The former St George's School administration block, built in the early 2000s, will be kept. Photo / Mike Tweed
The former St George's School administration block, built in the early 2000s, will be kept. Photo / Mike Tweed
A 21-year lease has been signed for the former St George’s School property in Whanganui.
Health provider Te Oranganui Trust will turn the site into a health and wellness hub after the Whanganui District Council pays for asbestos removal and deconstruction of its heritage buildings.
That work is expected tocost around $1.25 million, with a tender out until October 24.
In a statement, the council said deconstruction would take five to six months, after preparatory work and contractor appointments.
“The lease will generate ongoing council income of $158,820 a year.”
“But, if we fast forward five or 10 years from now, with Te Oranganui fully operational and the site commercially productive and contributing to offset rates, we’re in a good place,” he said.
Te Oranganui chief executive Wheturangi Walsh-Tapiata said signing the lease meant the project could move to its next step.
“There is still some resource consent work to get through, and checking if we need to do any further ground testing.
“Considerable work is going on in the background, but by about Christmas, we’re hoping to have our first shovels in the ground.”
The project has three stages: establishing offices and Te Whānau Ora services, expanding to include Te Waipuna Health, and creating a wider community hub with allied health services.
Te Oranganui’s buildings will be constructed on the former sports field at the school, with the community hub on the higher ground, where the heritage buildings are.
“We are focused on stage one and stage two, while having conversations with the community about whether they want to be situated in our hub, as a part of stage three,” Walsh-Tapiata said.
The lease includes 21-year renewals in perpetuity.
St George’s’ heritage buildings have an EBS rating of 10% to 30%, below the current threshold of 34%, meaning they are deemed earthquake-prone.
Te Oranganui's buildings will be constructed on the former school's sports field, with stage three to be built on land currently filled with the heritage buildings. Image / Te Oranganui
Tripe said Penk’s announcement would not change the council’s decision to deconstruct – “it’s only one of many factors”.
If kept, the buildings still had to be fit for purpose for a potential tenant, and that could require strengthening, he said.
“Te Oranganui have been in our district for a long time, and they’ll continue to be in our district for a long time.
“They’re an innovative, progressive and proactive organisation that makes a difference.
“It’s appropriate they have a long-term lease to continue to cement their position.”
In a statement, council chief strategy officer Sarah O’Hagan said workshops had been held with key stakeholders about how the site’s history could be recognised as part of the development, including reusing materials.
“We’ll be reconnecting with the working group in the new year to continue that conversation, and will also engage with the new council around the insights and outcomes of those workshops,” O’Hagan said.
In June, the Whanganui Heritage Trust started a petition to save the buildings, with co-chair Mary-Ann Ewing saying the council had an obligation to exhaust other possibilities before making a decision.
Walsh-Tapiata said she hoped construction of the first stage would begin next year, with staff moving in by 2027.
“We’ve participated in the community consultation the council ran, with the Whanganui Heritage Trust in particular.
“Basically, we’ve got to a position where we want to find ways to work together.
“I would say that to the community as well – we want to find ways they can see how this new initiative will benefit us all.”
The council said the St George’s administration block, built in the early 2000s, and the buildings currently filled by an early childhood centre, would stay put.
Mike Tweed is a 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 on local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.