Local Focus: Art Deco Hastings on the rise

It has been judged New Zealand's most beautiful small city and last year took out the Supreme Award in the Keep New Zealand Beautiful Awards.

Now Hastings is about to get even better as the eastern side of the city gets a makeover for the reopening of the Hawke's Bay Opera House and nearby buildings.

Hastings District Council is helping business owners spruce up their buildings, which has attracted more businesses, says Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst.

She said a whole lot of "incredible" business owners and landlords were passionate about the eastern side of Hastings' CBD.

They invested in the facade enhancements as the council upgraded the Opera House precinct along Heretaunga St East "which created a whole buzz and a whole new environment".

"Because we've created the streetscape - the improvements - a whole lot of businesses have come to Hastings, which is incredibly exciting."

A Quest hotel beside the Opera House is due to open at the end of this year.

She said building upgrades showcased what was once Hastings' hidden gem - its architecture.

"Hastings has more Art Deco than Napier.

"We've got many, many more Art Deco, Spanish [Mission], and beautiful heritage buildings.

"We rely on our landlords to strengthen them and improve them and the scheme helps to encourage them to do that."

Council's streetscape investment started on Heretaunga St West and Hazlehurst said attention would soon return to that side of the city.

"All of the King St area will be developed - around Sutto and that area there - creating more hospitality spaces."

Little Red Bookshop owner Adrian Thornton, on Heretaunga St East, said he hoped the upgrade would retain some of the street's aged character.

"I like things to have a bit more interest. I like the cracks because the cracks are what make things interesting.

"If you take away the cracks you have nothing left except bland boringness. That's what I don't want to see."

Hazlehurst said encouraging people to live in the central city was a way of maintaining vibrancy as retailers suffered an uncertain future.

"We know that in Covid 70 per cent of New Zealanders now shop online.

"So what are our CBDs going to be? Well we need more people to live in them and our first development will happen in Queen St, which is inner-city-living apartments."

She said the council bought a site near the Countdown supermarket where apartments would be built.

The Hawke's Bay Opera House is already hosting shows and the neighbouring Municipal Building will be opening later this year with new retail spaces.

The anchor tenant will be the Hastings i-SITE Visitor Information Centre.