Brown: No affordable way to save houses

Protesters objected as fencers placed temporary wire fence around Art Deco Houses on Turua Street in St Heliers in mid Decemeber. Photo / Greg Bowker

Auckland Mayor Len Brown says there is no affordable way to save three Spanish mission-style houses in St Heliers from demolition.

The developer says he cannot take the sites of the 1930s cottages out of his project for offices, shops and apartments and Auckland Council says it would cost more than $10 million to buy his seven-site holding in Turua St.

Mr Brown said the council's hands were tied because of the decisions of the Environment Court and previous councils.

"Absolutely everything that could be reasonably and legally done was done in this case, but unfortunately that was not enough."

Save Our St Heliers Society members have been keeping a protest vigil over the houses' site, on the east side of the village centre.

The electricity supply was cut to the houses yesterday.

Society members continue to beg Mr Brown and his council to place a heritage order on the properties to suspend work.

But in a letter to councillors, council chief executive Doug McKay said there was no evidential or other proper basis to impose or seek heritage orders to protected the buildings.

If council was unable to properly protect the buildings through a heritage order, the other options would be to shift the buildings, incorporate them into the development or buy them.

"I should say that Mayor Brown and I have explored all possible options with the developers," Mr McKay said.

Shifting the buildings was undesirable, according to council heritage adviser George Farrant and Mr McKay asked developer Mike Markham whether leaving the three 1930s cottages out of the plan was feasible.

Mr Markham had said he could not separate the three houses from the whole development of seven adjoining sites, which he had acquired over six years for a three-staged development along both sides of Turua St.

Any acquisition had to include the seven sites and compensation.

About $1.5 million had been spent on the project, and compensation would also be expected for terminating contracts, holding costs over six years, loss of opportunity for getting a commercial return of development, loss of value and legal and professional bills.

"He has not nominated a figure, but I estimate it would be in excess of $10 million given the $5 million-plus estimate for the three Spanish-style buildings," said Mr McKay.

"The preferred position is to allow the developer to progress his approved and consented development.

"There is no appetite for spending this amount of money, is the sense I have from feedback to date."

The developer stopped work late last year to give the council time to consider options. That suspension had expired yesterday.

Herald inquiries yesterday confirmed that no councillor had changed his or her mind about not supporting a heritage order since the 14-7 votes on December 16.

But councillor Cameron Brewer said a heritage order did not spell a $10 million council commitment to buy the property and compensate the developer.

"Rather it would have simply given Turua St a stay of execution until a proper heritage assessment of the buildings was conducted."