Dunedin’s “period architecture”, not so quaintly….

The overall look of some of Dunedin’s downtown streets meant the city could “knock off other city’s looks in other periods”. –Kevin Jennings

### ODT Online Tue, 28 Oct 2014
‘Incredibly valuable’ – City, surrounds lure film-makers
By David Loughrey
Dunedin is …. attracting film-makers, and more movies may be on the way. Film Otago Southland executive manager Kevin Jennings said Dunedin – and the wider southern region – had plenty to offer film-makers, despite being “at the bottom of the planet”. The Light Between Oceans, which stars Rachel Weisz and Michael Fassbender, began shooting in Dunedin this month, and is using locations including Port Chalmers, Otago Peninsula and the former Dunedin prison. […] Dunedin’s period architecture was one of its strengths, but not the only ammunition in its movie arsenal.
Read more

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### ODT Online Tue, 28 Oct 2014
Full head of steam
By Shawn McAvinue
Steam locomotive Ja 1240, also known as Jessica, leaves the Dunedin Railway Station yesterday, heading to Sawyers Bay. [….] The engine, built at the Hillside Workshops in 1947, came back to Dunedin from Christchurch to appear in the film The Light Between Oceans, which is being shot around Dunedin.
Read more + Photo by Peter McIntosh

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█ The Light Between Oceans: The movie is in pre-production and scenes will also be filmed in Otago, New Zealand and Tasmania. The film is directed by Derek Cianfrance (Blue Valentine, The Place Beyond the Pines) and co-produced by Heyday Films’ David Heyman, who produced all eight Harry Potter films, and Jeffrey Clifford (No Strings Attached, Up in the Air).

[excerpt/ Random House Books Australia 2012]

█ For more on Dunedin’s historic heritage and architecture, enter the terms *heritage*, *historic*, *warehouse* or *harbourside* in the search box at right.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Cities: Organic renewal

St Joseph, Missouri

### Citiwire.net Fri, July 5, 2013
Organic Renewal: St Joe’s Story
By Roberta Brandes Gratz
In the mid- and late 1960s, while many cities and towns were still tearing their hearts out for the false promises of urban renewal, all sorts of people, young and old, saw the beauty, value and promise of gracious living in historic buildings in the places left behind by suburban development. From San Francisco to Louisville to Providence to Brooklyn to St Louis and beyond, urban pioneers stripped, cleaned and restored the irreplaceable artifacts of bygone eras of quality and taste.
Those pioneers were the vanguard of the regeneration of neighbourhoods and cities that, today, many people do not remember were considered a blighted lost cause. Washington’s Georgetown. Park Slope in Brooklyn. King William in San Antonio. The Garden District in New Orleans. The Victorian Districts of San Francisco and Savannah. Who remembers that those neighbourhoods were once considered “blighted,” over, finished?

Surely, this is the most compelling storyline of the second half of the last century. The rebirth of today’s thriving cities started with the rediscovery of yesterday’s discards. That, as they say, is history. But history has a funny way of repeating itself. Today, one finds examples of that organic renewal process re-emerging.

Many cities have lost more than what remains of the authentic architecture on which to build a new momentum. Miraculously, one that survives with an amazing rich legacy to work with is St Joseph, Mo.
Set on a bend in the Missouri River and almost equidistant from Kansas City and Omaha, St Joseph was a railroad, lumber and banking centre and, most importantly, the last full provisioning point for the Westward Expansion in the mid-nineteenth century. It’s the birthplace of the Pony Express, the site of Jesse James’ demise, home of Stetson Hat, Saltine crackers and Aunt Jemima.
St Joseph is still home to a diverse assortment of agriculture-related industry. The past and present combine to offer new opportunities, and a small but growing group of adventurous entrepreneurs appear to be present to lead the way, like the urban pioneers of 50 years ago.
Read more

● Roberta Brandes Gratz is an urban critic and author of The Battle For Gotham: New York In the Shadow of Robert Moses and Jane Jacobs, 2010, Nation Books.

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Dunedin City Council – Media Release
Grants Scheme for Central City Heritage Buildings

This item was published on 05 Jul 2013.

The DCC now has $90,000 available in grants for heritage building re-use projects in Princes Street and areas adjoining the Warehouse Precinct. Like the Warehouse Precinct scheme, this new grant scheme is focused on a specific geographic area to facilitate and expand the regeneration occurring there already. There has been good success with targeted incentive schemes in the Warehouse Precinct. Expanding into the areas around it recognises that the precinct is not an island, but is integrated with the areas around in and with the central city as a whole.

There is already some great work stirring regeneration in the area and it is important we are also poised to assist and encourage others to participate in this regeneration of the area south of the Octagon.

