Veronica Sunbay: ‘Run-down’ 1931 Napier earthquake memorial to be fixed up

Former Rotary Club of Napier president David Sewell next to the Veronica Sunbay memorial in Napier. Photo / Paul Taylor

The main memorial for the 1931 Napier earthquake is run down and in need of repairs, according to a community leader behind the Veronica Sunbay rebuild three decades ago.

The Veronica Sunbay was rebuilt along Napier’s Marine Parade in 1991, after the local community got behind a Rotary campaign to raise $200,000 for the project.

Napier resident David Sewell, who led that fundraising campaign, said the Sunbay memorial was now in serious need of attention.

“It is looking run down. There is a lot of water damage particularly where the lighting is, and a good percentage of the plaques are unreadable,” he said.

“It needs to be properly maintained. I just want it cleaned up.”

The state of the Sunbay needs urgent attention, says Napier resident David Sewell. Photo / Paul Taylor

He said there was also cracking visible along parts of the structure.

Napier City Council says the memorial received a “power wash” last year, and more-extensive “remedial works” are planned for next year.

The memorial was built following the 1931 earthquake, but over time became unsafe and it was eventually fenced off before it was repaired more than 30 years ago.

Sewell was president of the Rotary Club of Napier when the club helped raise $200,000 to have the memorial rebuilt and reopened in June 1991.

Several fundraising projects were run as part of that campaign, including a phonathon in 1990.

Telecom gave the club a room with 30 phones and, for 11 nights, volunteers called 16,000 households in Napier asking for donations.

Historic pictures of the phonathon in 1990 that led to the Sunbay (in background) being rebuilt. Photo / Paul Taylor

Sewell said the memorial remained a sentimental location for many people.

“This is a memorial to the people killed in the earthquake,” he said. “It is a very sentimental spot for a lot of people including myself.”

He said it deserved special care and maintenance, “especially being situated in a salt-spray environment”.

Sewell raised similar concerns back in 2017 that led to the Sunbay being tidied up.

Napier City Council is in charge of the maintenance of the Veronica Sunbay, and a spokesperson said works were planned for next year to have it repaired.

“Structural engineers are currently documenting the upgrade in preparation to go to tender and we expect the remedial works will commence in the first half of next year.”

Work is also now being done on the neighbouring Soundshell, but the spokesperson said that was “of a different nature and was able to be undertaken more quickly”.

“The remedial work on the Veronica Bay is a more complex project which required a greater degree of planning and budgeting.”