Ask Phoebe: Stately St James being left to rot

I was wondering what the situation is with the St James Theatre? I have fond memories of the venue for films and live shows in the 70s and 80s, which was past its heyday. I'm aware there were plans to build apartments around the building, and that it cannot be used now because of a fire, but urgent action needs to be taken. I'd hate for it to go the same way as so many theatres along Queen St over the last 50 years.
Stephen Hilton, Auckland.

It's not good news. It seems this is another case of demolition by dereliction. The developer, Paul Doole, cannot be forced to preserve his treasure from decay and neglect, even though it has a category 1 Historic Places listing. Neither can he bulldoze it. So it seems that the building will be left to suffer further leaks and vandalism until it becomes unsalvageable. A fire in the adjacent West End cinema in 2007 didn't help things.

Mr Doole originally planned to build an apartment tower on the site of the three adjacent cinemas, and mothball the poor old St James. These plans now seem to be in abeyance.

But you can understand Mr Doole's reluctance to do up the old girl. Council feasibility studies estimate it would cost between $10 million and $60 million to return the theatre to a useable state. Just to rebuild the stalls area and parts of the first circle would cost $10 million, but this may not be enough to get the necessary consents, and would not make the venue suitable for ballet, opera or most stage shows, so it would be money wasted.

The council itself is unwilling to commit money to restoration unless there is a significant contribution from private and Government purses, and this seems unlikely. So the poor old thing will be left to moulder.

The St James was built in 1928 to replace Fullers' Opera House in Wellesley St. It was originally planned for vaudeville shows but was modified and fitted with projection equipment when talking pictures arrived.

The ornate Spanish-Colonial style interiors included statuettes, marble steps and elaborate lighting. The purpose-built cinemas alongside, the Odeon, Westend and Regent, were added in 1957, 1966 and 1982 respectively, and have heritage value in their own right.

What is happening at the large corner site bounded by Mortimer Pass, Gillies Ave and Morrow St in Newmarket, behind 277? All the buildings were razed several months ago and the site partially cleared, but nothing seems to have happened since.How long will it remain like this? What are the plans?
Anne Paton, Epsom.

A project information memorandum was issued by Auckland City Council in June last year for alterations and extensions to the shopping complex, including demolition. The applicant was Westfield (NZ).

Building consents were issued for the demolition of the existing buildings and for the site hoardings, but no building consent application has been received by the council for construction works.

Westfield says that while it remains committed to development, the financial climate makes this imprudent, and it has not set a date for a start to the project. So it remains as a carpark until things ease a bit.

Are there any imminent plans for the Wainui Rd on/off ramps? They would negate the dangerous u-turn at BP Silverdale that many now use. Eric Kearney, Auckland.

Plans aplenty, but imminent? No. Resource consentapplications have been lodged with Rodney District Council, and designs for the interchange are in progress. Since the last update in this column, in January 2007, plans have been revised to include a roundabout.

The project involves the building of southbound on- and off-ramps. The off-ramp will be achieved with a flyover across the Northern Motorway, and both ramps will have roundabouts at the entry or exit points. A starting date has not been set.