KEY POINTS:
Gisborne has the chance to brand itself the "Victorian City" because of last month's earthquake, says Mayor Meng Foon.
Some buildings are going to need to be replaced and he wants Gisborne to "do a Napier" and try to bring some good out of misfortune.
"I know it has been a disaster for some people, particularly those in homes, and commercial buildings and offices have been affected, but there is always good that comes out of it.
"There is a great opportunity for our commercial sector to take advantage of this, especially with the buildings that have been built with contemporary-type materials like aluminium and tin facades.
"We have some precious architecture of which about 70 to 80 per cent is actually Victorian.
"It would be a shame for those buildings to be put back into their tin-shed profiles."
Mr Foon has spoken to some of the landowners whose buildings suffered substantial damage and has encouraged them to rebuild in the profile of a Victorian-style building.
This did not need to be expensive as they could use modern materials that looked like Victorian buildings, he said.
Mr Foon has written to all the city's architects who would have an influence in the design of the buildings to encourage their clients to build in this profile.
"This would give us a unique place both in New Zealand and in the world as one of the cities that feature a distinct and special type architecture," he said.
"It would give us the ability to attract events and tourism."
He believes the city should follow the example of Napier, which rebuilt itself as the art deco capital of the world after the devastating earthquake in 1931.
"So I hope that the building owners will be persuaded to build in the Victorian form.
"They would not only be contributing to the value of their building but also to the values of our community," he said.
Mr Foon has had a very positive response from the landowners he has approached.
He has also received advice from architects, who have suggested making the new buildings environmentally sustainable by using appropriate building materials that would keep them cool in the summer and warm in the winter, and use natural light to reduce energy consumption as well as solar energy.
Mr Foon said he appreciated those suggestions because they could be incorporated into the urban development strategy the council was preparing.
Commercial buildings would be a key focus of that.
- NZPA
