Teh exterior of the Rawene Masonic Hotel has been refurbished to resemble what it looked like in the late 1800s.
Teh exterior of the Rawene Masonic Hotel has been refurbished to resemble what it looked like in the late 1800s.
Restoring the Rawene Masonic Hotel was never going to be quick.
Eight years on, the owners are still sanding floors, building hard and ticking off council requirements, all while trying to restore the 19th-century hotel back to something close to its former glory.
The hotel is a two-storey kauri buildingon Parnell St and was built in 1879. It has operated as a hotel for almost 140 years, according to Heritage New Zealand. It is likely one of the longest-running public hotels in the Far North.
The hotel has hosted many meetings, dinners and sporting events, with local pool clubs using it for competitions over the years.
He said the pool clubs are intensely loyal and are “really keen to see the hotel continue and they’ve kept an eye on progress with the project”.
Many locals have been quietly wondering when it will reopen and keeping an eye on progress. The owner, David Truscott, said he hopes the work will be finished in six months.
He said they knew it would be a major restoration project when they acquired it almost 10 years ago.
“The hotel had been neglected really. Costs were such that there was very little maintenance done, so it was in a sorry state. I think that’s what put a lot of people off. It had been on the market for at least six years.”
The Rawene Masonic Hotel was built in 1879 and is likely one of the longest-running public hotels in the Far North.
The decision to buy the hotel came after the couple successfully restored another Rawene landmark, the Wedge building.
Purchased about 12 years ago the Wedge building was refurbished and the colour scheme, of the exterior paint, went on to win a Resene award in 2016.
“We thought, oh well, the Wedge building has been a success, maybe we could do something with the hotel.”
He said from the outset the focus was to restore the heritage aspect of the building.
“When we bought the place eight years ago, there was a very large single-storey extension to the bar on the front of the building which was quite disfiguring. So, our plan was to try and restore the appearance of the hotel because there are a lot of very early photographs of the building from 1890 and 1900 which show what the hotel looked like, and it was really quite special.”
A large extension at the front of the building, pictured here, has been removed. Photo / Yolisa Tswanya
Truscott said once plans were lodged to council, the scope of the project quickly grew, and they were handed a shopping list of things to bring up to compliance as well.
“Fire safety upgrades, proper fire escapes, accessibility requirements and disabled toilets all had to be addressed, turning the restoration into a much bigger job than first anticipated.”
But he said progress has been steady, with much of the work being done by them, from decoration to general labour, with the help of a builder who is currently constructing a new bar.
Changes have been made inside: the original 12 bedrooms with shared bathrooms have been reduced to seven larger rooms, each with its own ensuite.
The newly refurbished rooms are shaping up and will feature ensuites.
The accommodation is expected to be the backbone of the business, Truscott said. While the exterior already has a noticeable difference, Truscott said it should all be done within six months, but the timeline remains flexible.
He said they will not be running the hotel and once it gets to a point where it can operate, the plan is to lease it or sell if no suitable tenant can be found.
“I’m sure there will be people out there that would love to take on the hotel. I mean there is potentially a very, very successful business here with good-quality bedrooms and completely refurbished and restored to the way it used to look. I mean there’s going to be a lot of interest, I’m sure of it.”