Applications can be made for support for a range of activities, from earthquake strengthening and facade restoration to assistance for businesses and creative industries in the area. The scheme allows building owners to build on the growing positive private sector re-use and investment in the area, such as the Chief Post Office, former BNZ and Standard Building restoration projects already or soon to be underway.

The scheme is supported by Resene Paints which is offering discounts on paint and free colour advice. Resene Otago Trade Representative Henry Van Turnhout says, “We are proud to be offering our support to another DCC area-based project, as we have for King Edward St and the Warehouse Precinct. We are also offering free assistance with colour selection as we recognise how greatly appropriate colour choice can influence the way a building – and an area – looks.”

Taking an area-based approach to regeneration and incentives encourages businesses and building owners to work together and to recognise the benefits for the entire area of re-using or improving their building.

Applications are open immediately, on a first come first served basis. Application forms will be sent to building owners, residents and businesses owners in the next week and are at www.dunedin.govt.nz/heritage

Last year’s Warehouse Precinct grants scheme supported 11 re-use projects in the area. Information about these is available at here.

Contact Glen Hazelton, DCC Policy Planner on 477 4000.

DCC Link
ODT: DCC boost for Princes St regeneration

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Dunedin. In future years, the council plans to use this approach in other parts of the central city and beyond.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

*Images: (from top) commons.wikimedia.org Tim Kiser – St Joseph, Missouri (2006): Buchanan County Courthouse, Downtown cnr Francis St and North 4th St, Downtown viewed from the east near cnr 10th and Charles. Dunedin: South Princes St (2007 watercolour by Elizabeth Gorden-Werner), former Gresham Hotel at Queens Gardens, Speight’s (Lion Breweries) on Rattray St; commons.wikimedia.org Benchill – Dunedin Central Fire Station, Castle St.

Dunedin’s existing building stock

Standard Building Before

Standard Building March 2013 (Images: Glen Hazelton)

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Email received.

—– Original Message —–
From: Glen Hazelton
To: City Planning ; EMT (Executive Management Team) ; Council 2010-2013 (Elected Members)
Sent: Tuesday, April 02, 2013 6:59 AM
Subject: Standard Building Update

Hi there everyone

For those of you who have not noticed this already – the scaffolding is down on the former Canton/Standard Building in Princes St. Externally, only the ground floor work to go now – inside is also starting to look just as amazing. See the before and after to see just how much you can transform a building perceived a few years back as having little value by many.

This work is a testament to the tenacity and passion of the owner (Ted Daniels) and also the skill and craftsmanship of Daniel Pollard, who unfortunately passed away without seeing the finished project. The project has also been proudly supported by the Dunedin Heritage Fund and DCC Heritage Rates Relief. A great example of just what can be achieved in our city when people put their minds to it.

Regards

Glen Hazelton
Policy Planner (Heritage), City Planning
Dunedin City Council

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### ODT Online Tue, 2 Apr 2013
Buildings may be abandoned
By Simon Hartley
Spiralling earthquake-proofing costs could leave some Dunedin commercial property owners owing more on investments than the properties are worth. This raises the possibility buildings could be abandoned, that being the way to lose the least amount of money, a commercial property consultant says.

Dunedin has the third-largest concentration of pre-1976 buildings, about 3900, behind Auckland’s 19,050 and Christchurch’s 5000, according to Quotable Value and local body data collated in a consultation paper by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. Dunedin last year had about 160,000sq m of office space, of which ”at least 10%” will be deemed earthquake-prone, Colliers International national director of research and consulting Alan McMahon said when contacted.

Dunedin City Council policy planner for heritage, Glen Hazelton, said 138 building owners had provided assessments. About 58 were less than 33% compliant and required upgrading. More assessments are expected when owners change use. Upgrades are expected at that time.

One [Dunedin] building owner, who did not want to be identified, said while the council had written to many building owners, many had not yet responded, as the deadline is July next year. Another source said far more assessments had been carried out than reported to the council and it was ”likely they don’t want the assessment put on public record just yet”.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Workshop for heritage building owners – 23 November

### ODT Online Sat, 8 Oct 2011
Heritage building workshop planned
By David Loughrey
Communication between Dunedin building owners and the city council is strengthening, as the council works to help owners find ways to re-use the city’s stock of heritage buildings.

The council’s second annual one-day workshop for heritage building owners will be held on November 23. The theme this year is “After Christchurch: What to know about owning an older building”, with the free workshop targeting owners of non-residential buildings.

The first workshop, an initiative of the council’s heritage buildings economic re-use steering group, attracted more than 80 people last November, with numbers bolstered by concerns following the first major Christchurch earthquake. Council heritage policy planner Glen Hazelton said strong interest was expected again.
Read more

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7.10.11 DCC Media Release

To register or for more information contact Glen Hazelton 477 4000 or ghazelto@dcc.govt.nz

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Workshop Highlights
• Speakers include Jason Ingham, from the University of Auckland and co-author of a report for the Canterbury Earthquakes Royal Commission entitled ‘The Performance of Unreinforced Masonry Buildings (URM) in the 2010/2011 Canterbury Earthquake Swarm’, Alan Race (Crombie Lockwood) on insurance matters, and Lou Robinson (Hadley Robinson) on earthquake strengthening.

