Dave Moore says the building will resemble the Martinborough Hotel once completed. Photo / Bevan Conley
Dave Moore says the building will resemble the Martinborough Hotel once completed. Photo / Bevan Conley
Despite financial pressures, developer Dave Moore is determined to finish his apartment project in central Whanganui.
Moore, from restoration company Villa Services, bought 6-8 St Hill St in 2018 with the intention of restoring the existing heritage building and converting it into 18 high-end apartments.
Work got underway in 2021with a tentative end date in 2024.
However, work has slowed to a crawl and more funding is needed.
“The phrase often used is ‘the perfect storm’”, Moore said.
“Interest rates are soaring, changes in lending criteria and banking rules have made it harder to secure finance, and property values have died.
“But selling at a loss would mean bailing out, retiring, and giving up on the whole thing.”
He said he was addicted to building and wasn’t prepared to pack it in, with the option of an equity partner - “someone with some money” - being considered.
“Who knows, it’s possible it could end up being a boutique hotel or something,” he said.
“It’s in the middle of town in a very handy place. You’ve got the bus terminal across the road, there’s the [Trafalgar Square] mall, the river.
“It was a hotel many moons ago.”
Hotelier John Brennan constructed the building in 1896 and it began life as the 36-bedroom Metropolitan Hotel.
Moore has spent $1 million on the project so far, with his mortgage payments increasing from $467 per week at the start of last year to a current rate of $1174.
Restoring a building rather than building from scratch cost thousands of dollars more per square metre he said.
The building started life as a hotel in the late 1800s. Photo / Bevan Conley
At St Hill St it was around $6000 per square metre.
Moore said three ground-floor apartments were close to being completed but more money was needed to rebuild three bathrooms upstairs before they could be rented out.
Outside of designating the property as flood-prone - which could mean increased insurance rates for potential buyers - the Whanganui District Council had been great to deal with and shared his passion for heritage restoration, he said.
“We have a plan in place but we aren’t soothsayers so we don’t know what’s going to happen in the future,” Moore said.
“We just have to hurry up and wait.”
The original 10-person crew has been scaled back to three but exterior work has been completed along most of the back of the building.
Moore said once the scaffolding was removed, it would give the public a taste of what the whole building could look like.
“Some people might think we’ve done absolutely nothing but a hell of a lot has gone into this.
“When the front has the same look and the same style, it will be like the Martinborough Hotel. When you turn into the street and see it, you feel like you‘re on holiday.”
Heritage restoration projects tended to be marginal financially, he said.
“They are definitely worth doing in the long-term and they’re definitely doing if you want the satisfaction of saving something and making a place look beautiful.
“We aren’t going to give up. I’ll just have to keep buying Lotto tickets.”
Mike Tweed is an assistant news director and multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.
