Hawkes Bay Today
  • Hawke's Bay Today home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Havelock North
  • Central Hawke's Bay
  • Tararua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Gisborne

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Premium
Home / Hawkes Bay Today

Napier man’s Bluff Hill lighthouse proposal rejected, fight for prison preservation continues

Mitchell Hageman
By Mitchell Hageman
Multimedia Journalist·Hawkes Bay Today·
12 Aug, 2024 06:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Mario Schmidt wants to save Napier's lighthouse history and return a lighthouse to Bluff Hill lookout. Video/Warren Buckland

A Napier man who fought to recreate a historic lighthouse near the grounds of the city’s old prison says he will no longer pursue the project after numerous rejections from various local and central government agencies.

Mario Schmidt, who lives near the old prison on Bluff Hill, started pursuing lighthouse projects in 2019.

He said despite being disappointed, he was “relieved” a conclusion had finally been reached after five years of trying his best to get a project under way.

“At this point, I feel that I have done all I can for this prison, and continuing to pursue lighthouse replicas is emotionally draining for me,” he said.

“Hence, my urgency now for a conclusion to this five-year endeavour of trying to bring back a lighthouse to Napier.”

Open up the latest news from Hawke's Bay

Get daily Hawkes Bay headlines straight to your inbox.
Please email me competitions, offers and other updates. You can stop these at any time.
By signing up for this newsletter, you agree to NZME’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The site of the old Napier Prison was closed to the public earlier this year after concerns were raised about the strength of buildings and retaining walls.

The former prison is on Crown land administered by Toitū Te Whenua Land Information New Zealand (Linz).

Schmidt aimed to get permission to build a replica lighthouse near where the original lighthouse stood on Bluff Hill, which he felt would enhance Napier Prison’s appeal as a heritage site and tourist attraction.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

“As far as I know, the Napier lighthouse was the only lighthouse worldwide which was also attached to a prison, with the light attended by prison wardens, not a lighthouse keeper.

“This sort of maritime history is unique worldwide, so the preservation of this Napier history is vital in my view,” he told Hawke’s Bay Today in 2022.

Napier man Mario Schmidt has spent five years trying to bring a lighthouse back to Bluff Hill. Photo / Warren Buckland and Mario Schmidt
Napier man Mario Schmidt has spent five years trying to bring a lighthouse back to Bluff Hill. Photo / Warren Buckland and Mario Schmidt

Napier’s first town planner, Alfred Domett, created the Lighthouse Reserve on Bluff Hill, but the council decided in 1873 to build a lighthouse on nearby Napier jail land in Coote Rd.

“I believed that this proposal would have been a fantastic opportunity for Napier as a port city to enhance its character with the history and historic track on that hillside,” Schmidt said.

In their response to Schmidt, Heritage NZ said that while they appreciated his commitment to the project, they would not back it, citing the ICOMOS NZ Charter, which discourages the full reconstruction of places.

“In our view, the proposal to reconstruct a lighthouse on the site of the Napier Prison (Former) site is not appropriate and is largely inconsistent with recognised best-practice.

“The fact the proposal constitutes a full reconstruction and also not in the original location, HNZPT cannot support the proposal on heritage grounds. Furthermore, a reconstructed lighthouse on the site is, in our view, not essential or necessary for understanding the cultural heritage values of the prison or the wider site.”

Despite this, they said they remained open to working with interested parties in the old jail to preserve its heritage.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Discover more

  • Old Napier Prison tourism operation to shut to the ...
  • ‘Legacy of neglect’: Fighting for the future of Napier ...
  • Inmate dies at Hawke’s Bay Regional Prison...
  • Hawke’s Bay Prison: Officers did not realise inmate ...

Linz said the proposal fell outside the scope of the prison’s current preservation work as it continues to grapple with numerous ownership and seismic challenges.

