Art deco landmark's fate awaited

The Historic Places Trust is expected to announce today or tomorrow whether it will take steps to save the Jean Batten Building, which the Bank of New Zealand wants to demolish for a new corporate headquarters in Auckland.

The board, chaired by Auckland historian Dame Anne Salmond, is considering a recommendation from staff that the art deco building warrants registration.

Interim registration would prevent demolition for six months. If the trust granted full registration at the end of this period, the demolition freeze would come off but the bank would be under pressure to retain the building.

The trust asked the Auckland City Council last December to help the Art Deco Society in its quest to save the building, according to documents released to the Herald under the Official Information Act.

Trust Auckland area co-ordinator David Reynolds and heritage adviser Richard Bollard wrote to Mayor Dick Hubbard on December 20 to say the trust was assessing the society's nomination to register the building.

Last month, the council and the bank agreed to a one-month moratorium while plans were reviewed and all options were considered by a panel of councillors and architectural experts. The moratorium was extended while an urban design framework was drawn up for lower Queen St.

The bank wants to build on a prime site bounded by Queen, Shortland and Fort Sts and Jean Batten Place, which would involve demolishing the 1942, seven-storey Jean Batten Building for an 11-storey corporate headquarters.

The council has also sought a declaratory judgment from the Environment Court on whether a demolition order granted to the bank in December 2002 was still valid or, under changes to the Resource Management Act, extended to December 2007.

The papers released under the Official Information Act showed conflicting advice from council officers about the validity of the demolition permit.