• The New Zealand Historic Places Trust and Dunedin City Council will provide presentations, with the DCC outlining its new Earthquake-prone Buildings Policy and the range of incentives available to heritage building owners to assist earthquake strengthening.

• Steve Macknight of Steve Macknight Strengthening and Design and Lawrie Forbes of Zeal Steel, will conduct site visits to earthquake strengthening projects.

Workshop for Heritage Building Owners Information Flyer (PDF, 219.6 KB)

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Audacious idea: New Zealand X-Prize Environmental and Energy

Kea “New Zealand, New Thinking” event, New York

### stuff.co.nz Last updated 05:00 22/05/2011
$1b prize plan for NZ’s future
By Rob O’Neill – Sunday Star Times
The Government is being urged to invest in new strategies to lift the country out of the economic mire, with one successful entrepreneur suggesting it invest $1 billion in future energy technologies through an audacious prize.
New Zealand needs to build a country around the promises of tomorrow, not the legacies of yesterday, Hyperfactory founder Derek Handley told expatriate Kiwis in New York last week as the government announced the partial sale of many state-owned energy assets.

Handley said $1b is less than a tenth of what the current government has committed to infrastructure projects in the next few years and about the same amount spent bailing out South Canterbury Finance investors. It is also “about twice as much as the amount we hope to lose by hosting the Rugby World Cup”, he said and about the same as our bill for six weeks of imported oil.

Read more

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Post by Elizabeth Kerr

Public consultation for DCC Earthquake-prone Buildings Policy

Making buildings safe AND safeguarding Dunedin’s capital investment and reputation as a heritage city.

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### ODT Online Thu, 14 Apr 2011
Safe building ideas sought
By David Loughrey
The dates are set and the process is about to begin to make Dunedin a safer place in an earthquake. While planning for a review of the Dunedin City Council policy on dangerous, insanitary and earthquake-prone buildings began last year, it took on a new urgency after the Christchurch earthquake in February. The council yesterday announced it had completed its review, and the document was available for inspection and submissions from the public, with the submission process to end on May 27.

Three “drop-in sessions” have been organised, with a May 2 session at the Port Chalmers Library, and two sessions on May 3, one at the Clarion building in Princes St, and another at the Gasworks Museum in South Dunedin. Staff and council representatives would be available to discuss issues related to the policy. A hearing is scheduled for the week beginning June 4 to consider submissions.

Read more

Related Posts:
28.3.11 Dunedin earthquake proneness 2
9.3.11 Dunedin earthquake proneness
4.3.11 Reaction to another instance of unthinking ad-hocism from City Hall
14.2.11 Earthquake proneness
14.9.10 DCC Media Release: Dunedin’s Heritage Buildings

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Stadium + Heritage? Or… Stadium because of Heritage?

What’s the fit, what is Dunedin really selling? A stadium, or everything else besides that offers a point of difference? Ask the residents who often positively remark on our heritage resources, because it’s ‘home’ and they’re proud of their surroundings. Not only this, private property owners are cumulatively responsible for maintaining the larger part of Dunedin’s built heritage. They deserve a lot more praise, encouragement and practical support.

### ODT Online Tue, 20 Oct 2009
Make Dunedin heritage city: expert
By John Gibb
Dunedin, with its “astonishingly well-preserved architecture”, deserves special recognition as a national heritage city, Dr Rodney Wilson, a senior museum consultant, says.
Read more

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While we’re on the topic of heritage and property investment…
OPEN LECTURE – ALL WELCOME

RA Lawson Lecture 2009
Wednesday 28 October at 7pm
@ Bracken Court, Floor 1, 480 Moray Place, Dunedin

‘Emerging from the Ashes’
The Inspiring Restoration of Bracken Court

A presentation by Ted Daniels, owner and developer of Bracken Court Building.

The disastrous fire which engulfed much of Bracken Court in May 2005 could have meant the end for another heritage building in Dunedin. Instead, the vision of Ted Daniels to retain the building and re-develop it from the ashes has proven to be a shining example of adaptive re-use of a heritage building in Dunedin.

Ted will talk about the reasons for his decision to re-develop the building and why that option appealed to him. He may also talk about his plans for the former Bank of New Zealand building in The Exchange of which he is co-owner.

[Refreshments to follow talk]

Hosted by New Zealand Historic Places Trust Pouhere Taonga – Otago Branch Committee in association with the NZHPT Otago/Southland Area Office.

Download poster: RA Lawson Lecture 2009

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr