is that there are tons of embodied energy locked in the building, along with 87 housing units, at a time when there is a desperate shortage of housing. Yes, it needs to be refurbished but the fit-out costs would be the same whether it is a new building or a refurbishment. Demolishing this building would be a despicable act of waste – much of the developed world would be appalled. It would fly in the face of many international initiatives, such as the retrofit first policy, now adopted by three London boroughs, and gaining traction elsewhere. The policy is designed to discourage new buildings and encourage a circular economy, reliant on building reuse. Under the policy, developers are required to consider a whole life carbon assessment early in the feasibility stages of a project and assess varying degrees of retrofit, prior to considering demolition and re-build. The priority is on retaining at least 50 percent of the existing building's superstructure, because nearly 50 percent of a typical, large building's embodied carbon lies in the superstructure, with a further, nearly 20 percent, locked in the substructure. Circularity is also soon to be a legal requirement in Brussels, where Article 4 of the Regional Urban Planning Regulations states that: 'Every existing building will be conserved and, if necessary, renovated.' A similar legal framework is also proposed in the EU. Why do we in New Zealand feel that we should be exempt from these progressive principles – are carbon atoms somehow different down under? Sustainability architect Carl Elefante said in 2007 the 'greenest building is the one that is already built'. We now know that that the greenest building is the one that already exists and has been remediated to ensure it performs efficiently. The Gordon Wilson Flats were built as a model of high-density inner-city housing, close to employment and transportation routes. Photo: Wikimedia Commons Operational carbon emissions from buildings account for approximately 28 percent of global energy-related carbon emissions, according to the World Green Building Council. It also states: 'Towards the middle of the century, as the world's population approaches 10 billion, the global building stock is expected to double in size. Carbon emissions released before the built asset is used, what is referred to as 'upfront carbon', will be responsible for half of the entire carbon footprint of new construction between now and 2050, threatening to consume a large part of our remaining carbon budget.' Therefore, when building new, the target should be net zero or, ideally, carbon negative – the latter being an ambitious target that has yet to be achieved in New Zealand. But working with what already exists will always be achievable because we already have it – we have paid for it both in terms of carbon emissions and dollars. Why waste it? Wastefulness is a recent and poorly exercised privilege – one that was inconceivable to, for example, my grandparents, who managed to narrowly survive WWII, and then maintained a frugal existence for ever after, having learnt the hard way what going without really means. Our throwaway culture is exacerbating the climate crisis. Therefore, it is astounding that such a significant and substantial building is being considered for demolition. Yes, we could build new with 'sustainable materials' but as the UK engineer and contributor to Building Design, Anna Beckett, said, this is comparable to a fad diet: 'Ultimately, to consistently reduce carbon we have to build less.' The challenge is building less but delivering more, she explains, and this is where re-purposing existing buildings is so important. The Architecture Centre is currently working on a proposal that illustrates how the Gordon Wilson Flats could be seismically strengthened and refurbished so that the building envelope meets high thermal performance expectations and low operational carbon emission targets. In its proposal, an externally installed, mass timber structure, with steel dampers, would enclose the building, offering a reinterpretation of the original facade. This would ensure high thermal performance as well as increasing the ductility of the building, ensuring that it performs well in an earthquake, achieving at least 67 percent New Building Standard. Initial engineering advice suggests that this is not only a relatively simple solution, but a cost-effective one too. The internal spaces could be retained in their existing form. Retaining the superstructure of the building will save considerable money as the construction time would be reduced and the superstructure would not have to be demolished and re-constructed. Furthermore, this proposal also ensures that concerns about the 'ugly' aesthetic of the building are addressed. The building would be re-envisioned much like the Cité du Grand Parc, in Bordeaux, by Lacaton & Vassal has been, illustrated below. In this way, the site's most significant heritage values would also be retained. It would continue to be used as housing and the important legacy of the flats as a significant piece of New Zealand's social housing history would also be retained. The re-envisioned building could serve as much-needed (and highly desirable), post graduate housing or faculty housing, similar to the Symonds Street flats, which are owned by the University of Auckland and were refurbished for this purpose. The re-envisioned building would be an exemplar of how a large mid-century building can be both seismically strengthened and thermally efficient, one which Victoria University could showcase as a truly sustainable development it could be proud of.
