26 October, 2024

Castor Bay barracks repairs costed at nearly $1 million

Patching up a former military barracks on Kennedy Park Reserve in Castor Bay will cost close to $1 million.
The building at 139 Beach Rd (pictured, right), which was disguised as a state house to avoid aerial bombardment during World War II, is fenced off, boarded up and in poor condition, but cannot be demolished due to its heritage listing.
Devonport-Takapuna Local Board members recently received an updated council assessment of the “problem building”.
An estimate of $972,000 was given for the cost of repairs, excluding consent costs and further checks for earth movement and possible ground contamination.
Members were told uncertainty over what the building might be used for meant costings could not be exact.
Chair Toni van Tonder said the issue needed addressing. She said $790,000 was available, but with other needs at Kennedy Park, such as fixing the washed-out stairs and car-park improvements, the board could not spend “a whole heap of money” on the barracks.
The last full assessment of the building was done in 2018. Council project manager Roma Leota said: “It’s no surprise the building has deteriorated to the point where everything needs to be replaced.”
Ideas of restoring the building for community purposes or a cafe have previously been suggested, but the board leaned toward focusing on just exterior repairs.
Some members had misgivings that this would still be costly, leaving them open to criticism without delivering a result.
But they were also wary that for the building to be used, further work would be needed to provide paths and parking.
Member Gavin Busch said when market conditions picked up, a commercial tenant might be interested.
Staff were asked to obtain firm figures for fixing the main issues and repairing the exterior so fences could come down.
“Let’s make sure there’s some heritage signage, so it’s not revolting to walk around,” van Tonder said.
Board member Mel Powell said she had attended a meeting of the Castor Bay Ratepayers and Residents Association (CABRRA), whose members were asked what they would want prioritised at the reserve.
“They felt like they were being asked to choose their favourite child,” she said.
Powell said the house should just be made safe, as there was no clear need for another community space. An Observation Post building on site was already available, and there was a cafe down the road.
“Make it watertight, make it an installation like the one on the [Auckland] waterfront, with perspex windows,” she said. Member George Wood was concerned about more vandalism if the building was left empty.
Staff will report back to the board in 
December for its final deliberation.
The future of the barracks and stairs are sure to be topics at CABBRA’s annnual meeting on 6 November. Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson will be the guest speaker.

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