Fire completely destroyed the Foxton and Beach Bowling Club building yesterday.
A piece of Foxton Beach history went up in flames yesterday.
The fire that destroyed the Foxton and Beach Bowling Club took with it 62 years of records, trophies, books and photos that were impossible to replace.
Club president Alan Shannon said the fire was devastating for the club. Not only had it lost irreplaceable history, in the last five years there had been significant investment to its facilities.
"It's devastating, especially with all the improvements that have gone on," he said.
Shannon said the club had only recently purchased new tables and 180 chairs, new carpet, had completely upgraded the kitchen with new appliances, and had sealed a new carpark.
Three years ago the club had installed a new artificial playing green worth more than $300,000 that was just metres away from the clubrooms.
The Christchurch company that installed the green was flying a representative to assess the damage early next week.
The club had financed most of the recent upgrades through its own coffers and with help with grants from the Foxton Beach Freeholding Account and other charities.
Shannon had only taken up the role as president two weeks ago, although he had previously served a term as president seven years ago.
He met with vice-president Chris Avery, club captain John Mitchell and treasurer Julianna Mills on site early this morning to work out their next course of action.
At this stage they would wait for a full report from the insurance assessors, but already there was a strong desire to rebuild.
Avery said the fire felt like a death. It was hard to break the news to club members, circulated in a bulk email.
The club also had to break the news to chef Lani Glastonbury, who was developing a keen following in her short time as head chef at the club.
"It's pretty sad because she's so enthusiastic. She was doing such a good job. The meals were wonderful and we were looking at doing a Sunday roast," she said.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) were called to the fire shortly after 11am yesterday morning and it took more than four hours to subdue the blaze. The interior was completely gutted and the roof had collapsed.
Shannon lived close by and said he was sitting at home when he heard the alarm go off. He went outside to see thick black smoke pouring from the club.
FENZ fire investigators wearing full body suits and masks were also onsite this morning assessing the damage and working to establish a cause of fire.
There was a significant amount of asbestos in the building that would require specialist removal. The entire site and playing green would be closed to the public until further notice.
Nobody was inside the building when the fire started. It was thought, due to the fact the roof had collapsed and some of the walls were still standing, that the fire may have started somewhere in the roof.
Shannon said the clubrooms itself was built in the 1960s and had become an important part of the social fabric of the small beachside town.
"It's a family friendly club," he said.
Shannon said not every member played regular bowls. They had about 60 active playing members - an even mix of men and women - among its total social membership of more than 200.
Aside from its competitive bowlers, it had a thriving twilight bowls competition on Tuesdays and Thursday nights with hundreds of locals involved, played for four months over the summer period.
The club's restaurant regularly attracted customers and on a Friday night could seat between 70-80 people. It had made more than 115 meals in the last two weeks.
Shannon said the club initially was called the Foxton Beach Bowling Club, but changed its name in 2006 to Foxton and Beach Bowling Club after amalgamating with Foxton Bowling Club.
Much of the Foxton Bowling Club history was on display in the building and lost in the fire too.
The club was yet to hold its 2022 singles championship, but had already been offered the use of greens at Himitangi, Waitarere Beach and Bulls clubs.
The building was initially an old 12-room house after being bought for 40 pounds by the newly formed club in the early 1960s.