Scoop
17-07-2025
- General
- Scoop
Kakanui Church Listed As Category 1 Historic Place
Press Release – Heritage New Zealand The Presbyterian church at Kakanui was designed by Robert Arthur Lawson, an important Scottish Dunedin-based architect, who designed many ecclesiastical buildings over his career. The owners of the former Kakanui Church, Michael Simpson and Anna Miles, are thrilled to see their restoration project entered on the New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero as a Category 1 place. The Presbyterian church at Kakanui was designed by Robert Arthur Lawson, an important Scottish Dunedin-based architect, who designed many ecclesiastical buildings over his career. The wooden, gothic-style church at Kakanui was built in three months to accommodate 100 people. It was built at a time when Kakanui had just built a port in the hopes of becoming a major export port. This growth never eventuated but the Presbyterian church remained a key community hub. The church's architecture was part of what attracted Michael and Anna to the property when they first saw it was for sale. 'We like that it's Robert Lawson's smallest, most modest surviving building' says Michael. 'It was pretty exciting when we looked at it and saw that it was one of his before we bought it.' For Michael and Anna, the purchase and restoration of the church has been a pleasure – they describe the restoration as their 'hobby'. When they bought the church, it needed significant work but that didn't scare the couple. Michael is an experienced carpenter with heritage expertise, and Anna is also hands-on. Gradually they have put new subfloor bearing joists in, replaced corner studs and weatherboards, restored windows, painted, and improved the drainage. 'We never had a particular plan except to restore it,' says Michael. 'There was no timeframe, no budget and that's why it's been such a pleasure. It is going really well at this stage.' Part of the journey of restoration has been discovering the emotional ties so many people have to the church. In addition to regular services, the church ran Sunday School classes, which were so popular that in 1933 a dedicated Bible Class Hall was added to the main church. In 1955, two further small buildings were purchased to accommodate the growing Sunday school numbers. The local branch of Brownies used one of these huts as their den. When Michael and Anna work on their church they have an open-door policy, they've found that people come to visit and chat. 'The more we've got to know the building, the more we've realised it's a special space that means a lot to a lot of other people', says Anna. 'For us, we're looking after it at the moment and fixing it up. We see ourselves as stewards of the building.' Now that the church is weathertight and stable, Anna and Michael have opened it up to community use. Michael says, 'we've had weddings in it, gigs, art exhibitions, and carol services. It doesn't need to be a commercial space, but we've realised it should have a life of its own and a reason to exist. We get quite emotional seeing all the life in the building. We never expected that side of what is our hobby. It's not what we went looking for but it's rewarding to see.' The listing process has highlighted the social and historical value to the Kakanui community. Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga Heritage Assessment Advisor, Alison Breese, has loved working on the project. 'This place is highly significant to the Kakanui community and has outstanding aesthetic, architectural and historic significance. As one of only two surviving Presbyterian timber churches in New Zealand designed by Lawson it's been a pleasure seeing the love and hard mahi the owners have put into it.' For Michael and Anna, the church entry on the New Zealand Heritage List/ Rārangi Kōrero is an important recognition of the significance of the church and will support its ongoing protection and recognition.
The Spinoff
23-06-2025
- Politics
- The Spinoff
Windbag: The Gordon Wilson flats saga reaches the funniest possible conclusion
Chris Bishop's plan to pass a new law specifically to demolish one ugly building is a hilariously petty solution to a ridiculous problem. When housing minister Chris Bishop announced an amendment to the RMA that would make it legal to demolish the Gordon Wilson flats, he celebrated by posting a photoshopped image on social media of himself riding a wrecking ball into the flats. The headline of the official press release sent last Tuesday was 'Gordon Wilson flats' heritage protection goneburger', a sentence that could have only been written by cabinet's most Twitter-brained minister. That parliament will pass a new law with the sole function of making it legal to demolish this specific abandoned apartment block is undeniably funny. It's legislative speak for 'fuck this building in particular'. 'It's not a step that we take lightly, but there have been two previous attempts to delist them, and both have failed,' Bishop said on Tuesday, addressing media in front of the abandoned 87-unit apartment complex on the Terrace. 'When the council wants them gone, Wellingtonians want them gone, and the owner of the building wants them gone, the government has taken the simple and pragmatic view that it is time to get rid of them.' For 13 years, the Gordon Wilson flats have been stuck in a doom spiral. Too expensive (and arguably impossible) to repair, but illegal to demolish, they've instead been left to decay, paint fading and the facade crumbling, deteriorating into an ugly, uninhabitable eyesore. Let's go back to the start. The Gordon Wilson flats opened in 1959, at a time when Wellington's population was rising rapidly and there was a severe housing shortage. The government architect Gordon Wilson, for whom the flats are named, designed them in a modernist style typical of high-rise public housing in the post-war era. The building was given heritage protection in Wellington's district plan in 1995 and was listed as a category 1 historic place by Heritage New Zealand in 2021. The flats were good, affordable housing. Each unit was small but with high ceilings that made them feel airy. The landlord, Housing New Zealand, painted the exterior in bright rainbow colours. Thousands of people lived there over the years, most of whom have fond memories of the place. The story turned sour in 2011 when an engineer's report identified structural issues. The residents were evacuated in May 2012. The building was deemed uninhabitable. It was riddled with asbestos and so fragile that it could collapse from an earthquake, strong winds, or even, according to one assessment, 'a large person falling heavily at a critical location'. Housing New Zealand saw no realistic way to repair the damage, so in 2014 it sold the site to Victoria University