Station relocation opposed

The proposed relocation of an historic Masterton railway shelter to make way for a modern structure hit staunch opposition this week from the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.
In August last year the Times-Age revealed that the Greater Wellington Regional Council was seeking consent from Masterton District Council to uproot Solway Station and relocate it to Carterton.
The plan was prompted by the need to raise the platforms along the Wairarapa line for proposed new rail carriages.
However, the proposed move has come under fire from supporters of the almost 130-year-old shelter, the oldest of its kind still at its original location, who say relocation would ruin its heritage value.
Solway Station is not registered with the NZHPT but it is recognised by the Masterton District Council in its own inventory of historic places, where it is described as "the finest surviving example of a Class 6 station in New Zealand".
In a letter sent to the council this week, NZHPT advisor Laura Paynter requested that the resource consent be denied, as relocation would have "serious adverse effects" on its historic value.
"Very few, if any, other examples of this building type remain at their original stations," she said.
"Such a drastic measure should only be considered where there are no other options for retaining the building.
"We do not find this project to be such an instance, and we recommend that Masterton District Council decline the resource consent."
The Solway shelter has been in use since 1880 and was originally situated on the eastern side of the tracks until in 1910 the Agricultural and Pastoral Association requested it switch sides to be more convenient for the stockyards in 1910, where it has remained since.
Wairarapa Heritage Places Trust representatives Margaret and John Christensen said they had no concerns about a new modern station being built in Solway as long as it could co-exist with the old shelter.
"There was considerable anguish about the fact that we had not been consulted by the (Greater Regional) council before the application was put through," Mrs Christensen said.
"We've always taken a lot of interest in the Solway Station because of its historic significance to the region.
"It's the remnant of the original from 1880 and it's always been here and been associated with everything that has happened in the region."
Moving it to the Carterton rail precinct and putting a fence around it was not going to offer any further protection against vandals, she said.
Arsonists twice targeted the Carterton railway station last year, destroying an outbuilding and badly damaging the toilets.
Susan Southey, Masterton District Council planner, said she could not predict when the station's future would be decided but hopes the process will not drag on much longer.
"We haven't got all the information we need yet. I'm waiting for more from the regional council, which should hopefully arrive next week."
The letter from the NZHPT would certainly be taken into account, she said, though the body charged with making a decision would do so with regard to planning law.