Andrew Moore, commercial manager of CMP Construction, talked about new uses for the site of the burned supermarket. Photo / Michael Craig
Andrew Moore, commercial manager of CMP Construction, talked about new uses for the site of the burned supermarket. Photo / Michael Craig
Will the owners of the burned New World Victoria Park repair it or will a new, bigger, better building rise with apartments and offices?
That was the question posed after Tuesday’s fire by Andrew Moore, commercial manager of high-rise building specialists CMP Construction.
“The big question is whether the insurancepayouts will be extended in a bigger, better building or development undertaken on the site or whether the money or the insurance payout is used just to rebuild what has been damaged,” Moore said.
“You could put apartments on the site, and more than likely offices,” he said.
“You might see that there’s a new supermarket built with either commercial or residential built on top.”
The store at 2 College Hill is in New Zealand’s richest suburb with a catchment taking in the CBD and office workers, Wynyard Quarter, Ponsonby, St Mary’s Bay, Herne Bay and the wider area.
CMP Construction commercial manager Andrew Moore says apartments could be built above the store if the building is demolished and new foundations and floor slabs laid. Photo / Michael Craig
CMP has its offices in Victoria Park Markets, which it refurbished.
Moore said what happened on the New World site, owned by Foodstuffs’ The National Trading Company, was of great interest because CMP were not just neighbours but also builders.
The site has big potential as it had been developed to a much lower level in 1999 than would be permissible now under the Auckland Unitary Plan, he said.
Tuesday's fire burned for 10 hours. Photo / Hayden Woodward
The area was one people wanted to live in, opposite Victoria Park, close to the beach, the CBD and its offices and motorways, Moore added.
“So, if apartments or offices were to be built on top of the supermarket, that would be a solution.”
An artist's impression of the new building at New World Victoria Park. Photo / Michael Craig
New World Victoria Park is a large concrete-and-steel structure but Moore noted how the steel had twisted due to the fire.
The extent of smoke, fire and water damage remains unknown.
The extent of the damage to the New World supermarket in Victoria Park is clear as firefighters battle the blaze. Photo / Dean Purcell
“It’s a big building, it’s a concrete building, concrete frame, concrete floor, structural steel, [which are] significant components of the building.”
The store was to continue trading throughout the year-long upgrade.
“To do $27 million worth of work, which is obviously a significant amount of work, that requires structural steel works, concrete works to be done.
Franklin Road side of New World Victoria Park, where extensions were built for the store's offerings to customers. Photo / Michael Craig
“One question would be if there’s going to be welding work done on site, what if any sprinklers were shut down?”
Savory Construction had the contract for the works, approved by Auckland Council.
Contract works insurance, public liability and consequential loss insurance policies were likely to be held for the big upgrade.
“I suspect that the building and the works are well insured,” Moore said.
Sources said yesterday that new lighting, refrigeration, racking, air conditioning, checkouts and the introduction of the click-and-collect system in the basement were also part of the scope of works.
The fire at the store on Tuesday. Photo / Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter
To update the store’s operations and give customers the click-and-collect option, as well as online delivery via vans, new storage and delivery areas were being built.
Those were to be in two parts of the property: in the mezzanine area and the suspended deck, which is the loading bay off Franklin Rd.
Distributing groceries in this way meant new ambient, chilled and frozen storage areas had to be created and that was what was happening when the blaze hit the mezzanine area.
Anne Gibson has been the Herald‘s property editor for 25 years, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.