of Wellington. The university initially planned to demolish the building and build new educational and research facilities on the site. That plan was scuppered in 2017 when advocacy group the Architectural Centre won an Environment Court case against the university, upholding the building's heritage status and blocking the demolition. While heritage advocates celebrated the legal victory, it did nothing to change the condition of the building. The flats continued to decay, becoming increasingly dangerous and less repairable. Campaigners insisted the university should repair the building. The Architectural Centre released a 3D model imagining how the building could be repurposed, complete with a cable car to Kelburn. Of course, it's easy to imagine pretty redesigns when you don't have any financial stake in the project. That doesn't mean it is viable. The university hasn't shown any interest in the proposal, nor has any other property developer offered to cough up the dough. The university tried again in 2020 with a proposal called Te Huanui – Pathway to the City, featuring three academic buildings, an atrium and a plaza that would provide a pedestrian connection to the Kelburn campus. Responding to public sentiment that favoured new housing, it later changed its plan to be focused on student accommodation. Wellington City Council was keen to support the development. At the university's request, the council voted to remove the building's heritage protections in 2024. But even that, it seemed, would not fly. Despite a majority vote by the elected body, it was legally dubious whether the council actually had the power to remove the protections. Bishop, as the minister responsible for signing off the district plan, declined the move; not because he didn't want to see the building demolished, but because he was afraid it would be vulnerable to a judicial review by a heritage advocacy group. The courts wouldn't let the building be demolished. The council – the entity that gave the building its legal protections in the first place – was seemingly powerless to change it. Well-funded advocacy groups were willing to launch legal action. The feasibility of repairs, already slim at the beginning, was now nonexistent. The legal system forced this decaying wreck to keep standing. There was no recourse. No other option. Which is why it came to this. The trump card of the New Zealand legal system. Parliamentary supremacy. Predictably, the minister's announcement has had heritage advocates crying foul. Heritage New Zealand's Jamie Jacobs told the NZ Herald he had 'serious concerns about the long-term wisdom of this outcome'. Historic Places Wellington chair Felicity Wong, writing in The Post, claimed the building's earthquake-prone status was 'misinformation'. There is a well-known principle in architecture: 'Form follows function.' It means the purpose of a building should be the starting point for its design. The heritage values and architectural innovations of the Gordon Wilson flats come from the building's function as a source of dense, affordable housing. According to the Heritage New Zealand listing, the Gordon Wilson flats have 'historical significance because of their association with the state housing programme' and are 'uniquely placed to demonstrate that chapter of New Zealand's response to the need for housing'. The idea that the building should be kept empty, or forcibly repaired at exorbitant cost, as a totemic reminder of affordable housing in a city with an active housing crisis is a cruel irony. The Gordon Wilson flats served their function for 53 years. They no longer do. All the collective nostalgia in the world won't change that.
Otago Daily Times
28-05-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Rates rise of 9.79% splits council
Waitaki District Council's longest-serving councillor has been left annoyed and frustrated with fellow councillors' inability find further ways of reducing rates bills. At a meeting of the Waitaki District Council this week, councillors agreed a rates rise, from next year, of 9.79%. Cr Jim Hopkins was not impressed with the outcome of what was the final chance to make meaningful reductions before the long-term plan is finally adopted in June. ''No-one wants to spend 9%-plus on rates but none of you want to actually take a dollar off the bill — crying out loud.'' The Oamaru Freezer Building was a concern. Cr Hopkins had suggested the building be gifted to Heritage New Zealand to be looked after by the nation, rather than ratepayers having to pay $250,000 to keep it up to safety standards. His suggestion that the $80,000 planned to pay for demolition of aviaries at the Oamaru Public Gardens be saved by offering the work as a free project to a community group was also turned down by councillors. ''I would just say to my colleagues around the table that what you have decided in terms of the discussions previously and even today, is that every dollar, of every line item, on every page, is absolutely of essential importance and cannot be reduced or forsaken,'' Cr Hopkins said. ''I think that's untenable. ''There are discretionary items in the pages we've looked at that could and should be reconsidered and I stand by the points I've made. ''I'm disappointed the elected members won't accept the principle that if, as has been asserted by a Crown agency, the Oamaru Freezer Building is a building of national importance, there is no justification for 13,000 ratepayers to put the total cost of its upkeep.'' The council did manage to agree to a reduction of $100,000 in the budget which will have a further small reduction of about one or two tenths of a percent. While not as big as the 10.3% rise the council originally consulted on in March, councillors have approved a proposed rates strike for its 2025-34 Long Term Plan, which will be adopted by the council in June. Once adopted the plan will see rates rise 9.79% in 2026, then a rise of 6.5% the following year. Rates will then be reduced from that benchmark by 16.11% in the third year of the plan, as water services are transferred to a yet-to-be-confirmed water entity that will charge ratepayers separately for services. Following that, rate rises will remain below 4% for the following seven years. ''This has been an extremely difficult process as we juggled with many conflicting priorities, against a background of affordability challenges for our community,'' Waitaki District Mayor Gary Kircher said. ''We've been working on this long-term plan for around 20 months and a lot of work has gone in to reducing cost for the ratepayer. ''We started in late-2023 with a rates rise of 26% and pulled it down to 13.73%. ''Even then, cost pressures saw the draft budget increase to 16%. ''We've managed to get it down to 9.79%, which is still more than anyone would like.''
