Restored rural buildings finalists in Canterbury heritage awards

Christmas time at Tipapa, Greta Valley. Photo: supplied

Restored rural Canterbury buildings are among the finalists for the two-yearly Canterbury Heritage Awards, which will be announced on June 15.

The finalists are dispersed throughout Canterbury and range from a small tunneller's cottage in Arthur's Pass to larger domestic and commercial heritage buildings throughout Canterbury.

Rural Canterbury finalists include Strathlachlan Homestead in Doyleston, the Tipapa Homestead and woolshed in the Greta Valley, Holy Innocents Anglican Church at Mt Peel, St Paul's Anglican Church in Tai Tapu and St Cuthbert's Anglican Church at Governor's Bay.

Historic Places Mid Canterbury has also been named as a finalist in the outstanding contribution to heritage category.

Other finalists include Kaiapoi's St Bartholomew's Anglican Church, which was restored after the 2010 and 2011 Canterbury earthquakes and is now believed to be the South Island's oldest wooden church.

Category winners and the supreme overall winner will be announced at an awards ceremony at the Isaac Theatre Royal in Christchurch on June 15.

Christchurch Heritage Awards Charitable Trust chairwoman Anna Crighton said the standard of the entries exceeded the judges' expectations.

''Each time the ceremony comes around we are astounded by the quality of the entries submitted and this year exceeded all expectation, with a truly remarkable variety of projects being presented.

''We can't recreate in a few years what took over a century and a-half to build.

The impact of the earthquakes meant ''the importance of what remains is all the more significant'', she said.

-By David Hill

Central Rural Life