“While we are managing this property on behalf of the Crown, it is not intended for LINZ to be the permanent owner. It would be inappropriate for us to approve a major change to the property when we are only the custodians. Any future and ongoing use of the property would need to be considered by any potential future owner.”

While Napier City Council said it was an “exciting proposal which could benefit Napier”, they also cited ownership and planning concerns and encouraged Schmidt to further engage with Heritage NZ.

Schmidt said Maritime NZ had shown the most ongoing enthusiasm for the proposal and he thanked them for their support.

When reflecting on the process, he said the proposals also took a significant personal toll, which was often “emotionally taxing”.

“What people must realise is that presenting individualistic or offbeat proposals, like a replica lighthouse, requires courage and resilience, as I take a risk with each proposal,” Schmidt said.

“Each time I prepared and researched a possible replica location, I put in a lot of energy and had high hopes and enthusiasm for a replica lighthouse, only to face repeated rejections.

“I often felt that I wasn’t taken seriously.”

Schmidt said he hoped his work motivated Crown Property Management to allocate more funds to Linz so the old prison could be maintained better in the future.

“Perhaps someone else will take on the task of repurposing the prison in the future. I wanted to make one final attempt to present this proposal to the appropriate parties and have it documented,” he said.

“The fate of the property now seems to once again lie with the Crown.”

Mitchell Hageman joined Hawke’s Bay Today in January 2023. From his Napier base, he writes regularly on social issues, arts and culture, and the community. He has a particular love for stories about ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

Save
    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Hawkes Bay Today

'Trusted faces': Push for Māori warden volunteers for future natural disasters

Premium
Hawkes Bay Today

Woodford House sisters take their roller derby skills to the world, nicknames and all

Hawkes Bay Today

Each of the 40 members on Napier's first citizens' assembly to be given $800


Sponsored

Farm plastic recycling: Getting it right saves cows, cash, and the planet

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Recommended for you

Kiwi cyclist among 30 excluded from race over GPS dispute
Sport

Kiwi cyclist among 30 excluded from race over GPS dispute

Queensland-based Kiwis react to 5.6 magnitude quake
World

Queensland-based Kiwis react to 5.6 magnitude quake

'I have never stolen from you': Payout for bakery worker questioned over missing money
New Zealand

'I have never stolen from you': Payout for bakery worker questioned over missing money

Afternoon quiz: What was the shortest war in history, lasting about 38 minutes?
New Zealand

Afternoon quiz: What was the shortest war in history, lasting about 38 minutes?

Violent home invasion in Melbourne caught on camera
World

Violent home invasion in Melbourne caught on camera

'Honouring this little baby': Community gathers for Anahera's funeral
New Zealand

'Honouring this little baby': Community gathers for Anahera's funeral



Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

'Trusted faces': Push for Māori warden volunteers for future natural disasters
Hawkes Bay Today

'Trusted faces': Push for Māori warden volunteers for future natural disasters

'We can walk into spaces where other people would just be looked at with suspicion.'

15 Aug 06:00 PM
Premium
Premium
Woodford House sisters take their roller derby skills to the world, nicknames and all
Hawkes Bay Today

Woodford House sisters take their roller derby skills to the world, nicknames and all

15 Aug 06:00 PM
Each of the 40 members on Napier's first citizens' assembly to be given $800
Hawkes Bay Today

Each of the 40 members on Napier's first citizens' assembly to be given $800

15 Aug 06:00 PM


Farm plastic recycling: Getting it right saves cows, cash, and the planet
Sponsored

Farm plastic recycling: Getting it right saves cows, cash, and the planet

10 Aug 09:12 PM

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Hawke's Bay Today e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Hawke's Bay Today
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
All-Access. All in one subscription.
Subscribe now

All-Access + BusinessDesk Weekly

Pay just
$10
$2
per week
Subscribe now
BEST VALUE

All-Access + BusinessDesk Annual

Pay just
$349
$49
per year
Subscribe now
Learn more
30
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search